Feature

This neighborhood, which now seemed so unfamiliar and hostile, was the place where I had spent my golden years. Not only was I born here, but every playful afternoon of my childhood and every adventurous evening of my adolescence was spent in this very place. Nevertheless, as I grew towards adulthood, I remember that the coziness of the small suburbs had started to feel suffocating to me. I wanted to be in a happening place, I wanted to be happening. And so I set off alone - against my parents' desires, against my friends' advice. Blinded by dreams of fame and fortune, I had left behind this neighborhood in search of what I then called 'life'. And 'life', with its ironic twists, had brought me back to the very place I had started off from.

As I walked on, I recognized some of the houses. Every afternoon, the warm, inviting smell of palatable meals would waft out of these windows - windows that were now barred shut and the only smell they emitted was the musty odour of decaying moss. The nameplate of the local school, which used to stand tall and proud, swung broken on its hinges. I remembered how my friends and I would plunge into fights to get a turn on the playground swing, around which we'd play our boisterous games. A shockingly unfamiliar sight to me - it now swung vacant, creaking slightly.

I sat on the swing and thought of the priceless part of my life I had given up. All my life, I had heard many soothing sonatas, but none could erase my father's ever-reverberating baritone. Even after having witnessed innumerable spectacular sceneries, reminiscing about my friends' amiable faces is what motivates me the most. And undoubtedly, my mother's homemade muffins beat all the scrumptious five-star meals I've ever had. How I crave to meet them again! “Where possibly could have everyone gone?” was the question driving me insane.

All of a sudden, my tearful eyes caught glimpse of a beam of light disappearing around a corner some distance afar. Urged by instinct, I rushed after it. As soon as I went around the corner, I was blinded by the beam of - to my disappointment - the headlights of a taxi.

I got on the taxi and asked the driver to take me back to the congested, clamorous city, where it seemed I now belong. As we drove away, images of my childhood and adolescence flashed before my eyes. “Deeni”, I heard a sudden call. I looked back immediately - but no one was there. I guess I was destined to walk a lonely road.

(The student is an A-Level student of Sunshine Grammar School and College, Chittagong)