The Kashmir Dialogues
By M S Nazki
- The picture with the story brought back nostalgic reflections and memoirs when I was a Class IX student studying in one of the leading schools in Srinagar in those days. I had always wondered what it would be like to walk on a journey with someone who loved me. And yet every day I sat in the same spot, on the same minibus (blue colored), riding to the same place (my home)…all alone. My life never changed much. For the most part it was a constant cycle of mundane repetition.
Get ready for the day, eat a sandwich with cream cheese and strawberry jam, rush to the bus stop, my mother used to scream, and then sit in my favorite seat while the humdrum of the bus slowly moving along took me to my final destination. My school. The place I simultaneously lived for and dreaded at the same time. And so here it was, another ordinary Tuesday as I sat in my seat and observed the people around me. A wave of loneliness would wash over me again, but I would shrug it off as usual.
-But kids now are not alone! They have companions in the form of men in uniform! They love walking the distance with the soldiers hand in hand , talking and then dreaming, ‘wish I would become like him one day’! The picture with the story suggests exactly that! But more on this later!
-I have an interesting story to relate here and this one is from my P days! We were returning from a night Patrol and the dawn had almost been enveloped by the morning rays of sun. A young lady Yasmeen and her two kids crossed us! I knew that they were on an errand to get firewood from the forests! I asked Yasmeen, ‘you can go to collect firewood at noon also! ‘The answer was simple……for breakfast we also need firewood and then for lunch and dinner’! But there is another reason too, she added, ‘since it is October and the beautiful fall colours are making their yearly blazing entrance into our lives, I thought this would be a good reason to get out and go for a walk and collect firewood! It is a warmer than usual fall day, but the colours were still nice to look at. The path meandered along the river and went from open areas to being thickly packed with towering trees. I usually thought about nothing and everything while on these walks because you can go the whole walk, sometimes an hour or more, without seeing a single soul.’ I just looked at her, smiled and walked away!
On our way back the leaves were crunching underfoot and the squirrels were rustling around in the trees, but thankfully there weren’t too many bugs. They had pretty much disappeared for the year. It’s not easy to enjoy a walk through the woods when you are being harassed by mosquitoes, deer flies, horse flies, and other pests. In fact, I once had a deer fly harass me for a kilometre and a half on one of my walks. Buzzing me, landing on me, being shooed away and then coming back. I knew the little bastard would bite me if given the chance. That is until I smashing him against my arm on one of his landings. Then and only then did the harassment stop. Well anyway, back to our walk. There was nothing special or noteworthy about this particular walk. It was quiet, it was pretty, it was peaceful, blah blah blah. Until…the Pakistani machine guns opened fire. They were firing all over the place but not targeting us! I wanted to respond but then thought that there is time after twilight to prick them!
Here is a small story about an Army Dream! I noted the same in my diary and here it goes!
‘It was a cloudy night and it was about to rain heavily. I was staring at the sky when I started thinking about my wonderful country. I was thinking that if I ever get a chance to serve my country, I would become a part of the brave and loving team of Indian army officers. just like my parents.
I knew that getting there was difficult and the training was even more difficult but I decided to work hard towards achieving one of my life goals. At school, I told my friends and they all started laughing and teasing me that I could never be a part of the Indian Army. I felt really bad and got demotivated. Was it true that a boy like me couldn’t be in the army? I felt as if they were speaking the truth.
I decided that somehow I need to achieve my dream. But how? I didn’t even know how to ignore mean comments. How could I be in the Indian Army? Later at home, my mother called out to have dinner. Dad was watching the news about some magical stick found in my city, but I could hardly focus. My thoughts were still on my dream.
The next day was a normal day at school, during interval when I went to the washroom, I found many boys standing outside the washroom. I got curious and went inside to check what the matter was. I found a pigeon almost dying because of a small stick stuck to its beak. It needed help and I jumped in to take out the stick. As I took out the stick it looked at me with relief. It felt so good to save a life. I decided to keep the stick with me as a souvenir.
After the interval, it was history period and all I could do was think about the stick and the pigeon. The teacher caught me daydreaming and asked me to stand up and answer a question. Hiding the stick as I stood up I was surprised that I knew the answer. It was a miracle! I wondered if it was because of the stick and kept it in my bag safely.
That night, I again started dreaming and wishing to become an intelligent and brave female army officer. The next morning I found myself in the army uniform sleeping in an army room. I pinched myself to check if I was dreaming again. Oh! It was real! It was unbelievable! It was all because once upon a time a soldier caught my hand and made we walk the distance! But one of his words I do remember, ‘If you want to do something for the Nation become a soldier’! I did become one!
I saluted the colonel and was shocked to see that he knew me and I knew his name too. I was so excited that I was part of the great Indian army. They were taking a physical test and I qualified with ease. My heart felt like wow!
