Two and a Half feet Brother

Some times I wonder if I was a bird! I can soar high up in the sky….. away from the world and the people who care less for anything else but them, would that make me happy I wonder? I wonder when I think of people who choose not to work in middle of the floods, the reason. It is a holiday. Who made holidays for rescuers? Shouldn’t you just rest to gain strength so you are back on the ground to help? Some times I wonder if I was born to a crooked world, a world with lesser love and less sympathy. All these questions and no answers, I was falling asleep. I had a dream I was a bird a bird which soars high in the sky detached from all earthly strings! I saw a child who is barely 4 years of age, can’t imagine how it would be for the parents who lost their children in resent floods in Bihar or the children who have no Idea if their parents are still alive. (If they have concept of birth and death). I can feel the pain a parent must be going through. Being a father even the dream of it horrifies me to the extent that I almost stopped my heart beat. I don’t know what happen to the parents but I know this 4 year old is the only hope for his 2 year old brother, who has no one else except his four year old Hero, who he thinks would protect him from all no matter what, A little angel who looks into his eyes and says without uttering a word, brother are you sure you will be able to carry me through all this water and mud and this four year old looks into his eyes and comforts him “Yes! Don’t you worry my little angel I am your older brother and I will take care of you” Who blessed him with so much courage, wisdom and sense of responsibility? He is carrying his brother on one side of his body holding him tight so he does not fall down and his other hand has a bowl searching for some food somewhere so he can feed to his little angel who has not eaten for more then a day. Younger one looks into the eyes of his hero and says without uttering a word “brother you have walked enough and you must be tired and I don’t think we can find food, and I am not too hungry. I can go without food, there is sufficient water every where not clean though but I am sure we will live for few more days.” Elder brother looks into his eyes and says without words, “ My little angel see there is a huge line and every one is standing waiting for food and I am sure I will get you some milk and something to eat”. Line was a large one with thousands waiting for a meal to survive, and also standing in the line is this two and a half feet elder brother carrying his one and a half feet younger brother with a big smile on his face that he found food for his little angel. It was hours of wait in scorching sun and the line was at the same place where it had started, every one was waiting for the relief agency to come and distribute some food to the people who have not eaten for days, We don’t ask for more then a meal…… just something so we can live! It was joy and moment of hope when we saw a Babu (Relief official) coming with a short lived answer instead of food…. He said “it is a holiday so relief can’t be distributed today and ever one has to wait till Monday”. Little one looked into the eyes of his elder brother and said brother I think I might be able to live till Monday without food, but what little angel saw in the eyes of his brave elder brother was helplessness and tears saying sorry I don’t know what to do but I am sure I will do something for you my little angel. I saw the line disintegrating, people with no hope in their eyes, no energy to drag their bodies, some sat down, few were unable to get up from where they were sitting and few left in search of food, some went towards the trees, other to the bushes and started collecting wild grains to cook as rice while others started chewing some leaves and bark. I saw this larger then life 2 and a half feet young man following the older folks to the trees, he too plucked few leaves and chewed them and after they were soft enough he took a small amount out of his mouth and fed to his little angel, I saw a smile on little angels face saying thank you my hero, at the same time I could see the tears rolling down from the cheeks of this brave helpless hero saying “I am sorry I could not do anything better then this”, little one looked into his eyes and wiped his hero’s tears with his tiny hands and said “you are still my hero and I love you”. As a bird I am not sure how many times I cried bitterly seeing all this, tears I shed were more then my own weight, I too was helpless and didn’t not knew how to help. As I was praying for divine intervention I saw a women approaching these two little souls, she herself was grim looking, doesn’t seem she had food either for few days, she asked them if they ate anything, elder one looked into her eyes and started crying bitterly and said I am not hungry but my little brother had nothing to eat for 2 days, I gave him chewed leaves but he cant seem to swallow them, he needs some milk , he said while crying , little angel was also crying after seeing his brave hero crying. Women hugged both of them Kissed them and said don’t you worry I will feed her milk and we have some food which we have saved for ourselves we will feed both of you. She carried little angel to her lap and started nursing him and she also called her husband to bring an old loaf of bread and give it to the 2 and half feet hero to eat. I could see that 2 and half feet hero was relived and looked like a child again instead of the provider of the family but at the same time he was holding feet of his brother with one hand. He took the loaf of bread and had two bites of it and kept rest in his pocket, if the rescuers call Monday a non working day again then he can feed his little angel, or he was saving rest for his little angel. What ever it was it was a beautiful gesture of one human for the other. Both the brothers were in the arms of a generous couple, who had nothing to eat but whatever they had they gave it to those two little angels, I am not sure how much tears I lost during this, but I wish If I was not a bird, I did not have to see all this. This would have still happened but would not have affected me. That day onwards I decided not to fly low and closer to humans and only sit on the trees tall enough that I can’t see the pain and sufferings people are going through. I will go back to my world tomorrow never to come back to the land of misery and inequality. I wonder who will correct all this. With tearful eyes from a bird that soars high and vowed to never look down again.