"May God Bless his Soul!'
Me : Jhanu Da, here take 130 rupees. Please give me an account of it when you come to office. Oh and let me know once you reach howrah.Bye!
.....and I motored off to tution only to here my phone ringing after a while....
Jhanu Da : Debu, I have reached and now I am on my way home. I will go to Central Avenue and leave the car from there.
Me : Perfect!!I'll see you tomorrow at office then.Bhalo Theko(Keep well)!!Tata!!!
Jhanu Da : Bhalo thakish baba(Keep well my son. Bye!
.....how would I know that would be the last time I bid adieu to him....
Next day....
Bradley : Oiy Debu, when was the last time you spoke to Jhanu!?
Me : Why, what happened? I spoke to him last at 4.30 p.m.!
Bradley : He passed away last night!!!
.....I didn't know what to say then. I was at a complete loss and nothing came out of my mouth. Just a reality shock and a very unexpected death!Only yesterday was he his jovial self, laughing and joking with us and having his usual smoke. Next day, he is no more! I knew him for a very small time but for the little time I knew him, I had really grown very fond of him! Moreover, my respect for him grew with every passing day. The effort he put into the little work he was given, the love with which he still refereed hockey games at the age of 70+, the smile he always had on his face and more importantly how he saw everybody with an equal eye. Alas he is no more! I guess every body has to be called up by God and his time came very 'untimely'.
The memories( which are very little but will remain with me forever) of him in our High Life team keep flooding back!I just cant stop thinking about it.But I guess life carries on.......
2 comments:
think about it this way..he was 70 and he went quickly and almost painlessly..u shud b happy he didnt suffer..always look for the silver lining..dont be depressed..he probably wouldn't want u to be!
Jhanuda was indeed a man who touched everyone's heart. I remember sharing the room with him at MLA hostel while we were looking after the boys at the camp, while I was at High Life. He was a man who made you believe that humanity knew no boundaries of language, class, social status or even age. He got along extremely well with boys 1/4th his age from various parts of the country, and always looked out for them.
I strongly believe that a man who remains unmarried either disowns the whole world or inherits it. Jhanuda definitely owned the world with his toothless smile!
Jhanuda, know, that wherever you are, you have helped me understand life better, and increased my appreciation for it. In a rat race of materialism and consumerism, you epitomised the spirit of life. May your soul rest in peace!
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!
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