We cannot live a single minute without our old pillow, our old car…

As usual I got up at 4. 45am to get ready for college. I was sick of this horrible schedule. I felt I had never slept for ages. I had not yet got out of bed. Suddenly I heard some noise from the other room. I thought I was dreaming. My room was dark and in its darkness I saw a white figure appearing near the door. Now I was wide awake for a split second I thought I was seeing a ghost but then I regained my conciseness and found out that was my father coming in the room. "Hi! What's up? Why did you get up so early?" I asked him. With a murmur or rather painful tone he said, "I had a very bad dream". Oh! Of all people MY FATHER saw a nightmare, gosh something really must be wrong with my ears I thought. I did not bother to ask him about his dream, as he looked very sad. I finally got ready to go to college. I had got ready very fast and was too early for the bus so I sat on the steps waiting for my father to get ready and come with me to the bus stop. The Cool breeze was blowing and it felt very nice. The air was fresh and clean. My father came out of the house and softly closed the door. I wanted to ask him what was the dream he had seen, as if he heard my thoughts in a hoarse whisper he said, " I dreamt that someone came to buy my car with the money. Oh! I thought he had dreamt of ghosts or something very dreadful. I never thought he would dream about his car. In a comforting tone I told him "an old thing always has to leave so that a new one can come". This was the same sentence he had told me when he had suggested selling my cycle. Well I was glad that made him smile.

I keep wondering why do we get attached to things? Why do we start loving them as if they were living? Though they never talk nor are similar in any respect, with us we still get so close to them. We can never imagine a day without them.

I remember when I was small I used to like my pillow very much. It was so soft and comfortable. I used to like every bit of it. I could never sleep without it. When it was torn still I used it. All the cotton started coming out. My grandmother could not bear to see its plight. One day when I went to school she removed the old cover put a new one filled some new cotton and made it as good as new. When I cam home I was shocked to see my pillow. I started crying, then yelling and threw the new pillow. Things got so worst that I finally with my grandmother went to the big dustbin where she had thrown the cover. We removed it and came back home. My eyes were swollen red I did not talk to her for a couple of days. Then my grandmother put that cover in water for a few of days and again stitched my pillow. Still I never got back my same old pillow. My grandmother was really sad and could never understand why I acted in that dreadful manner just for the sake of my pillow cover. Well she would never understand how much I loved my pillow. Today we both roll with laughter when we remember the incidence. But that day I remember the pillow was everything in my life. I thought my world had ended when I saw the new one.

These are just two examples of how attached we get to things. We cannot bear to be apart from them. I have never found out the real reason why this happens but would love to.

Written by: Maitreyi Doshi

Picture taken by: Maitreyi Doshi