It had begun to rain. First, gently, and then, a heavy downpour came calling on the meadow. The west wind rose to the sky, howling furiously. And the rains lashed down upon earth, as if in vengeance, in a violent outburst, as tormenting flashes of lightning rode the sky, and the dark clouds cast their spell, swallowing the sun. The forest fell silent as the rain drenched every soul, Zara and the elephant included.
Zara did not remember seeing such a storm before when she grew up by the riverbank. This, certainly, was different.
Presently, the hog rose, stinking, grunting, plastered in mud, and charged deep inside the forest. And one by one, the monkeys ran helter-skelter.
‘What do we do, Elly?’ Zara asked.
‘Ahem! We are stuck,’ the elephant said, almost apologetic about his weight. And they stood wondering by the meadow’s edge. The elephant turned around once, looking at the tall green grass. Then turned around once more, now facing the forest that looked dark and foreboding. A puddle started to gather on the meadow, soon blanketing it under a sheet of water.
‘What do we do now?’ Zara asked again, when a voice interrupted, ‘Kitch, kitch, kitch!’
Zara bent on the elephant’s back, looking to the ground near his feet. It was the monkey.
‘Hi! What brings you here?’ Zara asked, her mouth agape, engaging an ape for the first time ever.
‘Hi, Zara! I am Monk!ee. I belong to the forest,’ he said, jumping up to the elephant’s shoulder, right next to Zara.
‘O Monk!ee, tell us fast what to do. It’s quite damp and cold out here in the open,’ Zara snapped.
‘Yup! Sure it is. But it’s fun, too,’ replied the monkey.
‘If I wanna hide from this rain, I really need to dig deep under the rock, but the fun is not in my being able to chart my own path and move ahead alone. The fun is in being able to do it while taking everybody along,’ the monkey said at the speed of a hurricane in a single breath, flashing his teeth.
‘Yeah! I understand,’ screamed Zara. ‘Now do it and show us the way.’
‘Sure, I will,’ said the monkey. ‘When you reach the city, you will be greeted by a graffiti that says, “Greater the challenge, greater the excitement.” Come, it’s time for an adventure.’
‘You sure are having fun, while I am drenched to my bones,’ Zara shouted back.
‘Yeah, keep playing the game, Zara. Make the best of it while it lasts,’ the monkey said. ‘Every day is a new day. Every day you gift yourself a new world, Zara.’
‘It beats me how? I didn’t quite ask for this,’ Zara shouted. ‘I’m so wet . . . and disgusted.’
‘Think again, Zara,’ the elephant interrupted. ‘You asked me to the city. So, here we are.’
Zara, visibly irritated, shouted back, ‘Guy! You sure have a way with words. I asked for the city, not the jungle.’
‘The way to “the good life” is through the jungle of the mind. Zara, you have to walk through the forest to reach the city one day,’ the elephant shot back, smiling.
Zara raised her face to the tormented sky, slapped her forehead and cried, ‘Good Lord! Now cut the crap. Why did I have to ask for this?’
In the distance inside the forest, the storm raged hard and the wind creaked through the hollow, and then, a giant tree came crashing with a thud, shaking the ground. Even the elephant trembled.
‘Never blame yourself Zara,’ the monkey came back from his momentary distraction, scratching his head. ‘Never lose faith in yourself. You are the best that could ever happen to your Universe, Zara,’ he said.
‘But what exactly brings me here?’ Zara asked. ‘Why do I have to trample through a storm-wracked forest to reach my destination? Isn’t this an unnecessary diversion?’
‘It’s the way you look at life. Tell yourself, Zara, that you are here to revel in the wonder that comes from the abundance of nature. Take a good look around. The thunderstorm is gone. There is simply no sorrow, no disgust for you when you chart your life’s destination,’ said the monkey.
It was calm once more as a pleasant quiet descended upon the forest. The earth was soaked in water, the leaves and branches and the tall grass heavily drenched in the rain. Slowly, but certainly, the sun winked from behind the clouds, their dark and menacing demeanour making way for giant silvery-white puffs in a westward drift. The west wind crept back upon the meadow, with a gentle chill. Whistling!
The koel caught the drift of the whistle. Then shaking her throat clear, she sang:
Oh mind, don’t ask
Of the
Hows and whys,
Your voice will guide you
Outta darkness one day.
And all the other birds of the forest joined in chorus:
Your voice will guide you
Outta darkness one day.
‘The trick, Zaru,’ the west wind said, going down, prodding the elephant’s ankle, ‘is to walk one step at a time, upright and honest. There has to be integrity in every step you take.’
The elephant raised his trunk and blew his trumpet, very pleased with himself. Then, one foot at a time, he moved forward across the meadow, towards the forest, leaving giant footprints in the mud.
‘That’s a good way to go, Elly,’ the west wind said, and then, rising with a whoosh to where Zara sat on the elephant’s shoulders, she whispered into her ear, ‘Be normal. Be natural. Keep courage. The storm is over. Once the image is gone, it’s the end of story. Change your mind every day, Zaru.’
‘As ifff . . .’ Zara dragged herself, taunt painted on her lips. ‘Can’t you feel I am wet and lonely? And the jungle looks so scary. Whateva brought me here?’
‘What’s done is done,’ the west wind said. ‘There’s little point talking irrelevant stuff now that you are here. Be Aware. Have Patience. Practice. That’s “app” for you, Zaru.’
‘Get it?’ the elephant asked Zara, forcing his pace towards the forest through the slush. ‘Be what you are. Be Aware. Have Patience. Practice. And the biggest storm shall pass over. I am, Zara, what I am. Just be! For app’s the nature of the beast.’