2nd day life 2

https://youtu.be/NUhp1SObKNA

 I am Dilip Kumar, an auto driver originally from Katihar, bihar now working in okhra phase 2 in Delhi. How can I continue to live life in this isolated and locked down world. There is no social support system for me. I live in a 5*6 single room with four friends. During the day, we mostly cook and spend time watching videos on the mobile and sleeping and playing cards. At night, the darkness brings along with it, negative feelings and fears. 'am I going to starve here? To death? What will happen if 3000 rupees I last have is spent? We are jobless and have no source of income. How will I go on without money, without hope. A country which has money to spend on election campaigns has no money to put us on buses and trains to help us get back to our villages. Life is so unfair. The most dreaded moment of the day was when family called up on your phone. It was too difficult to lie to them. I would just mumble excuses when they beckoned me to come back home. Living like this seemed impossible. I gathered all my courage one day and told my family 'I am coming back to village soon.' I lied to them that our boss hired a taxi to drop his employees back to their native place. It was highly unlikely to have a boss who would do that. Maybe in some places people are like that. We work like animals so that our bosses don't have to live a life of misery but during hard times they never pay heed to our problems. It seemed cruel. Even pets were looked after like family but 'migrant workers' were treated the worst. It was like we did not belong anywhere. No one wanted us for anything anymore. They abandoned us at a crucial stage of crisis. There was chaos everywhere, but what we were seeing was only the tip of the iceberg. There's more brewing in the minds of people than what meets the eye. There was unrest in the lives of everyone.

I packed my megre belongings and decided to walk all the way to my home in Katihar. I resolved I would never come back to this wretched city. My family were from agriculture background. We still owned small pieces of land. So I decided to cultivate the land. Or I could run a transport service, I could grow vegetables and sell from village to town.

My friends decided to stay back in the flat. They said walking that long is impossible. Government will arrange some means of transport by a week. Somehow I never believed that. So I set on my journey that march spring morning. I decided to embark before sunrise and planned to carry some food to eat for lunch. I had some cash with me and safely hid it in my sock. Before sunrise I left home and reached the outskirts of the city by mid morning. I saw many people walking along the highway with me. It gave me strength to see I was not alone. I brought with me some fruits mostly bananas to fill my stomach. I would stop when there was a lake or pond just to relax and give rest to my feet. Few monkeys were sitting near the pond, I shared with them the bananas I 

had. Monkeys are considered sacred in our country I holded my hands in devotion, seeking their blessings before I began my walk again. Once in a while a lorry or truck driver would be kind enough to give me a ride and I would entertain him with stories of my life. Being an auto driver in a city like Delhi can be quite an adventure. It was never my nature to be sad and worried. During this phase too I carried the same attitude. Especially now when I saw groups of people moving towards the village like me. Even small regret I had disappeared looking at these people. I saw fathers carrying kids over their shoulders, mothers tying babies to their waists, old people doing the best to not depend on others. There were all sorts of people here, tall and short, fat and thin, I saw young men hooked on their phones listening to the radio and old men praying to God. My thoughts would resonate with their feelings. Though faces were different, their emotions stayed united. Despair! 'What will happen to us? Will we reach home safely? Will we be alive to see our families?' these questions were being discussed among the people I was travelling. I always had an ear for people's conversations. Good conversations made me happy, I would laugh along with the passengers in my auto. Sad conversations made feel low, like this one time when a couple decided to break up because the girl was getting married and the boy had no job to support the family. Life was funny that way. My auto was a favorite with lovers. I hated to ask unnecessary questions and would mind my own business. Maybe that's the reason why couples preferred my vehicle. I was happy to ride to any place and never said 'no' to any customer. Life was kind. 'Ahhh! Monkey just missed the banana' that I threw to it. I had travelled the whole day and it was night now. We were walking in a village with few huts. The villagers came out of their huts and stare at us walking. It seemed to them like an entertainment. For us, it was nice to see people with their families in their homes. This village in particular was very helpful. Villagers were sharing home made food with the migrant workers who were tired and hungry. One family welcomed me into their home. I asked for drinking water and was helped by a small boy who carried a jug of water and a tumbler. I was very thirsty and gulped down the water. The man of the house suggested I rest for a while, and announced to his wife that food be prepared for the guests. I was very impressed with the idea of home cooked food. I was least expecting any kind of hospitality in this journey. As I sat on the muddy floor I requested for charger to charge my phone. The same boy who got me water took the phone and connected it with the charger. Nonstop music for tomorrow I smiled within myself. The village head was making rounds to everyone's house and presently entered my host's house. Everyone stood up in respect to the old man. 'where are you traveling to my son?' he asked. 'katihar Saab' I said with folded hands. He looked at me sympathetically and said 'will you return to the city when the situation normalises?' he asked. 'no Saab, I will work on the fields' I replied with resolution. 'But you people went to the city so that you need not work in the fields I thought' the old man said. It struck like an arrow to my heart. My mind raced back to the day when I told my dad I wanted to leave to the city. My father never approved anyone leaving the village. 'how will you live in a strange world without your family?' he would repeatedly question. Now as I sit orphaned feeding from an unknown family, his words echoed in my ears 'you return to where you belong. That's the law of nature.' tears rolled down my eyes as I emptied the last morsel of food. Farmers you have saved me in my difficult times and I owe my life to you. I resolved to be a farmer and work along with my brothers. I was not afraid of getting my hands dirty with mud any more. There's no place like home and no people like family.