A Bee & The Lotus

"More or Less,
             we all need Love"

A young and handsome Bee was in search of flower-nectar for purpose of making honey. He was flying but none of flower attracted him. 

Suddenly a sprouted red lotus, blossoming in a pool of waste water distracted the Bee through its fragrance. 

The Bee went near her and just when he was about to suck the nectar of the flower, Lotus closed herself. Bee got angry and with an annoying voice said, 
"You bitch, you are growing in waste. No one here cares about you. It is me who acknowledged your beauty, how dare you to close yourself ??"
Lotus very politely replied, "Dear Bee, in this world how could you get all for nothing. To get something, you must give or sacrifice something"
Bee replied angrily, "Ok don't blabber much just say what you want??"
The Lotus smiled and replied, "You have to find it yourself, come back to me when you are done."

The annoyed Bee flied. But his anger didn't allow him to forget the incidence. He was very much stubborn, he decided to do anything and everything in order to get nectar from Lotus.

He saw a Beetle flying, he went near him and asked, "Hello my friend, do you know what does the Lotus wants ??"
The Beetle replied, "How would I know, I never need Lotus for any of my work"

He then went to cloud and asked, "Hey beautiful cloud, do you know what Lotus wants ??"
Cloud replied, "Yes !!! She wants water"
Bee happily flied to Lotus and said, "I promise I will water you every day, now let me suck the nectar."
Lotus replied, "I get water from cloud, why would I take it from you, try again my dear Bee"

Confused Bee flied again, this time he went near sun and asked, “Hey Almighty, do you know what the Lotus wants”
The Sun dashingly replied, “Yes!!! She needs sleep” and thought *why would I help Bee, who is he to me??*

Bee happily flied to Lotus, “I promise I will sing for you and make you sleep.”
Lotus smiled and said, “Oh! My poor Bee the night makes me sleep calmly, why would I want that from you??”

Bee was helpless; he began crying and screamed all his heart out. 
A passing Sage heard his cry, he called Bee and said, “Every God’s creation needs love. Not only humans but even animals, flowers, birds all want love.”
The delighted Bee thanked the Sage and flied back to Lotus. 

He smiled and kissed her. The lotus smiled and opened her; the bee went in and stole the nectar…

[[ An English version of a Sanskrit story which I had read ]]

Its true this might be story but it tells us a number of things..

• In this world, we all need love. A thing which is hard to be done through force or power can be easily done with Love...

• Nobody wants to do anything without any favor. Here, to get anything we have to sacrifice something. Most in fact All are selfish here...

• Nobody cares about you until and unless they have some work from you...

• Last but certainly not the least, no one is a waste here, each and everyone are valuable in some or other manner....

Copyrighted: Santosh Panda

The Diamond Ring

I was sleeping. 

My face carried an everlasting smile as I was returning back to my hometown after 10years of hard work in the city. I was dreaming of the days when my relatives and my cousins cursed me in every possible way and never hesitated to call me a ‘Loser.’

Well, someone who failed in his matriculation exam deserves to be called as such. My heart cried everyday but I never complained. I had no one to save me from them.
It’s not that I was an orphan but it won’t be wrong if I call myself a half orphan kid.
My father died even before I was born and my mom tried everything she could, for my upbringing. Since she hadn’t had any other source of income, she stayed with my maternal uncles. My maternal uncles never treated me different from their own kids but my result was enough for them to make shit out of me.
Except my mom, nobody had ever thought that I could achieve anything in my life.
Meanwhile, my sleep was disturbed as a female voice spoke on the speakerphone,
“All the passengers are requested to tighten their seal belt, as we are about to land”

I didn’t care her, I was sure nothing can touch me before I present my mom with the gift that I had bought for her. I checked the left pocket of the blazer that I was wearing. The gift was safely placed there without being disturbed. I had a sigh of relief and rested my back with a gentle smile.
The flight landed;
after the regular checkups I was out of the airport. A large number of people were waiting for the arrival of their loved ones. It would be very foolish of me if I start searching some familiar face. I shook my head,
how could there be any familiar face, do anyone even know I am back??
My Mind screamed with a big “NO”
My hometown was 120kms away from the Airport and there were no trains to that place. So rather than going in bus, I preferred to hire a taxi. After negotiating the rates I got myself seated in the rear seat. I didn’t have much luggage, just a bag pack of my favorite shirts and formals. I checked my pocket; the gift was safe getting the warmth of my black colored blazer.

