FELICITY

“Easy, Easy, Honey. Take long breaths and you will feel better”. His words were providing fuel to my body. My legs were trembling and my chest was paining badly. I was feeling as whole of the oxygen had been used up. I was in my funky red pants and flat pump shoes. My husband who was holding my hand who somehow managed to make me understand that I can do it and can live up to my dreams. I was not at all ready for this hiking. I thought somehow its going to be difficult because of my shoes. But soon I realized that the primary reason was my stamina which I was not able to maintain those days and that made me remember those olden days of mine where I used to run on the treadmill and found to be energetic. 

Oops sorry!!! I forgot to introduce myself....I am Meghna and I have come along with my husband and other three friends of mine to Yosemite valley for hiking.

Hiking??? The word always makes me feel excited but never got a chance to face it. It was a sudden plan that came over into the mind of our super dude Samuel. Samuel who was driving us the whole way and always used to carry a high voltage in his body. He never gets tired and it looks as if he can climb every mountain that came our way. But sometimes I feel if you are accompanied by a person like this you can reach the destination sooner or later.

Let me introduce a very special person in our group, I think without him we had to capture all the scenic beauties by our beautiful eyes. But due to the technical advancement, this problem has been solved by Murugan’s Sony Cyber shot. Murugan, tall, elongated face, a person with a soothing smile with big artistic eyes and vegetarian by its food nature. He was enjoying in guiding us with a map in his hands and a pen in his pocket that lies in the left side of his full sleeve shirt. The high canopy of trees, the high mountain cliffs where the sun’s rays were touching the peak, the highly rushing waters that produces lather, the blue woodpecker, the golden brown deer, the brown with blue color ducks and the beautifully decorated snakes and the cute furry squirrels, nothing can escape without get captured in his big camera. He made us stop and click our pictures with great enthusiasm.

I finally met a girl who fully satisfies the quote, “Beauty with the Brains”. Ruchi-Lady who was fair, with a medium height, Kohl applied eyes, a simple pony and who wore a very simple attitude. She was all set with the hiking venture. She was very conscious about her food intake, her daily calories and says complete no to potatoes and all the junks in the world. She passed her engineering from IIT and the best part was she knew what to do in life and how to make herself happy. She had a great network of friends and she couldn't be away from the so called popular app. – Watsapp. And as a girl of this era, she was very much active in Facebook too.

Our journey started with her pack of hot salty popcorn that she prepared early in the morning. Ah...finally I came to the point which I was waiting eagerly. Guess what??? It’s the description of my hubby. For him, I think my expressions can speak thousands of words. But this time I really want to try to put my expressions or you can say my feelings on paper. It’s going to be hard, but let me try this time...I am with a person who has a good IQ, small eyes like me, cute lips, with an athletic body (which is not taken care of), and carry a sense of pride and gratitude. Vikram-Having a great ideology, he was leading his life as he always used to live. He lives his life very simply and I think this is only way to live a life in a brilliant manner. For him, if a person is capable of buying his own bread and butter three times a day, has a small house with necessary amenities (necessary means that is helpful in surviving yourself on earth) and clothes to wear, he/she can lead her life in a beautiful way. He hates entertaining hypocrites. Over the journey, he was my best buddy. Even he was not prepared like me, both of us struggling with our shoes. But being a good hiker and a trekker as well as a sportsperson, he didn't let her companion down and was continuously helping me in gaining my confidence. He was the one who was teaching me how to put the steps forward and the breathing techniques. Like always, this time too he was there with me as a guide, companion and best buddy throughout the whole journey.

