Friday, July 31, 2009

Steps Of Our Fathers

Maximus crept behind the tree and stole a glance through the leaves. His wife spread a velvet carpet on the lawn and gently placed her new born son on it. The baby’s eyes were completely fixed on her while he tried to figure out with his limited knowledge, as to who that wonderful lady was. The warmth in her eyes was as comforting as ever and it shielded him with a sense of protection that could not have been matched even by his father’s suit of armor. Little did he know about the immensity of a mother’s love but would eventually grow up to realize its true power.

She brushed her hair from her face and turned to look at her eldest son. He was panting hard and was leaning on his sword for support. He mustered his courage and trained relentlessly with his father everyday for he knew that with royalty came great responsibility and he displayed the right qualities of royal blood.

But he couldn’t figure out the vast difference in love exhibited by his parents. He knew his mother was his guardian angel and she lifted him every time he stumbled over obstacles. His father remained a mystery to him. He wanted to be noticed, to be loved, to be hugged but his father hadn’t displayed anything vaguely similar with him. How he wished to sit on his father’s shoulder on a breezy evening and look at the expanse of his empire! To sit with him on his horseback while thousands of his soldiers chanted the words “Hail Maximus” out of fanatic devotion! To be tossed high into the air while he tried to clasp the Sun with his hands. Never once did he express his concern to anybody but his soul.

Maximus read his son’s thoughts and felt a wave of emotions hit him. His fingers dug deeper into the tree trunk while he thought of his inability to openly embrace his kid and shower him with tons of fatherly affection. For a split second, his childhood memories flashed past and remembered the time he encountered a similar incident with his own father. His father held Maximus shoulder with both his arms and said,” Son, a leader is no ordinary individual. He is made, not born. He has to master all experiences known to man, both physical and mental. This knowledge will chisel him to perfection and guide his spirit till eternity. Now, how can i allow you to be victimized by such trivial human emotions? “.

The memory rolled a tear down his face but Maximus swiftly wiped it with his hand. He steadied himself, took a deep breath and transformed back into the charismatic leader he always was. He stepped out in the open, looked at his son and commanded,

Get up, soldier. Pick up your sword! ”.

8 comments:

  1. Nice..i lik d way u ve captured d male feelings here..it holds god for most fathers who have trouble expressin inspite of their internal urge to..good work buddy..:)

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  2. Nice one, Rohit. Maximus has always fascinated you ;-) It has a strong essence of father-son relationship and brings out a man's urge to live up to his father.And yes, it does reveal the way you think :-)

    Prvn

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  3. Thanks macha.. i'm surprised u liked it considering your tastes :)

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  4. Feelings and affection of mothers are usually more open and outward. This has been my personal experience. :). I like the way you have brought out the affections of the child's mother and father (Maximus).

    -Suman

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  5. Knowing our backgrounds, i totally got u ,pal :)

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  6. got a more deeper insight into what you are Rohit.. this said a lot about you..you are surprising me every minute now.

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  7. Am i? I like the sound of it, Sammy :) thanks

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