
Taking up Reena’s Exploration Challenge #79
by Reena Saxena, to write based on anyone of captioned words. This is my fictional contribution. Thanks for the mind prompt Reena.
Lakshmi sat beside the social worker in the central court’s waiting room, while the gods of Canada’s justice system divined her fate. The social worker tapping away on her iPhone paid little attention to her eight year old charge. Lakshmi sat there, disconsolate, drowning in waves of sadness, her mother’s screams continuing to echo through her head. She wondered how it was possible, that her mother had died in the car crash while she had not received even a single scratch. Lakshmi’s future was now up in the air, under negotiation with the judge, a choice of foster care or auntie.
The social worker pocketed her iPhone as auntie accompanied by a lawyer entered the waiting room. Auntie embraced Lakshmi with a glowing smile, ” You will live with me now my little dove, we will be so happy together “. They exited the courtroom and auntie hailed a taxi.
The taxi dropped them off in front of a run down apartment and they negotiated the elevator to the fifth floor. Upon entering the apartment auntie poured herself a generous portion of gin, lit a cigarette, settled herself on the couch with a weary sigh and pronounced, ” We will be good company for each other, you will see. Sit child, sit”. Lakshmi cleared the remaining chair of its papers, plastic bottles and slightly used paper plates, sitting tentatively on the edge of her seat. Auntie, stared vacantly into space, sipped her gin, puffed on her cigarette and Lakshmi, apprehensive, weeping silently, drifted off to sleep. Auntie occupied the apartments one bedroom and Lakshmi made her bed on the couch.

The next morning auntie accompanied Lakshmi on the ten minute walk to her new school. Lakshmi was introduced to the Principal and shown her classroom. She was asked if she wanted to share anything with the classroom, but shyly declined. When the final school bell rang, Lakshmi waited outside the school for auntie, but auntie never showed. Eventually Lakshmi made her own way to the apartment building. The elevator was out of order so she ascended the stairs to the 5th floor. The stairs were filthy, strewn with garbage, interspersed with empty beer and wine bottles. On the third floor she tentatively squeezed by a decrepit man, hunched over on the steps, eyes closed, clutching a bottle. She ran the rest of the way to the fifth floor. She knocked on the door of auntie’s apartment and entered.
The smell of incense was strong within the apartment, overriding the stench of cigarettes and alcohol. Auntie was fast asleep on the couch. Lakshmi sat in her chair and stared at auntie, she missed her mother. After a while auntie awoke and stared uncomprehendingly at Lakshmi. As recognition dawned she gave a smile, offering to make Lakshmi supper. She reached in the cupboard for a can of baked beans, heating it on the stove. She then acquired two paper plates and divided the can between Lakshmi and herself, topping it off with two slices of bread. Having finished supper auntie retreated to her bottle of gin, leaving Lakshmi to dream of her mother.
Three months later Lakshmi asked auntie for permission to go to her classroom friend’s birthday party. “Do you think I am made of money. Does money grow on trees”, intoned auntie. ” I cannot afford to buy birthday presents. You are costing me too much money for food and clothes as it is.” Lakshmi devastated, retreated to her chair crying, hating auntie with every fibre of her being.
Six months later auntie and Lakshmi were sitting at the tiny kitchen table eating supper when Lakshmi, reaching across for the salt, knocked aunties glass of gin, spilling its contents over the table. Auntie immediately reacted with a vicious smack across Lakshmi’s face sending her tumbling off the seat. ” You stupid girl. What a waste. You are so clumsy” auntie raged as she reached for the bottle to refill her glass. Lakshmi buried her face in the armchair, crying uncontrollably, her hate for auntie increasing with every sob. And so life went on for the next two years.
Lakshmi’s tenth birthday came and went without acknowledgment by auntie. As Lakshmi became older and more independent life had settled down to a listless routine of cleaning the house and trying to avoid aunties bad moods. Auntie was becoming increasingly irrational, mostly scolding Lakshmi for some perceived slight. Other times she would enfold Lakshmi in a vice like embrace, intoning prayers to Vishnu for a better life.

One night Lakshmi was awakened with auntie’s screams from the bedroom, she tumbled off the couch, stumbling in a daze towards auntie’s bed. Auntie clutched Lakshmi pulling her onto the bed, her fingernails digging deep. Auntie wouldn’t let go and kept screaming, ” Vishnu, save me. Save me from my nightmares, my terrors.” Lakshmi was suffocating under aunties embrace, but auntie clung to her, her grip becoming tighter and tighter. Lakshmi screamed out in pain, desperately trying to escape. ” Auntie, auntie let me light some incense to honour Vishnu. It will lesson your dreams “. These repeated words finally made their way into aunties befuddled brain and she gradually released her grip on Lakshmi.