“Water, I need water. My lips are drying up and my throat is crying out of thirst”, I was not able to move a single inch and also not able to trace Samuel and Ruchi. The sip of water was getting into the esophagus and fulfilling thirst. Vikram was trying to keep a hold on me as he knew I don’t have that stamina to keep a track with all of them. Murugan was behind us but it’s not due to his stamina but due to his passion of clicking the pictures which stopped him of not going forward. It was only one- third of a mile where I started feeling as if my nose will burst out of blood. My calves were terribly paining. Vikram started to make me understand about the aerobic reaction in our body. But sorry to say at that time I was not able to hear a single word. I was running short of oxygen and I felt as my ligaments of my waist were tearing off. I gave a thought of sitting there on the rocks for some time. I saw a girl who will be in her twenties and having a weight of around 80kgs was sipping water in the midst of the journey. I was surprised looking at the girl started thinking that whether a person fit or not, it’s the mind-set that help one to reach their destiny. I found many travelers on my way ranging from young girls or guys, small children, babies tied to their mummy’s or daddy’s handmade pouch. Some or the other person taught me a lesson. I was feeling good when strangers passed a smile on me and greet nicely during the voyage. I was moving forward with the help of Vikram and not but the least “the cool breeze”; the cool breeze was helping me to feel awesome. It was helping me in keeping the body cool. Finally we reached the fall. The steps were very slippery and water was drizzling. Everybody got drenched. People were seen wearing raincoats too. My happiness doubled when I saw a rainbow formed just over the rushing ivory colored water. I couldn't capture it due to the water that was sprinkling over the whole body. Suddenly, Samuel was seen on a top of a big rock and was asking us to be there.

I wanted to go but hesitated a bit as the road that led to that rock was slippery and muddy. One needs a pair of proper trekking shoes to pass through that. But I could not control my adrenalin rush and gave a sign of consent to move towards that big rock. I moved down and I slipped badly but somehow I didn't fall as Vikram quick fix his hands into mine. The road led to a rock where water was going through and we need to cross it. I tried to climb as I thought I can do that. But, here came the trouble. The water which was coming out through that rock entered into my black, cute pump shoes. For the first time in life I was not bothered for my shoes. The only focus was that giant rock.

Vikram thought that he will pull me up and I will let him go first. Before he could have done anything I somehow managed to climb that rock and moved to the other side and reached to that “Big Rock”.

We are now almost thirty slippery steps behind to our destination. Now there was a slight change in the road. The road was accompanied by many small steps with a railing on the other side as anyone can drown into that particular high stream, if slipped by mistake. As I was heading towards the top, my heart beat was becoming faster and fear of slipping at any time started haunting my mind. Luckily, I reached the top. I could see people of different ages enjoy the happiness of being there and I could find myself as one among them. The surface was dry as sun was directly in touch of that surface. Hot ladies were seen having a sun bath, love birds were seen kissing and nature lovers were seen busy in capturing the beautiful spot on earth. I was still few meters away from my destination. Vikram was behind me and I was mesmerized by the feeling of success and then suddenly I slipped off again and this time I got a bad cramp in my toes. I was feeling as nerves of my middle and the ring finger of my toes got a catch and it started paining. Vikram tried every sort of physiotherapy but it didn't work. I finally limped and reached the destination- THE TOP. In Hindi, one can describe as “Jannat”. This is the point where the water seemed to be white as snow which was flowing flawlessly in between the two big rocks. I never thought I could ever be able to make it happen. At this point, I was speechless, not knowing how to describe my happiness. It is meant only to be gazed on, only to behold. The feeling was awesome and in that Vikram asked me to sit and helped me in curing the cramp.

We sat there almost an hour and decided to go down. I thought going down will be an easy job as you are in support of gravitational force. But I was wrong. This time my calves as well my toes were paining in such a way as if they will burst into blood. The best part was we reached in a lesser time.

When I came down, I feel my life was getting more meaningful, more beautiful and more charismatic. I feel like regaining my lost confidence, blood in my arteries and veins, soul in my heart, strength in my mind, happiness in my tears and positivism in my attitude. I started feeling like “It’s a new Beginning”, and I was never late in giving happiness to myself in this way. Even being not ready to do this particular task, I completed it with greatness as per my knowledge. I want to credit Vikram specially for being along with me in the whole journey and others too for motivating me. But I should not forget this time to give a small reward to myself. I want to credit my “Courage”. My courage and willingness acts like a fuel which leads to the happiness I was searching for. One Yes and reward will be yours- Chase yourself to win the prize!!!!