" Born to rule"

Short story by Juju’s Pearls



There is thunderstorm, lightening is playing hide and seek with dark grey clouds loaded with rain waiting for a fierce outpour. The winds are blowing crazily to sweep away the heavy clouds. In the middle of a remote village, a tiny lamp is swaying and trying it’s best to keep the flame burning. A young lady, Regina is in labor pain, about to deliver. The local village doctor is trying his best to do the procedure in the hut. There is water everywhere and winds are lashing at high speeds. It seems like a near impossible task. “Where there is a will, there is a way” is a famous saying. Praying to almighty, all three of them pledge for a positive outcome. The doctor and her husband, Richard helps her in pushing. She is nearing exhaustion and almost on the verge of giving up, when her husband gently presses her hand and says, ‘Dear, just one more effort.” The lady closes her eyes and cries out loudly into the wild dark night. Suddenly, there is cry of a baby. Finally, the mission has been accomplished and a baby girl takes birth in the small hut on that dark rainy stormy night in a remote village.

Next morning is bright and sunny. Many of the huts have been blown away by the storm, people are stranded, their cattle have gone missing and everywhere, there is hue and cry. Regina’s husband takes a decision to shift to his uncle’s house in city. He packs up whatever little things they have and set off in their bullock cart towards village. Near the river, the get down to refill their drinking water. As Regina alights from the cart, she hears a whispering sound. It seems as though someone is chanting something. She picks up her daughter and goes in the direction from where sound is coming. Gradually, the chanting becomes louder. She reaches a big tree underneath which a hermit is sitting chanting religious excerpts from books. As he senses her approaching, the hermit opens his eyes wide and commands her to stop in her path. He gets up from his meditation position and walks towards her. He touches her daughter feet and starts crying aloud. Regina is confused and in a state of shock. She asks the reason for such behavior. The hermit calms down and remarks,” All this while, we have been waiting for this pious soul to take birth in human form. She will lead and make this planet a harmonious place to live.”

Regina shrugs and replies, ‘Then why are you crying, oh learned sage?”

Hermit replies, ‘ Because, I won’t be alive till then, to witness this grand moment which will lead to transformation of mankind and will go in history as one of the most memorable era.” With this, the hermit leaves and starts walking towards north east direction.

Richard returns with water to his cart. On finding his cart empty, he starts screaming aloud, walks towards the forest. There he sees his wife walking towards him with their daughter in her arms. The radiance is around his daughter’s head. Their daughter is smiling. Regina shares the prophecy of the hermit and describes her meeting as an exceptional moment. Shrugging his shoulders, Richard takes his daughter and walks towards the cart to continue their onward journey. After two days, they reach his uncle’s house. They promise to keep this prophecy as a secret.

Years pass by, Richard’s hard work and motivation helps in getting a good job. Soon, he starts his own workshop. Life is comfortable and the prophecy is deep buried their minds. Their daughter, Rachael is a bright child who is happy and joyful. She is hard working and has a sharp intelligent quotient. Her warm and caring nature makes her win hearts. She always plays around with everyone. Her understanding of body language of birds and animals leaves everyone dumbstruck. The flying birds rest on her shoulder in a carefree way. The pet animals seem to understand her language. Rachel is everyone’s favorite. 

Once, while returning from school, she witnesses a bad road traffic accident. Lot of people gather but none is willing to help the injured people. She rushes to the site and offers help. After lot of motivation, few people come forward to help the injured and take them to hospital for treatment. Her timely intervention leads to saving of lives of injured people. After this incident, Rachael withdraws into her shell. Something inside her transforms. She decides to search the reason for this lack of empathy amongst human beings towards their fellow beings.

Seeing their daughter change in behavior, Regina reminds Richard of the prophecy. The more they try to dissuade their daughter, the more firm she becomes in her resolve. Finally, she decides to leave the house in search of empathy. Her parents are heartbroken as their only child had renounced the world. However, accepting it as a will of God they promise to support her in every possible way. Somehow, they persuade her to stay with them till she finds her new path.

Rachael goes into a silence retreat and starts meditating. She had learnt from her teachers that “All that you seek outside is within us. God has created a masterpiece by the name of human being.” After days of meditating , Rachael attains enlightment. Her aura is so divine that it radiates in all directions. Regina sees an unusual bright light emanating from Rachael’s room. She calls her husband Richard. Together, they move quietly towards their daughter’s room. The door is wide open. Rachael is sitting cross legged in meditative posture and a bright aura is radiating around her head. Suddenly, the hermit’s prophecy flashes in Regina’s mind. Her daughter had attained the supreme level of spirituality. Rachael opens her eyes and smiles on seeing her parents. Her parents bow their heads in front of her. The image they see now of Rachael is no longer of their daughter but that of a learned hermit.

Rachael sets out on her new path of compassion and empathy. Gradually, her followers increase in numbers. After few years she becomes a world renounced spiritual leader with her centers in almost every nook and corner of the world. Her parent’s efforts to give her a normal childhood could not stop her from becoming what was written in her destiny. Her parents move back to their old remote village. Rachael’s organization adopts the village and brings about reforms and changes in terms of building concrete roads, giving good connectivity to city, hospital with world class infrastructure, a school and college etc. 

