SURVIVAL - PART FIVE (FINAL)

WARNING:  READ PART ONE, TWO, THREE AND FOUR FIRST

The next day, Reshma, Hema and Guddi were asked to dress in brand new clothes and to wear their most sparkling smiles.  They were called into the headmaster’s office after breakfast where they found the same tall man and the small woman seated in chairs.  All three flashed their widest smile with eyes twinkling.  The woman got up from her seat to walk towards them by the door.  She stood there for a short moment, bent down with extended arms and engulfed them into a warm hug.  They inhaled the sweet aroma of her perfume, nestled closer to her bosom and fell into her embrace.  Over the next few days they met the couple daily and spent several hours with them outside of the school.  They began to pick up some of their language with the help of a teacher in their school.  They learned that once again, the three sisters will be moving to a new home and this home will be far far way, across the ocean, over the clouds, past the mountains.  Their new home will have a mother and a father and it will be cold there with snow and many lakes but no mountains.  Everyone in their new home only spoke the new language the girls were learning so they’ll have to learn it fast and be good at it.  In their new home there will always be warm food, clean clothes, comfortable beds and lots and lots of hugs.

At first it was all strange.  Their new parents were gentle and loving.  Each sister had her own room with so many stuffed animals, colorful walls, princesses or clouds on their bedcoverings.  They were all tucked in on their own beds every night after their new mother or father read a story from a beautiful book with lots of colorful pictures.  But as soon as their new parents went back downstairs, Guddi and Hema tiptoed to Reshma’s room and all three slept huddled together in her single bed.  The sisters discovered new parks with swings that did not squeak, went to large buildings with so many shops where they bought new clothes, toys and books and to museums where they could see and play with so many interesting things.  They saw so many lakes and even went on a boat ride.  They went to a very big school with so many children that had blue or green eyes and very light hair.  Schoolwork was hard and their parents helped them with homework every day.  Hema had a very hard time with her numbers and dad patiently explained.  Guddi got all the words confused in her books and mom helped her read them.   Reshma kept her distance and watched over her sisters.  Then one day, just when they started to see the magic of trees changing into beautiful colors, they went to a meeting.  There they saw lots of children who looked like them who had parents of lighter skin and blond hair.  There were also some adults who looked like the adults at the orphanage.  These adults talked to the group about Diwali, the festival of lights.  Reshma knew all about it but her new parents did not.  When they went home that day, her parents asked her questions and wanted to know more about other festivals and of the land she came from.  Reshma educated her parents with pride and hugged as hard as she hugged her grandmother the night of Guddi’s birth.  Genuine smiles began to appear on all their faces and stayed there for longer times.  They were afraid to sleep for fear of waking up on the cold sidewalk and realizing this new life was all a dream. 

-          The End -