One of my colleagues used the
phrase “Life comes in packages” quiet extensively when he had to leave our
school last year. He seemed to be happy leaving the school and happier to start
his life with a new beginning. He was a calm and sensible gentleman with whom
anyone would love to talk and enjoy a
moment with him.
The phrase he used didn’t click
my mind then to put an effort to understand the core meaning wrapped in those
four words. Actually the moment of his departure required me to be more
compassionate and not get lost in the wisdom of the phrase.
But the events that unfolded in
my own life recently have helped me comprehend the wisdom behind the phrase more
easily yet strongly.
Just after the winter vacation
commenced, the date of my marriage got fixed. 18th January was the
date. So, before leaving for my village from Thimphu I asked her out for a
final date. Away from all the noise and the crowd of our small city we decided
to meet near Pangrizampa and walk along the road to spend few hours together.
Reaching home a lot of
preparatory works for the marriage awaited me to begin. Excitement filled the
warm southern air. But just a week before the marriage date her uncle expired
and to fix another auspicious date for marriage would be done only after her
bereaved family is done with all the rituals related to the funeral that often
takes a week or two to complete.
 |
| The bride and the bridegroom |
Finally after much waiting, February
5th was fixed as the new date. We got married! And after staying for
four more days in the village we were back in the capital.
My father and mother accompanied us a week
later. They had come to Thimphu with a great hope. Hope to get a new life for
my dad after he undergoes a major operation which was scheduled for 28th
of February at JDWNRH. He was diagnosed with kidney failure.
 |
| In the Surgical ward |
An unending wave of worry kept
rushing in our hearts as we stood silently outside the operation theater anxiously
waiting to only hear good news. After four long hours he was moved out of the
Operation Theater to the surgical ward. ‘Operation Successful’, remarked a
surgeon from inside.
 |
| Grate grand mother lays in peace |
A new day had just started for my
father after the operation when the news of my grate grandmother’s sudden death
shook the ground beneath us. She was 97 years old-The beacon of our family. And
she was the oldest and the most respected woman in the village. She left us
after witnessing one of her last wishes come true- my marriage. For entire
Bhandari family the lost is immense. The knot which connected the whole family
for generations has now suddenly got loose!
Down in Phuntsholing my sister
got admitted in the hospital. She was expecting. Only 11 days had passed since
our grate grand mother’s death when my sister gave birth to her second baby
daughter. Happiness and joy got its expression back with the entry of a new
member in our family.
 |
| The latest addition in our family |
Life is Life! In one moment you
are happy and in another moment you are sad. Sorrow and happiness is what life
is made of; it’s the ultimate truth. But the phrase my friend use to breath in
and out then has now made me realize that life indeed comes in packages; some
packages(our wishes and dreams) never get delivered to us, some packages that
reach us are light(filled with happiness) and others are heavy(filled with
sorrow).
