A night without end

Book of Prana

Lira found the book in their old storeroom in the small house of hers and her parents. She was a child and her father had not been feeling well. He rarely had the energy to do the things he had loved to do before, chatting , playing and tinkering around the home was replaced by raspy breaths and efforts to do some walking. He rested most of the time in a kind of sleep that worried her mother. Her mother today in the morning wanted her husband to have another opinion and took him in a borrowed car to a city nearby for a series of tests She had promised to be back soon from the doctor visit. So Lira who knew her mother's friend from the store whom her mother so trusted will come in late and make some noise about how much fun they had, played alone. She played alone most days and almost everyday found something new and wondrous. Today she found the book suddenly on the floor of the old storeroom. She still remembered the joy. Her giggles as the book on opening sang a soft song. The store room was always surprising her with new treasures. This was the best toy room anyone could ever possess, beyond what even her richest friends would ever buy from the plush stores. The room was surprise itself.

Thinking the book was a fairytale, that her mother often spoke off, far away lands of magic, she took the book to her room. From the first day the book had an opinion or so she thought. It sang when closed, at time it refused to open, a phenomenon that Lira's mother Elena would smile and explain as just lik some Christmas and birthday cards.. it had a battery. The old pages refused to open in some places, sticking together, while it gladly opened in others and her mother who had never had time to look at the old volume would brush away by saying old sheets stuck together. Elena was happy that while she had missed her promise to buy her only child a toy, the lid had found something to be happy with. And Lira was happy, giggling and talking to the book asking why it did not want to open.

Her father one day heard her sing a strange song and scolded her softly. "Sing songs you know..do not make up songs in your mind in strange languages."

Yet that night even without touching the book, she had heard a similar song flowing in the air, as if from far away land. It went long and deep, melodious and haunting. Lira ran to her father to point out. Her father was unhappy, he had also heard the song in the night. He wanted to take away the book and throw it away but he had so little strength that he just insisted that Lira wit beside him and he began to speak of teaching her chess. He would be promised, just the next day. As he dozed off, he felt Lira wit quietly beside him, not signing but pensive. Not the happy girl with a mysterious book.

Lira's mother was working late hours in a departmental store, that paid double if you manned the night shift . Money was a requirement specially with Lira's father not feeling well. So Elena managed the house in the morn ing and worked in the evening till the dawn in the departmental store. The store often let her have the excess food items of slow selling brands, misshapen fruits and vegetables and even premier one if they were nearing expiry.

Lira's father was a man who believed in providing for his family himself. He loved his wife and supported her career even encouraging her to learn more. She went back to college after marriage with full support of her spouse. But he was also passionate about being the man in his small house. His mother had been the head of the house and he had felt marginalised as if the burden of being an alchoholic's son was on him and not on his sisters. Yet he suddenly fell unwell. They could not dream of getting a nurse so Elena stepped in as one. The doctors could not diagnose and recommended rest, food, sleep. So Elena convinced her husband to leave his work and concentrate on getting better. He applied and got a 6 month unpaid break.

She adjusted her own priorities and started working in the evening shift in the departmental store. But she hid the free rations from her husband. For a while it looked like everything would fall in place as her husband started getting better from the strange ailments.

He joined back work and all was to be normal yet Elena could not go back to her normal rhythm. She continued working in the night shift, getting paid double, the free rations and small interaction with another girl in that shop had become her life line. Her husband grumbled, said he was up for a promotion but she could not explain why she hesitated.

Walking into her daughter's room, she had picked up the ancient looking book. She felt a sense of self in the book ,a sense that said do not leave the job..and finish your university course. Become stronger. She saw images of a mother who was helpless to stronger people and was begging all to save her daughter who had been hurt. Yet no one came and no one opened their door.

Lira was a self absorbed chid. She knew that father was unwell but her way of caring was giving him extra hugs and then being quiet throughout the day with herself. She read the book she had discovered yet she did not know the language, but it was very close to the one her parents spoke between each other. But she knew it was called the Book of Prana, it became book of songs to her as the book continued to sing different tunes when closed. And ofcourse a book of pictures, beautiful pictures of a different time like a fairytale. Lira often told the book that at times she knew the songs before the book. The book of Prana was copying her songs. The book never responded back but sent some new songs her way the next time she closed.