An Important Event was planned at Sri's home. Sri was excited about the scheduled gathering because he would get to meet his cousins, nieces, and nephews and spend time with his family members including his first cousin whom he cares deeply about. At 5:00 PM the day before the event, Sri was waiting for the people to arrive. Slowly one by one, people started to arrive including his first cousin.
Seeing his first cousin and other people, Sri felt happy and started welcoming them as they arrived. "How are you, Rose?" asked Sri. "I'm doing well. How about you?" replied Rose politely, conveying her interest in Sri.
"Come in, and feel free to grab some snacks and coffee," said Sri to Rose and to the others. After some time, everyone settled down and started having conversations.
Sri became quiet, the moment Papa entered the premises. His face warped down after seeing him. Papa's face was covered with frustration and seemed unhappy, as he usually was. As soon as Papa entered the house, he went directly to his cousins and elders and started asking about their well-being, but didn't acknowledge the relatives from his wife's side. Feeling disgusted with Papa's behavior, Sri went outside to get some fresh air and saw Rose following him.
To Sri, "Rose is a calm girl with a smile on her face always. Whenever he talks to her, he feels relieved from all the worries and things going on in and around him. He then decided that when the time comes, Rose will be his wife. Rose is kind of a stress buster for Sri."
Sri slowly started a conversation with Rose, showing affection towards her, and she also showed interest in continuing the conversation. They spoke about their school, grades, their travels, near future plans, and plans to settle down when they grow up.
"Sri, Rose, where are you guys? Come inside and have dinner".
"Mama is calling," said Sri. Both of them rushed inside and saw delicious, salivating dishes on the table. They had an amazing dinner.
After dinner, they went outside for a walk. Sri felt something amazing while walking with Rose, and Rose felt the same. They didn't talk but walked for a while and came back. Mama called Sri and asked him to prepare bedding for the guests. There were many guests, but Sri's heart was towards Rose, and he prepared a bedding especially for her to make her feel special, comfortable, and cozy.
Since it was spring, the weather was nice, and all of them had a good night's sleep. "Sri, wake up. It's already 6:00 AM, and you need to get ready for the event," Mama said. As usual, he woke up with fear and with a feeling that something bad is going to happen that day.
Sri took shower, got ready, and found out that all the guests were also ready for the event. Mama was somewhat stressed, her face was filled with fear and humiliation. Sri found out that Papa and Mama had an argument that morning, and Papa humiliated and pointed in her face, broke her down, cut her off, and pretty much talked to her like complete crap. Mama tried to be a mature woman and tried to communicate with Papa effectively without cursing and without making a scene, but Papa was not that understanding.
Sri understands that relationships are hard, but Mama deserves better. When Mama left the kitchen with tears running down her face, Sri tried to stop her to give her a hug and say, "I'm so sorry, Mama, that you were embarrassed, and just know that you are beautiful and you deserve to be treated better," but he couldn't. He was born and brought up in that environment where every day, Papa gets angry at either Mama, Sri, or his little brother.
The event was a storm in a teacup. While some guests and other people may have appeared happy from the outside, inside they were angry with Papa. However, no one dared to confront him. He tends to show his gratitude to a particular group of people and ignores others, even though they keep him in their thoughts and help him whenever he is in need.
"Why are you serving the desserts now?" cried one of the guests at Sri, who was close to Papa.
Sri accidentally served desserts to the guests, which made Papa very angry. Running towards Sri, Papa snatched the dessert plate and slapped him on his face, humiliating him with harsh words while everyone watched. Sri ran out with tears in his eyes.
Papa failed to understand one thing: for appreciation from temporary guests, he lost the closeness of his permanent family members. Also, he didn't understand that by humiliating his permanent family members and treating them badly in front of others, he gave others a chance to behave in the same way towards them. To be honest, we keep our face tidy but our soul in a mess.
It was 7:30 PM when Rose and everyone left. Sri gave a final goodbye to Rose and came inside. He, his little brother, Mama, and Papa completed their dinner around 8:30 PM.
"Sri, it's time to go to bed," Mama said. She took him in her arms, hugged and kissed on his swollen cheeks. Mama wept in silence while Sri slept in peace, forgetting all that happened on that day.
CONCLUSION:
The passage is a fictional story about a family gathering where the protagonist, Sri, meets his cousin Rose and develops feelings for her. The story also highlights the strained relationship between Sri's parents, particularly his father's disrespectful behavior towards his mother and Sri. The story ends on a poignant note with Sri's mother comforting him after a particularly traumatic incident involving his father's abusive behavior. The overall themes explored in the story include family dynamics, relationships, love, and the impact of toxic behavior on family members.
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"IN GOD WE TRUST"
“With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”
Nice one!!