Resham Birahi Ghimire
Ritbahadur’s desire for earning a college education
remained unfulfilled
Last summer, while in the memory of his deceased father
and the grief of his mother that keeps menacing in his memory,
he sought for the meaning of his grief and his life as well
Smelling the vapor of oppression emitted
from the corner of his village
he looked at the grade ten text books inserted at some
rafter in his pali1 house, which were full of smoke and dust
Ritbahadur rambled quite some time with a heart full of chaos
and desire and giving a glance at his mother
who was washing a pan
at the garbage corner,
he quietly left his home and did not return in the evening,
thus another grief poured on Phulmati who was mourning
her husband’s demise
One evening, Ritbahadur appeared suddenly at the door of
Phulmati who was frightened by the villagers
Looking for the future of adolescent Damayanti and now
a capable goatherd Khadgabahadur, he appeared
in a strange dress and raising his tightly clenched fists,
greeted his mother
and taught a short lesson to his mother and siblings in a spot
around a flickering light at the middle of the night,
he taught slightly a lesson of ideals unintelligibly,
and inspiring Damayanti and Khadgabahadur
for sacrifice, looked at the ignorant mother’s face
and standing abruptly up, he clinched his fists tightly
pointing it at the sky, and exited through the door
Phulmati, believing that her son had joined the army,
she put off the oil lamp and went to bed
she had a deep sleep
One day,
an army of soldiers suddenly appeared in front of Phulmati
who was sowing maize seeds with a small spade
in her sloping land, and in the likeness of Ritbahadur
they greeted her,
raising tightly clenched fists
She looked for Ritbhadur’s face in that group
and in response, one broke the news curtly
‘Platoon commander Ritbahadur has gained martyrdom.’
Phulmati, having understood only the word Ritbahadur,
was dumbfounded while the army of soldiers
stretched their arms pointing at the sky
with their clenched fists
and thus descended down the hill
Phulmati, failing to understand anything,
looked at this scene with her silent eyes.
- Pali is a smaller house along with the main one, used for various purpose such as storing grains or tethering cattle.
Translated by Govinda Raj Bhattarai