Love is Blind

by Vijay K Kerji

      

  When she reached the Deer Creek Apartment, Niranjan was standing in the balcony, waving his hand towards her. Jennifer was impressed as he was well dressed with navy blue trouser and sky blue shirt with tie. She smiled cheerfully at him while she parked her car in the front parking area, facing the block. Niranjan walked down the wooden stairs to receive her. 

      

  "Wow, you look beautiful," Niranjan said. He came closer to her, towards the other side of the car, while she closed the car door. 

      

  "Thank you. I like your dress," she said and gazed at him. 

     

  They walked towards the entrance of the H block, and entered inside the home.

   

  Jennifer sat on the sofa while Niranjan said, "I hope you like visiting the Balaji Temple at Bridgewater with me. It is half hour drive from here, and we go by Route 206 North. I am visiting the place for the first time."

    

  "Well, I certainly like going to places outside, and I enjoy your company," Jennifer said.

      

  "Let me prepare a coffee and we shall leave soon," Niranjan said. He hurried inside to get a coffee for her. 

      

  Jennifer had coffee along with Niranjan and soon after, they walked outside the home. Niranjan pulled his car out of the parking slot to go to the Bridgewater Balaji Temple. 

   

  The US 206 highway had a beautiful scene across it, with the dry barren land in between. The countryside of the USA was visible in between with the farm estate and farm house in it. Many Americans were seen busy in their farm along with their family members. Children played outside the farm house with their pet dogs. The maize and sugarcane crops cultivation was seen in the farm in a large area. In some places, huge farm equipment’s were seen meant for irrigation and ploughing purpose. 

      

  Jennifer enjoyed the company of Niranjan while travelling to Bridgewater. They tuned the radio to a local smooth jazz station while on the way through Route 206 North.

   

  "Do you visit the temple quite often?" asked Jennifer. 

      

  Niranjan reduced the volume of the music and said, "Well, I believe in god and my parents are quite religious. I am influenced by my mother who offers prayers to God twice a day," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Oh, that's great to know. It is good if we are spiritual and believe in God. We feel calm when we think spiritually and it always helps," Jennifer said. 

   

  "Yes, you are correct."

      

  "We go to Church for attending prayers and I experienced my mind filled with peaceful thoughts which are essential for our progress in life," Jennifer said. 

      

  "Yes, I agree with you," Niranjan said. 

      

  Niranjan glanced at the sign board which indicated Balaji Temple Drive and turned his car towards the left on the US 206 North. He drove for about half a mile and turned again left into the parking area of the temple. 

      

  Jennifer saw several cars parked in the parking area, and many Indians walking towards the main entrance of the temple. She stepped out of the car and walked along with Niranjan towards the entrance of the temple.

   

  She saw a big tower built on top of the temple building while she entered into the main hall. She saw many Indians standing in a queue in front of the pedestal on which the Lord Balaji statue stood. He was adorned with the gold jewellery and garlands. She was amazed to see the Lord Balaji, and her heart and soul filled with cheerfulness.

   

  She followed Niranjan to the downstairs where many Indians were gathered in a hall. They both walked past the downstairs hall and reached the parking area from the rear entrance of the temple. 

      

  While seated inside the car, Jennifer said, "Wow, the God statue was glorious, and is adorned beautifully with the gold jewellery. I liked the charisma, and the inside environment which is very peaceful". 

      

  "Yes, you are right, and I am happy that you enjoyed visiting an Indian Temple," Niranjan said. 

      

  They headed back towards the Princeton by taking the Route 206 South, and Jennifer enjoyed the journey back to Princeton with Niranjan. She spoke with him on several matters related to Indian culture and geography and she discussed about the British rule of India. She patiently heard Niranjan's detailed answers to her questions. 

      

  I am fortunate to have such a nice gentleman from India as a friend of mine. 

      

  When they reached the Deer Creek Apartment, sky was moderately overcast with the possibility of thunder showers. Jennifer hurried towards her Beetle to go back to her home, courteously refusing Niranjan's request to spend few minutes at his home. 

   

  Chapter 15 Niranjan speaks to his parents and Shubra

  You can change your world by changing your words... Remember, death and life are in the power of the tongue - Joel Osteen 

   

  It was a Sunday night, and the residents of the Deer Creek Apartment returned to their homes from the weekend outing in their cars. The humming sound of the car tires was heard from the balcony of the H 975 house. A discovery channel program was being played on the TV screen in the main hall. 

      

  Niranjan was affectionate towards his parents, and he spoke to them over the phone on every weekend in the evening, and it was day time in India. He had discussed with his father about his work at office, and had asked about their health and wellbeing. Though his father was a pensioner, Niranjan had sent a bank check to him for his financial needs. Since he worked as a techie, he earned a handsome salary from his employer, the Summit Software Solutions. 

      

  He decided to call his parents to inform them about his visit to the Bridgewater Balaji Temple. When he dialled his home number in India, his father received the call. 

