It may have been around 2 in the morning.They carried me to the car to be taken to the hospital.I was semi conscious.My weight,per se,was not a problem.What weighed them down was the condition of some part of my anatomy ; heart,liver,kidney...;in my case my liver had grown little too big for its size.
Kochappan had come to Kochi and had advised me that I should not let things in me grow disproportionate to its design.
I used to look at the out side world,like any one of you, through a window ,but here in the hospital I had
a look at another world through a 'ventilator' ; it was fascinating.
Immigration was denied and I returned home after one month.There was agony for a lot ; not ecstasy but a sigh of relief later on.
Nine years later,last week I went to the same hospital ;this time there were differences.
I rang up Kochappan and told him that I have taken quotation from three hospitals for an operation I had to go through, and have decided on the one where I was carried to nine years back.
I and Komala,packed a small bag stuffed with some clothes and walked to the auto stand and took one to the hospital. That was a re-enactment of our return to Kochi after a stay at her house after our marriage. we had caught an auto to kottayam bustand that day.
Sat in the room after reaching the hospital at 7PM.Climbed up to the fourth floor canteen had chapathi & Kuruma.
We sat in silence for some time.Looked out through the window from where we could see the main road and the three star hotel across the road.
That hotel was there, even then, nine years back ;but I could not see it because of the ventilator.
The Barber came and shaved me clean, my chest. He insisted that I have a clean shaven face too. He dabbed Old Spice on my cheeks.
I smelled fresh for the surgeons who did the surgery.I returned home the next day.Walked up to the car.This time nobody got weighed down ; except my bank account ,which lost considerable weight.
It was history repeating itself, probably a re-run. I travelled to Powai to L&T and waited in the park to get an appointment letter.Years later when I should have retired , I travelled to Amrita Coimbatore and sat on a bench to get another appointment letter.
This time it repeated in my trips to hospitals.The first trips in both cases were anxiety ridden ;both to L&T, and the hospital whether I will make it ; the second one, relaxed.
'Turn of destiny or fate' said Kochappan.'' Not only yours, but ours too.Its our destiny and fate too that you are back,alive and kicking''.
Was he being sarcastic, my being back and his fate etc... I want to clarify that ... I will not leave him..
