Mrs. Foura, a vivacious, outspoken lady in her late forties, is my colleague. I have never seen her without a cheerful smile on her face, and her morning wishes and laughter have always been contagious:- The day had been gloomy with the onset of winter, cold and windy, with the continual rains adding to the sublime beauty of nature's blessing, if I want to put it in a more positive way!
The coffee area in our office was deserted in the morning, and being an early bird, I was enjoying an espresso from the bar.. Savoring this energy drink in the morning, I was lost in thoughts, contemplating future, thinking about my journey back home and the stuff that I still need to buy for my dear ones, and the like.. When I last spoke to the little one, he wanted a helicopter that can actually fly, with a three sixty degree remote control.. Apparently, he has seen someone flying it in a cartoon channel.. I was thinking about the possible malls where I could pick up one of those.
A light cough had woken me up, breaking my reverie and random thoughts. Out in the corner, Mrs. Foura was making her morning cup of coffee, and surprisingly I noticed tears in her eyes, and a couple rolling down her cheeks. Trust me, it was a little embarrassing for me to disrupt her and ask the reason, or just to speak up something that could probably help.. A lady crying in front of you and talking to her in a deserted coffee area in the morning may not sound that good, even in this I mind my own business kind of place, where people are not that privy at all.. I hesitated for a moment, but what if she needed some help, and I could do something? I did not break the silence, and continued to sip my coffee, paying no attention (not sure why I did that, another basic instinct:-).
She came over and pulled out a chair opposite mine.. "Roy, you know what? I got a chance to talk to my son after a long ten years!" Well, to me it was not a news, and thats quite common in many cultures, where children fend for themselves the moment they are out of school.. She continued..."He had left home at 15 as a school drop out, and I never knew where he was..He never left a note, never called me, never called any of his three sisters.. All these long 10 years.. I have been looking for him, visiting every restaurants and bars that I can think of in this country thinking that he would be bartending in one of those.. Every shops and malls that I could possibly shop hoping to find my little boy's face, at least once, in the trams, rail stations, airports, the journey never ended.. And just yesterday, I got a call from one of my friends saying that she met my son in a little country bar, as a bartender.. I called the hotel, managed to get his cell number, and we spoke. The moment he heard my feeble voice, he said he did not know me, he said his last name and family name and father's name, but he said he doesn't remember me..The little boy who wanted a red toy car from Manor, the one who wanted a black super man dress for his school day, the one who wanted to play out in the rains with me, the one who wanted to walk with me holding my hands all along the beach, the one who liked mama's beef steaks and plum puddings, and the one who grew up with me.. He doesn't know me any more.. She stopped, and I could see another couple of tears streaming down her cheeks. I was speechless for a moment, and was thinking about my own little ones, longing for their sweet kisses, and to cuddle with them to sleep, reading through their favorite bed-time stories....
Cheers
Roy
The coffee area in our office was deserted in the morning, and being an early bird, I was enjoying an espresso from the bar.. Savoring this energy drink in the morning, I was lost in thoughts, contemplating future, thinking about my journey back home and the stuff that I still need to buy for my dear ones, and the like.. When I last spoke to the little one, he wanted a helicopter that can actually fly, with a three sixty degree remote control.. Apparently, he has seen someone flying it in a cartoon channel.. I was thinking about the possible malls where I could pick up one of those.
A light cough had woken me up, breaking my reverie and random thoughts. Out in the corner, Mrs. Foura was making her morning cup of coffee, and surprisingly I noticed tears in her eyes, and a couple rolling down her cheeks. Trust me, it was a little embarrassing for me to disrupt her and ask the reason, or just to speak up something that could probably help.. A lady crying in front of you and talking to her in a deserted coffee area in the morning may not sound that good, even in this I mind my own business kind of place, where people are not that privy at all.. I hesitated for a moment, but what if she needed some help, and I could do something? I did not break the silence, and continued to sip my coffee, paying no attention (not sure why I did that, another basic instinct:-).
She came over and pulled out a chair opposite mine.. "Roy, you know what? I got a chance to talk to my son after a long ten years!" Well, to me it was not a news, and thats quite common in many cultures, where children fend for themselves the moment they are out of school.. She continued..."He had left home at 15 as a school drop out, and I never knew where he was..He never left a note, never called me, never called any of his three sisters.. All these long 10 years.. I have been looking for him, visiting every restaurants and bars that I can think of in this country thinking that he would be bartending in one of those.. Every shops and malls that I could possibly shop hoping to find my little boy's face, at least once, in the trams, rail stations, airports, the journey never ended.. And just yesterday, I got a call from one of my friends saying that she met my son in a little country bar, as a bartender.. I called the hotel, managed to get his cell number, and we spoke. The moment he heard my feeble voice, he said he did not know me, he said his last name and family name and father's name, but he said he doesn't remember me..The little boy who wanted a red toy car from Manor, the one who wanted a black super man dress for his school day, the one who wanted to play out in the rains with me, the one who wanted to walk with me holding my hands all along the beach, the one who liked mama's beef steaks and plum puddings, and the one who grew up with me.. He doesn't know me any more.. She stopped, and I could see another couple of tears streaming down her cheeks. I was speechless for a moment, and was thinking about my own little ones, longing for their sweet kisses, and to cuddle with them to sleep, reading through their favorite bed-time stories....
Cheers
Roy
No comments:
Post a Comment