By Jefferine George
One of Nabigha’s earliest memories beheld a question she, as she discovered, could never bring herself to ever forget.
“Little princess, what would you say is seen in anything and anywhere? In everything and everywhere?”
Of course, her toddler-self had answered with a reply that now seemed very embarrassingly stupid to her grown self – “I see Donald duck a-and Huey and Dewey and Louie and Daisy and-and Daddy, can you please tell Santa to get me their plushies for Christmas?”
If only Nabigha could go back in time and flick the forehead of her duck-obsessed younger self.
But if someone asked her the same question today, her answer would be entirely different.
Only she wasn’t sure what her answer would be.
The thought haunted her as she awakened from her nostalgic dream that surfaced the lost memory she had nearly forgotten.
Nabigha thought long and hard as she drove the cab to her office. She thought long and hard in the breaks between her work hours. She thought long and hard as she carpooled back to her apartment with a bunch of her colleagues from different departments. She thought long and hard in the shower. She thought long and hard as she mindlessly stared at the wall after having her dinner.
Her phone ringing brought her out of her reverie. She fished it out of her pocket to see the name My old man flashing on her screen. With a smile on her face, she answered the call with a cheery voice.
“Hey daddy! I was literally just thinking about you – or rather, thinking of something you said a long time ago.”
Her father’s chuckle reverberated through the speaker. “Hey sweets. What was it that I said?”
“Something about what is seen in anything and everything, everywhere?”
“Ah that. It’s something my own dad used to ask me often. Tortured me throughout my teen years with that, he did. I was so busy trying to avoid him every time he asked for an answer, I never really bothered to find out what it was!” He laughed. And then he paused. “So why are you thinking about that? Trying to find an answer?”
“You know me – I dreamt about this last night, and now I won’t be able to sleep until I find an answer.”
“Of course, your mother’s daughter that you are, through and through. Let me know if you ever come up with something decent enough.”
“Decent? Daddy, I’m going to bring you something mind-blowing – just you wait and see.”
She could imagine her father absent-mindedly nodding his head as he said, “That you will, darling. I’ll leave you to that, then. Do get some sleep eventually.”
“Will do. Take care, Daddy.”
“You too, sweets.”
The apartment seemed too empty and quiet after she hung up. The silence being unbearable, Nabigha grabbed her house keys and a pair of flip-flops before heading to the roof. The night breeze was cool and crisp as it blew through her hair, seeming like a gentle caress across her comparatively warm cheeks. Hugging her arms to herself, Nabigha headed to the ledge overlooking the lit cityscape underneath. To her right, lights flashing on the billboard of some skincare product kept flickering. The traffic sounds were rhythmic and soft. The moon overhead was a perfect half. On top of it all, she could hear whispers of loud conversations wafting in from places she couldn’t see.
The night was peaceful, indeed.
And it was at this moment that the tiny little pessimistic cell of hers decided to probe her mind with that irritating voice of its asking – ‘But who’s to say it will stay this way?’
But Nabigha wasn’t irritated. No, forget irritated, she was intrigued. That tiny little pessimistic cell of hers finally came of some good use for once in her life. That one question now completely changed her view of the sight in front of her.
The billboard lights might not always flicker. One day, it would be constant – or completely down. Or the billboard itself might change. And the next one would have absolutely nothing to do with skincare!
The traffic might not always be soft and rhythmic. Tomorrow it might be an overwhelming silence. Or a noisy disturbance. The same goes for the conversations.
Tomorrow, the moon is definitely not going to be a perfect half. Even the night itself is going to transition into a new day in a few hours.
Truly, who’s to say things will stay this way. Everything is bound to change eventually.
Suddenly her mind went back to the question that had been plaguing her whole day.
“What would you say is seen in anything and anywhere? In everything and everywhere?”
Change.
Nabigha felt a giddy laugh bubbling up her throat as she finally found her answer. It was ‘Change.’
Thinking about it, the answer had been in front of her eyes all along. Maybe a tiny little pessimistic push was exactly what she had needed all along. Because change was really there in everything, everywhere.
It could be something so small, we don’t even realize it.
The air around her – the different particles and elements it contained – the amount of them kept changing with every breath she took. With every step that she took. The air around her apartment, is not the same air around her office.
The cells in her body. It is said that the human body produces new cells each day, and sheds the old cells each day. Her body is new every day, to say so literally.
It could be something so big, it flips your whole world upside-down. The successful launch of her brother’s new business. Her promotion at her job. Her mother’s illness. Her father’s accident.
The earth you walk on new everyday – new soils, new rocks, new crack or stains or scratches on pavements, new pavements. The buildings you come across are not the same – a house being emptied, an office space renovated, a new painting brought in, an old desk thrown out, another chip of the wall paint falling off– and each day making the buildings yet a day older.
People change – people age, people grow. The things they see and experience from the day they are born to the day they die shapes and molds their behavior and personality each day.
The population changes – The earth sees thousands being born and thousands dying all over the globe with each passing dawn. Be it animals of the land and sea, the birds of the air or the humans that rest above them all.
Of course, these are but a few changes that Nabigha could think of. There were plenty other instances and examples she hadn’t even begin to cover. Maybe she never even would be able to.
See, that’s the funny thing about change – it could be ANYTHING. It could be so miniscule that it doesn’t even matter, or so humongous that it impacts several lives at the same time. It could be welcomed with open arms, or openly rejected and feared. It could turn one’s life towards success or towards the sewer. But the funniest thing of all – is that you can never stick for long towards just one particular kind of change.
Change is unpredictable and predictable. It could come in anything and anywhere – In everything and everywhere – whether it takes its time or floods you all at once.
In the end, from here on out, one thing would remain the same – Nabigha’s answer. Ironically, that would never change.
Or maybe it could.
Nabigha had no way of knowing that, but she was content for now. The midnight sky had cleared out to reveal the smear of stars shimmering across its dark veil. Taking in one last gulp of the cool rooftop air, Nabigha headed back downstairs in hurry – After all, she had a father waiting for a mind-blowing something.
By Jefferine George
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