Describe a phase in life that was difficult to say goodbye to.
The content describes the various phases of human life, beginning from pregnancy until old age, focusing on Laxman, who experiences notable transformations. He evolves from a carefree toddler exploring the world to a teenager facing societal pressures and struggles for a job, representing the challenges of transition. As he grows older, Laxman cherishes memories of his past, particularly his innocent childhood filled with play and creativity. Now an octogenarian, he reminisces about these experiences, illustrating the bittersweet nature of nostalgia and the inevitability of time’s passage.
The human life is completed in phases. It starts when an egg is fertilized in the mother’s womb. The fertilized egg is technically known as a zygote. It starts growing as an embryo in a cosy atmosphere attached to a pipe to the wall of the mother’s womb. Finding nourishment from the mother, the embryo grows, takes shape as the organs develop and becomes a fully developed baby. It takes about 273 days to finish the physical development in the womb and for the embryo to become a foetus.
After the foetus comes out, vagitus declares about the baby’s arrival on the earth. People start counting days, they call age, from the day a newborn first cry is heard. The prognosticator starts calculating the positions of stars and planets at the time of the birth and predicts the future of the baby. Almanack is prepared, and rites and ritual starts. The important thing, though, was that the baby did not choose the appropriate time to come out.
It is the first phase. While estimating the phase, gestation period also needs to be taken into account, but in almost all cases it is omitted. Growth and development of baby, which started in womb, continues but in the external world baby receives many external stimuli and impulses that put the organs to test and give a different perception to the baby. The infancy continues for about a year or two when baby progress into another phase of life which is of a toddler.
As a toddler, the baby learns to sit, crawl and then to walk. It is the phase when the baby starts reacting to various external impulses and stimuli, comprehending surrounding language and expression. The nascent brain of a baby is very active. It picks up things quickly and processes them as per the capacity.
Toddler is an active phase in the life of a baby with capacity building at its peak. Incapable of speaking, a toddler expresses emotions through various ways of crying. Totally dependent on the parents, the baby grows according to the surrounding conditions.
It is a common observation that a mother holding her baby in a long stole tied on her back and lugging bricks or detritus on a construction site. The bond between the mother and the baby is worth appreciation. A mother knows her baby more than anyone else and amidst her strenuous work schedule, she manages to take care of her baby. It is heartening to see toddlers sleeping under the shade of a tree on a blank patch of land while their mothers are busy with their work.
Toddlers enter a phase of childhood when they start to adapt to the environment. They start going to kindergarten, make friends and learn lessons. A child does not have to bother about other things for two reasons. One is that the child is tender yet not fully grown; the other is that his stage is very incipient. Some children are gifted with extra talent while others do not get even the basic necessary things. The harshness makes the latter physically rough and tough.
Childhood generally starts at the age of four or five. It is a phase when children are free from worries. They play, create, learn, befriend and sometimes quarrel. Their quarrel is short-lived, and they start mixing and mingling moment after their quarrel.
Laxman was a four years old boy. His parents, especially his mother, were very careful. His mother used to sing rhymes for him, play and teach him. Child Laxman was very receptive. He used to pick things up quickly. He had started going to KG where he learned to make friends and social manners. His school performance was brilliant but the child doesn’t show concern about it. He used to play, act in school and quickly finish his homework. His mother had taught him to adhere to a routine which he follows.
The child used to wake up early in the morning and, after finishing his daily routine, go to school. He loves going to school and playing with his fellow children. He did all that a child could or what was expected from him. He enjoyed colouring the outlined drawings of various animals, flowers, insects or any object. He loved watching living things moving and observing them carefully.
A child is carefree, innocent and sensitive. It is a phase when playing is the only task they need to do. Memory starts solidifying and incidents start making their impression. It is the stage when the mind is impressionable. They learn what they see around them and in their families. The phase flies off quickly, and gradually, a depth starts taking place in a child’s psyche. Their creative ability starts settling down.
Laxnan loved to play with mice. His elder cousins used to catch a mouse, tie it’s tail with a long thread and give it to him. Amused Laxman would cry with joy as the mouse ran. He would run behind it holding the string. After playing for a while and feeding the mouse he would release it.
Laxman loved colourful kites soaring high in the sky and colourful spinning tops. Spinning tops look phantasmagoric while spinning. He enjoyed watching them with his cousins, who used to play them. The child had learned to make paper boats. He would make paper boats with old newspaper or rough sheets of paper and leave them in the gushing waters while it rained. It gave him ample pleasure. He would cry with joy, clap and laugh as his boat swiftly floated and hitchhiked in gushing rainwater.
As he grew, hide and seek became his favourite game. He would play for long after school hours. He also enjoyed watching Gilli-Danda though he seldom participated in the game. Playing with rubber balls was also his liking as he loved catching the bouncing ball and throwing it again. He was mediocre at studies but that was not a disadvantage. He would clear his examinations decently.
After he cleared his board examination, his family shifted to a comparatively big city. Laxman was now fourteen. It was a transitional phase, and later, he came to know about it as a teenager. Peach Fuzz had started appearing on his otherwise clean face. A few blackheads had also appeared. These things annoyed him. His mother told him that these were phasic.
The childish behaviour was waning. Once he had a chance to revisit his old city. It was the month of July. He went to his alma mater. Boys who used to be his classmates were astonished to see his growth and physical appearance. He grew thinner, his face was becoming bony with sloppy cheekbones and prominent jawlines. His long and slender neck remained unaffected, but Adam’s apple had made its presence felt. He saw the same changes in his classmates as well.
Gradually, he entered a phase when an individual is categorised as a youth. He was now twenty and had cleared his post-graduation. The difficult phase had started. After post-graduation, he was pressured to take up a job and earn. He wanted to do something more and finish a doctoral assignment. Compelling situations, rough treatment from his father and societal pressure tried to crush his spirit. Job seeking was very difficult, but he kept on trying and working hard. He was without a job for more than a quinquennium.
Laxman is now an octogenarian. Leading a superannuated life, he often remembers his old days. He had many memories. He remembers the day when, after much struggle, he got a job and how his days were. He remembers his childhood days. Despite difficulties, his past becomes his cherished memories.
Sitting idle he often travels down the memory lanes, remembering them. It gives him a sweet pain, and sometimes his eyes brim and the letters on the paper become blurred. He used to write his feelings and share them as stories. Old days have gone never to come back again. Laxman usually sits quietly and muses about his old days and the time he lived.
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