A night of adventure

It’s a beautiful evening. The huge house in the middle of tea plantations in Idukki is slowly settling into sleep mode.The only sounds one can hear are the windows and doors being closed tightly .The dense evergreen forest nearby sometimes sends hungry animals towards the house. Flocks of birds returning home twittered happily as the sun dipped down,colouring the sky with hues of orange and red. Four teenaged city boys- Mani,Syril, Sabu and Aaru are vacationing in this beautiful home which belongs to their Grandparents and Biju Uncle. None of the boys seem to appreciate the serene beauty of this place. They are accustomed to city noises, honking cars, hollering vendors, roaring flights in the sky and on going construction work . They find the silence here bizarre and even spooky. As the night approaches, they huddle together in the room hiding under heap of quilts . Amla,Biju uncle’s daughter always made fun of them for being such mice .She is in perfect sync with the ambience here. Today, the boys are looking pretty perplexed. Their smartphones,video games, I-pads,and all other gizmos lay ignored . Now this was really unusual ! What made them forget their first love and sucked all of their attention ? It was actually a dare Biju uncle had thrown at them this afternoon. “It is not for sissies. It’s only for those who have nerves of steel and strong hearts .” - Biju uncle had declared in a challenging tone. Now you see , none of the four boys was sissy ! So the dare was ON without any question . But the moment they came to know what the dare was,they were flummoxed. Biju uncle had challenged them to come to the deep jungle with him, that too at night ! The boys were brave, no doubt . But then, there were things that bothered them . Mani hated darkness, syril was hyper sensitive to sounds, Sabu disliked creepy touches and Aaru was phobic to insects . A visit to the jungle, at night time was the combo of all the elements they disliked ! They had the choice of declining the dare , but that would prove them cowards. They consoled each other about night jungle trekking . “There’s nothing going on in those hours in the jungle” - they reasoned. “ The jungle is most alive at the night time” - Biju uncle had responded mysteriously. So , this was the reason the boys were in deep thought. They discussed the worst of the outcomes of such an adventure .Amla had been shooed away from their meeting about half a dozen times , for it was not a girl’s affair at all. The boys finally conveyed to Biju uncle at the dinner table that they have decided to take the dare. With fear in their hearts and courage on their faces , the kids were ready to take the plunge. “Ok . Be ready at 8 pm tomorrow . Wear clothes that cover you properly and put on sturdy boots . Amla will carry some food for all of us in her backpack. See you commandos.“ - Biju uncle signed off with that. “AMLA !!!!!” ???? - Boys stared with disbelief - are you coming with us ? “Yessssss ! “ - Amla showed them her tongue. Next night , at sharp 8 pm , driver John dropped them at the entrance of the jungle. “Ok boys ,listen carefully. We are entering the home of so many animals and birds. When you go to someone’s home , you watch your etiquettes and respect their personal space. Same here. So we are going to follow some rules. One - Don’t shout , laugh or make unnecessary noises. Two - Follow me , walk together , do not disperse. Three- Stay calm. Got it everyone ? Yea yea Sargent ! - whispered the kids. Biju uncle had a Lantern in his hand and he was leading. They had barely walked a few steps when Mani complained - “ It’s too dark . I can’t see.” Yes, you can not see as clearly . When such is the situation, you use your other senses. “Hear” and “ Smell” - advised Biju uncle. Listen to the rustling sound your feet are making. That means we are walking on fallen , dry leaves. They smell like caramel and burned sugar. Sounds and smells queer - muttered Mani. Yes , it does - laughed Biju uncle . Listen to the trees speaking . As the wind blows , trees become too chatty. Most talkative of all is the peepal tree . Can you hear it ? Oh , it’s clattering, sounds like tinkle toy !! - Syril gasped. His very sensitive ears were buzzing. And what is that creaky sound ? - he whimpered. Yeaaaa like an old door opening up - Mani tried focusing in the dark. ….and then there was a sudden thud, crash and BOOM !!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeee...all the kids screamed and huddled together. Hush kids ! I told you- no shouting . It’s only a tree branch falling down - said Biju Uncle It was scary - babbled Syril. Only till you came to know what it was - smiled Biju uncle. Yes, we agree - kids breathed easy now. “ Hehheh hheh hhheeehhh , Hehheh hheh heh heh heh “ - just then, another sound filled the air. Amla !!!!!! stop laughing , we are not supposed to laugh here either - Mani sounded offended. I am not laughing - denied Amla. Then what is this sound ?? - Syril, who had barely recovered from the earlier Boom sound , started shaking . His phobia for weird sounds gripped him. Actually , there’s an old woman . Not alive , dead …. She lives in this forest and becomes so happy when she has company of other humans. She has loooong white hair and a very crooked nose..... - Amla started describing the old woman in a scary voice. Uncle , I guess we should go back now - sabo was frightened . Hush Amla ! - Biju uncle scolded her. Stop pranking the kids. U sure know what that sound is , don’t you ? Ok , ok ….that’s Hyena - Amla giggled. Hyena sounds like a human laughing hysterically. Mad