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The Last Word
The Colonel and His Son
Rajen Kumar
Dec 2011
Dec 2011
This is the story of a father and his son. It may easily be the story of other households as well, though this one has a different flavour worthy of being shared.
It happened four years back in the NCR region of Delhi. The hero is a retired army officer, a colonel, who defended the nation's frontiers and then went on to secure his home frontiers by building a modest house on the outskirts of the national capital with his hard-earned money and settled down with his wife and the only son who was afforded the best of education in business administration.
Time was moving on as if it were spring. He could not have asked for more in life when his son was placed in a multinational company as a senior marketing executive.
Some more time rolled by and he married off his son. For the father the last parental responsibility was over. A grandson was born and a doting grandfather threw a lavished party. More time passed by. His ambitious son and his wife, also employed, nurtured an idea of taking to business to earn big. His wife would regularly pester her husband to arrange for finances. His discussed his plans with his father who, as any father would, gave the go ahead to illustrious son. It was just that finances were coming in the way.
His wife threw up an idea: why not convince his father to sell the house and for once the business gets going cash bells would ring, and they can always build a much better house. Gathering courage, the son went to the father and shared the brain child. The colonel brushed off the idea that properties were too hard to buy and build, and thus selling the house was not a viable idea.
Both his son and daughter in law were not convinced and kept quiet for a few days. But they made it a point to regularly play on the mind of the Colonel. Dejected and defeated, the colonel went to a confidant, a long time friend, and narrated him the fix he found himself in? What transpired between the two?
As his son's wedding anniversary approached, the colonel called his son and surprised him with an international travel package as a gift from the parents. The package had an all expenses paid 10-day trip Singapore and Malaysia. Both his son and daughter-in-law were rather impressed by the colonel's magnanimity. They went off to Singapore.
After the holiday abroad the son, the daughter-in-law and their four year old son returned refreshed to take on their jobs again. Alighting from a cab, they rang the bell pf their home. No answer. They again rang the bell. A middle aged man opened the door. Confused, his son asked who he was. In return he asked who the visitor was? The son informed him irritatingly that he was owner of the house and his parents were supposed to be in. The man asked him confirming if he was the son of the colonel. “Yes,” he shot back more irritatingly this time. The man retorted politely that he had purchased the house a few days ago and the colonel has a left a message with his confidant. The world came crumbling down on his son who straight away headed towards the confidant's house -- close by. The confidant made the son and his wife feel at home comfortably and served them tea and snacks. The former fetched a bulging bag. He opened the bag and handed him a few documents and conveyed to the colonel's son all what had transpired in his absence: “You father was not happy at all. You insisted him to sell the house and he did. He sold the house for Rs. two crores. Here is some cash for you for your immediate needs. He has arranged a house on rent for you at such and such address and has paid one year's advance rent. Your belongings are shifted and are in place. Here is a rent receipt and here is a fixed deposit receipt of Rs. 10 lakh in your son's name. When he grows up to be 20, he will get the money. This is a draft of Rs. 50 lakh for you to start your business. This is all your father could do for you. And yes, he has gone to some unknown place with your mother and has especially instructed me to tell you not to try to find his whereabouts. Even I don't know here he has gone.”
Shell shocked, both the son and his wife were left speechless. His wife became hysterical while tears welled up in the eyes of the son.“For once you didn't realize what agony your father had to go through. He would come to me to cry his heart out. Your father was always bubbling with life and smiles won't go off his face and he always behaved like a lad in his teens. You were the only son and his everything belonged to you yet you wanted to dislodge him at this juncture of his life. Your father fought wars and took on the enemy head on, defeating death many a times and was a decorated officer with unquestioned bravery. But now he seemed to have lost the glory he had earned the hard way. For the first time in 40 years of our friendship I saw tears of sorrow in my friend's eyes. Your mother occupied the chair you are sitting on and sobbed inconsolably before leaving but she was in total agreement with your father. His parting words were 'You don't know, my child, what you have lost.'
"I am also happy with what he has done!" were the words after which the colonel's friend fell silent. He helped the colonel's son and his wife regain their composure and requested them to go to their new house and start life afresh – without their parents of course.
The little child was unaware of the upheaval. What lessons the gen next child would learn is too early to say!
The columnist is too scared, too welled up with emotions to hazard a guess! Nobody can if there's a lump in the throat!!
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