It was the last day at home for Avinanda before she left for the old-age home in the evening. She did her morning prayers like always. The smell of the Parijat and rose incense sticks scattered in the air, spreading a divine fragrance. Avinanda knew she would no longer light the diya and worship in her home. There would be no heavenly fragrance after she left for the old-age home. She became nostalgic at the thought of her in-laws' house, which soon became hers after her marriage to Sanjay. She had spent 30 years of married life in her home and created beautiful memories. Five years ago, she lost Sanjay to a cardiac arrest and her only son, Ankit, in a car accident one year ago. She was left alone to spend the rest of her life. Avinanda learned to live her life slowly without them, her lifelines. At 65, Avinanda wanted to spread the love around her, build new relationships, and live again with a new spirit every day with a new goal until she died at the hands of death. She chose to live with the older women and men in the old-age home, which remained a good part of her life. She used to throw a lunch party for the older people there on Ankit’s birthday every year. It was always a happy place for her. 

 

Avinanda handed Malati, her house-help, a jute bag with a few good old sarees. Malati delightfully accepted them. Malati asked, “Didi, are you selling the house? Avinanda smiled and replied, “I am not selling the house. I will come here sometimes. Malati, I will call you whenever I come here. We have to maintain the beautiful look of the house interior. Isn’t it? “Surely, Didi. Please, do call me. We will be in touch,” said a teary-eyed Malati. Malati left the house, and Avinanda completed her packing. She had three luggage bags with a few pieces of decorative accessories. Soon, the doorbell rang. Two men came from a nearby school. Avinanda spoke to the principal about her interest in handing her flower pots to the school. It would beautify the school garden. The principal agreed, and those men came to collect the pots. One by one, they carefully placed all the big and small flower pots in a small van and drove back to the school. Avinanda stood at the door, watching her barren garden without flower pots. She felt happy to find a new home for her flower pots. 

 

It was evening, and the Uber cab arrived at her door. Avinanda locked the house door and quietly sat in the car with wet eyes. She felt the emotional separation from her home. But she knew she had to find happiness and companionship again in the old-age home. Soon, the cab reached its destination. Avinanda was welcomed by one of the staff members, Mridula, at the gate. Mridula smiled and said, “Avinanda didi, Welcome home.” “I am happy to be here,” replied Avinanda. The cab left the spot. Mridula helped Avinanda to lift her luggage into her double seater room on the first floor of the two-storey old-age home at the heart of Guwahati city. They entered the room. Alpana was there, Avinanda’s new room-mate. An old widow, Alpana, came to live in the home a few weeks earlier. She welcomed Avinanda, and they exchanged greetings to each other. Avinanda said, “I am keeping my luggage. I will come back from the office.”

 

Alpana said, “Sure. I am here.” Avinanda and Mridula came downstairs to the office. She met Mr. Shreedhar Das, the caretaker of the old-age home. Sreedhar happily greeted Avinanda and said, “Namaste Avinanda ji. Welcome to the home. Happy to see you here. Please have a seat.” Avinanda smiled and sat down. Mridula sat next to her. Avinanda said, “Sreedhar ji, I am happy to be with you all.” Sreedhar gave her a form to fill in her details as a record in the old-age home. He told her about the meal timings and asked Mridula to familiarize Avinanda with the old-age home environment and introduce her to her new home-mates. Mridula happily agreed. Soon, Avinanda went to her room, and Mridula returned to her work. 

