“That Smile”

Diary entry- 23-01-12

“That Smile”

I had a bad night and I was facing a bad day too. But I never hoped that I would see someone today who would make me happy and sad simultaneously. Before I realized, I had a smile on my face as soon as I saw her coming from the front in a hoppity-hop pace. And I was more surprised when she returned it with ten times more warmth than mine. It made my smile broader and grateful. I was grateful that I saw her.

That smile! It was captivating. She was beautiful and happy. I knew she was. It’s said that when your feelings reach your eyes, they are genuine. But in her case, they were pure. They were purer that a dew drop on a lotus leaf in a foggy morning. I wish I had stopped her and asked her name! I badly wish I had! It is very rare that I remember a face for a long time which I hardly saw for 10 seconds. I am going to remember her face forever. More than anything else, it was her smile. It was the bright and warm smile that makes your day. She was hopping in the galleries, carefree and cheerful, humming a song maybe, with a crushed mineral water bottle in her left hand, and throwing her right arm in a merry-go round motion. At first sight she was that ordinary village girl one can see anywhere near the streets or rural areas. But I recognized she was special, special in her own way. She had that aura which attracts onlookers who are observant. I was one of them. Not everybody seemed to notice, but I saw her every detail.

A five or six year old girl or maybe a couple of years older but the malnourished physique explained otherwise. She was wearing a sea green salwar suit, with a floral print on it. Though she was shabbily dressed and had dirt all over her, she looked beautiful. The kind of beauty that emanates from innocence. I wonder, did she knew she was poorer than most of the people around her? I guess that was the secret after all!! She had two small ponies on top of her head, the kind that looked like two fountains arising from the scalp or more like the two fluffy and round rabbit tails above each ear. Well, that’s how they looked like, to me. Her complexion was almond colored, n her hair were brown;  just like when you don’t shampoo them for ages and they become all hard and fuzzy due to deprivation of oil from them. I did not notice her feet as I was too captivated by her countenance, which had a glow that I never had. That was her. She was a “SMILE”. It defined her.

I wonder did she ever crave for a doll instead of a crushed bottle in her hand. Did she ever wish she had a bright red and white frilled frock instead of that dirty dress she was wearing? Did she know that maybe she was the kid of one of those unfortunate people who come to the court when they have been exploited due to their underprivileged status or the daughter of a criminal, forced to commit a crime or a daughter of a habitual wrong doer? I hope when she grows up, she does not remember that she ever visited this vicious place called “court” where nobody abides by the maxim, “Justice delayed is justice denied and justice hurried is justice buried”. I hope that smile never changes and always reaches others’ hearts. I hope! J