Mrs. Olivia
Ritu, a sweet bubbly girl lived in a small, beautiful town where everything was limited in number: the population, schools, colleges, shops, parks, holy places, clinics and hospitals too. She was a little butterfly fluttering happily enjoying the nature. There wasn’t any tree left in her colony that she had not climbed. She was a kind and compassionate girl.
The whole town seemed like a family for Ritu. She experienced beautiful moments there as people of different castes with various traditions lived harmoniously. The town’s mighty wings brought all families under one roof for all festivals whether it was Dushera, Diwali, Eid or Christmas. All families knew one another personally and went to great extent in helping each other through thick and thin.
The fragrance of itr during Eid, the aroma of sweets during Holi and Dushera and the decoratives and lightings during Diwali and Christmas always thrilled and enthralled Ritu. She along with whole town used to visit the park on special occasions, to see the fair, to enjoy the orchestra, dance on favourite tunes, visit stalls of eateries and stuff herself with varieties of delicacies. She always felt nowhere else in the world so delicious sweets and snacks could be prepared. The procession especially on the Ganesh Chaturthi day used to be a marvellous sight. Ritu waited eagerly to watch idols both great and small, and run behind the idols to get sweets and savouries to munch on. She enjoyed Christmas and New year as those days were specially meant for get together and picnics. Feast with friends and relatives was unforgettable for her. The women in her neighbourhood were so helpful in making snacks, papads or fryums. Ritu too lent a helping hand and learnt many things to do together being kind and jovial.
Time passed by, Ritu had to move to a big city after her wedding. She missed all the petty things though there were lots in the city to experience compared to her town. She felt these days it’s hard to see such love, fun and harmony.
Ritu always becomes nostalgic whenever she meets people from her town. She always loves to share, describe her hometown and her sweet childhood memories with her friends and grandchildren, who too believed from her description that her town was no lesser than heaven or London or Switzerland. They too wished and prayed for such a peaceful and harmonious place for themselves and for the coming generations too.