Remembering Times

 Sometimes back we (two of my friend sisters and me) were terribly in search of an apartment.  Finally we got one on the outskirt of the town, though our peers helped us a lot in our search. We hurriedly went for a shopping spree, bought some curtains and other basic stuffs, etc. We settled down immediately and were so excited for the new beginning that we didn’t take note of a Very Important Person who was going to be a part of our life till the period we were going to stay there.

We realized what a blunder it was on the first day when the tap ran dry and tenants there survived on the mercy of the landlady. Scarcity of water. The flow of water on the tap depended on the mood of our dear lady. For me, it was not the first time I faced such a situation. I had suffered similar instances earlier in my life while studying in a boarding school. It reminded me of some bygone era.

One after another challenges surfaced. We became the object of interest in our landlady’s eyes since we were three young girls perhaps. Much to our amusement, she was handling our lives. She became a source of pain, enquiring about our whereabouts each day… just like a stern matron or for that matter a mom. No doubt, she was a matron; rising us daily at five in the morning (Can anyone believe??). Over the time, we befriended the stray dogs but it was a nightmare for our friends who visited us. They never allowed any stranger to pass our locality. And, yeah the disposal of garbage. So, when you see the road sides and rivers being polluted think of it. People don’t throw garbage everywhere purposely.

But one generous quality which impressed me a lot about her was the cleaning campaign that she initiated. Every weekend along with the tenants she cleaned the basements, swept the floor,. And to mention she graciously invited us for the cleaning campaign on our first Sunday there. A salute to our bossy lady.  

A larger part of our memories are already engrained there. We teased each other about the big ladder that was kept near our veranda when we come home from late night parties, and a bike on the basement, may be waiting for us to ride it when we go for late night out.

After staying there for three months we kinda couldn’t survive our lady and her untimely wishes. So, we moved on. Now we are once again in search of freedom and joy, to explore the unknown. Our small rendezvous with the wild was unexpectantly exciting. We learnt to live with each other and formed a strong companion to defend the intruders. We were accustomed to a life of help, share and care for each other. We taught each other how to survive in the world. So, we became good buddies once again.

(P.S just my opinion on the problems suffered by tenants).