 

Avinanda unpacked her luggage bags and placed her clothes and other things inside her cupboard. Alpana was sitting on her bed reading the newspaper. Avinanda prepared her bed, hung a painting on the wall and put a crystal vase and a family photoframe on the small table beside her bed. She began the conversation with Alpana. Avinanda asked, “Where did you come from?” Alpana replied, “I am from Jakoishuk gaon. I came here last month.” “Okay, I am from Guwahati city. My husband and son died. So, I thought of staying here and spending the rest of my life,” said Avinanda. Alpana said, “My husband died, and I have a married daughter. She wanted me to live with her. But I refused to be with her family. I want to live in a small place of my own. My daughter and son-in-law found this old-age home and shifted me here.” Soon, their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. Mridula came in with a tray of teacups and some biscuits for them. Mridula handed the teacups to them. Mridula smilingly said, “Alpana didi, Avinanda didi was like an old acquaintance to us. She used to come every year to celebrate her son’s birthday. We have known her for years now. We are happy that she decided to stay with us.” Avinanda said, “Yes. I love this place and the people living here. I hope you like the place, too, Alpana.” “I am new to the place but have bonded with a few old women my age. I like their company. I had no greater expectations before coming here. But I like the atmosphere and the small garden here. Mridula is a very caring woman. She took great care of me.” Mridula smiled and thanked Alpana for her kind words. She told Avinanda about the New Year celebrations to be held in the home. Mridula said, “Avinanda didi, only a few days left for the New Year. Our home-mates are busy preparing for the New Year Programmes. I would like you to see them rehearsing in the hall room.” Avinanda was ecstatic and said, “That’s good. I will surely come to see them.” Alpana said, “When I met my close mates here, they came to me showing their programme schedules. Mates were enthusiastic to celebrate New Year's Eve.” Mridula said, “We try to celebrate almost every festival. We have people from rural and urban areas, different religions, and a few men. Families left some due to financial crunches, NGOs from flood-hit areas left some, some were homeless and brought from the streets, and some were single mothers. This Prashanti-old-age home is a true place for everyone seeking happiness and security.” Mridula said, “The building owner, Surabala Sharma Ji, died three years ago. But her daughter Shraddha meets us all on New Year's Eve. She and other city elites, politicians, regional film personalities, and business people financially help run the home. We are grateful to all of them.” Avinanda nodded and said, “I understand. It is hard to find a peaceful place for older people today. It isn't easy to find a place called home, a replica of your own home. I am glad that people living here are happy to be here.” The engrossed talk was halted when Mridula’s eyes fell on the wall clock. It was 9.10 pm, dinner time. Mridula said, “Oh! We had a long conversation. It's dinner time already. Let’s go to the dining hall. Mridula picked up the tea tray, and the three walked towards the hall. Avinanda saw the dining hall was half-packed with older women and a few men. The joy on their faces while eating touched her heart. There was no sign of old-age helplessness in them. The hall was echoed with laughter, talks, and smiles on their faces. Alpana and Avinanda opted for two vegetarian food thalis. Mridula inspected the kitchen and the hall. She interacted with a few older people and got Avinanda introduced to some of the new housemates. Avinanda enjoyed the meal and her new home company. She was happy to be surrounded by pleasant talking people. After dinner, Alpana and Avinanda took a short stroll in the garden. Alpana introduced Avinanda to her close friends- Swarna, Manohar, Ajit, and Sujata. They all greeted each other. After spending some good time, they returned to their room. Alpana sat on her bed, prayed before sleeping, and fell asleep. Avinanda was still awake. It was her first night in the old-age home. The moonlight coming from the window was peaceful and bright. She looked at the photo frame of Sanjay, Ankit, and hers together and kissed it. Avinanda felt how time flew, and she was sleeping in a new place, her ‘new home’. The night slowly took her into a deep slumber. She fell asleep peacefully. 

 

Avinanda visited the hall room with Alpana the next day to view the rehearsals. She found the home-mates worked hard to convince their talents before the audience. Avinanda had good times with new mates and old ones. Alpana asked, “Avinanda, do you like to perform anything? Avinanda replied, “I have not done theatre or dancing before an audience. I sing sometimes, and that was occasionally at home. I don’t have great skills like our mates,” and she smiled. “You can sing. We would like to hear you singing,” said Alpana. Avinanda said, “Okay. Let’s see.” 