animal ! - muttered Syril . Yes , that animal has gone mad - other kids too were bewildered . Have you noticed how your foot sounds have changed ? - Biju uncle interrupted. No crackling sound is there now , because we have reached near the river and the Soil is covered with fresh green grass. Can you guys smell it ? And if you listen closely , you can hear the song of the river ! It burbles, gurgles , pitter-patters, dribbles , splashes and makes such a soothing song ! Dad ! - Amla rolled her eyes and teased - these city boys only understand electronic clink- clanks and beeps. Right ! Those sounds are pleasing too , for they indicate a job being processed amicably and its precise completion. That should also give you happiness. But coming close to Nature and hearing its comforting sounds heal you deep inside. It makes you healthy emotionally. Maybe you guys don’t understand it now , but never forget it - Biju uncle’s pensive voice touched the boys. Ok Amla are you going to give us something to eat ? It’s getting chilly here and we can definitely do with some hot chocolate milk. It was a beautiful sight …...five kids , totally in sync with the eerie night now , sitting peacefully by the river , having hot chocolate and chips …...learning to absorb positive vibes of the alluring Nature ! The fireflies glows warmed their hearts . It’s time to start the return journey boys . Pick up the empty packets . You take your garbage back, the jungle doesn’t need it . And now,do you guys think you are at ease addressing your fears and reservations ? Yessssssssss !!!!! Boys gave a cheerful shout ! Loudest was Aaru, who got up with spring in his feet and turned energetically……….and broke straight into an enormous spider web ! Aaaaggggggggh !!!! - Aaru gave a blood curdling scream ! A palm size spider was perched on his head. Aaru started running hither-slither. That started a chain reaction in the otherwise quiet night. A langur whooped above them , sending Syril into a screaming fit . Some frogs lying idly in the marshy river bank started croaking. A squirrel scurried up the tree - chuck , chuck , chuck …… A child’s wailing was heard. A child wailing in distress ? In the jungle ? A visibly Terrified Sabo tugged Amla’s jacket - is there also a child ghost here ? Heck no. U ninnys ! This is a wild cat - Amala sounded annoyed. Uncle !!!!!!! Something is moving near me - Sabo’s voice was distressed. “ Sabo and all the kids , FREEZE . FREEZE now. Don’t move” - there was an urgent concern in Biju uncle’s instruction. Calm down . Breathe deep. And the tumult came to a halt. Next few minutes were silent , only kids breathing heavily could be heard. That must’ve been a snake . Reasoned Biju uncle. SNAKE !!!! Syril had never jumped so high in his life ! So did the other kids ! Dunno what made them jump too, mention of the snake or syril’s leap. Kids, I said calm down . Don’t panic . U guys forgot the jungle rule ? Just be still and let this small herd of Elephants pass by. With breaths on hold , kids kept on hearing the trumpeting and rumbling of elephants . When the sounds died down , Biju uncle hugged the kids and comforted them. There’s another jungle rule you need to know . “ Don’t disturb the inhabitants of the jungle and they won’t disturb you.“ Be very assured that we are safe here as long as we don’t have the intention of hurting anyone . Looks like we had enough adventure for a night - Biju uncle decided. Ok, guys follow me to the back trail . Kids were very quiet as they walked cautiously . Amla started singing a song very softly. The cool jungle breeze , chirping crickets, buzzing insects , water dripping through rocks ……..everything seemed synchronised with her song. Driver John smiled as he saw them and asked - how was the adventure ? Boys saw each other’s faces and smiled. Not bad - they replied. Like it is for everyone, for the very first time ! - Biju Uncle summed up smiling. Back home , all the kids were piled up in front of the fireplace . Amla was replicating the story moment by moment and the cosy room was filled with giggles and laughter . “ Amla was not at all scared . And we thought this is not going to be easy for her. In fact she is the only one who enjoyed every single moment out there “ - admitted Aaru. That’s because Amla stays out in the Nature frequently. She knows how to live in harmony with it - Grandpa said. The earth doesn’t belong to us humans only. All the other creatures understand and abide by the rules of Mother Nature. Only we humans are not in rhythm with our environment. I suggest you boys take some time off your electronic gadgets and roam outside often. Be in the company of trees and birds . Let the fresh air touch your faces , smell the divine fragrance of wild flowers . You are humans not robots. Only lucky ones have enough time to be close to Nature . It relaxes you , calms you down , uplifts mood , keeps your body fit and also reminds you to be responsible towards protecting it. And yes I understand tonight was tooth grinding , spine chilling experience for you guys. But have you realised, it’s only our startled imaginations that lead us to fear the worst ? Once you find out the truth behind what’s responsible for the things that scares you , you calm down and then you act sensibly . It applies to life in general also. Grandpa’s words were full of love and wisdom . The kids realised how lucky they were to have experienced Nature up and close. With the fear melting away and a great admiration taking its place , the boys hugged Uncle Biju . Thanking and promising to accompany him to the jungle again , they drifted to sleep.