The Awaited SPRING (Published)

PROLOGUE

SPRING

The beautiful "Season of Growth"

As people usually call it, and as conveyed to me by the plush sheet of fallen dried leaves in all shades of green and yellow, spread across the pavement, making the soothing rumbling sound as my jogging feet pad on them, while I continue to give subtle acknowledging smiles to the known sweaty faces who happen to cross me daily on this same jogger's road.

Easing my aching muscles by relaxing on one of my usual cemented benches on the sidewalk, fixing my gaze on nothing particular, I couldn't help but think about the sudden welcoming change in Mumbai's ever belligerent weather.

Mother Nature has always been astonishing and magical, and SPRING is like her incredible way of getting rid of unwanted and unpleasant blemishes from her ensemble. Just like a sanctifying, cleansing or formatting process.

But if you ask me, It's more like giving an opportunity to a new sprout to grow and emerge on its own beautiful way and head in its own journey. A new chance of rebirth, regrowth and rebuilding, away from the casts of previous crumples.

I wish I could say the same for a human's life, for my life.

I wish there exists a "Cleansing Season" in our lives too, where we could just leave behind the blemishes of our undesired past and start afresh, with a hope for a pleasant second chance.

I wish there exists "A Spring" in my Life too.

But unfortunately, we're humans with a complex set of emotions, we're bound to complicate things and bring them on ourselves. We can't let go of the ugly scars - and most importantly the fears left by those scars - that life has bestowed us with.

Consequently, I, Neil Khanna, am still bearing the hefty weights of the shattered pieces of my heart along with my once-happy, broken relationship. Though, after a period of almost 5 years, it doesn't ache with the same intensity, but its persistent aftermaths are still remarkable in my heart, mind and my life.

Even after all these, I wake up every day with a smile on my face and a little hope in my heart, to encounter what life has planned for me, to know what Tomorrow holds in its tiny hands for me.

This SPRING to me is Nature's way of whispering and reminding, "Not all is lost, there's always a possibility of second innings..."

Just then a gust of cold breeze hit my already reddened nose, intending to clear the haze of my thoughts behind my gaze, which now inadvertently rests on a gorgeous woman in lead-grey hoodie paired with a side-striped black joggers, sprinting on the other sidewalk across the road, carrying a brownish take-away packet in her hand.

Everything reduced to a mere background voice when my senses pinned on her dancing hazel brown eyes, that seems to spread life along its way.

Before my adrenaline rush could awaken my numb limbs and bring them to action, the girl was gone far away from my eyes, as swiftly as she appeared, merging somewhere in the crowd of Mumbai, with a hint of the grey of her jacket appearing and disappearing in between the hoards of pushing shoulders. And all I can do is sit and think about the fortunate glimpse of a few seconds that I got.

While laiding all my emphasis on Tomorrow's of life, I forgot "Today" holds the same probability, if not more.

For the first time in these 5 years, Today is the day when a girl could hold my interest for longer than expected time and honestly it's a bit scary.

A lingering flash of those beautiful orbs filled my mind as my heart dared to whisper, "This is exactly how your Spring looks like."

****

"22nd Feb"

Dear Diary,

As you already know, this is the 2nd day of the new journey of my life that I have embarked on and to say the least, I can already smell the peace and freedom in the air that I am breathing.

Another day has just begun in 'Mumbai - The City of Dreams' where I had laid my feet on, just Yesterday, with a teeny weeny dream of my own.

A dream of living a simple self dependent life.!

The weather has started to warm up recently with early Spring on its roll. The sweet melody of soft rustles of shrivelled, falling leaves fills up the ambience.

As bizarre the analogy may sound but I can't restrain myself from equating this Spring with my life where I had left behind all the odious and abhorrent thoughts that had chained me in a vicious circle of insecurities and inferiorities, and about to start a new chapter of my life, my revamped life.

"The Second Innings" as Neela Maa had playfully mentioned.

Although her notion and expectations about this frest start have been rotating about just one point - finding a suitable prissy man to get married to, but I have made my better choices.

As long as I have this cute little adorable company of my wee aged daughter, to hold my hands and walk in the long bumpy path of life, I am the happiest woman on this planet.

Consequently, I am sitting here, in the exquisite lobby of what is supposed to be the most prestigious Marketing firm of Mumbai, trying out my luck in grabbing a living for us, preparing myself to hear the result of the interview I had attended an hour ago, with all my fingers and toes crossed.

While the whole ordeal seems to be nail-bitting suspense for me, my little 4-year-old lucky charm slaying in her favourite pink high-neck sweater, was busy fluttering around the tiny pot-aquariums - that decorated the lounge- without a care in the world. Her bubbly contagious smile lifting the apples of her cheeks.

I can't wait to unfold what this city and this Spring have in store for us.

~Avni

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So, now you know, It's all about Second Chances.

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