The café was bright and brimming with unseen energy. The tables were mostly full, except one or two. At one corner sat Trisha. She just finished her tea. She paid for it and then closing the book she was reading, she prepared to leave.
Someone yanked open the café door. A young man entered, must be in his twenties. He looked around, chose a table right beside Trishaâs, pulled the chair and sat. He looked distraught. Frantically, he punched at his mobile, put it at his ear and waited.
âHello? Pooja? Please donât disconnect. I still donât understand why you are breaking up with me! We can work things out. I swear I will never let you downâ¦..No, wait⦠listen to meâ¦.Pooja? Are you there? Pooja?....â
He sighed and disconnected the call. His face screamed the language of hopelessness. There was a story in him wanting to be told.
Trisha walked up to him.
"Hi, waiting for someone?"
âNo.â
âCan I join you, if you donât mind?â
âYeah, ok. Sorry, but I am not in a very good mood.â
âHi, I am Trisha. Sorry, but I overheard your conversation. Felt like asking.â Trisha sat down.
âI am Ronit. Thatâs fine. I was loud anyway. Thanks for asking though. I just broke up with my girlfriend.â
âYou or she?â
âWell, she broke up. And I am brokenâ⦠he shook his head, smiled wryly.
âWhat are her reasons?â
âShe is being pressurized for marriage by her family. She says she cannot marry me because I am yet not financially soundâ.
âIs she entirely wrong about the assessment of your financial situation?â
âNot really. But I am trying to get where I have to. All I wanted is time! It could have been worked out right?â
Trisha smiled. âLet me tell you a story. Care to listen?â
Ronit sighed. âYeah, sure. Go ahead.â
**********************************************************************
Four years ago. Bangalore.
âBhaiyya, that Ganpati idol on the dashboard looks so beautiful!â
The driver grinned, without turning though, his eyes fixed on the road. I was on my way to the Airport in a cab, I was flying back home from Bangalore.
âMadam, were you here for work?â
I thought for a moment.
I said. âWell, no. I was here to meet someone. Actually⦠my fiancé. He lives here.â
This time, the driver turned around for a second â âOh, Congratulations Madam! Whenâs the wedding?â
âThank You, Bhaiyya. Three months away!!!â
âOk Madam. All the bestâ.
âThanks again.â
The driver reached for the glove compartment and brought out a small golden idol of Ganesha.
âHere Madam. Take this. Gift from me.â
I was amazed at the thoughtful gesture. âOh thank you so much Bhaiyya!!! Itâs beautiful!!!â
It shone in the afternoon sun and was so tiny it could be held in the palm. I put the idol carefully inside my sling bag.
The phone rang.
I smiled. It was him. I answered.
âHello?â
âHi, did you reach the airport?â the voice came floating by.
âNot yet.â
âTrisha, I need to tell you something.â
The voice sounded grim.
âYes, tell me?â
âTrisha, I wanted to tell you this earlier, but somehow couldnât bring it up.â
There was a pause.
âI canât marry you, Trisha.â
For a moment, my heart stopped. âSorry?â
âNo, I am sorry. Youâre too good for me Trisha. I guess I donât deserve you.â
âWhat are you saying⦠I donâtâ¦.â
âTrisha, I am just building up my career. I donât even know where Iâll be landing a few years from now.  What if youâre not happy with me? You are such an amazing girl, independent and free. I donât even have a great place to stay. I know our parents have decided our match, but I just feel I am yet not ready.â
Tears filled my eyes. The coolness of the AC inside the car didnât seem to work anymore.
Finally I spoke. âWe can make efforts to make situations good for each other, right? I mean thatâs what life partners are all about? I know we havenât interacted a lot. But we can! Thatâs why I came down here to meet you, right? Letâs keep ourselves a priority for each other, then everything else should work out I am sure!â
âNo Trisha, I have to be honest with you. I donât think I am ready for marriage. I donât want to take the plunge just because my parents want me to. I hope you will understand.â
âEveryone in my family and your family is aware that weâre getting married. Can we just make this work?â
âI donât want to make you wait for me, Trisha.â
There was silence.
