Sense of Humour A Short Story

Sense of Humor  …. A Short Story

Abhinav was travelling in a city bus. He boarded the bus at the starting point so as to get a seat.  He was also looking forward to a little nap since his alighting point was the last and the journey itself would take a little over 90 minutes. Added to this was the fact that he was not feeling too well.

As he was about to go off to a comfortable nap, there was this fear; he may have to give up his seat to either a more deserving person, or to someone who can with a subtle guile, lure him in sympathy, if they were in sight and near him. The best course was therefore to fall asleep, or at least pretend to. Having quite determined not to yield and also since he was tired and not feeling too well, he dozed off almost immediately.   

A fat lady and a young man of late twenties came and stood near to where Abhinav was dozing. The lady was a veteran- she sighed, fretted- to make sure that Abhinav would wake up. He did, but determined as he was, he could pretend not to notice her and closed his eyes shut. The lady was not one to easily give up. She caught him in one of his awakened stare, and asked him to so adjust as to allow her to share the seat. A two seating arrangement occupied by three was not uncommon in city buses during rush hours.

Abhinav had to concede defeat. He got up and the lady without either a trace of remorse or feeling the need for even the basic decency of muttering perfunctory thanks occupied the seat. To Abhinav, it appeared as if she smirked, having worsted him in the battle of wits. He was so disgusted that all he could do was to curse his luck.

It so happened that within the next few stops the man next to the lady’s seat -which was vacated by Abhinav by the way- got up to alight as his destination was approaching. It had often intrigued Abhinav as to how when someone was offered a seat in similar fashion, there was hardly any reciprocity – the first vacant seat that presents itself to any such usurper, was seldom  re-offered to the original giver- it is almost always reserved as it were, to the kith/friends of the usurper. The lady made no exception to the rule; she offered it to her companion the well- built young man, annoying Abhinav still further.

Abhinav slowly was reconciling to the prospect of not finding a seat till the destination was reached. It was a continuation of his bad luck that the bus was full till the last stop, and he had to stand all the way. He finally alighted at the destination point, went home expecting some rest and a refreshing cup of coffee to relieve him of his mild headache. He quite forgot in all this commotion in his mind that his wife had asked him to fetch some milk and vegetables on way back home. And when his wife Aarti saw him without these, the poor fellow was subjected to a barrage of criticisms for being irresponsible. Abhnav felt lousy, and seeing his face Aarti immediately felt that something was wrong and very prudently restored peace. She made him a cup of coffee, with the milk that was available, and said she will manage to buy the vegetables plus the extra milk the next day.

The following morning began well; he was back to his reluctantly enthusiastic mood of going to office. Aarti had made a good lunch for him and life was back to the usual grind; gossip with friends, a reprimand or two from the boss, a good sharing of lunch with colleagues and the struggle to get a seat in the city bus back home in the evening.

In the apartment block where he lived, there was this practice of Bhajan keertan in one of the flats every Thursday. Though Abhinav was not a great devotee, he was nonetheless a happy participant, as he experienced a feeling of relative peace during these sessions, found a chance to gossip with friends after, besides of course the satisfying Prasad at the end, all of which made these sessions an enjoyable affair, both spiritually and otherwise. 

On this Thursday, he came in early to his friend’s place where the Bhajan was organized and was surprised to find the lady to whom he offered a seat in the bus the other day, along with that young fellow who was obviously her son. He learnt later that she was related to the owner of the house. The lady chose not to recognize him, but the fellow came up to Abhinav and without a preamble offered profuse apologies for that day in the bus when - as per his version- his mother actually connived to usurp the seat from him though she clearly knew that he was sleeping and didn’t look too well either.  

Abhinav was moved; here he was, full of negative thoughts and almost condemning the young generation for being insensitive etc, but this youngster clearly made him feel both humble and acutely embarrassed, by this unusual apology.  Before he could recover and say something, the Bhajan started. Abhinav found it difficult to concentrate. He was constantly thinking of how he could convey his deepest regard for the young man. The bhajan ended after what looked like an eternity and Abhinav chose the earliest opportunity to start a conversation with the young fellow whose name -he gathered- was Navjyot.

After the exchange of pleasantries and a few “sorrys” the conversation became easy, and shifted to more personal narratives. Navjyot, it came about, was deeply in love with a girl named Suguni, and they were engaged to be married when there was this accident. Navjyot and his fiancée were walking on the kerb of a busy street, when a speeding car lost control and would have crushed both the boy and the girl but for the fact that Suguni saw the car coming and was able to push Navjyot to safety, but could not prevent one of her own legs being partly run over. The girl was in hospital for about a month, and it took her over a year to walk again albeit with a limp.

Navjyot’s mother in her typically insensitive style gave this whole episode the name of “apashagun” or inauspicious and was adamant in calling the marriage off. Navjyot was heart- broken but could not go against the wishes of his mother. .

From then on Navjyot was a changed man; he decided that he will remain a bachelor, will try and help anyone in distress to the extent possible etc. He was sad that his own mother could be so insensitive and yet do her bhajan rituals simultaneously. His apologies to Abhinav were therefore poignant and logical especially when viewed in the context of his being another victim of her mother’s vile.

Abhnav could say nothing; he found himself warming up to the young man. In that process of musing over what he had heard, he thought aloud; it looked as if God had a cruel sense of humor, he muttered. If he could create a Navjyot and his girlfriend, He could also create a mother who could be so insensitive, he added. But immediately realizing that he was talking to his friend about his own mother, he said a genuine   sorry.

Navjyot did not mind much; it was perhaps His way of telling us –he said- that the fact that humor can be so very often insensitive that it is not highly recommended in matters related to spiritual pursuits and is also probably the reason that this sentiment hardly ever figures in our religious texts. His only regret was, he added, that he had no means to know where his girlfriend –Suguni- was, since the family decided to wind up after that sad ending to their love-affair, and go elsewhere without anyone knowing.

They were both brought back to reality with Prasad being distributed. Navjyot’s mother came out admonishing him for wasting time with strangers. After the partaking of a good Prasad, they took leave and promised to be in touch more often.

Abhinav and Navjyot soon became very good friends. The latter was a regular visitor to Abhinav’s place especially on holidays and weekends. Aarti’s initial “not bad” kind of feeling turned into a genuinely warm affection for this young man. She was also beginning to nurture a hope that he will slowly consent to marriage one day, and the bride could be her own niece who was an extremely nice and a warm girl who would be a perfect match. Navjyot’s mother did not have much of a choice. She managed to maintain some sort of civilian friendship with Abhinav and Aarti. The latter having no children, looked upon Navjyot as their own son.     

Sutradhar’s comments:

It was perhaps God’s sense of humor after all. Suguni was married to a very rich boy whose father had been a witness to the girl’s act of saving Navjyot. His boy was a mild polio victim and he had decided that she would be his daughter-in-law once he knew about the breaking off of her marriage. Navjyot ceased to haunt her, and gradually became a very faint memory. She was now extremely happy in her in-law’s home.

God had also perhaps decided that Navjyot would not know, as of then, about his girlfriend’s present status lest his current mind-set became in any way colored. Who knew what was in the offing? He may have decided that Aarti’s niece would be an ideal match for him, and knowing about Suguni after the marriage, would be a much more pleasant experience.   

If one were to imagine that all these are part of “His cruel sense of humor” it can only be a joke. But when one begins to understand that everything including the thought processes of fellows like Abhinav are “His Creations” the sense of humor is recognizable. Understanding/recognizing these and then be able to appreciate the humor in it all, however is never easy. These are dependent on solely on “His Grace”.         

Ekalavya alias Vichu