Every year, Rachael returns to her village on her birthday to be with her parents. Regina can see the hermit’s smiling face in the sky giving blessings to her daughter.

 

Fertilized eggs- The future of human race

 Short story by Juju's Pearls

I love myself !thought Adriane. She was her own favorite and always fantasized about having her own replicas. What a beautiful world it will be? With so many fun loving Adriane’s in this universe, what a wonderful this blue planet will be! With these thoughts in her mind, she rushed out of shower. Quickly blow dried her hair, grabbed the first T-shirt and rushed downstairs juggling with her jeans and missed the last step and boom and thud! She fell flat of the ground. Her younger brother, an ace baseball player threw a cushion from the living room sofa, Adriane’s face safely landed on the cushion and she was saved by few centimeters. Their mother came running out of the kitchen and sighed, “Adriane dear, I know yet another idea has come into your mind and you are in extreme hurry to reach your laboratory. Please try to reach in one piece as an idea without a head is of no use.” Her brother giggled. She made a crossed face and went upstairs to change her dress. Inwardly, she was working on her idea of time capsule and she was just close to finish it.

After half an hour, she walked downstairs with her head held high and an air of perfection. She sat on the breakfast table. Her favorite fruit juice and scrambled eggs were in front of her in her plate. As soon as her eyes saw eggs, immediately her face lit up and she knew the day was not very far when she would release her time capsule. She gulped the juice and packed her breakfast. Kissing her mother on forehead, she picked up her car keys and was on her way to laboratory. Her cell phone rang. She was so busy in her mind that no other sound was audible to her. As she parked her car in the parking, she picked up her phone to see at least ten missed calls from her professor.

She rushed and went straight to his chamber. Dr. Kohler saw her through his monocle, forehead full of creases. Obviously, he seemed worried. Drumming his fingers on his table, he paused, inhaled and exhaled. After exactly sixty seconds, which seemed liked eternity, He opened his mouth, “So, Dr. Adriane, where do we stand right now? We are almost in the last phase of our trial. What do you think we should put in time capsule? There is immense pressure from the government and we are on the verge of running out of funds. We have to release this time capsule within next eight weeks.”

It was Adriane’s turn to create a more tensed atmosphere. She took her time and slowly smiled,” Professor, I know what we need to put in the time capsule.”

Professor replies “Let me hear you out my dear doctor.”

Adriane smiled and said, ‘Dr. Kohler, we will put fertilized human eggs from people in different fields. The whole idea is to have the best lot of humans in future.”

Dr. Kohler removed his monocle and looked up, “Now, what is your criterion of best human eggs?”

Adriane replies, “I have a full work up plan for the same. Let’s first get assurance from the government. After that, we will pick up at least five best persons in terms of health, intelligence, looks etc ,from each field of work and call them for assessment. After short listing, we will run the data in our software. The computer will make permutation and combination. By this we will have a list of best eggs and sperms of human race. The major question which will arise is the consent part. I have created a presentation, which will focus on the benefits of this whole procedure. Initially, we will keep hundred fertilized eggs in different stages of development in one time capsule. I have another plan. We need to build a bigger time capsule, which can accommodate fifteen to twenty human from different spheres of work. The smaller time capsule will be created first followed by larger capsule.”

There is pin drop silence as both look at each other. They exchange glances. Adriane’s worst fears seem to come true. She was afraid that Professor will reject her idea out rightly. Adriane slowly takes her laptop and gets up.

As she reaches for the doorknob,

Professor Remarks, “So, Doctor who are you planning to call upon first?"

With tears in her eyes and expression of disbelief, she cries aloud, “Do you believe in me?”

“Cent percent” comes the reply from Dr. Kohler, he continues,” The real challenge is how to convince the Governor and then people. And, how soon you can start?”

“Sir, we can start immediately and I promise you that we will do it successfully as long as we work as a team,” replies Adriane.

With a sense of accomplishment, she goes to café. The scrambled eggs have started giving out a fishy odor and find themselves in waste bin. Adriane picks up a cup of black coffee and starts working on her presentation. After working nonstop for many hours, she makes a convincing presentation.

Meanwhile Dr. Kohler fixes up an appointment with the Governor. Finally the day comes when their team’s hard work of decade will be presented for Government’s approval. Keeping fingers crossed, Adriane starts off it a motivating manner and manages to capture the attention of everyone throughout. After concluding, the house is made open for question and answers. There are no questions; everyone seems to be in a state of stupor. Dr. Kohler clears his throat loudly to break the silence. The Governor comes to his senses and remarks, “Dr. Kohler, how soon can you start with the selection procedure? This seems to be noble cause as far as human race is concerned. Darwin’s theory is “ Survival of the fittest “ yet another theory says, only the species which adapt to change will survive. Your time capsule will prove both. ‘

He further elaborates, ‘Please, send a quote of how much more funds does your laboratory needs? I will get it sanctioned at the earliest.”

The gathering disperses. There is a feeling of celebration in the lab.

Dr. Kohler invites Adriane next morning and asks, “So doctor whose eggs will be first on the list?”

Adriane smiles and replies in affirmative, “Obviously mine Sir!”

With this, she barges out of the office with a sense of pride in her heart and a smile that finally in her dream project, a part of her will travel as the first passenger.