 

One day Avinanda went to her old house with Alpana. Malati came and cleaned the house. Alpana loved to see Avinanda’s beautiful house interiors. They had lunch together. Avinanda packed a few woollen clothes and gifted a Himachali shawl to Alpana. Alpana was happy to receive her gift. After a wonderful day, Malati bade them goodbye, and they returned to their destinations. 

 

It was evening, Alpana and Avinanda reached the old-age home. Avinanda saw a joyful young woman speaking to Mridula in the hall-room. Mridula saw them coming. She called Alpana and Avinanda to come to the hall room. Mridula introduced Avinanda to the young girl, Shraddha, the late home owner’s daughter. Shraddha and Avinanda exchanged greetings. Shraddha asked, “Aunty, I hope you like the place.” Avinanda replied, “Oh, yes. I like to stay here.” Shraddha smiled and said, “That’s good. Please speak with Mridula or Shreedhar Jee if you have anything to say or want. You can also contact me if you want.”

Avinanda smiled at her and said, “That’s so nice of you. Surely, I will tell them if there’s any need. I am happy to see a young lady caring for the older people.” “It was my mother’s dream, Aunty. I am doing what she wanted to do in her life. I am fulfilling one of her dreams,” said Shraddha. Alpana said, “Shraddha, you are doing great to fulfill your mother’s wishes. I am sure she is happy to see you growing wiser and kinder wherever she is today. Stay blessed.” “Thank you for the kind words, Aunty,” said Shraddha. Their conversation ended. Alpana and Avinanda returned to their room. Mridula see off Shraddha at the gate and went back to her work. 

 

It was December 31st, 2022, the year-end day. The old-age home was beautifully decorated with lights and rangoli at the entrance. The older people did the decoration with the help of the home staff. Avinanda gave her artistic touch while making a rangoli in the hall-room. Alpana helped her in choosing the colours. The other home-mates rehearsed one last time the group dance with old classic songs from Bollywood, a medley to entertain everybody in the home. The day passed, and the evening arrived. Shraddha came to visit them. The staff handed tea and biscuits to everybody. Shraddha brought a three-layered creamy cake and sweets for the older people. Mridula took her to the hall-room. The chairs were lined up, and a beautiful rangoli was adorning the beauty of the hall space.

 

In the middle, a big circle was drawn with white and red paint where the performances will take place. The programme schedule was divided into two parts. The dancing, poem recitation, and singing would be held in the first half. Dinner would be held at 9.00 pm. After a break of one hour, again everyone would join for an innovative programme, "expressing one-self.” It was the idea of Swarna and Manohar, who wanted everybody interested in the old-age home, old or new mates would come one by one and express their thoughts and experiences about staying in the home. It was a way to bond well with all the older people there. 

 

The evening programme began with a dance medley of old Bollywood songs. Older women of the home performed with fluent dance moves. There was no sign of remorse or weakness in them. Avinanda clicked a few photographs and selfies to express her joy at being surrounded by enthusiastic older people. Shraddha applauded to cheer all of them. Soon, the dance was followed by a poem recitation. Three men participated in the poem recitation, remembering their families, celebrating festivals, and living in old age. The performances were much appreciated, and everybody enjoyed the evening. Alpana and Mridula invited Avinanda to be the show-stopper with a singing performance. Shraddha requested her to sing one of her favourite songs. Avinanda said, “Okay. If you all insist. I will sing a song close to my heart. Sanjay and Ankit loved to hear me singing this song. It is an old Hindi cinema song.” Avinanda sang beautifully, ‘Jab deep jale aana, jab shyaam dhale aana’ from the Hindi film Chitchor. Everybody in the hall-room was mesmerised to hear Avinanda singing soulfully. Her performance ended with a huge round of applause. She was overwhelmed to see the love for her pouring in.

