At What Cost

                                            “AT WHAT COST??”

    “I’ll be back in the evening around 6. See you mom. Bye.” That’s what my daughter always said before leaving for work in the morning. Who knew that would have been the last day I would be seeing her and hearing her husky voice. There were so many guys right from college who were head over heels in love with her. After all, who wouldn’t? Fair, tall and slim, was my daughter, Priya.
    She called me in the afternoon to say that she’ll be leaving Churchgate at 6 and would be home mostly by 7. I finished lunch and got down to doing some of my writing work. While thinking about something I happened to fall asleep. After an odd hour or so, I heard someone pounding on the front door. I was scared because Priya had her own key and my husband was out of town and wasn’t expected until next week. I ran and opened the door only to find my neighbor Mrs. Sharma wailing that there had been bomb blasts in the Churchgate- Borivili train. I was shell- shocked because that was the train by which Priya usually traveled. I switched on the television to see that all the news channels were reporting the blasts. There were hundreds injured and numerous dead. Some of the bodies were charred beyond recognition.
    Not knowing what to do I almost collapsed when Mrs. Sharma caught hold of me and made me sit. I frantically dialed Priya’s office number only to find out that she had already left the office and most probably she was on the train the blasts occurred. I tried her cell phone but all the lines were jammed. I dropped the receiver on the cradle and almost by magic it rang immediately. I snatched it and said, “Priya, thank God you called and you’re safe”. “Excuse me, is this Mrs. Kapoor? I’m very sorry to inform you that your daughter.....” What that person said after that I didn’t hear. I only knew that my baby wasn’t anymore and was the ultimate TRUTH.
    I sat perfectly motionless, not a single tear coming out, not knowing what to do. I don’t know when Mrs. Sharma called my husband and when she took me to the hospital. The moment I saw Priya I burst into tears and the times I spent scolding her all came back into my mind. I felt God had punished me for being rude to Priya, but what a price to pay for something like a scolding!! Surely my Priya hadn’t felt that bad. She was pretty okay with everything I told her. Then why??
    My husband came home sometime early next morning and in the evening we finished Priya’s last rituals. I remember her telling me that she wanted to take me to see the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Why, only two nights ago she told me that she was planning to get married to her long time boyfriend in a year’s time. Now who are we going to get married? Isn’t it every parent’s wish to get their child married and see them happily settled in life? Today its Priya’s 25th birthday and here I am sitting on her bed and looking at her pictures remembering the times we’ve shared. It’s been almost 3 years since she left us but it still feels that she’ll be back anytime. Neither of us can accept the fact that she’s never going to come back home.
    The more I try to keep myself occupied, the more I find myself thinking about her. Fortunately or unfortunately, I’m not the only one who went through and is still going through the trauma of loosing an only child. There are so many mothers like me who are trying to be brave and get on with life. And as they say...
                    “The show must go on....!!”