Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Letting go 7: The forest talks

The library of stories


There isn't  much to say for a sal forest nearby. It's always magnetic. The sal trees would pull you out from wherever you are, drag you near and tell stories. It happens every time Kaleidoscope is nearby a forest. There is something called call of the wild. Yes it happens, but not in the Jack London's romantic experiences. Kaleidoscope is increasingly more into the imagined than empirical and experiential. Although, this time it begins with the experiential rather than imaginative. The google map pointed towards 'Garh forest'-  a part of 'Ramnabagan Wildlife Sanctuary' - enough to move Kaleidoscopic wheels. The feel of forest has been there at Durgapur itself but this place was already green in the map. It was a literal call- a sound that was worth listening to.

Windy this time and kaleidoscope could actually listen to the forest's call. The apparent sound of waterfall or rain created by wind passing through age old brownish leaves of sal tree actually carries whispering sound of the forest, and its love for the river. Otherwise why should there by the sound of waterfalls? It tells thousands of stories. Stories of birds, butterflies and forest people. They come alive in a never ending nostalgia. A nostalgia that compels  kaleidoscope to go again and again for the forest.
Navigating through the dusty forest road slowly, would make Kaleidoscope play with a rhythm of touching leaves off and on. Once he is off the road and starts walking through hundreds of fallen leaves it's a continuous sound of fallen leaves. They suddenly break the silence and tell the stories. If you listen to them they would tell you stories of the spring when they were born, the summer of sunshine, lovemaking monsoons and mystic winter when they prepared to leave the tree, store the stories and waited for the breeze to bring the river. Below them lies the earth - the library of stories - of every seasons. Each of the fallen leaves are archived.

As kaleidoscope prepares to leave them, suddenly the wind blows, entire forest narrates: from the canopy to the fallen leaves. They move and speak and finally the earth jumps off the ground and gives dusty hug - whispering a request "Bring the river next time."

Kaleidoscope smiles because he knows, finally there would be a river for him. A river where he would disappear in the horizon in a lengthy evening! But before that the library in earth would grow - the lust would remain! 



The rainbow in green

3 comments:

  1. Falling in love with the library kaleidoscope. Next time i go to the forest will definitely try to listen to the stories and read the book of fallen leaves.

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  2. Wow library in a forest land? What an wonderful thought kaleido...

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  3. True, each withering leaf has a story to tell…. Good that it found an ear to narrate it to…A forest is truly is a library- stories, myths, history, experiments and all that you couldn’t imagine even in your wildest dreams. A forest creates apart from literature and philosophy, minds to recreate and rejuvenate the “call of the wild”…. all the best for future romances....

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