It's more than twelve years, but the moment my thoughts stray back to that time, it comes back with all the violent fury and the numbness of shock, fear of the loss, it could have paralysed me. For months after the incident, i was afraid of closing my eyes, not that i did not sleep for months but the luxury of relaxing with your eyes closed while things and din around you slip into oblivion gradually ,was denied. The moment I closed my eyes, the watery expanse at kanyakumari gushed towards me and the suffocating feeling choked me.Yes, that horrifying incident took place there.
It was 1997, my sons were of 11 and 5 years. My sister was posted at Trivandrum, we had been to her place to spend a few days with them. One weekend, we went to Mahendragiri and after spending the night at the guest house, and on our way back to Trivandrum we planned to spend sometime at kanyakumari. Due to some local unrest that day ferries were not sailing upto the vivekanand memorial rock. That was a great disappointment. I and sunder both had been to kanyakuari and to the rock earlier, but this time it was solely for the kids. But as the circumstances were, we had no other option to sail to the famous rock, so we tried to entertain the kids on shore, roaming around we saw this rock few meters ahead in the water.It was quite a big rock and many families were enjoying themselves there. A rocky path\strait was leading to the rock. A number of tourists were walking to and fro. We decided to give kids some thrill . At least some compensation of the missed opportunity to ride the ferry and be in the midst of seas. We approached near the water. Sea was quite calm, a group of boys in early twenties were taking bath, enjoying on both side of the rocky strait. Like others we also walked and reached the rock. It really was a wonderful feeling, i was telling my kids, it's almost as good as being on the ferry and was also giving them some geography lessons .After enjoying the breeze and the feel of expanse, we started for shore. My sis has decided to wait for us at the shores and was busy footpath shopping for the shells and conch etc. in the meantime many new tourists had arrived on the rock while those already there were leaving. Flow of people was continunous.
We were on the rocky strait on our way back to shore. We were almost at shore, may be six or seven feet away from the land when suddenly a huge wave came from one of the sides and we were thrown into the sea. It was a real big high wave. My elder son was walking quite ahead us. The boys who were enjoying there were already on shore, i must say 'luckily' they had finished in time. Sensing the situation they quickly caught hold of my elder son (as he was in their reach) and pulled him out. I was thrown off the rocky path but somehow or other landed again near the rocks, i was in sea waters neck deep and was holding the rocks but sunder who was behind me ,holding the hands of the younger son shubham was thrown almost three feet away. I looked on his side, i could not understand what was holding him to his place .He is more than 6ft and he was under water more than neck deep. Shubham was nowhere to be seen. All around him (sunder) was water lashing with fury, I extended my hand towards him in a futile effort to reach him while my mind was numb .........O god, where is shubham, the boys on the shore were extending towels etc, they knew it could not reach him, but nobody was able to think beyond that. In the meantime the wave which gushed over us so suddenly receded back into the sea and there was sunder standing motionless with his hand holding shubham's wrist. This entire thing was just in a matter of 5-6 seconds but my child was under water for that time. The furious wave lashing around trying to unhold sunder's grip and behid sunder was a big rock under the water, which supported him, protected him like a wall between him and the sea upto infinity, I still shudder to think what if.............
we came out, my one leg below the knee was full of bleeding scratches, tiny rocky particles embedded in the skin, sunder's toes were bleeding profusely, slightly deshaped, his feet and legs too were wounded, but we were not feeling any physical pain, our minds were still in a state of shock. The elder son was not able to speak for some time.May be during those few moments he had visualised himself standing all alone on this shore with his entire family gone, mouth agape, he was just staring us. The only family member normal was shubham, later on when we asked him, did he feel the fear of flowing away in the sea beyond while he was under water. Instant came that five year old's reply....but how could i have gone deep into the sea when papa was holding my hand. We all hugged each other and burst into tears with relief. We need to develop that kind of faith in our FATHER. He was there holding our hands all the time and that is why sunder got the support of that rock, that is why his grip over shubham's hand did not loosen despite lashing and thrusting of waves, even the camera bag on sunder's shoulders was not washed away...of course...his nikon SLR was damaged beyond repair...the unused films and some of the exposed films in the bag when developed gave strange hues... but the miraculous part was that the pics from the rocks, clicked just a few minutes before the incident wore no signs of that fury...they came out totally unscathed....may be there too was a message ....live, relish and savour every moment, you don't know what is in store for you the next moment.
besides that, I learnt one more lesson. We should love the nature force but also must respect it and should never take too much liberty with it. A kind of regard for it's supremecy, a kind of humbleness from our side should always be there between us and the almighty natural forces and powers.
I shall love to share those moments (pics) with all of you..........
vivekanand memorial rock clicked from shore few minutes before we wandered towards that rock
with my sons on the rock blissfully unaware of the the experience in store........
we and some other tourists on the rocks
the oceanic expanse clicked from the rock.....
written in nov.2008,Pune
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