A Freak

A freak

We met him on the road.

He was standing at side of it. No plea at all. No placard. No shouts, just a friendly wave.

That got me curious. Father had earlier told me to not pick up any hitchhiker from the road. They are usually dangerous he had said.

But this one was different. He had a large ransack, some tins, a cap, rusty shoes and shabby face. These were usual for any hitchhiker. This guy had something different and that was his smile.

I had never seen a single person on the road, which would not have hopeful eyes, begging for the lift. This one was just happy. His eyes were telling that, he wouldn’t feel sad if we don’t pick him up.

So, we did. I backed up my 4 X 4 next to him and told him to hop on.

My friend started it.

“So? Where to my friend?”

“Wherever you are going!”-he said being carefree.

“I told you, he is nuts. He just wants to rob us. May be he has a gun or knife with him. You need to drop him off right now”-my friend said anxiously.

“Relax; I am not a thief or a fugitive. I am just trying something new. I am trying to live without any means. Sure you can drop me off in the next town. I want to go to the creeks next to it”

“Why?”

“What why? I intend to do some fishing there. See? I have fishing rods for that”-he said while beaming his equipments to us.

“Ok, we can do that for you. Just seat back and tell us something about yourself. I am bored from this mundane countryside already”- I yawned and concluded.

“Fine. I am Alex. ”

“I am a graduate from southern university. 23 years old. And I am currently on a tour of the whole country. I have been doing this for a year now. I would eventually settle myself at some old abandoned cabin in the wilderness.”

“Heh, what? I don’t believe you. Where is your family? And if you are a grad student. What in the world are you doing out here?”- My friend scorned.

“Well, being a grad doesn’t make me slave to the modern world antics. If you are asking for a reason that why I am on the road and expecting that some past tragedy will be an answer then you are wrong. No reason. I just got tired of the hypocrisy.”

“Ahha, well explain that in a better way, you genius”

“Let’s try that. I happened to be a smart one. Had a good rapport with the world. But I was always telling me that these all are just a façade. It’s not true. Everyone is behaving in a nice strange way to prove some disillusionment. ”

“You see and learn that thousands of books are written to distinguish between right and wrong. Countless gods are created for the good virtue. We study, we pray, we fast and we repent for the betterment. But just ask yourself some question- is this necessary? Are we really creating a better world for our future? Are you honestly interested in god laden path of good virtues? Haven’t you ever experienced a phase when everyone whom you respect has done something wrong? ”

“That’s deep man.”- My weed loving and already high friend said.

“Well yeah, it happens. But we are young. We do mistakes. And you still haven’t answered the question that why are you on the road?”- I said attentively.

“That’s a wrong assumption. Decisions do no cater young or old person. I am talking about everyone. And to answer you, I am ashamed of this world. I am ashamed of myself that I got trapped in the system. When I read religious books and history and all other pretentious knowledge, I realized that our foundation is based on lies. We conceal our mistakes and lie for everything. I just can’t handle it. So I decided to leave everything. I abandoned my old life including my name and am trying to live in the nature. Since, I believe, it is the only thing which holds itself true. Doesn’t hide its beauty or its brutality and I am happy seeing that.” –he was smiling widely while saying that.

He didn’t stop there and said -“I think that our life is a vast canvas. And every person we know will add a color to it. Some will add grey background, someone would add a red of love and some will paint a beautiful picture together with you.  And I strongly believe that none should try to make a long lasting paint stroke on this canvas so that they would be remembered instead try to add color that would make it more surreal.”

“That’s a weird thought man. But I do agree with you”- My friend barked.

“Ohk, glad that we agreed on something.  You can drop me here”- he prepared to get down.

We saw him going in the distance for his imagined happiness. And I wondered about the things he said.

“And that’s why you should never take books or life seriously. It doesn’t matter”- my friend analyzed.

“yeah, what a freak??””- I said and drove off my gas guzzling SUV to reach our clean environment rally in time.

 - Hardik Rami