In every human life, there is an unforgettable childhood incidences. There could be many or just one. These journeys can be good or bad and possibly end up beneficial or not. I too had few such incidences both good and bad ones. In this write up, I will narrate one of my good experience which really brought true happiness on the face of my mother. However, they occurred somewhere in the year 1995 when I was around age consisting of seven household. Villagers make their livelihood from the agriculture. Summer season is their busiest season.
The villagers has to work in the field to make their living. They have to be busy both day and night. During day time they have to work in the field and night time is to guard the wild animals from destroying their products. Once the summer season gets over, the villagers happily welcome the new season. Winter season is their relaxation season. They are freed from the agriculture work. Another beauty of the winter season is the performance of annual ritual. Every village performs the annual ritual in winter season every year.
All the villagers will be invited by the host to attain their ritual. The visitors will be served with dinner and drinks by the host. When the ritual gets over; the guest will be served with dinner then the people will perform dances and shouts in their unconsciousness for the whole night after having lots of drinks. Parents will not care about the presence of their child. No one in the family cares about who is going back to home and who is not. Some of the family member will return back to home after 1 or 2 am to sleep but some member will lost in between.
They will just return home by the next morning after having another drinks from the host. Most of the people those who are from the other village will spend their night in the small hut attached to the main house which is made for keeping the grains. Grandfather Tenla was performing his annual ritual in his house. All of us went to attain his ritual by evening as per the invitation. We were done with the dinner by 10 pm and we have been watching the dances and chit chatting of the people till 12 O’clock at night. Unlike other nights; we really do not feel sleepy no matter how much the time is.
By 12 past, I went back to our home to sleep with my sister Sangay and mother. Elder brothers were already at home since they never attain those annual rituals. We left our 5th and 4th brothers at the hosts house as we always do since they were enjoying the dances and moreover they were chatting with their friends from the next village. By the very next morning when I woke up, my family members were in great tension walking here and there but I wasnt having any idea about the reason of my parents tension. My mother was crying a lot.
After few minutes to my surprise, my 3rd brother came with a lay monk and started performing something which was beyond my understanding. After all my both sisters too started crying along with my mother yet I wasnt aware of the reason. By around 8 am my cousin sister Sither who was around 5 years older than me came to play with me as we always do. We too have small hut as of other villagers to keep our grains and this is the place were two of us used to play swing every day. It was she who told me that my 4th brother Sonam is nowhere to be found.
He was lost from the previous night. My parents were crying since the lay monk has declared that if he is not found before the milking hour that is 9 am (the time when the villagers let their cattle for grazing after milking) he will be lost forever. Today I still remember myself being out of tension, fully engaged in playing swing under that small hut with my sister when my family members were crying and in great tense. I could still remember how much tension my mother was going through crying and requesting the villagers to search my brother in the forest nearby.
My rest of brothers were already in forest searching for our 4th brother. The tension and crying sound of the family were increasing with each minutes pass by since 9 am is the most crucial time for us on that particular day. My mother was crying and shouting that it is about to 9 Oclock. The monk again mentioned that my brother was hidden by the local deity what we call it as tsen. Before 9 am he will be kept near by the village but after 9 am he will be taken far away what it usually happens. Most of the villagers even searched him in the hut that I was playing swing but he wasnt there too.
But suddenly I have seen one leg hanging from the hole of the hut that I was playing the swing. I have touched the hanging leg with my hand and I felt the leg like an ice. But I just ignored what I have just seen thinking that my 5th brother Tashi is playing with me as he always does till today. So, I just took out the safety pin from clothe I was wearing. With my full strength I prig on his leg with my safety pin but there was no movement of the leg no matter how much I prig on his leg with the pin. Then I went home to check whether my 5th brother is at home or not.
To my disbelief I have seen him at home only. I have informed my mother who was buried under the tension about her lost son about what I have seen few minutes ago. My mother directly step towards the hut. She went inside the hut and found my lost brother lying there unconsciously. It was 9 oclock exactly when we got our brother back to our family. The smile and happiness on my mothers face was beyond explainable by then. He then become the genuine reason for my mothers happiness for having him alive with us. His only wish was to drop out from the school and out of happiness his longing wish was also fulfilled.
I got much love and care from the family members for the above reason. My brother after gaining his consciousness narrated what actually had happened to him the previous night. He told that, he was taken away towards the forest by one of unknown man while he was sleeping in one of the hut of villager after 2 am. He was taken directly in to the forest. When he regain his consciousness, he noticed that he had reached to the deep forest of our village and heard the rooster crows way back in the village. With the sound of rooster which means by 3 am he then redirect his way back towards the village.
He himself was not aware of how he had entered in that particular hut since door was already locked from outside and there was no space left inside the hut for any person to pass through. No matter what has happened the previous night yet we were happy that we got back our brother alive. Today most of the time is unconscious in work he take up to do since his half of the conscious was already lost by then when he was lost once in the scary deep forest by midnight. Yet we the family love him for who and what he is. He was, is and will be always brother to the family and loving son to his mother.
