Up Above The World So High | Sunanda Nandakumar

It was the mid-summer of late 90’s. The temperature was at its peak. As I sneaked out my home for the evening stroll with my cousins I could still feel the hot burning sun above me. I wondered how the sun is so hot always, as if someone has lit a stove below him. Yes, I always had such crazy questions within me. As days passed by, the temperature just got increased and increased and increased to a level that I again started thinking a reason for this. It was like the sun was following me and then begins the story. Slowly I started realizing that the sun was indeed following me. And of course he took a human form and started following me, waiting for me at roadsides and bus stops, smiling at me, gazing at me, trying to talk with me as if no one else saw him. Now, I know the question you guys have, yes he was really handsome, and that I could not neglect his capturing smiles and those stunning eyes. Hey, what is the big deal, I was in my teens. Eventually the expected thing happened that we just started loving each other.

Well, I know your reaction now.

Oh man, who do you think is going to believe this story of yours?  The Sun is in love with a human girl, crazy.  But yes that’s what happened.

I remember all those wonderful moments we enjoyed. Not a single soul knowing about the secret love story. There were days that we would walk together, him telling the astonishing stories of the sky and the world beyond that. There were days that I would stunningly sit seeing his mesmerizing acts and art. There were days that we would dance beyond the clouds and yes he was a stunning dancer. He took me for rides, not on bikes but on clouds. He even talked about his ex-lover, the Dusk. Once he even introduced me to her. Then there were days that he just hugged and kissed me. Truly speaking, I started loving the summer. If it is summer then it means he is more near to me and if he is near obviously I could not bare the heat, but still it was for him, my love- The Sun.

Then came a day, when I saw him crying. Struggling hard to hide his tears but I could see them. I never saw him dull till then and now my charming man was crying. I wanted to know the reason. I wanted to wipe the tears off his eyes. I never wanted to see him cry. He then gently held my hand and said that he didn’t want to hurt anyone. I was shocked. He is the Sun. He gives light to the earth, protecting all the living beings, separating days and nights, maintaining the balance, the actual cause of life. How is he even hurting anyone?  I was confused.

He gave me the answer for my questions. He said that he couldn’t control himself. He couldn’t control the strong heat waves that emerged from his body and these heat waves killed many. As I looked around the world with him, I could see that he was right. The lands were barren, the rivers were dry, plants nearly dead and animals collapsed and human beings fainted. Yes it was extremely hot then. I myself could feel the hot waves running along my skin making me tired and exhausted. I just never noticed, because I was madly in love with him. Now I could sense his pain, for I knew, he never wanted to hurt anyone. He wanted to give life and not taking it back. His tears made me mute. I didn’t know what to say. Then he gently spoke- ‘I don’t want to kill anyone, I don’t want to kill you, go out. Stop your people.’   

I was bewildered. ‘Stop my people. What people?’

‘Humans. Look around, how many trees are being fallen each day? How many rivers are being polluted, resources are being exploited. As each day pass by, I am being helpless. Temperature shall rise, living beings shall collapse, life shall end and one day everything will just dissolve into me. Everything will become a big hot Sun and just the heat waves from me remains.

With those last words I just remember a large tremor and as I opened my eyes I just saw my mother screaming at me for sleeping during day time.

 ‘Girls are not supposed to sleep during daytime’, well I never understood such logics of my mom and never wanted to. But as she was continuing her screams I was just lost wondering whether everything was a dream or was it true.

Years passed by and today I am again in my cozy home’s courtyard. It is mid-summer and as I enjoy the evening tea, I just looked around. All the big trees are giving me shade and the gentle breeze seemed like it was not summer at all. I don’t know about the world out there but I knew I had to change. Today as I see these trees that I planted few years back I could sense a smile of joy in me. While simply sipping my tea I just looked at him, the Sun. I could once again see the gentle, beautiful smile on him and I stared upon him until my loving husband came out and said, ‘Oh, no more stories of your Ex-lover.’ As we both laughed it out, I still knew he was there, up above the world so high, smiling, like a diamond in the sky.

Written by Sunanda Nandakumar