Entry 7.0 - The Favourite Spot in the World

                Entry 7.0 - The Favourite Spot in the World

Disclaimer: This is the third part in the story of Riya and Rahul. Refer the following links for the first 2 parts -

 Part 1 - http://rushabhshah25.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-first-time-they-met-entry-50.html

Part 2 - http://rushabhshah25.blogspot.com/2020/05/entry-60-30-days-of-winter.html

In the first 2 parts, we talked about Marriage. But isn’t marriage just a fancy little word we have made up as a fantasy/ trap for the coming generations.

When I think of Rahul and Riya, they are at standing at the same gate. Its been 11 months since they first met each other. They have grown to understand and like each other. Even though they have  fundamentally different natures, it seems that they understand the need and welcome the inclusion of a life partner in their lives.

But don’t we all fear CHANGE. 

Because some changes are so big, that they’re permanent. And who isn’t scared of this big a change, where everything about their life will be completely changed and they would be responsible for someone else’s happiness too, now.

I welcome you all to the final part of our Triology, “ The Favourite Spot in the World.”

 

One Year back,

“THEY SAID YES.”

Present Day

30^th November, 2022

 

RAHUL

Rahul was trying to reach Riya on her cell but it was switched off. He got a bit worried and called Kavya, her younger sister. She told him that Riya wasn’t feeling very well hence just went out to have a walk and get some fresh air.

Even Rahul wasn’t feeling his 100% . He took his car keys and left home in a bit of a worry.

Riya

It would be an understatement to say that she wasn’t feeling well. There was storm going on inside her with so many questions and notions. Today even the songs and her spot at the terrace weren’t doing the trick. It was an extremely difficult day, hence she allowed herself a smoke today.

(Rahul enters her terrace to find her standing besides the edge of her spot bumming a smoke.)

 

Rahul : That bad, huh?

(Riya was startled by the sudden comment. She thought no one would be able to find her there.)

Riya: How did you find me here, we are not supposed to meet each tonight.

Rahul: And here I am, worried about you. He filled her on the details.

(Riya was still quite impressed about how he could find her and gave him a smile.)

Riya: I know we have talked about this habit of mine. But I have allowed myself one today, its that hard a day.

Rahul: I understand, its a big change. Even I am feeling the jitters.

(There was a complete silence then. Nobody knew what to say. The night and the abyss would have passed away if it were not for the song which name next. The song “Inside of Love” by Nada surf  filled the air around.)

Rahul: Its alright you can tell me. I am all ears and I promise I won’t judge.

(Riya still looked very hesitant.)

Riya: I don’t know how to say. We both have had time together. We know and like each other. The thing is I am worried about the magnitude of change which is gonna happen from tomorrow. I am not able to fathom if I will be able to adjust because I still don’t know to what extent would I have to adjust. Its a whole new thing, like having a good relationship with your mother and setting myself in your family’s routine. It can be the smallest thing of change from the taste of food to the change of my room and home.

 

Rahul: I wish I could say that I know how it feels. But I can only imagine, what it is to leave your home where everyone loves and adores you and enter into a new home. Its too big a change. But I can say that I promise that when you come tomorrow, you will get enough time to settle in. Nobody is gonna force anything on you. It will be with time when we would all get into a normal routine. Even I will change with you. I bet that after a time you’ll feel as comfortable as I do in my home.

If it helps. I have already made a big change.

Riya: What? (with a curious eyes)

Rahul: I have removed everything on my wall. I am waiting to re - decorate it from the scratch with you. It will have a little bit of you and a little bit of me, and a whole lot of us.

(Riya with a real laugh and appreciating nod)

 

Riya: Well, you really know how to impress me. I am amazed to see that you finally gave up the wall for me. Bravo. Real proud of you.

(Patting on the back)

Rahul: Yeah you should be. I almost cried removing my Star Trek posters.

(In a taunting manner)

Rahul: Speaking of jitters. I understand how hard it may become to be efficient at work and also to settle and build a relationship with everyone at your new home. So its okay that you take it slow. Because its important to focus on your dreams and ambitions as well, and we as a family would try our best to support it. So don’t worry about that.

(Riya didn’t react much to it. But her heart just felt a bit of warmth thinking that he remembered and cared. He kind of tried finding a way for it)

(The song changed. The radio was now playing “Conversations in the Dark” by John Legend.)