I took it out and opened the top cover. A diamond pierced ring looked at me all smiling and glazing. It was for my mom; I searched every shop and had picked the best ring. It’s not that I was very rich but for my mother, I won’t mind spending all of my earnings.

The muddy and not so good road made my journey a little lengthier. I stopped the taxi near a flower vendor and took the best looking bouquet.

After 3hours I finally reached at my hometown. In these past years, many things had changed. The kachha houses were changed into pakka ones and market looks much bigger than it was 10years before.
After walking couple of miles, I reached the place where my mom lived; a grave.

She has died; died 10years back.

I placed the bouquet and the ring which I had bought for her on her grave. Tears rolled over my eyes and fall on her grave, her face was flashing all over my mind.

It had been 10years since her death. After her death there was no one whom I could have called mine so I run away from my house the day she died. It was my father who left me when I was born and it was my mother who left me when I was able to stand of my own….


Copyrighted: Santosh Panda

A Story of Unconditional Love

This story is about a girl..

With all her heart, she was deeply in love with a boy...

It was raining heavily, she was waiting for him to come… She waited for hours but didn’t complained.. She was smiling, she was very sure that he will come. 

She checked her mobile but there was no message or any missed call. Even then she didn’t felt bad, she smiled and assured her own that there might be some problem..
She waited.. 

Hours later, her mobile beeped, it was a message from him. It took all her happiness with it.. He dumped her with a message, 
“It’s not the same anymore, I don’t feel the same as I used to do earlier, better we don’t see each other anymore.. MOVE ON!!!!”

Her heart chocked, her breath became happy.. She never thought of it but it happened.. He ditched her for no reason.. He left her alone.. He left her crying..

It was raining, outside as well as inside her heart !!! 

She couldn’t believe.. She did nothing wrong.. Then Why?? 

She didn’t complained, she accepted the bitter truth… 

All the day, she stayed at her bed, neglecting food and neglecting her.. Her friends tried everything to cheer her up but they failed.. She cried… Cried until her tears dried… 

She didn’t say any word to anyone.. She just cried…

Same thing happened for days… for months… 

She gave up, she broke.. She wasn’t in a state to handle her emotions anymore…

With a rose in her left hand and a blade in her right, she slit her left wrist as deep as she could.. Her bed which were full of tears until now became red.. 
She killed herself.. She died, wishing to be with him in the next birth.. Wishing to be with the same boy who ditched her.. Wishing to be with the same guy who broke her heart, and in a way who killed her… 

She misunderstood him, Truth was something else....

He had everything in his life.. If money was not everything, then definitely he was the richest of all.. He had a beautiful girl who loved him unconditionally.. He asked nothing more to god..

It was the Saturday evening.. He was lying in his bed talking with his lady love.. Suddenly he coughed, he disconnected the call and got up.. What he witness was hard to believe for him.. It was blood.. Everytime he coughed, it was only the blood which came out and filled his hand..

Without wasting any time, he went to the hospital.. Doctor took a sample of his blood for further medical check-up.. Somewhere deep inside, he had fear; a fear of going away from his love.. Keeping his finger crossed he waited for the final report.. He called her and they decided to meet in a CCD tomorrow..

It was 9pm, doctor gave the final report and that made all his world dark.. It showed he had Cancer, a Cancer which is non-curable and he has only a couple of months with him.. He never had any bad habits, he never smoked, he never took any Alcohol, then why him??? 

He cursed god for giving him something which he have never dreamed of..

Life betrayed him.. It gave him the worst possible thing a man could ever get, it gave him Death..

It was Sunday.. His love was waiting for him in the CCD. It began to rain.. It rained heavily.. He never wanted to be the reason of sadness for her, so he decided to break-up.. He decided to end that relationship which meant everything to him.. He texted her, “It’s not the same anymore, I don’t feel the same as I used to do earlier, better we don’t see each other anymore.. MOVE ON!!!!”