      

  "Hello Appa, hope you are doing well," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Yes, I am doing well. How are you? Hope you bought your new car," his father asked. 

      

  "I am doing okay. I had taken the delivery of my car yesterday, and had been to the Balaji Temple at Bridgewater in New Jersey," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Okay, it's good to know. You please be careful while driving, and take care of yourself," his father suggested. 

      

  "All right, I am comfortable driving the new car. How is mother doing?" Niranjan asked. 

      

  "She is doing well, and she always remembers you. Your colleague, Shubra visited us few days ago and spent time with us. Did you speak to her?"

      

  "Well, it's long time since I spoke with her, and I will call her today," Niranjan said. 

      

  "All right, your mother is here, you may speak few minutes with her," his father said. 

      

  "Hi Mama, hope you are doing well. How is your health?" asked Niranjan. 

      

  "I am doing well my son, how about you? When are you coming to India?" 

      

  "Mama, I am doing well here, and it's just four months ever since I left from India. I return as soon as my project work gets completed," he said. 

      

  "Have you adjusted with the climate over there?" she asked. 

      

  "Yes, I am. You need not worry about me, and I am keeping myself comfortable here," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Okay, take care of yourself and come back to India as soon as possible," she suggested. 

      

  Niranjan always got go
od suggestions from his mother. She always insisted him to come back to India as he was the only son to his parents. He never spent a weekend without calling them and he was very much attached to his parents.

      

  It was almost more than two months since he called Shubra. Last time when he spoke, she had told him that she would meet his parents. Niranjan dialled her home number, and his father received the call. He exchanged the greetings with him and asked for Shubra to speak with. 

      

  "Hello, Shubra, Hope you are doing well. Thank you for visiting my home," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Yes, I am doing well, and it was pleasure meeting your parents. I hope you spoke to them this weekend," Shubra said. 

      

  "Well, I called them a short while ago. How is your work going on? I Hope you are comfortable with the work," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Well, I am maintaining the software modules you had developed, and I am comfortable. The customer review phase is going on," she said. 

      

  "Okay". 

      

  "How is your stay in the USA? What you do on weekends?" 

      

  "I am comfortable here and will be busy on workweek at General Electric. Project design phase is nearing completion along with the intermediate releases. I am doing good work and my project manager at GE, Frank is a nice person to work with. I plan to spend time on weekends visiting some tourists’ places around," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Wow, that's nice to know. I Hope you don't have plans to settle in there," she said. 

      

  "Well, my parents are putting pressure to return as soon as possible. It is just four months since I came here, and the project is still going on," he said. 

      

      

  Niranjan and Shubra spoke leisurely and discussed about their colleagues and project matters. Shubra posed several questions about the USA life style, and how Niranjan is performing at work. Niranjan answered her queries with patience. 

      

  "Okay, please do keep in touch," Shubra said. 

      

  "All right, I will call you some time on the weekends," Niranjan said. 

      

  He always felt homely after speaking with his parents. He spent most of the weekend time in the memory of his parents, and in the company of Jennifer in the USA. He kept himself happy in the USA though he was alone, and his good nature and friendly behaviour with others made him to stay happy and avoid loneliness and depression. His good work at office and Jennifer's company on weekends made him enjoy his stay in the USA. 

  Chapter 16 Atlantic City

   

  We didn't become the most prosperous country in the world just by rewarding greed and recklessness. We didn't come this far by letting the special interests run wild. We didn't do it just by gambling and chasing paper profits on Wall Street. We built this country by making things, by producing goods we could sell - Barack Obama 

   

  Niranjan saw an email from his manager Frank requesting for a team meeting in the conference hall in the next half hour. He wrapped up his current coding work and walked towards the conference hall. He noticed that all of his colleagues were present in the meeting hall, waiting for Frank to come. Niranjan greeted Daniel, Sing Ming and Harris and pulled a chair for himself. Having waited for few minutes, Niranjan asked, 

      

  "Can we call Frank at his office number?" He stared at Daniel.

      

  "I think he is busy on the phone already, let's wait for few more minutes and try again," Daniel said. 

      

  "Okay," Niranjan said, and waited for few moments.

      

  "How did all of you spend your weekend?" Sing Ming asked, with pleasant smile on her face. 

      

  "I had been to Atlantic City with my family and spent the entire day in Trump Taj Mahal, and enjoyed the boardwalk on the beach," Harris said. 

      

  "Well, I got a new Acura and had been to Bridgewater to visit the temple," Niranjan said. 

      

     Daniel mentioned that he was at home, and watched a movie. Niranjan was interested to know more about Atlantic City when Harris mentioned it. Niranjan did know from his friend Venkatesh about the place but he had never visited. 

      

     "What's the special about Atlantic City? You said you spent time on the beach, is there anything interesting to see there?" Niranjan asked. 

