Waiting for a call that did not come (Part 4)

In the evening, they went down the hill to climb it on-foot. This was a part of the pilgrimage. He asked his sister to click a photo of himself before he started climbing.

‘I want to see how I look before and after the climb. Will I be able to smile after climbing three-thousand steps?’ he asked himself.

In the beginning, it all seemed to be too easy. But as the ascent increased, the steps became steeper. The sultry weather made them sweat profusely. His sister was taking frequent rests, as her husband coaxed and encouraged her.

Soon he had climbed more than a thousand steps. His shirt was dripping with sweat. He had to sit down to catch his breath And it was then he once again remembered about the call.

'If he calls me now, I may not be able to talk to him. I should catch my breath first. I will also tell him that this climb is not easy.'

He prayed for his friend and moved on. There were other pilgrims who were climbing along with him. And soon, they became all familiar faces. Many times he overtook them. And when he sat down to take little rest, they will overtake him, smiling at him, proud of themselves that they are better than him. But soon, he will get up and start climbing, and they will watch him skip ahead of them. This game went on for many minutes, and finally the steepness of the steps decreased! The way ahead was not so steep. He bought a water bottle, and drank to celebrate the milestone. He noticed that a deer park was now visible on the left-side of the steps.

There were few deers watching the pilgrims behind the fence. Many people stopped at that spot to take rest, and entertain themselves with the deers. They were offered eatables which were lapped up eagerly. He sat watching this scene, and made a mental note to tell his friend too.

He continued climbing. As he had left his sister behind, he received an SMS from her to wait. He sat down at a comfortable place, and looked around. It was almost twilight now. The shadows on the hill were becoming darker. As he glanced through the landscape around him, he noticed the water-bottles thrown in by the devotees.

“On one side we have come for pilgrimage. On the other side, we spoil the God’s creation, the Nature itself, by piling up plastic wastes”. He felt bad about it, but could not find any dust-bin nearby where those bottles could have been thrown.

He sat waiting, and thought about his friend. He had not called yet. What could be the reason? Has he forgotten his promise? Or he does not care now that his work was already done. Tears welled up in his eyes as the face of his friend swam before him. He wiped them out before his sister arrived at the spot.

He was surprised to see that at certain spots, they had to actually climb down steps even though they were going up the hill. His brother-in-law told him that it happened because they were moving from one hill to another. Soon they were again climbing up.

They finished the climb in three and a half hours. It was pretty dark. He asked his sister to click another photo of himself. Then they went back to the guest house where they were staying.

He was tired and his legs were aching. As he lied down on the bed, he thought about his friend. He now knew that the call he had been waiting for will not come.

Any task that is on-hand should be done with single-minded concentration. Thinking of something else not only prevents one from enjoying the current task, but also takes away focus. Living in the present moment is most important. And on a pilgrimage, it is foolish to be thinking of something else other than God.

It was a tough lesson that he learned over 24 hours of suffering.