That was the last time he talked with her.. She didn’t complained, she accepted the fact.. He was happy, he was sure that she will forget him in some days and would happily live her life.. 

The Moon was the only Witness of their unconditional love as he hugged his death with a smile...

She was in love. 



Copyrighted : Santosh Panda

Inner Peace

Drowned with cigarette smokes and cup of teas one after another is the way in which I like to spend my day. 

As usual when I was having my umpteenth number of smoke of the day, one of my childhood friend called me. I was surprised on her call as she calls me quite rarely. I picked the call and answered with a polite, "Hello"

She asked me what I was doing.

I replied back, "nothing much, just clicking on some random stuffs in fb"

With a little harsh voice she asked me to stop whatsoever I was doing and told me to reach AUROBINDO Ashram as soon as possible.

Being an Atheist I tried to ignore her invitation but she was too stubborn to buy that and finally she won, I gave up and told her to wait for 15 minutes.

On seeing me getting ready, my Mom asked where I am going. She laughed as I answered, "Ashram"

It took me around 20 minutes to reach Ashram from my home.

She was standing there waiting for me. As always she was looking too beautiful and the smile which she possesses is enough to make anyone fall for her. She didn’t look surprised on seeing me as she already knew I was going to come. 

I am an Atheist and I never liked to visit any Temple or Ashram but to spend some quality time with my best friend I could compromise with my life for some mere hours. 

We went inside and that very moment I felt numb. The wind started becoming colder as I moved ahead and my heart started pacing up. I didn’t realize what was happening to me, but it was something which I never ever have experienced before. The inside of Ashram was more or less crowded but still silence was prevailing all over the area. I was only a few kilometers away from the hustling and tussling of the city but I was feeling as if I m somewhere in a lonely island with no one around me. The faces of all the people were full of sparkling shines and each one of them in their religious attire was looking like some angels of the heaven. I was obviously an odd one out from those. 

Before I could feel anything more, she held my hand and told me to follow her without uttering any words but just through her eyes. 

She went inside a room and I followed her. 

A big mounted box like structure made up of stone or may be marbles was present in the middle of the room. She went near it, placed both her hands; and in between the gap of her hands she kept her head touching that box. I stood at a distance and noticed her lips moving and uttering something. Deep within, something urged me to do the same; a force attracted me to that box but in the same time an egoistic me stopped me from doing so and made me remember by Atheism. 

After finishing her prayers she looked towards me and her eyes forcing me to come near her and offer prayer. But I didn’t.

I came back home after dropping her back. I light up a cigarette to smoke again but something within myself stopped me from doing so. I was feeling somewhat relieved from all the tensions I had; something within me had changed after coming from that Ashram. 

##

Through this, I am not spreading any spiritualism neither I wana become a "BABA" 

Just wana say that the peace which we search for lies deep within us. In a day, we come across a number of things; some hurt us while some leaves an everlasting happiness.

So I wana ask every reader who is reading this to take out some time from their busy schedules and think about the happy moments which they came across the day.

Rather than crying remembering the past its better to think about the moment which made you laugh.... 

Thank You.. Feedback will be appreciated....

Copyrighted : Santosh Panda

.

For....Ever

Past memories were flashing in front of Rosy’s eyes as she was resting on a couch, a Sunday evening. She was remembering how she met Sam for the first time; she was thinking about their first date, their first ride on bike and their first kiss. One could easily notice a blushing smile on her lips as she was recollecting her old memories.

Sam and Rosy were college mates, both were having same taste on various things and this made them come together. It was Sam who proposed Rosy and she accepted his proposal as she knew she can’t get a better partner than Sam. Their relationship was not like any other love couples relationship, they were quite different, and they spent time together without getting physical all the time. Kisses between them were to express how much one means to other not to satisfy their lust. Both were happy in their relationship and they knew they were not meant just for this life but for the next thousand births.

They fought, argue over small matters but they never got serious and later laugh together how stupid they were to fight over those small and silly talks. Life was like honey and roses everywhere.

