Chaitanyamoi Chetia
St. Joseph’s High School, Moranhat, Assam

Bijit cultivated a new habit of playing games on his mobile phone called Minecraft; he remains busy throughout the day doing the same activity. Moreover, post-COVID the regular school is replaced with online classes. In the morning he goes cycling through the lanes of the large area having grazing field idle for cows and goats to graze. A train line passes through the area and the whistle of the train while whistling can be heard to a long distance. In the evening, Bijit and his father bring their cows and goats from the pasture to the cowshed and the loafing benches.

“Bijit, your duty is to bring the cattle in the afternoon from the grazing field every day, because from tomorrow I shall confine myself to other works,” his father said.

In the morning, many boys of Bijit’s age ride bicycles. Once, while cycling, a new friendship developed between Tridip and him.

“I am riding my father’s bicycle; it is an old modelled one in comparison to yours because your bicycle is having five gears,” he told Tridip.

Tridip replied in the affirmative.

There are instances while bicycling they both rest for a while standing by the side of the road with bicycles in their hand. They loved looking at the plucking of tea leaves of a tea garden plucked by women. Sometimes, they even reach distant places by bicycle.

“Let us go to the Thowra dole (temple) tomorrow: this dole is more than 300 years old and is preserved by the Assam Government. There is also a lake by the side of the dole; we will touch the water of the lake and view the dole closely,” Tridip suggested Bijit.

“I shall have to take my father’s permission because this is my father’s bicycle and he needs it most of the time,” he told Tridip.

Bijit’s house is on the outskirts of the town and his father has to go to the town to purchase daily a few stationary goods, grocery and medicines for the cattle.

“I want to go to the Thowra dole which is a few kilometres away from here; can I take your bicycle tomorrow?” he asked his father.

“I shall have to go to the market to purchase a mineral supplement for cattle; I shall have to purchase forage, hay and grain. After my return, you can take my cycle, but make sure you arrive home before the sun sets because the cows and the goats will have to be brought back from the grazing field,” his father said.

Bijit’s father is enlarging the shed and the pen; his father has been giving interest in vegetation and cattle rearing for many years so that the family members can be self-sufficient, at least, to some extent.

 Sometimes, Bijit plucks spinach, coriander leaves and leafy vegetables from their garden: sometimes he waters them and before dusk, he goes to the grazing field to bring back his cattle. He got the area of his house bordered with bamboos. The tall banana trees and the guava tree laden with fruits in his house can be viewed standing on the road.

Recently, his father and he constructed the shed floor for goats with bamboos with an elevated area to prevent water stagnation and it was built above the ground level so that it can be cleaned easily. He started giving more interest to the shed floor, and it was carefully constructed with proper ventilation with a thatched roof.

During the daytime with their bicycles, they started their journey to the Thowra dole. “Many things have changed very quickly. The busy road has been made into four lanes; in the beginning, only one passenger train used to run in the morning; now many trains move every day starting from the express train to goods train,” Bijit told Tridip while both were cycling.

“There are many monkeys in your area!” Tridip told Bijit while he saw a few monkeys crossing the street.

“Yes,” Bijit said, “I have been witnessing them daily in the street: earlier they were confined to forests only: now due to deforestation for building new houses, they roam many kilometres in search of food; some monkeys also have become dependent on human beings for edibles in urban areas.”

“Are you milking your cow?” Tridip asked.

“Yes,” Bijit answered.

After cycling a long distance, they reached the dole and the lake. “It took us almost an hour to reach our destination. The view of the dole and the lake look mesmerizing,” Tridip told Bijit in great happiness.

“I am hearing the whistle of the train! Have my cattle arrived home safely?” he wondered, “I will have to bring them back to the cowshed and the pen immediately after arriving home.”

Just then, Bijit’s mobile phone began to ring. The sentence was like a blow to him. “One of our cows is run down by an express train,” his mother said, “the space for accessing the entrance door and the place for moving around in our front verandah is spoilt by a troop of monkeys by throwing the half-eaten guavas onto the main door as well as to the verandah and ran away.”

“Mother, who told you?” Bijit questioned.

“A cowherd of our area,” she answered.

“I shall reach quickly, mother,” Bijit said

While he was wondering these things in his mind, Tridip went away somewhere on his bicycle without telling him anything. Standing near the dole he could see looking at the paddy fields the herdsmen bringing their cows to their homes.

“Now it is time to depart,” Bijit thought. Walking here and there, he searched and searched but couldn’t find his friend.

 “Where has he gone without telling me anything!” Bijit wondered.

Tridip bicycled to a village that was popular for both buffalo curd and the gamocha (a towel) weaved by the weavers. 

Bijit waited for many minutes, but his friend didn’t return till then. He was perplexed and confused whether he should bicycle a long distance alone, or wait a little more for Tridip’s arrival.

“It will not be safe on my part to bicycle alone such a long distance; besides, where shall I sleep the night here if my friend doesn’t arrive?” in great despair and agony Bijit questioned himself.

 “Where have you gone! I have been waiting for you since you disappeared from this place. Come soon, we are getting late: I have a great many things to do at home,” he told Tridip with his mobile phone.

“I am busy tasting the buffalo curd; it is so tasty!” he said. He also told him that he was enjoying looking at the gamochas prepared by the weavers. “I will be late; you may go alone if you want!” Tridip answered.

Bijit became furious at his friend’s answer.

“I accompanied him to this place since he assured me that we shall arrive home before the sunsets. Now, why Tridip is telling me in this way; why he has changed his mind. Should I jump in the lake and drown myself: or I should bicycle a long distance to home alone,” in great regret Bijit began to wonder.

He gathered strength in his heart and started bicycling. It was already dark then. Reaching home, he saw his mother sweeping the front verandah made dirty by the monkeys. She told Bijit in anxiety, “The goats and the kids have arrived. Take the torchlight and see the place where our cows are run down!”

He immediately took the torchlight and went to the grazing field: alighting the torch he searched from the railway track to the grazing field, but he couldn’t find any carcass of any animal.   

He left that place and came up to the street. Near a bridge under a street light, he saw a cow kneeling and rechewing and re-swallowing its food and the cattle was near its mother. He came closer to the cow and saw thoroughly from back to front and he could confidently conclude that it was their cows. “I got them!” he exclaimed in happiness.

He pulled the cow with his hand and the cow stood; he slowly brought them to the cowshed.

He called up Tridip and said, “You are not my friend anymore, you lied and betrayed”.
His friendship turned sour.