âI am sorry, Trisha.â
âYou should have thought about all this before. You didnât. Donât say sorry to me. Say sorry to yourself. Youâve not let me down. Youâve let yourself down.â
I disconnected the phone.
Suddenly the world came crashing down on me. I looked at the window pane on my left in a bid to hide my tears from the driver. My dreams were shattered. What was I going to tell my parents? Relatives? Friends? People wonât stop talking, right? How could he do this?
I reached out for my bag for a tissue to wipe my tears. I felt the Ganesha idol I had just kept inside. I fished it out and held it in my hand. A drop of tear fell on it.
âMadam,â I was startled when the driver spoke. âThe airport has arrived.â He stopped the car. âCan I say something Madam?â
Did he realise I was crying? I wondered.
âYes?â I sniffed.
âMadam, that Ganesha idol I just gave you, that will take you to your destination, no matter whatever obstacles you face on the way. See, like, I am a car driver, I know my destination, I know my way, so Iâll follow that. On the way, I might face traffic, blockages, bumps!!! But Iâll cross them anyway. Our life is like that. Sometimes, I might also have to take a different route, might take longer, but destination will stay constant and I will reach it anyway. You are starting a new life. That Ganesha idol I just gave you, will protect you and show you what you have to do in life, Madam. Best of Luck. Shall I stop the meter?â
âHuh??!!!â I stared at him. Collecting myself and my thoughts, I said - âYesâ¦. And Thank You so much for your wishes.â
********************************************************************
âYou must have been devastated.â Ronit said.
Trisha shrugged. âHappens. Yeah it was tough initially, but I bounced back. The driverâs words were the real savior. The incident changed my life for the better.â
âTime heals everything, right?â
Trisha raised a brow.
âTime? Are you kidding? In that case, every broken heart and every misled mind would have got mended and bounced back within the same time frame, right? Like, how the doctor prescribes antibiotics? Give yourself a week, and youâll be cured? No way!!! Time is never a factor at all. You are. I was. I had to decide whether I wanted to hold on to it, or let it go.â
Ronit looked on at her. âBut it hurts.â
âWhy should it? When I think about the incident now, I only have a lot of gratitude for him! When someone says he doesnât deserve me, and that I deserve more, I think he has done the right thing to let me go! Your girlfriend, sorry ex-girlfriend, you should be thankful to her. She has chosen to set you free to focus on your career.â
âBut she could have stayed with me. Why did she have to leave?â
âBecause she wanted to. Simple. I think you should wish her well in her life, if you really love her.â
âI still donât understand.â
âBecause you are choosing not to see, Ronit. This is your chance, I suggest you trust yourself.â
The café suddenly broke out in a loud cheer. Trisha and Ronit turned towards the door. A huge crowd had gathered around an idol of Ganesha that was being taken to a neighbouring pandal.
âItâs Ganesh Chaturthi tomorrow,â said Trisha. âGanesha, the one who diminishes all obstacles.â
Ronit smiled.
Trisha turned to him and continued.
âRonit, sometimes the hurdles are within us, but we tend to look outside most of the time. The obstacles may seem on the outside, but to win, it is you who must be willing to take the leap. Where thereâs a will, the ways do open up. We have to find the Ganesha within.â
Ronit nodded.
Trisha looked at her watch.
âIâll have to leave.â
âBut you didnât have anything.â
âOh I did have some tea, I was here a good half hour before you came in. I was moving out anyway, but stopped to talk to you.â
Ronit smiled. âThanks for your time.â
âNo problemâ, Trisha said, as she rose.
She walked a step and turned back.
âGanesha is also about fresh new beginnings. The Universe constantly sends us signals about things we need to know at any given point of time. You just have to learn the language. I hope youâll remember this. All the best.â
Ronit rose from his chair. âSure. I will. Thank You for sharing your story, Trisha. Pleasure meeting you.â
âSame here, and stories are meant to be created to be sharedâ. Trisha winked and smiled, turned and walked out of the café.
Someone on the street called outâ¦âGanapati Bappa!!!â
The entire café broke out in a loud cheerâ¦âMoriya!!!!â
(All stories and pictures of Trisha's Anecdotes are the author's copyright.)