Kith/Kin

As a child I was afraid of everything. I feared that people were
naturally bad and if I left the house I would be harmed. One reason for
this was that I lived in a household where I was really the only male.
My father was a busy man and would rarely stay in town. My mother, my
sisters and my aunt constantly persuaded me to stay indoors. That way
they could avoid the responsibility of looking after me. Being an
obedient, compliant kind of person I kept away from the fearsome
outside world. Then, I met Rahool. Rahool lived in the same locality.
He was taller than me and stocky. He lived three houses away from us.
Rahool used to play cricket with his friends on the pavement adjacent
our house in the afternoons. I hardly knew anything about cricket then.
I was six years old. Rahool was older though I never discovered his
actual age. I still remember the day when the ladies were all fast
asleep. I opened the front door, tiptoed through the narrow passage and
positioned myself on the pavement. For the next one and half hour I
watched the cricket with great relish. Some very ordinary players
played the game that day. Yet, it was the first taste of freedom and
self-expression for me. Though I was scolded for venturing out of the
house I became a regular spectator at the cricket games on the
footpath. My parents were in fact happy to note that I was beginning to
develop strong likes. But what I got from those sleepy afternoons was
really Rahool's friendship. We boys chase and marry girls. But when two
boys become friends, just friends, it's a totally selfless act. I
became friends with Rahool not because he was a great cricketer. What
mattered was that he was close in age, in family background and that we
attended the same school.
When I was in the first grade, Rahool was already in the fourth grade.
But then he sat at home for one year. He failed a few times too. In the
end we found ourselves in the same class. That was quite convenient for
me. I was not allowed to go to school alone though I wanted to. But
once Rahool and I started going together the two of us were not stopped
from travelling by ourselves. It was thought that Rahool would take
care of me. And he did. When we travelled by bus he always found a seat
for me. Though we shared all costs he would buy the tickets himself.
His excuse was that I was too young to add up the money. He did not
have any siblings and it often seemed that he looked upon me as the
missing younger brother. I fell sick quite often in those days. Fever
was common. But worse things were in store. Just seven days before the
final examination of fourth grade I was diagnosed with chickenpox. It
was terrible. Here I was quite prepared to take the annual tests. The
school rules however stated that students with any contagious disease
were to be barred from taking an examination. Rahool took the matter
into his own hands. He met the principal and the rector and begged them
to make special provisions. Let me say here that the school had already
stated that my promotion to the next grade was guaranteed. The only
consideration here were the prizes that were awarded to the best
students. Rahool never won any academic prizes himself. But he was
eager that I win all the student trophies. The school authorities were
kind enough to make special arrangements for me. Though suffering from
pox I took all the tests. Despite protests Rahool took his exams at a
table next to mine in the library. He stayed with me as long as I
remained in school though everyone-students, teachers and others
advised him against it. His efforts and mine bore fruit when I secured
the first rank in my class. Rahool thus became my greatest source of
strength. I never looked for him, he was always there. I tried to help
him academically and he showed great progress. The annual sports meet
was however his greatest moment of glory. Every year he won six or
seven events. When the chief guest handed him his medals and then the
'Best Athlete' Trophy I felt proud that Rahool was my best friend. You
see though I am academically inclined I have great regard for sports
and sportspersons. They represent the highest form of physical
endeavour. Despite his immense sporting achievements Rahool always
respected me. He always said that anybody with strength could run well.
But only few could think productively. I always told him that it was
unfair to say that. But Rahool just smiled. One day I had a fight with
a certain boy. That vile person tore off my shirt. When Rahool came to
know this he brought me a sweater from somewhere. During the lunch
break he went to the local shopping mall and purchased three expensive
shirts. He gave one shirt to me, kept one for himself and gave the
third shirt to the trouble-maker. I was truly touched by this act of
kindness. Just as we grew up together we also fell in love at the same
time. My girlfriend was called Melissa, his girlfriend was known as
Clarissa. Both of us had imagined that courtship would be full of
dreamy eyes, gazing at the moon and candlelit dinners. We both found
that being in love also meant keeping the ladies absurdly pleased all
the time and not getting much in return. Naturally we had a good laugh
over this and pitied our own foolishness.
I last saw Rahool on the day School Board exam results were declared.
He had managed to pass at the first attempt-a rare feat in his family.
He was very happy. All of us had promised each other to keep in touch.
But then, Rahool's family moved to Bombay. It was only then that I
realized how great our friendship really was. I was used to seeing him,
seeing his face and hearing his voice. I derived some kind strength
from the positive vibes between us. But then one gets used to
everything in life. But I do hope to meet Rahool some day just to
confirm my faith in unselfish, non-parochial camaraderie.