Short Story: The Tree by Hansa Deep (Originally Written in Hindi and Translated to English by Rajni Mishra)

Rajni Mishra translates a powerful story, originally written in Hindi by Hansa Deep, called The Tree which captures a moving portrait of familial bonds.

Trin, Trin, Trin, Trin.

The high-density ear-blasting emergency alert.

Everybody’s phone started ringing. A special emergency message was blinking on everybody’s mobile phone, “A storm mixed with heavy rain and wind is on the way and it is moving fast towards you.” This message was a signal which meant that wherever you were, reach home immediately. All the cars and crowds of people started moving towards their homes.

Within minutes, the sunny sky of mid-noon was covered by dark, black clouds. It seemed as if night had torn apart the chest of the Sun and knocked on the broad daylight. In a few minutes, hard wind and heavy rain came rushing through with full force. After registering its dangerous presence for some time, it returned. The daylight had defeated the darkness with full force and was again on its daily duty.