As in this world sad and happy are brother-sisters, their life also took a huge turn whey Sam realized he is suffering from cancer. He didn’t want to inform about it to Rosy but he can’t hide such a thing from Rosy too. Rosy got shocked and thought Sam must be joking but she had to believe the bitter truth after she saw the doctor’s report. Sam had only 4 months on his hands and it was incurable.

Rosy never left Sam alone, they spent those 4 months being in a living relationship. And their living relationship was not like others, they just wanted to spend those last moments together. Rosy treated him as she would have done to her husband. Early morning she wakes up, make coffee for him and they would have their morning coffee together. Even then they were so happy being in each other’s company that they totally forgot about Sam’s disease. Sam too never showed any worries; he behaved as a normal being, loving Rosy the more he could do. 

They never cried, they laughed and smiled being in each other arms. Sam left Rosy some months later with a smile and a note;

“If not in this birth, sure in next birth, I promise it sweetheart we will be together; Love u forever…….”

Rosy never got marry again, she was happy with Sam’s memories. She never missed Sam, she always said that Sam is still with him so why to miss or cry……

Copyrighted : Santosh Panda

She + Me = Forever Love

Facebook - a social-networking website does a lot more than just providing a medium to people to stay connected. One such example is, giving people an opportunity to express their feelings for their beloved.

The same happened with Simran. She literally had a huge crush on a guy named Ayush. They were good-friends, but Simran could never confess her feelings. 

It was during his AISSCE when Ayush got a friend-request from Simran's new Facebook ID. He accepted her request and then signed-off as he had to study. Despite the busy schedule, he used to take out time for his scarce leisure time for Facebook. 

During one such leisure minutes, Ayush logged into his Facebook account and found Simran online. He messaged her with a 'Hi!'. Simran's happiness leaped all bounds on seeing his message flashing on her laptop screen. She immediately replied him back. After chatting for sometime, he signed out. This casual chat went on for some days with intervals in between because of Ayush's exams. 

During one such casual chats, Simran expressed her feelings for Ayush. She said that she had a huge crush on him. But her heart knew that it was not just crush, but love. Ayush thought it to be teenage crush and tried manipulating Simran's mind saying that such crushes and infatuations are okay upto a certain limit and too much mental involvement would lead to distraction, which will not be fruitful as such crush won't last long. And in Ayush's opinion, wasting entire life for something temporary was not wise. Although Simran knew that it was not just crush, but love; she did not oppose him. She loved each and everything Ayush used to say. 

Ayush was heart-broken, as he had broken-up in December. He had made up his mind of never coming in relationship ever again. He said the same to Simran. Simran's heart sank, but she didn't oppose him or tried defending her love. She promised herself that she will help Ayush get over that girl and forget his past; not just because she wanted him in her life, but because she cared for Ayush and could not see him in such state. She wanted to make Ayush realize what true love is. 

And from then onwards, Simran's love for Ayush increased manifold. She used to take care of even the most minute things - like, whether he is wearing his spectacles while using his PC, phone, etc. or not. It was all normal for Ayush, but special for Simran. Days passed and they started enjoying much more in each other's company on Facebook. 

Once, Ayush found himself waiting for Simran to come online. He was startled at first but then smiled later. But his smile vanished when she didn't come online even after an hours' wait. She came online the next day and that made Ayush jump and hop with happiness. She replied to his older messages and then they started chatting. She called him 'Baby' that day, and he liked it. Ayush's heart was indicating his mind that he had already fallen for Simran but his mind was not ready to accept the fact. His mind constantly warned him against falling for someone. It is said that girls have power to bring miraculous changes. This applied to Simran as well. She changed Ayush's mind and he began to be sure of his feelings for Simran. Ayush thought to confess his feelings, but then decided to give himself some more time. 

Ayush used to go for jogging every evening. Once on his way to the playground, he decided to speak his heart out that day. He was constantly smiling while thinking of all this. He reached the playground, plugged in his earphone and started jogging. Five minutes later, Facebook Messanger on his phone played the notification tone of his phone and Simran's message flashed. He stopped jogging, paused the music, unplugged his earphone and replied her. Then after few minutes, with a bit of hesitation, he said that he loved her. He confessed his feelings in the simplest way, using the simplest words; but those words were most special for Simran. Simran's happiness knew no bounds. She just wanted to hug Ayush and she said the same to Ayush. Ayush naughtily replied, 'Shyah! I missed the chance! with a wink smile. And that marked the beginning of their relationship. 

