The News – 365 Flash Fiction #17

By vinodnarayan on May 20, 2014 • ( 0 )

He took the cup to his lips, but forgot to sip the coffee. He kept it back on the table and all the while staring straight into the monitor. He was disturbed, not just with the news he read. He has read much dreaded news that often seems like it was the synopsis of some horror flick. But this was different.

He felt somewhat related, pulled in to be part of the characters, playing one of their roles; being so part of the incident that it sends shivers through him.

This was not the first time, and neither would this be the last time, but the question always lingers and remains unanswered; Why?

He has been busy last whole year travelling from town to town living in airports out of a garment bag, laptop and a hand luggage, having fresh brewed star bucks every morning. He drops home every other week on a Saturday just enough to repack and start all over again.

His daughter is turning three and he does not really know how she has grown in the last year. Many weekends when he is home he has been too famished and exhausted.

This time when he was leaving home, his wife had asked him a similar question, why all this? What is worth and for what?

He looked at the boarding screen and he has another one hour to kill, he pushed himself again onto the laptop screen.

The same page, the same news, he refreshed to see if the news has changed. No it has not.

He read all over once more and bent backwards and went into a trance, closed eyes and folded hands, he went through his life, achievements, happy moments, despairs and much.

He is not sure how long he maintained the trance, but when he woke up it was boarding time and people had lined up at the door. He watched the passengers, families, kids, executives, college students, but all shared a sense of joy, as if they were all planning on reaching somewhere and as if they all knew where.

He stood up and walked towards the last man standing in the line and stood behind him. He looked at his watch, he brought in a small smile in his face and tapped the man standing in the front and said, “Dude I quit, I am going home to my wife and baby, I will tell my boss that it isn’t important to succeed if you fail your family, enjoy your flight”

Leaving his former fellow traveler with a surprised look he took off to the exit and called out “Taxi….”

He remembered what Confucius said “To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”

As his Taxi stopped at his driveway, he had forgotten the news he read, he was more happy to be spending the rest of his life for his family happy and contented.