The Goat and the Butcher

It was a long drive to Salem and the scenery spread across the hilly terrain made the ride more worthwhile. It was a vacation planned long time ago by the family of four. The Father needed a break from meeting clients, the Mother needed a break from the classrooms, the smell of chalk powder and unruly schoolkids, Boy-A needed a break from peering into the computer and working on complex software codes and meeting deadlines, Boy-B needed a break from mugging up complex chemical equations and twelfth grade calculus and theory of relativity.

All was going as per the plan, the shining Sun and the lush green fields, and the majestic blue mountain gave the boys enough reasons to keep clicking on their camera, the playlist of songs blaring from the stereo was endless and the road was long and desolated. It was a perfect start to the vacation, and they had a complete control over the itinerary. They were closing in on the nearest town, a sleepy little town where people seemed to be living life at their own pace, it was a Sunday- more the reason to stay indoors and laze around. "Hungry anyone?" asked the Father, the boys reluctantly nodded their heads in unison. The shops in this town were few and far between, and there were fewer people thronging the streets. The Father parked the car on the sidewalk and stepped out to get something to eat, the Boys were busy meddling with the stereo remote changing the songs being played, the Mother was busy going through a magazine. Within that car they were in the comfort of their own little world where all was hunky dory, they were cocooned from the outside world and oblivious to what was happening outside. All seemed rosy until they heard the bleat of the Goat.

The Goat was being led by a big burly man to his small shop, his little boy who seemed to be not more than a ten year old was sharpening the blade with a glee. He was going to witness his father's mastery with the blade, he was seeking a pleasure in helping his father out with his job in what he felt was a honest day's work. The Goat was tied to a tree nearby, and the Butcher was now examining the goat expertly, estimating what part of the Goat will fetch him more money. The Goat knew that death is inevitable, it will die on a Sunday, mercilessly. The Goat bleated with fear, it knew it was living its final moments. When you know death is inevitable, and you will meet it in the most violent of ways imaginable what goes through your mind?

"Of all the parking space available on the road he had to park near a butcher's shop!" the Mother thought. The helpless bleats of the Goat had pierced through their cocoon and had pulled them back to the world outside. Welcome to the world outside. The boys fidgeted uneasily, they rolled up the windows, they turned up the volume on the stereo, yet they could not drown away the vision of the Goat and its helpless bleats from their mind. Boy-A silently cursed "Bastard", silent enough for the Mother to hear it who normally would never allow any kind of swearing in her presence, but this time she chose to turn a deaf ear just like they were turning a blind eye to what was happening in front of them. There was nothing they could do to save the Goat, the Butcher was making a living out of a killing, a killing that was deemed as an "honest way of living" by the society.

Boy-A turned his face away focusing towards the scenic Mountain and the stream flowing between it, but how can one steer away their minds from what was happening in front of them? Boy-B prayed for the Father to come soon, although he had been away for hardly five minutes it seemed like an eternity. The Goat's life would be taken from it piece by piece, measured swishes of the blade would end the Goat's life in minutes. Its remains would later be devoured as "food" garnished with salt and pepper and other spices. If animals are beasts, then men are monsters. The Father came just in time, and the Boys and their Mother heaved a silent sigh of relief. They could move on from here without witnessing the slaughter. The Father was too busy discussing the routes to take asking for their opinion, but all the other three could think of was the Goat that was left behind.

Burning Sky

"This land must be filled with sinners" Loony Bastard said. "Five-thirty in the morning and I could already feel the heat piercing through my skin, we are roasting in hell, we deserve to" He quipped. "Cutting down them trees, building more apartments, more factories and buildings when we ought to be planting saplings" he reflected as he took a drag from his cigarette and puffed the smoke in the air, watching it slowly disappear. "With so much heat, so much dust in such inhumane conditions I wonder how we survive, we are no humans at all, we are like bugs" he went on as Ankur stifled his yawn and acknowledged him with a "Hmmm", looking elsewhere. "Don't you read the papers? We are the hottest nation in the whole of Asia now with all those vehicles and carbon monoxide coming from it, drilling a hole in the ozone layer. Those melting ice caps and that constant rise in temperature is a sure sign that our time is nearing, 2012 is for real man!" "Yeah I hear you, I gotta go, gotta get to work" Ankur dismissed him as he slowly jogged back home. "Don't run away from the facts man!" Ankur heard him say as he was jogging away.

As he reached home he saw early morning papers lying on the porch. 

"60 MORE DIE OF HEAT WAVE" screamed the front page. "FARMER SUICIDES DOUBLE" said another, "CONSTANT POWER CUTS ADD TO THE MISERY OF PEOPLE" yelled another. 

"Loony Bastard seems to be right" Ankur thought to himself as he put the papers on the porch and went about getting ready to work.

As he was walking on his way to work he could see the beat up look on the faces of people. There was gloom spread across the faces of the usually chirpy schoolkids. The men and women trudged their way to work with sweaty brows and forehead. Hardly fifteen minutes in the street and his handkerchief was already drenched with sweat. This was Nature's way of payback, we may hide in our plush air-conditioned rooms, air-conditioned cars, malls, theaters or restaurants- adopt them as our artificial havens to counter the heat attack, but we had to step out sometime. Nature was sure to get us then, Nature's fury knew no limits, there was no way we could escape Her fury, Her wrath. Revenge was not being served cold. Revenge was served hot. Piping hot. 

The soaring temperature even played with people's minds, it made them more meaner, and left them with a  shorter fuse. They were ticking bombs ready to explode, they picked up arguments with everyone around them for the smallest of reasons, they got irritated with the drop of a hat. The heat was slowly but steadily getting to their heads, it was corroding their hearts and rendering them helpless.

People were drenched with sweat , there seemed no respite from the heat. Trees stood motionless, the leaves refused to budge, there was no air. Every passing day seemed to be hotter than the last, every passing day Loony Bastard seemed to be making more sense, every passing day the newspapers and the news on TV channels carried reports of the havoc that was being wreaked by the Hard Sun.

Loony Bastard was doing his bit by planting more trees, watering and nurturing them with care and love that one only reserved for a child. This had rubbed off on Ankur, he spent time watering his plants and caring for them, and sharing Loony Bastard's theory (which now made sense to him) with his friends. "We were responsible for making this mess, it was now our job to clean it" Ankur told himself. Planting trees and looking after the ones we got seemed to be the answer. "Its a slow process, but the results would be worth the trouble" Ankur assured himself.

Every passing day Ankur would look up at the sky hoping it would come clouding. But he could only see the sun beaming brightly and relentlessly. Days turned into weeks as he started yearning for that solitary drop from the sky which would bring hope and joy along with it. Every night he would go to bed hoping the next day he would wake up to witness some dark clouds in the sky.

It was a Saturday morning when a faint odor wafted into his room, it was a familiar odor that was accompanied with a cold wind that caressed his face tenderly. He opened his eyes groggily to see dark clouds enveloping the sky, he woke up with a glee as if he had met an old long lost friend. He went over to the balcony and savored the sight, he extended his arm out to catch the first drop, "Plop!" it hit his palm. Then followed one more, another one right after it, as the droplets grew bigger and bigger. "Plop! Plop! Plop!" he could hear the pitter patter of the drops hitting on the roof.  As he looked around the enchanting sight, he could see the grass drenched with the raindrops, the leaves seemed to be swaying to the tunes of the breeze and children coming out of their homes to drench themselves in the rain. He went inside to get a cup of coffee, he took out his phone and dialled Loony Bastard's number with his fingers trembling with excitement.