TRULY, THE MISSING WARMTH!

The elderly gentleman on a particular day traveled to the distant Lands on the other part of the Globe.. After settling for a while, soon he started going to the nearby Super Stores for purchase of his daily essentials and other requirements.. There, whenever he approached the Cash Counter, the usual Greetings used to be..

• “Hi! How are you? Did you find everything?” 

for which he quickly had learnt to respond saying,

• “Yep! I'm doing good!” 

and join the subsequent short conversation, pay the cash, take the items and say

• "Bye!"

and come back.. A few times additional words like

• 'Excuse me!' '
• 'It's OK!', 
• 'Thank you!'  
• 'You are welcome!' 

etc too used to come out of his lips..

Soon, it became so routine that he started repeating the required words without his own knowledge and the person in front who interacted on that occasion used vanish from his mind the next moment..

That way his life had become so mechanical in the foreign land and finally it produced such a dull feeling in him having thus got disconnected thousands of miles away from his dear place where the talk, warmth and the interaction used to be totally different..

He almost became sick of that routine life with no change and thus was leading the well acclaimed best life indirectly as dull and monotonous counting on his days of stay there.. Being aged, certain other activities which usually keep young men and women diverted were again out of picture from his mind..

They say that every cloud has a silver lining and it exactly happened soon in the gentleman's case too..

One day as he picked up his items at the Stores and approached one of the Cash Counters where an elderly lady of almost his age was ready waiting for billing.. As he neared, she smiled and said,

• “Hi! How are you?”

He too smiled and said his usual words..

• “Am doing good!”

To his surprise, the elderly lady with a broader smile continued,

• “No.. I think, not so good, isn't it? We, the aged have some problems, they never leave us, we can't tell them to any one so easily too and that way we got to live with all that given.. What do you say? Am I not saying the right? OK! Very nice talking to you.. It’s……… and here is your Receipt….Thank you very much, Bye!”

The gentleman was just taken a back with the jovial way the lady of his age spoke the facts to the point with such a warmth at the back of a simple smile and bidding a heart felt good bye to him..

The next day early morning, he had to visit the Shop again to buy some fresh curd and was soon at a different Billing Counter.. Suddenly to his utter surprise, he heard a gentle voice greeting him with all Warmth,

• “Aap kaise hain?” (How are you?)

He was instantly thrilled at those ‘Sweet Words’ never expected to hear at the new Place.. Before he could respond, the friend at the Counter continued,

• “Dahi le rahe hain? Ek choti si kaali mirch aur namak ke sath roti dahi vaastav meh ek achha naashtha banaatha hai….” (Buying curd? Actually, Roti and curd along with one small green chilli and salt will make a good breakfast!)

The elderly gentleman felt extremely happy at his heart with those words and responded with a big smile saying,

• “Aap Sahi Bola!"(You said the Right!)

The new friend finished the billing quickly, took the cash and handing over the item again responded with all pleasantness,

• “Alvida, Dhanyavaad!” (Bye, Thank you!)

for which the gentleman could no more hide his emotions and suddenly said aloud with a great warmth to the surprise of others around

• "Bahut Dhanyavaad, Alvida!"(Many Thanks, Bye!)

and returned home with an unknown 'great feeling' at his heart!