Riya: I am sorry. I never asked what all was going through your mind today. You must be tensed and riled up too. Why do I feel like you are putting on a brave face for me.

Rahul: Oh, I am trying my best. I feel like I am standing still and the whole world me is gonna completely change in the next 24 hours. You see, even I don’t know how a marriage works or run. I don’t know the Do’s and Dont’s exactly. There are concepts like personal space and privacy that confuse me. I don’t know how are we supposed to function.How we will respect each others space, privacy or how would we compromise on things.

Riya: Don’t worry about that we aren’t robots. We don’t run on fixed parameters.

(Rahul thought it was quite an attempt to lighten the whole mood. He loved this about her, how she was mature and yet completely childish in some situations.)

 

Riya: On a serious note, I don’t think there’s any hand book on marriage. So we will learn it during the journey only. As for personal space and privacy, I guess we both already understand the value of it and we will be able to respect that when the time comes. As for compromise, from what I learned from my mom and people around me, marriage is not only successful because of love and care. In the long run, it demands compromise, understanding and flexibility. I think I understand those notions. There are a lot of What if’s flowing around. We will deal with them together, I promise.

 

(It was nothing if not a coincidence that the words by John Legend made complete sense to the situation.)

 

Riya: But you know, if you feel that its too hard on not knowing how a marriage runs or functions. We can make our own system. Whatever makes us both comfortable. We can draw some lines and make some promises.

Riya: Here. I will go first.

Riya: I know that there will come a time when we both or one of us would want to try something different or new, professionally or personally. So I promise you that I be will standing hand in hand with you in all those challenges you face there. In Better, In worse. Even if it comes to a failure, I’ll be there as strongly as I can be. Because failure doesn’t suck that much, if someone is standing with you. At the same time I promise to do tell my independent thoughts and opinions on your new thing without any sugarcoating. You will always hear the truth from me.

 

Rahul: As far as truth goes, I promise that’s what it will ever be. One thing I am for sure is I am never going to lie to you, not even in the smallest of things.I will always be honest with you except for when I am planning a surprise.

(Riya taking the surprise comment very pleasently)

Riya: What about fights? I mean we are eventually going to have fights and arguments on some small and big things. We both are going to be angry or say some harsh words to each other. What then ?

Rahul: Umm, I know we both have our anger. So lets do this. Lets promise each other that nobody walks out on the other person during an argument or a fight, no matter what. Even if we diasgree, we will try to keep an open mind and listen without jumping to conclusions.

Riya: Agreed. But sometimes we will be allowed to press “Pause” during an argument, because sometimes we would need the space to have and deal with our own thoughts. Agreed?

Rahul: Done deal. Also I think I have heard pretty much everywhere that after marriage the major outings happens in the boy’s family or friends group. I don’t want that kind of a thing with us. We would for sure make it a point that we can hang out with your friends and your circle as much as possible including going out with your sister together at the mall and for dinners.

(Riya was really happy to hear the sister part.)

Riya: Done, Done.

{ Do you see it?

Are you seeing what I am seeing?

 How beautifully they switched from telling their own fears to actually thinking   about the problems the other person would face and now are providing the   solutions for it. This is what we call selflessness. I don’t think a relationship   could ever survive without the touch of selflessness.Because it shows the care   they keep for each other and that’s important.}

Riya: So I have heard people saying that after some years you lose that spice in the marriage. I don’t know how that can happen, but they say it does. For us, it can never happen. I mean we are sharing lives, our thoughts, our vulnerabilities, a part of our souls. We are gonna share our heart and mind, that’s interesting enough for me. So I want us to promise each other that we will love each other the same even when we grow old, senile and full of wrinkled skin. 

Rahul: I promise. I guess this is where I say, I want to grow old with you and have those walks in the parks and sitting on benches and looking at  kids playing around.

Riya: Yes. As for walks, I think we gotta continue going on them like the last time we did where we also had Ice cream. You know I really liked that thing about you. When you bought some more ice cream and gave it to the children out there. Promise me we would keep doing that all the time.

 

Rahul: I promise, we always will. Thinking of that, I think I never appreciated enough how honest and mature you were when you said about how people pretend before marriage and how it really should be. Thank you being that person in my life. Being as you are, its a thing of beauty.

(They shared such a staring smile. They weren’t able to look away from each other.)