 

The year-end dinner was served. All of the home-mates made their way to the dining hall. Mridula accompanied Shraddha to dinner. Alpana praised Avinanda’s singing, and they went to the dining hall together. The dinner was over, and all the older people were waiting for the next programme “expressing oneself”. Soon, Mridula came with a glass bowl with small sheets of house-mates names written on it. One by one, the programme host would call the names of the house-mates, and they would stand in the center and express their thoughts on things they would like to say. Swarna hosted the programme. Shraddha was asked to pick one of the name sheets. The first participant was Revati, an old woman in her late 50’s. She spoke about the good times spent in the old-age home for over a decade. Her husband died, and she had no children. One of her relatives left her in the old-age home. Revati said, “I am happy here. I don’t think I can get the love and support elsewhere than the Prashanti old-age home. She thanked everybody for being around her in her old age.” The next speaker was Ajit. Ajit, an older man of 70 years. Due to financial crunches, his son left him in the old-age home. His son comes to meet him occasionally. With teary eyes, Ajit said, “I am quite old now. I sometimes don’t remember much nowadays. But I must appreciate the efforts made by Mridula and other staff who would bring me back from loitering in the garden to my room if I sometimes lost my way or forgot to return. I am very thankful to all of you for looking after me.” It was a moving speech by Ajit. His words deeply touched Avinanda. She felt at heart the cruelty of time when one grows old and helpless. She wanted to avoid the agony and anxiety of living alone in her old days. She said to herself, “I have made the right decision coming here to stay among older people of my age. At least, I will not die without being cared for. I will die surrounded by people who care and love me in my last hours.” One after another, the house-mates spoke about their old age, families, home-mates and health. But what was common in their speech was the appreciation they had for the care giving Prashanti old-age home. The programme ended well. 

 

Shraddha took the mike and said, “I have enjoyed the lovely night with all of you. I am quite overwhelmed with your kind words of appreciation for this beautiful home of yours. My mother spent her life caring for the older people. Perhaps being an orphan raised in an orphanage made my mother emotionally associate with loving people dearly. She knew the pain of living alone and being left out. My father’s love brought joy and happiness into her life. But after his death, she was left alone with me. I was a young girl in school when she founded Prashanti. Prashanti old-age home was made to give a home to the homeless older people to spend their last phase of life when an older needs a home the most, just like a small child to be raised by.” Shraddha added, “I am happy to be with you all. I am thankful for our home staff’s dedication to looking after every older person living here. It is a teamwork. I hope we all will work with utmost care and love for our elders in our best possibilities. Thank you for being a good part of my life,” and Shraddha’s speech ended.  

 

The hall-room was echoed with a huge applause. A few minutes left for the clock to strike midnight and the dawn of the New Year. Avinanda, Alpana, Shraddha, Mridula, and other home-mates were sitting, talking, laughing, and engrossed in their own talks. Two staff members placed the cake on the centre table brought by Shraddha. A coffee container was placed on the table along with small disposal plates, cups, and a platter of sweets and snacks. Soon, the clock struck 12. The New Year 2023 arrived, and Shraddha took the mike and wished everybody a very ‘Happy New Year.’ Everybody gathered around the table. Shraddha handed the knife to Purnajyoti, an older woman of 68 years old, to cut the cake. Mridula and other staff members helped in giving away cake pieces and coffee to all the home-mates. Avinanda, Swarna, and Alpana helped Mridula to give away the eatables. The partying was over. Shraddha drove back to her home. Everybody went to their rooms. Alpana once again praised Avinanda for singing and asked her to keep singing frequently. Alpana soon fell asleep in a happy state of mind. Avinanda lay on her bed, holding the photo frame closely, saying, “Be happy and at peace wherever you are, Sanjay and Ankit. Happy New Year to you both.” 

 

The New Year arrived, and with every passing day, Avinanda was associating well with her home-mates. She came to know about their interests, likes and dislikes. Alpana happened to capture a good place in her heart. They soon bonded well like two old good friends. Avinanda loved the simplicity and caring nature Alpana possessed. 

