Hi there…Good day to you…was what I said to my student who is in her fifth grade . I happen to meet her in the market… She stared at me for a moment and then smiled at me a smile that can melt an Ice Cream in seconds. Did you come all alone? I asked her and she smiled again… I looked around her and asked her again. Is there anybody else with you? She smiled again…I looked at her again her smile still on her fine-looking face. I came up with actions this time asking her, are you going home? She gave me a big smile this time and nodded her head up and down… I asked her, Can I walk with you till your house? She smiled again and looked up at me…Once again I asked her with actions and repeated it thrice…Each time she smiled and finally came a big smile… and she pointed at a pink bicycle…I then told her you ride the bi-cycle, I will run along with you…She smiled again and walked to her cycle and she started to walk along pushing her cycle. I then asked her I will push the cycle for you we shall walk. She shook her head in the No direction and continued pushing … I tried to take it from her but she would not give … I then told her you get on the bike and drive I would run, no problem … I even made actions of running, she then gave the same big smile and gave the bike to me and we walked… I asked her questions as we walked she would just smile or shook her head in the yes and no direction.
We had entered a village it was noon time and I was not able to see anyone around …though we passed by few shops… the people were sleeping inside…she then took her bike from my hand … I asked her ,” Have we reached?” She pointed her finger to a house at a distance I wasn’t even able to see it, I asked her pointing to the spot and asked her again, Is that your house …She shook her head, smiled at me, waved her hand to me and was about to start riding the bi-cycle, I held the back of the bi-cycle and told her I want to come to your house … She looked at me with a hard smile and shook her head in the No direction.
I held on to her cycle and told her again and again…Each time I increased the actions. She finally agreed walked along pushing her cycle I tried to take the cycle from her she looked at me again with her hard smile gave back the cycle to me… I could see the house; it was a stilt house… It had no doors or windows it was made out of wood and it was raised up from the ground, it looked like a rectangular box with one of its sides opened… I went closer and saw an old lady lying down. The girl jumped into her house woke the old lady… who woke up very slowly and sat down for a while , the girl then shook her up and made her look at me … the old lady wiped her eyes several times and tried to look at me… I then moved closer to her…to make myself visible to her. She smiled raising her folded hands…I told her good day to you… she smiled…the little girl jumped down from her house took the cycle from be and tapped on the house … she was wanting me to sit...I sat near to the old lady who kept smiling … I did the same thing and spoke to her with actions telling her … I am teacher…She is my student…The old lady just kept smiling…I then looked around the house to find out whether anybody else lived here.. I could not find any signs. It was a very empty house with just few clothes of the girl hanging here and there; very few vessels were arranged in a corner…I asked the old woman … Where is the father and mother of this small girl? Where are they?
She smiled at me…I knew she did not understand the question… I made actions again and again and all I got was smiles….smiles… smiles
Some stories never have an ending… My days in this strange country are coming to an end and all I have is incomplete answers to a number of questions…All that I would carry back home is SMILES…SMILES… SMILES
