A penniless journey

This is an incident which took place in 2001. We were returning from Silchar in Assam to Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. We were supposed to visit the Kamakhya temple at Guwahati and stay there for a day. We were totally pumped up about the journey and the day before, the manager of the Tea estate on which my husband worked had invited us for a farewell dinner. The next day, early in the morning, our journey from Silchar to Guwahati by bus began. Till Shillong, we enjoyed the excellent weather and the magnificent views of the lush green valleys of Kachchar. When we reached Shillong, we stayed there for one hour during which we bought some sweets and fruits. We continued our journey to Guwahati.As the name tells, our bus was passing through clouds, fogs and rains in Meghalaya. Every passenger was enjoying thoroughly and was filled with awe. When Guwahati was 15 minutes away, I saw my husband frantically searching for something everywhere. He then asked me if I had seen the bag which carried all our papers, documents and money. He said he had spent all the money of his wallet and he had to obtain more money for the expenses on our way. He asked me where the bag was and I, quite relaxed at that time replied that it was with him. Then he thought for some time and suddenly exclaimed, “ Oh my god……I’ve left it in the almirah of our manager’s bungalow because of the important documents and the money”. When I heard that, all my happiness, enjoyement and fun transformed at once into horror. We had to spend the night at Guwahati….the next day we had to board the train….and we were penniless. My younger son was one year old and in my lap, blissfully aware of all that was happening around him. After reaching Guwahati, my husband called the manager and he said that he’d send the bag the next day with someone, but it would take time. We had to spend the night at Guwahati. My husband tried selling the camera. My elder son Ishaan, 6 years old that time, was feeling very sleepy. Our bodies were really in need of rest. My husband was still in the quest of finding a buyer for the camera, but he didn’t get anyone interested.

The Guwahati railway station, at that time, was full of army personnel and sniffer dogs. Everything was being searched and we could not even think about staying at the stations because of the kids, the luggage and the atmosphere smelling of the fear of terrorists. Then I searched my handbag and found some money with which we could buy a general ticket to Jalpaiguri. A train was scheduled in an hour and we started our journey from there. The plan was to travel in the AC compartment but as of now, all plans were forfeit. Now we were sitting in an general compartment, with kids, a lot of luggage and the presence of terrorists in the area from which the train was passing,i.e, Kokhrajar. I stayed awake all night and the eerie atmosphere prevented sleep very efficiently. Early in the morning, we reached our destination. A new sun arrived with a new hope, and all our fears departed and we saw a car, which had been sent by the management and again we were filled with joy but I cannot forget that fateful night, penniless. I still haven’t visited Kamakhya.

Seema Singh