THE TUNNEL 3

THE TUNNEL

She looks up. She looks up to gods for belief, stars for stardom and dreams, planets for luck and miracles, sun for power and light, tall buildings for shelter and address,  trees for shade  & people for inspiration. Overall, she looks up to me.

But, it all started from below.  She never knew and never will know.

Deep down, beneath the thick surface, several layers below, lays a huge life where people look down. Look down for the shoes that fit, dirty hands that clean, and soil that feeds you. Once I belonged to this part of the world, where people had a bottle view of the world around. We were always afraid of the light. The tunnel that gave us fodder kept us closer.

With tight space and narrow lifestyle, our thoughts about growth came to a closure. We survived on the flowing vents –that brought torrents of waste food and clothes that drained to the bottom pits. And that’s where I found her. She was 3 months and got washed away on a straw basket. From that day my life changed.

Though she was not born to me; she gave birth to different personalities in me that I have never seen before. First a father was born, a good friend was born and finally, a responsible human being was born. She became my sense of purpose and she became my reason to come up and live in the light.

But, I will still look down for her to look up. I will be her base and I will be her steps to look up and grow beyond what she sees. Because, when you see things differently, the things you see changes.

So, look down. Sometimes, they help you to look up.