      

  "Well, it is an entertainment place where you like to see casinos. We had been to Trump Taj Mahal which is the best casino among the available ones. Atlantic City has nice restaurants to dine and has a boardwalk on the beach to spend good time on the sea shore. Since it is a spring time, many people visit the place. Atlantic City is called Las Vegas of the East Coast. It is a quite pleasant place to visit at least once," Harris said. 

      

  Sing Ming shared her experience of visiting Atlantic City with her American husband last summer. Meanwhile, Frank entered the room, and started the meeting discussion. He mentioned about the customer urgency of meeting the project schedule, and plans of staying back in the evening if needed, to meet the project goals. Niranjan mentioned few suggestions to speed up the development work, and his suggestions were accepted by the team members. 

   

  ######

   

  The sunny weather had pervaded in the spring at the Deer Creek Apartment on Saturday. Niranjan had spent another hectic workweek at General Electric. He had stayed back late in the evening to finish the work, along with the other team members. They had taken a decision not to work on the week end. He relaxed till noon on Saturday, and slowly recovered from the work stress he had accumulated in the last week. 

      

  Later in the evening, he thought of planning a trip to some interesting place on Sunday, since weather forecast showed sunny weather throughout the day. He waited for Jennifer's call as she had promised to call him when they last met. He tuned on his music box and tuned to the smooth jazz radio station, and picked up a novel to read. 

   

  Several minutes later, he heard his cell phone ringing and he was excited to know that it was Jennifer calling. His face wore a broad smile while he answered the call. 

      

  "Hello, Jennifer, how are you doing?" Niranjan asked. 

      

  "I am doing well, and how did you spend your day?" 

      

  "Well, I had to take rest till afternoon since it was a hectic workweek for me. We had to complete the code review and the testing as the customer wanted the application in time. Anyway, I am free now," Niranjan said. 

      

  "All right, you take complete rest today. Your job involves lot of stress, and you have another hard workweek approaching you by end of tomorrow". They both guffawed. 

      

  "Yeah, it is quite cyclical which can't be avoided. By the way, what are your plans for Sunday?" 

      

  "No plans as such, and have you planned anything? It was interesting to visit Bridgewater on last week," Jennifer said. 

      

  "Thank you, and listen, we can visit Atlantic City tomorrow," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Okay, let me try if I can make myself available," Jennifer said. 

      

  "I am sure you had seen it before. My colleague Harris described it as Las Vegas of the East Coast," Niranjan said. 

      

  "Yeah, I had seen it before. It is known for casinos and entertainment, and the boardwalk on the beach," Jennifer said. 

      

  "Okay, can we start
tomorrow before noon?" Niranjan asked. 

      

  "It takes around two hours’ time from Princeton. Better we start early. We can spend good time there and come back," Jennifer said. 

      

  "All right, please do let me know when you make up your mind. I hope you don't disappoint me." 

      

  "Okay, I will ring you up tomorrow. Good bye for now," Jennifer said.

   

  Niranjan smiled himself happily after speaking with Jennifer and raised the radio volume in ecstasy. He made a sound with his fingers in tune with the music to express his happiness, and continued reading the novel.

   

  ######

   

  Jennifer had decided to go to the Atlantic City with Niranjan on Sunday Morning. She dressed herself with a grey pant suit. She brushed her hair, and applied the mascara and the lip gloss. She walked down the stairs from her bedroom, and looked inside the kitchen to see if her mother is present. She saw her mother busy in housekeeping. 

      

     "Hi Mom, I am going out with my friend and will be back in the evening," Jennifer said. 

      

  "Where are you going? Don't be late, and try to come back early," Catherine said. 

      

  "I am going to Atlantic City with one of my friends Mom, and I try to return as early as possible," Jennifer replied. 

      

  "Have you had your breakfast?"

      

  "I had my morning Coffee, and I will have breakfast on the way," Jennifer replied. 

      

  She walked out of the house and saw James cleaning the Chrysler in the garage. She anticipated the trouble and tiptoed towards the Beetle. When she opened the door, James came towards her. His eyes stared at her, forming an intense gaze. 

      

  "I know where you are headed. Better listen to my advice, otherwise you will face the consequences," he said. His eyes were bulged out with anger, and a vein throbbing in his throat. 

      

   "Well, we are just friends and I know how I can behave myself. Please don't interfere in my personal matters," Jennifer said. 

      

  "You haven't learnt from the past, and you are again going out with the stranger. I had advised you several times earlier, and you had never listened to me. Please don't repeat the same and you will be in trouble again," James said. His face was becoming more crimson, and his eyes seemed to spark with fury. 

      

  "Well, I know when to cross the line and I don't need any one's advice in these matters. I already informed you about Niranjan, he is a good guy and I need some one's friendship to forget my past," she said. 

      

  "Be cautious in such friendships and don't regret later when something goes wrong," he said, and walked back to his Chrysler. He closed its door, slamming it loudly.