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| From Google Images |
Where have you seen the most amazing sun set of your life? If you are not sure or can't remember let me describe the most breathtaking sun sets I have ever seen.
When the dying sun which before dipping below the horizon, most reluctantly it seems to be, turns entire shimmering western sky surrounding him to brilliant purple red and crimson hues in a whiff. This surely must be the sun going down in all his glory. If you haven't lived some time in dry zone in my opinion you couldn't possibly have seen that amazing miracle materializing right before your own eyes.
Even if you have lived all your life in Dry zone you may not have observed this truly awe inspiring spectacle; the pyrotechnics of nature if you don't have a keen and observant eye tuned constantly to wonders of nature that are taking place right outside your threshold every minute, every hour and every day.
To be totally intoxicated, flabbergasted and completely astonished by wonders of nature you don't really need to visit mist covered hills of Nuwara-Eliya. Or lie on sparkling beaches of Hikkaduwa.Or climb Adam's Peak to be in time for that renowned phenomenon called " ඉර සේවය. "
More often than not it would be more than enough just to take a leisurely walk through your garden or look through your window to wonder and mutter to yourself "Oh dear, what am I missing right under my nose."
About three decades back I was stationed on the eastern boundary of north central province right in the middle of dry zone jungle working attached to an irrigation and settlement project. Obviously I was an inexperienced youth just trying to find my feet in life in an alien environment.
To top it all " අලි මදිවට හරක් " as that pithy Sinhala proverb describes aptly, I was going through a severe crisis in my life for good measure. Suffice it to say that aforesaid crisis was a matter related to heart and soul than the body. Keeping elaborating further regarding that crisis to another day let me tell you about the relevance of that crisis to what I am writing about today i.e. wonders of nature.
I was so naive, impulsive and emotional at that particular time my friends actually feared for my life. I had a real hard time convincing them that I am not likely to do something so drastic. In retrospect I am sure that taking my life didn't cross my mind at all but I can't blame my friends for thinking so considering the mindless state that I found myself inexorably drawn into.
Well let me tell you how I finally overcame that melancholy state of mind that I had immersed myself, by my own free will. Generally you would have thought that it has to be from some sound advice from a respected relative or from a close to heart friend. But not to be in my case.
Believe it or not it was the most mundane object you can ever think of. A spider web...."What? A spider web?" I can almost hear your shocked voice..."A spider web? you crazy or some thing?" No. my dear friends, it is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
After a night of trying in vain to draw my sorrows in that so called remedy for all, I woke at around ten in the morning feeling like hell to find myself immersed in white sunlight streaming through my half open window. Sitting up on my bed and stretching myself to get some life into my still sleepy arms and legs I turned my neck slowly one way then the other breathing deeply and exhaling even deeply to get toxic remnants from last night out of my system.
Just when I had my neck fully stretched to left looking right at the window that something unusual happening there caught my eye. It was something shining in brilliant hues of blue, yellow, purple and even gold.
I was so astonished that I kept staring at that very spot from where that numerous rays of color emanated. But it seemed to be a one off phenomena because I could not discern anything extraordinary thereafter. Presently I was in a quandary being undecided whether to get up and go about starting my day or to lie back again on the bed and go back to sleep or at least just lie there hovering on the border of slumber land.
Still undecided, just for a single moment I turned my head and looked again at the window. May be unconsciously I was still searching for that extra-ordinary thing that happend just a little while ago. By providence or something else I am yet to understand, at that very moment that brilliant light in numerous hues again decided to show itself in all its glory. Naturally I could not restrain myself and wearily but with an increasing curiosity got up and approached the window, where all this amazing display is taking place.
When I reached the window there was nothing remarkable there but an ordinary spider's web stretched vertically on the welded mesh fixed to the window frame to prevent animals coming inside and wreaking havoc. Especially those annoying pests, monkeys. And there were tiny dew drops hanging like pearls from every string of the cob web just on the brink of dropping but like they were unable to make up their mind whether to drop or to hang there a little more.
I was curious and waited there watching the dew drops when the owner and creator of this intricate design came in to view, tentatively at first and then more sure of herself. (Usually only the females of the species make webs) The vibrations caused by her passage although very insignificant were more than enough to cause those dew drops hanging precariously on strings to fall off one by one. they fell on the lower string and caused dew drops already there to fall off to the rung right beneath.
I was watching this spectacle engrossed when the Sun decided to come out from a cloud and a burst of sunshine came through and shone right on the spider's web making the dew drops dropping from one string to another shine brilliantly in a unworldly sheen.
"Ohh..so this is what I saw" I murmured shaking my head in amazed wonder.
And you know what? It was as if that spider knew I was watching and may be even how depressed I was and decided to do something about it. It sure looked like that. She started dancing away on the web; it sure was dancing because I don't know any other word to describe whirls, spins and gyrations she performed on that web that day.
And she danced her way from one end to the other of her web with dew drops falling like little gems all the way sparkling like tiny sapphires, rubies, garnets and emeralds.
I watched her superlative performance mesmerized with wonder and a sense of fulfillment seeping through and filling me up. Would you believe my dear friends that all that listlessness and all that melancholy that was distressing me just went away as if by magic.
Yes I thought, what the hell am I doing just loafing around bring despondent about some thing that has already happened and done with that definitely belonged to my past. There are so much more amazing things to do in life, so much more exceptional and beautiful vistas to behold instead of just being foolhardy and wasting away a life that's God given.
Well my dears that’s it, I never looked back from that day onwards and I always remember that little spider and her web when some crisis comes upon my life.
I never saw that amazing sight again, dew drops shining brilliantly like little gems falling off from one strand to another but some times I think may be it was the way it meant to be. I mean it happened once with a purpose or else what happened that day was only in my mind. Well my dears, who knows? however it happened it definitely served it's purpose. Isn't it enough?
