Next day Shravana had gone to the garden for the flowers. He was picking up roses on that day. He was hurrying up with the task. Suddenly a thorn pricked his finger badly. With a cry he withdrew his hand and in the process the thorn tore his flesh creating a long gash. Blood spurted out as Shravana looked in horror and moaned.
Just as he was moaning a girl materialised from behind a bush and ran to him. She had seen Shravana picking flowers and getting hurt by the thorn prick followed by his panicky action of aggravating the prick into a long tear in flesh. The moans and the cry of Shravana he had heard.The situation was such that there was no time for the hesitations and formalities. Without any diffidence the girl grabbed the hand of Shravana and examined the damage as blood kept spurting. She held the finger a bit tightly to control the bleeding. Shravana felt some relief. In a reflex action the girl tore a long strip off the end of her sare and bandaged the hurt finger of Shravana. That stopped the bleeding as the blood clotted in the bandage.
Shravana stood stunned at the fast work of the amazing girl. He did not say anything or protest because everything the girl did felt so sensible and comforting. The finger now felt less painful. Shravana looked carefully at the benevolent girl.
The girl felt the gaze of the young man and they felt shy in a very natural way. After some moments she complained, “Why are you staring at me like that?”
“I am sorry if I offended you,” said Shravana and added, “I had the right to know the girl who helped me was a human in flesh or an angel. I had never experienced some one being so kind to me except my own parents. If you are an angel please vanish when I close my eyes for some moments. I don’t need any divine help. I and my parents will somehow survive. Leave us alone.”
Shravana opened his eyes and found the girl still there smiling. She was no angel or apparition. She was a human in flesh just like him.
“You are real. May I know your name?”
“Vidya is my name.”
“Vidya!” echoed Shravana looking intently at the girl, “Vidya literally means knowledge. I salute you Miss Vidya.”
“You are mocking at me by being so formal,” the girl, spoke and said, “I have a request to make if you don’t mind.”
“Please say whatever it is.”
“Don’t be so formal and respectful to me. I am very junior to you in age. I feel very uneasy when you treat me as if I were a senior woman. Treat me like a junior. That will make our relationship very natural and easy. Call me by my first name. No formalities please. Is my request accepted?”
“Of course it is. If that is what pleases you. I will be totally informal. Don’t worry,” Shravana smiled. “Thanks for the help, Vidya. It really stopped bleeding. I have never had any experience of treating an injury but you knew what to do.”
“That was normal thing. In everyday life it happens all the time in families and homes. We all get small injuries and know what to do about them and how.”
“Shall we know a bit more about each other or you are not interested?” Shravana asked.
“But I know all about you,” the girl revealed.
“You do? That is a surprise for me.”
The girl turned red.
“Tell me what do you know about me?”
“You are the son of Shantavana. Gyanwati is the name of your mother. You are the only son of your parents. Your name is Shravana Kumar.” Vidya had the correct biodata of his family, “And you are totally dedicated to the service of your blind parents.”
Shravana stared at the girl and asked, “How do you know so much about me?”
“It is natural. I should know everything about you. Who else I would like to know about?” said Vidya and giggled sweetly. She bit her lip.
Shravana watched her act confused. He took some hint but didn’t understand her completely. He thought for a while and said, “Vidya, you know everything about me but I know very little about you. Would you like to hear what I know about you?”
“Tell me.”
“Alright, then listen…”, Shravana hesitated for a moment and said it,”…you are a thief!”
“Thief!?” exclaimed Vidya, “What have I stolen?”
“You have stolen my flowers! You have been stealing flowers from my garden.”
Vidya could say nothing.
“Why are you silent? Accept it or deny. Have you been stealing my flowers or not?”
“I have been. Alright, I accept it. I have been rustling flowers from your garden.”
“Why?”
“Just for pleasure. To play with.”
“You stole my flowers just for pleasure…to play with? That is very ridiculous, Vidya. What pleasure or sport is there in stealing flowers?” asked Shravana and reasoned, “It is alright if the purpose is to help some one. For that cause stealing or telling a lie can be justified otherwise no. That is the basic principle my parents teach me.”
“Then, you must forgive me this time please. I will never steal flowers again.”
“Alright remember…,” suddenly Shravana remembered something he had forgotten, “Oh God! Oh God!!” he exclaimed in alarm, “He had got very delayed. His parents must be worried sick. So he must rush home.”
“Is everything alright?” Vidya asked.
“I had promised my parents to return with flowers as soon as possible and I got delayed here. Today they are fasting you know.”
“Your finger is badly injured. I will pick the flowers for you.”
Shravana meekly nodded his head in agreement.
Vidya hurriedly picked flowers for him and he ran home with the flower basket.
As he reached home he found his parents anxiously waiting for him with worried look on their faces. Gyanwati heard his footfalls and said, “Son, are you alright? Something got you delayed. Isn’t it?”
“I am alright Maa. Don’t worry. Sorry for being late. I am really sorry.”
“But your voice is not normal. There is a touch of pain in your voice.”
“Maa, it is no big thing…”
Shantavana said, “Son, we three are now one body. Our bodies have become sympathetic. Any pain in your body gets carried to us in many ways. We feel it. Tell us what happened?”
Shravana could no more hold back the story of his confrontation with Vidya from his parents. He narrated the incident in detail as it had happened. The thief who used to steal flowers from their garden turned out to be a girl who was so kind and helpful he said. The old couple was amused but when they learnt that their son had injured finger they fussed over him. They touched his finger and caressed it as if to transfer the pain into their own bodies.
The troubled faces of his parents worried Shravana. He said, “I did not want to tell you about my finger getting pricked by thorn because it could unnecessarily worry you. But I had to reveal to explain the delay in my return which worries you so much. It is a small prick which should not cause you any concern. Now it is alright and there is no bleeding. The girl has bandaged it good.”
“You should not hide anything from us son! We don’t want even a bit of harm coming to you.”
“Alright Maa. I won’t hold back anything from you in future.” Promised Shravana.
Then Shravana got busy in his chores.
Thus, days, weeks, months and years went by. Shravana and Vidya continued to run into each other in the garden. With time they developed a very close and intimate relationship. Shantavana and Gyanwati had learnt to use patience and they no more complained about his delays to come back to them. The old folks could understand the situation their son was going through.
On his part Shravana hid nothing from his parents and told everything that happened to him outside home. And that included his encounters with Vidya and the things that transpired between them.
Shravana and Vidya had fallen in deep love over the period of time. They wanted to be in the company of each other all the time. She eagerly waited for the time Shravana would come to the garden to pick flowers. Vidya would already be there. Sometimes by the time Shravana reached the garden Vidya would have already picked the flowers. That allowed them to spend more time together talking to each other. Their love was platonic and sentimental. No physical aspect was involved. Both of them wanted it that way.
