5 SepSUNSHINE AND A NEW DAY

     Bruised and swollen,she crawled aside,her soul intact.

The swift reaction by the village idiot,who had used his catapult with precise aim to knock down the lout who had captured her against her will was the only reason she was alive. She watched as he used  a large rock to break his knees, all the while muttering that this animal was unfit to live..Making their way to the small stream,silently washing away the blood and gore,their eyes met.He was no more an idiot than she was the village witch.They were both victims of a cruel ,carnal world that preyed on innocent children whose parents lived in penury.

A bullock cart filled with hay stood by the eatery where the farm hand had gone in to freshen up.Crawling into the soft depths,they hid within and soon felt the sway as the spindly wheels trundled over the uneven village paths,taking them away from the scene.

               Sunshine and a new day,far away from the village,they crawled out in the early morning even before the Sun sent out its pale glow.Following the cattle sounds they soon came upon the village temple where the watering hole was still empty.The lonely person who emerged from the inner sanctum looked them over and raised his eyebrows,Something about his quiet sad eyes touched a chord in her soul and she narrated the entire incident ,the horror,the rescue and called out to the trembling lad who had only known abuse and contempt all his life.
    The village elder listened without interrupting,asked them to bathe in the holy waters and rejoin him at the temple precincts.Directing them to an old house some distance away,he instructed them to introduce themselves ,they would be housed and boarded for some time.Thinking quickly she named herself and the lad after the village deity(having glimpsed the names at the entrance to the temple).So they were Perumal and Bhagavathi ,the old lady accepted them,gave them some fruit and water and left them alone.
    The air was musty and smoke drifted through.She quietly picked the broom and soon tidied the little place up while he chopped fire wood,cleaned out the roof that was littered.,watered the plants,drew well water.
They had the house all cleaned up,the lady smiled,this was the start of a beautiful relationship.Introducing them as siblings,children of of a distant cousin who were orphaned,the villagers accepted them into their fold.Soon,she started attending school, milked the cows,helped around the house while he ,using his skills as a carpenter made doors,wooden fittings,repaired the temple structure,attended school.They flourished and gained acceptance as the son and daughter of the village benefactor.The old lady had lost her only son but had openly accepted the two lonely siblings who had carved a niche for themselves in Life.

 She learned music and dance and he played the Tabla.
Life smiled on them all...