Rahul: There is something I was going to give you tomorrow. But I don’t know why this place, this setting, this moments seems perfect for it.

(He pulled out a small box gift wrapped in a red paper with a black lace on it. )

Rahul: Go on, open it.

(Riya like any other person had a spark in her eyes seeing the gift. I guess she was too excited for this.)

{The box had a small necklace. It was a  flower shaped figure studded with very small shiny diamonds.Once could say it was a really small and simple figure. And yet it seemed so beautiful that one could not take their eyes of it. The sparkle and smile on her eyes and face told how much she liked it. She turned around for Rahul to tie the knob and place it on her neck.)

 

(The last song of the night started playing on the radio. It was “What a wonderful world” by Louis Armstrong.)

(There was a silence here. But yet their minds somehow were thinking the same thing. Luckily enough, they both reached to the same conclusion as below.)

What is marriage ?

Why is it so important?

What are the cornerstones of a perfect marriage?

What makes a perfect marriage?

How do you keep it perfect in the long run?

 

I don’t think there is any perfect definition or a recipe for a marriage. We humans, all individuals are born with immense intelligence and endless possibilities. We watch, learn, experience and do so much in our lives. But it is said that we are born with a hole in our hearts which can only be filled by people around us. I guess the idea of having a life partner, an equal half (Like Adam and Eve) comes from that. We all need somebody to love with immense pleasure and to share a FOREVER with. Though the idea of it is as challenging as soothing it is. To think to have a FOREVER with someone is such a nice thought, but our rational minds of today’s world always make us question the possibility of it. Still it looks like eventually in the end our Heart finds a way to it.

 

To think of what would make a perfect marriage and what are its cornerstones is a big thing. It may seem hard at first, finding the correct answer to it. Right now Rahul and Riya could think of certain things. The basis of any marriage or relationship is TRUST and RESPECT. Once you have that, you need LOVE, UNDERSTANDING, EMPATHY and CARE. There is a big thing called communication too. Nothing ever is perfect without proper communication. It is what the whole relationships are built on. And its not that hard, its just that people nowadays have made it so hard/ complex. It just requires ATTENTION, SPEAKING and RESPONSE.

 

Then we talk about love. Again there’s not perfect definition to it. It comes naturally with INTEREST, EFFORT, CARING and VULNERABILITY. It is also to know each and everything about one another. To know just by looking, what the other person might be thinking. One would ask can love be conditional. Just now Rahul and Riya promised certain things to each other. So can it be conditional ?

 

They would say that it comes with its own challenges. It is a union of souls and there’s no such thing as perfect in that. Some places one person makes a consideration for the other person and vice versa. There is no conditions but only love. Now to conclude, Love is not some eternal feeling. Its rather a tree you plant and cultivate/ water with your EFFORTS, feelings, CONSISTENCY and EMOTIONS. Its like a promise to be always there for each other. That's how the root, the core remains powerful enough. That's why the efforts and consistency are concepts that can create a FOREVER.

 

 

In the end, all these words and concepts of today’s world - Love, Marriage, relationships etc. Lead to only one true meta meaning and purpose. The word I am talking about is COMPANIONSHIP. You don’t need or want someone to bring you the stars or the moon but you just want a eternal companion to hold hands with, to have a shoulder to keep your head on, to handle your idiosyncrasies and quirks, to be always there for you and all those big and small words written above. The idea of being complete doesn't mean that there’s something missing in you. But it is to find that new thing, new feeling/ emotions, new bond that grows, enriches and creates a wonderful beautiful life for you.

 

[The night was growing darker and the song was coming to an end. The first and last lines saying,

 

I see trees of green and Red Roses too,

I see them bloom

For Me and You

And I think to Myself

What a wonderful world.]

 

 (Rahul looking at the ciagrette asks)

Rahul: Can I have a go at it?

Riya: Sure.

(They both had tilted their heads in a manner resting on each others shoulders. Rahul has a puff and the smoke fills the scene. Its hard to say if that was a symbolic act or just the need of the hour. But what I see, is two beautiful and brilliant souls who have accepted each other for who they are and are ready for living a FOREVER together.)

 

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We all like music. But sometimes we forget the value of it in the gravest of situations. Here is an appreciation for some of the songs .

Links for the songs - 

Inside of Love --->  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdD8Emu-T64

Conversations in the Dark ---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUD2GxTeVcI

What a Wonderful World---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWzrABouyeE