The only definition of an Israeli man, like how Tutankhamen is the
representation of all Egyptians, Nelson Mandela is of all Africans. For me it
was Abeed for all Israelis.
Sun kissed rugged skin, droopy doe eyes, messy hair combed back,
medium built and in a neutral colored tee, a pair of dusty denim and jacket,
sunglasses and a lit cigarette on his left hand.
Abeed !
I don't know if that's his
actual name or how it is spelt.
The tour to Israel from India was lead by a woman, a bossy woman
who never let any of the local guides speak. Being a bunch of 40 and a back
bencher, by the time we alighted the bus the guide would have gone half way
through the explanation and we would just go blank.
That's when Abeed came to the rescue. He used to walk much behind
the group to spot the fellow tour members and guide them like how the shepherd
would guide the sheep in herds.
He used to tell us stories about the people in Israel, his family,
and the way he would explain a Christian site was more from a historic point of
view whereas our guides always brought in a religious angle to it.
He had this urge to travel, learn more and improve value of life.
Like many other citizens he never had a Facebook account or passport or no
contact with outside world but he expressed his deep desire to visit
Kerala.
I would've felt so claustrophobic in his place. He worked as a
tour guide, did his college to become a qualified guide, worked overnight in a
restaurant.
His diction was different. He tried to use Malayalam words in
between his sentences. That was always inspiring and funny sometimes.
One of the many days in Jerusalem we visited a handicraft shop
promoted by the government, I was extremely fascinated by a Jerusalem cross
which can be opened up to a necklace and closed to form a Jerusalem cross. But
I had decided not to shop for jewellery or anything for myself on the trip. I
was speaking to the shop keeper who offered me a strong coffee concoction.
I was exhausted from long day of walking and sightseeing watching
how our fellow tour mates grabbing the discounts and souvenirs. Abeed came to
me and asked me if I were alright or something disturbed me.
I smiled and he slipped a Jerusalem cross into my hand.
Was it my law of attraction working or did he realize I had liked
the cross so much. I now had it :)
He could never remember my simple name. He kept calling me
"mandhu" and I would squeal "That means Fool” in
Malayalam.
We were going to Dead Sea on the last day of our Israel trip and
post that we would be crossing the country to Egypt. He helped us click
pictures of us in dark sticky clay and mud!
That evening we were returning to the hotel in a bus, the last day
with Abeed as our guide.
We were going to Sharm-el - sheikh the next day.
Everybody thought of lines to bid good bye to Abeed and some of us
thought of parting gifts. We had grown fond of this man. I was thinking of
sharing my contact details with him and how I could probably send him a gift as
a token of all the love he showed us.
He requested the driver to stop the bus midway and he got down and
walked away. That was the last we saw of Him.
A feeling of heaviness in my heart and numerous unanswered questions!
Why didn't he say goodbye? Didn't he care? Am I one amongst many
tourists that he sees?
Was it just me? No, My mother, a bunch of other girls, the men,
old couples, all missed him terribly!
Didn’t he realize that at all?
We all sulked through our drive the next day to Egypt.
Maybe we should all learn something from him. Why are good bye's
so painful ?
We are sometimes scared to make friends, go out of the way to
love. We hold ourselves back sometime for the fear of goodbye. He was never
attached to the things and people around for good. It is true that we cannot
expect him to remember and sulk over hundreds of tourists who come and go.
People come to our lives for a reason, and they always teach us a
little lesson.
We grow from it and call it experience. I would like to believe
that I added a few pages of experience in his life as well.
Till I meet again , Abeed !
For some reason I was reminded of the parable of 'The Good Samaritan' - nice post! The world is a small place - you never know - perhaps one day you may run into Abeed in Fort Kochi or in Chennai :)
ReplyDeleteNice one minu..loved reading.
ReplyDelete