March 20, 2007

The little molecule-2

When I was younger, I hated stories which ended with "To be Continued" phrase.
Continued from The little molecule -1

A long time had passed. The molecule was crushed somewhere in a small corner of the huge house. He decided this was not what he wanted. But what could he do. It was not like older days when he could just fly out of anywhere. He had no space to move. he tried to talk, but he couldn't hear himself talking. all he heard was noise. lots of noise.
There began his journey which went on for long ages. He tried to keep track of time that passed. He couldn't. In that small corner, he had begun to fit well, so well that he believed, that was all where he could fit. Sometimes when noise was lower, he would talk to the other hydrogen molecule and with their leader oxygen. Sometimes he would hate them. Then he would miss the times when he could fly by where he wanted. Sometimes he would remember that the actual purpose of this all was giving someone life. He tried to ask oxygen who it was that he was helping. Oxygen always told him, it was for a much greater reason than he could ever think of. It was not that oxygen didn't want to tell him. Even he was always told just this much. Once when he was younger, he had tried to ask what this was all about. He found that he could not find anyone who knew anymore than he did. Slowly the questions died.
The molecule had been through much. He had gotten out of his house. That was the time the three of them talked. And then he had found himself back in some other house. The oxygen tried to explain to him what was happening, but he always used strange words ending with 'tion' which molecule could not make sense of and after sometime, he gave up.
The molecule started wondering if there could be someway, neway he could go back to be the way he was. Sometimes he thought that he would just quit and go away. He wanted to live for a real cause. The reason why he had decided to join the Oxygens, but he could not see what this was all about. There was no reason for him to stay there anymore. He wanted to be free.
Then one night, when everyone was sleeping he had tried to runaway. But he could not getway. He couldn't break the bond with the oxygen and the other hydrogen. He had been with them for so long and he felt he could not do anything alone either. He had probably also forgotten how to fly. But he forced his way out but he had to take the other hydrogen with him. Something must have helped him escape, but he didn't realize. He was just happy to be out. They went far away in the sky. Free at last, or were they?

The Oxygen molecule woke up to find himself together with so many other Oxygen molecules and one of them in his own room, and there were no hydrogens. The other oxygen molecule informed him that he was going to be with him for sometime. And they flew away too. Everyone was flying. Everybody was happy for sometime. Nobody knew how it had happened. Hydrogens thought they knew, but were not sure. Some claimed the knowledge of devine hand of God. Some others were not sure. And most others had no idea, and so believed in the devine theory. Those who weren't sure, thought that it was their hard work because of which this had happened. Some amongst them were not sure about this either. They took a safe stand and said, it was possible only because of their hardwork, but it would not have been possible without the devine help. At various points various some or the other of them changed their, what we would call, school of thought. Some created newere versions which meant nothing much more substantial, but they liked to be the molecules starting a new school of thought. And there were so many of them that almost always they found molecules which followed them.

So they were about floating in the air. Oxygens still had work to do. They were getting orders from different source, about which absolutely nobody among them knew. But they were not very sad and definitely were not missing the hydrogens and they didn't need to live in the clumsy houses anymore. For sometime atleast. But they met different molecules at different times. Some more hydrogens, there were others, carbons and others about which they had not heard before.

The little hydrogen molecule did not believe much in any of the theories that hydrogens were making about their freedom. And he felt lost. There were sometimes when he wanted to belong to some group, but he found it wierd to believe in something that everyone only belived in, without any knowledge of truth or false attached to it.

The little hydrogen had always been little. He never grew. None other hydrogens grew either, but most of them would change their behaviour at certain time and start talking in thick voices. They were called elders, little hydrogen was as old as some of the elders but he was little still. Sometimes he wanted to be one of the elders. Most other times he did not.

But once again, the little molecule was worried about what he could or would do. He was serving some purpose till sometime back. He remembered the series of events that had happened. They did not seem so tough a journey as it had then. He didn't remember the long periods of silences that he had as they were. He only remembered that they were their. He remembered some conversations but. And he remembered sometimes when he had had real fun. He remembered some mistakes that he did and somethings which he would make right, if he was to go back in time. But if, someone asked him if he wanted to go back. He'd say no. It was over. It was long back. He then believed in the thoughts of that oxygens believed in too. But he did not believe it now. He still wanted to do something, something good, only that he did not know what it was.

Time passed, lots of time. And then one day, he found himself trapped among thousands of other hydrogen atoms. They said, they were going to do great things. They said, its no use to live your life and have not done anything for anyone else. They sounded like oxygens, but they were more determined. Much more. So much that he thought that he wanted to join them. And they read his thought. They were fast, very fast. they were not elders, but they wanted to be elders, very fast. They read his thought and told him that all his life he had wanted to do something. And this was his big chance. This was the thing, he probably was made for. This was the one thing that was the reason, he was looking for, all his life. What were they going to do, he asked them.

They said, just wait and watch. Actually most of them did not know what it was themselves. They said just wait and watch because others had told them to just wait and watch. But they said it confidently, just like it had been told to them and the little molecule, in all his confusion, somehow believed them. And went with them.

They went on for a long time. They sang songs of praise for themselves and their cause. Nobody asked what the cause was. Those who did ask, did recieve replies. Just wait and watch. That's what everyone said. They mentioned sun sometimes. Sometimes someone said something like energy. But mostly everyone said just wait and watch. The little molecule found himself going towards the earth once again. Just wait and watch, they said. Some asked him too, about what this was all about. He said, just wait and watch, not as confidently as he had been told, but enough to convince the molecule that asked that he should just wait and watch and tell everyone who asks him to just wait and watch.

Somebody said something about sacrificing for a great cause. The little molecule did not know what sacrificing meant, ofcourse he had no chance of knowing what the great cause was. But since everyone around him was so convinced, he felt good about what he was going to do. And then it happened. Very suddenly. It became very hot and boom, there was a large noise. The little molecule didn't know what had happened. The little molecule did not know where he was. Something had happened. They had said, it was for good. The little molecule hoped so. He didn't know and it didn't matter. Sacrifice, yes it was. He did not know what it meant. Something good must have happened. It didn't matter. Things don't matter at all after a certain instant.

Not to be continued.

1 comment:

Suman Pai said...

hey, thanks for the conclusion..interesting climax..