Every love story faces problems. No love story goes perfect and without hindrances. Simran's and Ayush's love-story was not an exception. Just after 3 months of their relationship. 

Ayush had to move to another city for further studies. The day-and-night chats, texts, phone calls - reduced to almost zero. They were in contact, but got to hear each other's voice once in a blue moon. None of them were okay with this change, but none complained. They were doing this for their better future. 2 months passed. Ayush got a chance to visit his town. He told this to Simran. She was extremely happy. Ayush packed his bags and left for his town that night. The next day, Ayush was at home. He could not wait to meet her. He called her and they planned to meet the same evening. 

But the Nature played its role in testing their patience. Black clouds covered the sky and it started raining. They had to postpone their plan. This happened for 2-3 days continuously. Ayush, short-tempered by nature, was burning with anger inside. Fourth day after that evening, the Nature decided to let the two love-birds meet. Ayush called Simran and asked her whether it is possible for her to meet him. She happily replied with a "Yes!”. Both choose a place to meet. Ayush was there before time, as he could not wait to see his 'Wifey' - that's what he called her - his Wifey. 

After three days of continuous rain, the atmosphere was perfect. Cool winds blew all around; trees and grasses were lush green. The environment was filled with pleasant smell. The sights of distant hills were soothing. Ayush was enjoying the beauty of Nature while waiting for his Wifey. Maybe, three days of continuous rain was Nature's plan to provide the most beautiful couple a perfect environment to spend time together. 

Finally, she came. Ayush's heart missed a beat on seeing her. Though it was not for the first time that he was seeing her, but still he could not stop himself from admiring her beauty. For Ayush, she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Simran came and hugged him. Ayush hugged her back. Both kept holding themselves for long. Nobody wanted to get freed from each other's clutches. Their hug tightened. That was not suffocating, rather comfortable. Simran could hear Ayush's heart-beat. She wanted time to stop. Ayush was rubbing her arms lightly and she loved it. She smiled. Ayush kissed her forehead. 

The place was a bit crowded, contrast to the place they wanted to spend some time together. Ayush and Simran left the park on Ayush's bike for a picnic spot on the outskirts of the town. They reached and he parked his bike and started walking with Simran by his side and her hand in his. They started talking about random stuffs. Actually it was Simran who was speaking. Well, Ayush!? He loved listening her speaking. He was constantly looking at her lip movement. Simran noticed this, blushed and looked down. Silent prevailed again. 

They stopped walking. Ayush turned towards her. His hand was still holding Simran's hand. With his other hand, he raised Simran's chin. Simran knew what was going to follow and so she blushed. Ayush smiled. He tilted his head. Meanwhile, Simran raised her heels, wrapping his hands lightly around Ayush's neck. Ayush's hand was holding her waist and other hand was feeling her soft face. Simran closed her eyes and Ayush spent few seconds admiring Simran's beauty. He then moved his head forward, closing his eyes in that course. Finally, their lips met. It was their first kiss. After a long passionate kiss, they stopped. 

Simran was looking down, still blushing. She was too shy to look at Ayush. That innocent face of Simran made Ayush love her much more than ever. He hugged her. Both were much happier than ever. They kept walking around, holding hands, without speaking a single word. Ayush wanted her to speak. He could listen her speak continuously. So he tickled her. She laughed and that broke the silence. They talked, laughed, teased. They were extremely happy with each other. It started getting dark. Ayush suggested it's time Simran should return home. She unwillingly agreed. They hugged for last time before leaving. Ayush dropped her home on his bike. Simran got down and after exchange of goodnight kiss and 'I LoveYou', walked towards her home. Ayush stood there watching her go. He was happy. Ayush left the next day, with lots of happy memories. What followed was their eternal love for each other…….


Copyrighted @ Santosh Panda