I was unable to decide which path should I walk on. The poem of a famous poet would flash in my memory and I would exclaim "Ah” with a sigh. My wife was in ICU and I kept on looking at her. Just then, Dada's name flashed on my cell phone. A strange voice inquired if it was me on the line. I nodded my head but did not realize that the caller could not see me. He said to me that Dada was no more and had donated his eyes to Vaishnavi, my wife.

My eyes filled with remorse, regret and repentance.

This story began on the bench of a Charbagh railway station. A handsome man sat there, checking his phone. He saw a teenager boy beside him. wondering what that boy was doing there. He asked the boy why he was there. The boy replied that his parents were too poor to make ends meet so he ran away from home, seeking his future.

The boy had an alarming confidence in his eyes. The man offered to help and asked the boy to come with him. Having no other promising alternative, the boy decided to trust the man.

Eventually, the boy was given everything that the boy could dream of. He ended up becoming a well to do man. The man who helped him was now an elderly man, who sought support from the boy in his old age. In the meantime, the young boy got married. His wife was pretty and supportive. But as soon as she came to know that Dada was not the young man’s real father, she started misbehaving with him. The young man could not have imagined his life without both of them. There was a daily melodrama episode in the house.

Dada decided to take a transfer for official reasons. But all three of them knew the real reason. He did not let a single day pass without calling his Dada.

The pollution in Delhi had increased. He forced Dada to spend the winter holidays with them and he requested Vaishnavi to be calm until Dada was here. She agreed to it with some conditions. But fate had other plans stored for him. His wife Vaishnavi and he met with an accident and she lost her eyesight. He wept bitterly and broke down in Dada’s arms. He was there for him. No donor was ready. Now, days and nights were the same for her, she was in eternal darkness. At home, Dada had also felt chest pains but he kept quiet about it, dismissing it to be due to the cold. The young man started frantically searching for eye donors. All his money and approaches were fruitless. Then he received this phone call. By now you might have guessed that this unfortunate boy was me. My Dada gave his final and priceless gift to me by saving my love.

Sometimes I feel that he loved me so much, that he wanted to be with me even after his death. Some relationships are beyond blood.

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