 

At a glimpse, a few months passed in the old-age home. Avinanda kept herself busy gardening, stitching, playing carom and ludo with her home-mates, and making baked biscuits in the kitchen. Alpana loved to read a lot. She used to read newspapers daily and made Avinanda know about details on national and international news. Alpana, would visit Shiva temple every Monday. Avinanda was mesmerized by her spiritual dedication. One such Monday morning, a terrible accident happened, and Alpana unfortunately died while crossing the road. The news of her death spread like wildfire in the old-age home. Avinanda was watering the flower plants in the garden. Mridula ran to her with unfortunate news about Alpana’s death. Avinanda stood numb and became silent all of a sudden. Soon, a hospital van entered the gate of the old-age home. Avinanda and Mridula saw the van and slowly walked towards the gate. One by one, the home-mates and staff people came downstairs after knowing about the arrival of Alpana’s dead body. Shreedhar informed Alpana’s daughter and son-in-law about her death. Alpana’s body was placed in the veranda. A local priest was called in to complete her funeral rites. Teary-eyed, Avinanda looked at Alpana’s body with utmost love. It was a sudden shock to her to see Alpana on her deathbed. She felt another big loss to her. Avinanda regained control over her emotions. She picked some marigolds, dahlias, and pink roses from the garden, and scattered them around Alpana’s dead body. The other home-mates lit incense sticks, an earthen diya beside Alpna’s head. Mridula, with a broken heart, put a weaved gamusa on Alpana’s dead body, honouring her one last time. Alpana’s daughter and son-in-law arrived, and soon, Alpana’s dead body was taken to the crematorium. Some of the home-mates, three staff, Avinanda, and Mridula accompanied the dead body. 

 

They arrived at the crematorium. The local priest began the last rites. The dead body was placed on the funeral pyre. The home-mates, staff, Avinanda, and Mridula stood near Alpana’s dead body. Alpana’s daughter cried inconsolably, saying, “I should have been beside you in your old days, Maa. I wasn’t there for you. I am sorry and will regret it all my life.” Her husband held her arms and made her walk near the dead body. The priest handed her a thick log of wood to light the fire. Soon, Alpana’s body was put on the holy fire to free her from earthly bondage. Her life was ended, and a new world was waiting for her. Avinanda was silent with remorse at Alpana’s death. Tears rolled down her face, and she let her heart melt, watching the burning fire. Mridula and other home-mates bade a peaceful good bye to Alpana.  

 

The cremation was done, and everybody returned to the old-age home. Avinanda entered her room. She saw the empty bed of Alpana beside hers. It was evening, and Avinanda lit a few incense sticks and prayed for Alpana’s peaceful soul. Avinanda once again felt the melancholy at heart. She sat for some time near the window. There was a knock at the door. Mridula came in. Mridula asked, “Avinanda didi, I have brought tea for you. I hope you are alright.” Avinanda slowly replied, “No, Mridula. I am not good. I have lost a very good friend cum companion, and tears rolled down her eyes.” Mridula could understand Avinanda’s melancholy state of mind with a broken heart on losing Alpana.

 

Mridula came with the teacup and sat beside Avinanda. She consoled Avinanda and made her drink the tea. Sometime later, Mridula left, and Avinanda lay in her bed. She was soon lost in a dream. She met Alpana in her dream. Alpana held her hand and said, “Avinanda, I am at peace. I will always miss you. But I will wait for you to create good memories again in our new home where I am alone today. You take care of yourself and remember me till we meet again,” said Alpana and snatched her hand away. Avinanda’s sleep broke. She was awakened to see the sweat on her forehead. She was numb for some minutes. Avinanda said to herself, “Was it a dream? Had Alpana spoken to me? She was missing me.” Avinanda soon regained her control over her emotions. 

 

Days passed, and Avinanda was living her life remembering Alpana and making new friendships with her other home-mates. She promised to spend her old days with good spirits and spread love and happiness. She was hopeful to meet Alpana in the other world after her death.