I must have stood on the platform for a while. When the train dissappeared completely out of my sight, then it dawned to me. ‘My god, I am alone. Amma and Maria are gone. I am now responsible for my younger sisters’.
The platform was desserted and I walked quickly. As I was climbing up the stairs, I saw him. He was wearing a white jubba and mundu. He had a warm smile on his face.
I looked behind me thinking that he was smiling at someone behind me, there was no one. I remembered Amma telling me never to smile at strangers. But I wasn’t sure who this man was. Does he know me? Am I being disrespectful, by not returning a smile? I smiled at him thinking that he knows my family and he is friend. Three steps is all it took for a friend to turn a foe. His smile was still on his face, but his mundu wasn’t there, where it is supposed to be.
‘Oh my God’.
I moved to the right side of the stairs and ran all the way to the top, As I passed him, he was still smiling. The ticket collector was still there, hoping to catch someone without a ticket. The police man was still there, hoping the ticket collector would catch someone without a ticket. I threw my ticket in his hand and ran.
“Are you ok? Why are you running?” Asked the ticket collector.
I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.
As I came out of the railway station, there was a shortcut to my home on the left side of the station, I turned right and I ran all the way up the steep hill. My legs were hurting. I couldn’t breath. My own smile betrayed me. I was angry with myself. I tried to shake my head, so I could remove that stupid smiling face from my head. It didn’t go.
I ran another 100 meters up the hill and I had to stop. I couldn’t run anymore. My legs were shivering. I was breathless. I wanted my mother. I wanted my big sister. I wanted my father. There was no one. There was only me and I started crying.
The school bell at the M.T. Seminary school rang, and a wave of students in their Khaki trousers and white shirt came out. I didn’t want them to see me crying. I quickly wiped my tears and walked home.
As I reached home I saw Liza on top of the guava tree.
“Get down from that tree this instant” I yelled
“Why should I?”
“because I told you to”
“Who are you to tell me?”
“I am the boss now and you will do exactly what I tell you to do!”
“See Sally, I told you Nina will become a bully like Maria” Liza spoke to Sally who was standing near the tree
“I am not a bully.”
“Oh yes, you are. You are acting just like Maria” Sally spoke
“No I am not. I am me, Nina”
I hate these perverts. They just rob children’s innocence, don’t they? I bet just that one incident would have made you wary of strangers forever illai?
I know how you felt… and coupled with loneliness, the frustration was double.
Keep blogging.
it must have been hard with such crap people!.. strangers!.. and its mainly responsibility that makes you to act!! and we think they are bullying!!
How come these kind of guys only exist in kerela.. i have never seen them elsewhere.
Me being the youngest…never got o boss anyone ard…
i was alwaz bossed ard
That must have been really scary. First of all you were alone and then this man.I am glad you ran as fast as you could. Hope your sisters listened to you.
hmm……………sigh!
my brothers and i had the xact same conversation after my cousin, who was elder to me and such a bully, left for boarding. My brothers are younger to me and they thought i had suddenly become an expert boss after she left.
So Maria was bossy? And Liza and Sally do discuss the power structure. lol I think they and your Mom were very lucky to have you around.
That creep ought to be locked up. My cousin went thru a similar incident in Besant Nagar beach, Chennai.
folks, You don’t know the meaning of responsibility!!!
😉
One elder son.
Unfortunately this kind of thing still happens–the flasher I mean. I don;t know whether any of you have come across the blanknoise project http://blanknoiseproject.blogspot.com ?
Tough times!
Yetanother.software junk: you’re absolutely right! Me – another eldest daughter
Sarah: Just back from holidays from the middle of nowhere! No phone, no tv, no internet…
First thing I did was check what I had missed in here. 🙂 I’m getting addicted..tsk tsk tsk, pas bien! LOL
Anyway, your writings provide a fresh retreat compared to reading the daily happenings in the colourful world of M’sian politics!
Cheers!
me too eldest. but thankfully, i love that expereince 😉
You can find these ‘njarambu rogikal’ every time in one form or the other!!
you keep the thread going so nicely! it is so full of life, sarah! admire you 🙂
4 girls and a mom. hmm..
HA HA…we get real pissed when we come across these characters first time in life 🙂
We were putting up this big billboard for our college fest back in 02,that was thampanoor jtn in trivandrum at 2 in the nite.Now this dude comes to me n asks whter i need a ganja cig,initially was fun,but he kept on persisting and actually took some grass out…i said ‘chetta venda..’…gave him a push and scooted to my bike – this dude ran behind me for some 200 meters thru the middle of the road and finally got lost behind some turn.my hands were shakin throughout inexplicably though nothing had happened.
got home ,parked the scooter.my big dog was lying there without even caring…i gave him a kick and called him a bitch.big was pissed mightily 🙂
perveshs are out there…cant shoot them…gotta live with them
Damn!!!! That was outrageous!!! My friendz hv had similar experiences.. It simply crazy.. I dnt understand wat pleasure it gives these mentally twisted men!!
Im sure u played ur role jst gr8 in taking care of ur younger ones by jst being ‘You’..
🙂
..Me
Raji: That day I felt violated. I smiled at that idiot. that was the worst. I am forever weary of strangers..If you have lived in Kerala.. you will be.
Jac: thanks
Sujit: In a way I understood amma more then!
Thanu: I never understood this.. Why doesn such perverts thrive in Kerala?
Starrynights: It was scary.. basically because i had a very shelterd life up until then.
Lg: I know.. it was sick
Niehal: sometimes we get confused with bullying and responsibilites eh?
Silverine: the 10 yrs in India, I saw more creeps like him than the 25 years outside India… Infact as a woman I feel more safe outside India..
YSAJ: aha..
Hillgrandmom: I heard abt the blanknoise project.. it is tough to be a woman in India.. the fight for survival starts at the fertilization stage itself!
Cynthia: I miss being in Malaysia right now, especially after Dr.M is going after AAB..Missing all the action la.
Dew drops: aha appol dictatorship ishatama?
aqua:they thrive in Kerala
Rocksea: yep all woman.. all through life I wanted a brother!
BVN: Aiyya u gave up a good opportunity to smoke pot.. kashtam.. pavam patti too
Rose: I was trying to be me.. much as they were convinced that I morphed in to Amma..
I had a similar experience when I was really young too.I didn’t quite understand but I sensed something was wrong.It’s too bad that almost all girls have to go through this.