The Hero

The thunder struck and the heavy rains came, He struggled for survival, fought hard. The downpour wouldn’t stop, the streets now flooded, the man now lay unconscious on a boulevard. The next morning, the Sun couldn’t rise, the clouds overpowered the garish star. People ran for their lives and took all they could save, But many couldn’t make it very far. He opened his eyes two days after the storm, Hungry, thirsty, broken from inside, He now lay in someone’s once happy abode, Which now was in a chaos shattered by the tides. The clouds had finally emptied all their water, And now gave way to the mighty Sun. Which beamed like a king back on his throne, But beamed on a town- lifeless and numb. The man stood up with all his might, Glanced across the destructed hall. Not a single voice heard, neither a cry, nor a scream, Had the winds and the water taken them all? He felt a chill run down his spine, He felt he was nearing the end, As if everything was over and everyone was finished, There was nothing now left to mend. Until the words of his master suddenly came to his attention, Came quick as a lightning and gave him a direction. He had said when the night is the darkest my Son, It’s time for the Sun to shine and the day to come. Could he run for his life and turn a blind eye to this town? Could he stay blessed if he did so? He now had his master in front of his eyes, Who said “Go Son, this is your time, be a hero”. His hands trembled, his legs couldn’t move, As he stood staring at the family picture on the wall. The smiles and the laughs on all those faces, Could he bring back that smile at all? With sheer determination, he wiped his face, Turned around and looked straight at all the chaos, This was going to be difficult; he knew that very well, To be able to win over all this loss. He took his first step forward, grabbed a rod lying there, And jumped upon a thatched roof floating away, He rowed with his eyes searching everywhere For anyone who was alive amidst all the rubbles of dismay. After an hour, he had almost ten seated on that roof, Either crying, cursing their fate or helping him row, But he did not shed a tear nor showed the slightest worry, Even as he pondered where did Juliet go? Juliet was his wife, pretty, simple ad sweet, The love of his life as he often called her. His eyes now longed for her slightest sight, Even as the light grew dimmer and dimmer. The people, now about twenty, took rest in a shed, Even as the roof looked weak and shook all night. The man now helped all those he had gathered, Giving first aid and speaking some words of might. The next morning, the party left again, left in groups of four and five. Rowed across the town, called out to anyone out there, And saved quite number of lives. In the meanwhile, the man arranged for food, Fruits hanging on trees that survived the storm, He soothed the people and patiently about their loss, Even as he now believed Juliet was far gone. The creaking roof was now hanging dangerously, The man realized that it was unsafe, He gathered the people and sent them to a new abode, The rains had begun again and so did the lashing of the waves. The people took shelter in a Church a little farther, And suddenly heard the roof of the shed fall. The waves plunged high and the shed was destructed, They turned around to thank the man who saved them all. When all of a sudden, they all realized That their saviour was not present there. Their hearts skipped a beat when they remembered, That he hadn’t left the shed and was still in there. Some rowed on the wood pieces, others swam across To save the soul who made them believe. They prayed to God to somehow keep him safe, Even though the possibility was least. He still had his eyes open only to see the iron rod, Which passed through his chest in and out, He knew his end had come as the light grew dimmer, He just had Juliet’s name on his mouth. He closed his eyes as the shed went down, Floating in the water for a while. And then rested on the sea bed as the sand covered him, With his face looking glorious with a smile. When the crowd couldn’t find him, they returned to the Church, They knew exactly who he was. He was an angel, an incarnation of God, Who came to bless them amidst all the loss. And sure he was an angel and a hero too, Coz he fought for others life before his own, He now rest in peace as he had fulfilled his master’s wish, And brought a smile on faces all alone!