Solitary Walker

One day- a day of my life, like any other day, but a day that holds in it, the essence of life itself. This pleasant morning, as the birds sang sweetly outside the window, I woke up with a smile on my face, with feelings of hope and visions of light pouring through the simple curve that my lips make together. I was all alone in my home, with the brightness of enthusiasm in my eyes, and the confidence of an angel in my mind. The regular yet ‘as freshening as always’ bath was followed by the socially compulsory and personally preferred dressing-up, in the usual black suit. As I put on the coat, the mesmerizing fragrance and divine beauty of the red rose that stood firmly and confidently in my front pocket, close to my heart, caught my attention and created a spellbinding euphoric aura.

I stepped out of the house, with the bright sun shining over my head, the fresh morning- air touching my bare hands and cheeks and thereby creating a sensation of extreme freshness, and the view of an empty beautiful road that lay before me, that I had to walk upon. And so, I began to walk, at a pace so comfortable and pleasing that while I could enjoy the beauty that laid on the sides and feel the fragrance of fresh air, I could also get a feeling of moving ahead, closer to a goal, unidentified and invisible at that moment.

It was always supposed to be a solitary stroll, and there was no space for expectations from anyone but myself. There were others who walked the road as well. There are millions of roads to walk, and millions of goals to reach, but no road lies empty and no-one owns a complete road. And so, I saw them- the others, and greeted them. There were many of them, and as I walked, I came across all of them, one by one. Some walked slower than me, and as I crossed them, I did not slow down for them, because it was, after all, a solitary stroll. There were few who joined on the way, as I walked, some of whom walked with me, with the same pace as I did. And as we walked for long, side-by-side, we began to talk. And the stroll was no longer a silent one.

As the day passed and the sun came right upon my head, and the heat began to rise, I began to like the ones I was walking with, and terms like “friends” and “buddies” became a prominent part of our conversations. And thus, we walked together, for long, step-by-step, at the same pace, in the same direction, on the same road, smiling and talking. Every step that we took began to match, and every breath we took had the same sound at the same time, and I was enjoying this new phenomenon of not being alone.

As I walked along, getting used to the company that I’ve had for quite long now, and that I had enjoyed so much, the sun began to set and the evening that came, kicked away the heat and the scenario was as pleasant as it could get. Meanwhile, the ones who walked beside me, began to miss out the synchronization of our steps and of our breaths, every once in a while, and this, somehow, had begun to discomfort me. I began to hope that the rhythm of the steps would be brought back to the stroll, but all hopes died with time, and I accepted the change as a part of what destiny had in mind. But still, we walked together, smiling and talking, and enjoying our stroll.

As the evening passed by, some of the ones I walked with began to get tired and slowed down. And to keep them with me, I too slowed down, unlike what I believed in. But the pleasure of their company seemed too precious and promising to be left off for the sake of a few principles. And so we walked together, talking and smiling.

After a while, I turned to my left and there was no one beside me, and then I turned to my right, and there was no one there either. The ones who I had walked with, were not there anymore, and were not to be seen anywhere either. And so, once again I walked alone, with sadness greater than ever flooding my heart. I did not realize what went wrong, for a very long time, until I finally saw it clear as a crystal. As I said before, it was always supposed to be a solitary walk, and there was no space for expectations from anyone else but myself. But somehow, as I walked, I found people, and built expectations from them, and began to believe that they would walk with me, step-by-step, till the end of the road. And when the glass of expectations fell down to the earth, the sharp broken pieces of glass pierced through me, and thereby came the pain.

And then, the solitary walk continued. The wounds have healed, lessons learned and resolutions made. The sun has set, and night has come, with the beautiful moon shining upon me. And as I look down in tiredness and exhaustion, the fragrance and beauty of the red rose in my pocket, close to my heart, catches my attention again. And surprisingly, it is as fresh and beautiful as it was when I began the stroll, unlike what I expected. And I, all along the day, was foolish enough to believe that the stroll was solitary!

A new day shall begin tomorrow, and I shall walk again, on the same road, towards the same goal, and along with me, shall only walk the wounds that I carry, the lessons that I have learned, but most importantly, 'my red rose'.