Lakshmi returned to auntie with a glass of gin and five incense tapers. She placed the tapers in a jar and lit them. Auntie reached for her cigarettes, sipping her gin, beginning to quieten down, the nightmares receding. Lakshmi stood in the corner of the room, watching auntie. Watching as auntie drifted off to sleep. She waited five minutes to ensure that auntie was truly asleep and then she reached for the incense tapers. She placed two of the lighted tapers on the pillow, either side of aunties head and two at her feet. The fifth she placed over her heart. She then retreated to her couch to sleep.
Lakshmi awoke to the frenzied ringing of the fire alarm. Seeing smoke coming from auntie’s bedroom she walked over and opened the door. Lakshmi watched in fascination as the flames engulfed the bed. Watched the vivid colours with its hues of yellow, orange and red. Watched the flames spitting at her, like aunties wrath, forcing her back from the room. She witnessed aunties funeral pyre grow ever more colourful, hypnotized, in awe of its majesty. She consigned all her hate, anguish, grief and fears into that brightly coloured fire and the flames obligingly consumed them. Releasing her. Lakshmi was born anew.
Oh Len! That was enthralling . I would live to know what happened after this.
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Thanks Violet. The idea was born from a Hindu tale.
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A gripping tale – visually painted with words. You illustrate her plight with pictures without ever saying she is unhappy, distraught or disappointed. Auntie’s character is also partially redeemed with her mental illness. The child’s strategic act caps it all – shows how being pushed to the wall can ‘fire’ imagination and action.
Thanks for the wonderful story, Len!
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Thanks Reena. I’m new to this and find blogging a little restraining when it comes to developing characters. I wanted to add so much more but was aiming at no more than a 1,000 words. If you have any insights into furthering my knowledge of Hindu culture I would appreciate it.
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Thanks for the interest! Hindu or Indian culture is so vast. Devdutt Patnaik is a writer who applies the logic from Hindu mythology to modern day business management and other issues. You may check this link for details http://devdutt.com/
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Reblogged this on Reena Saxena and commented:
Lakshmi ————– by Len
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Thanks as always Reena.
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A sad story of a a young girl. Hope she finds better future.
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Thanks Sadie. I’m wondering the same thing.
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Wow, Len. Wow. 🔥
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Thanks for your fiery reply Chelsea.
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You had me on the edge of my seat through the whole story. I knew something big would happen. What Hindu tale was it, Len? There are often extreme acts in fairy tales, and this was certainly an extreme act.
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It’s based, very loosely, on a story of Holika and Prahlad. I found this on Wikipedia. Thanks for your kind comments.
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OK good to know. It is my pleasure.
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Captivating story. Wish there was an easy way out for girls like Laxmi like this.
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Thanks for visiting Indira. Her story will continue. Who knows what the future holds.
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Captivating story indeed! Very Nicely done.
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Thanks for your kind comments Shoumik.
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Captivating Len, not too long, vivid imagery. Looking forward to part two and more about Lakshmi, if you will.
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Thanks Marie. I’ve been thinking more about auntie than Lakshmi. But I hope to continue with Lakshmi.
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Reblogged this on anita dawes and jaye marie.
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A captivating read, Len. Really enjoyed reading it!
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Thanks Jayne. I’ve been reading some Hindu stories on the internet.
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Compelling and daunting story, Len! Bravo!
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Thanks Eugenia.
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So well written, Len. I found myself totally absorbed in the story..and what an ending. The image is so vivid in my mind. Well done!
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Thanks for your kind comments.
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ouch, great story-telling and sadly the life of too many children 😦
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Thanks Kate. Yes. I was reading an article on food programs and the number of children who go hungry in Canada.
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yet people insist on sending their charity overseas when locals need it probably more …
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Stop reading my mind.
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really powerful story, Len – I didn’t see that ending coming – came as quite a shock – very well told 🙂
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Thanks Mark. I’m trying to explore different themes.
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I could really get into Lakshmi’s point of view throughout – and a sense of the apartment, being stuck there.
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awesome writing Len!
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You are too kind Gary, Thank you.
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This is a truly sorrowful story, Len, but it is one that in reality is not so far from truth. Children, especially those who enter the court system in one way or the other, often end up in situations like this or even worse (if that can be imagined). Foster children have generally miserable lives, and unfortunately, even if they are special needs and in foster care or in a home, they are often put out at age 18, and I have seen them walking around the streets with adults I know are not their caregivers. This is great fiction, but tells the true story of the plight of foster children. Often most of them have seen the worst of life even before entering the system, so there is not a lot of hope that they can regain a good sense of self and not get into one kind of trouble or the other. Thank you so much for addressing this issue in a fiction that has a good ending. My wish is that all such children would have good endings, no matter what they might have lived through.
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I agree Anne. My mind can never begin to fathom how adults can mistreat children.
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