Priceless Portrait

Traffic jams of Kathmandu and my friend's late nature, they compliment eachother so well. As usual, she called me on my mobile to let me know that she would be an hour late. Waiting for somebody in the heart of city amidst crowd is troublesome, and my friend knows that too. Although I was blushed with anger, I had no option rather than spending the time in a near by cafeteria. I asked the café boy to get me a cup of coffee although I had lunch just before I left home. I sat on a chair, put the sunglasses off my eyes to rest them on my head, made my self-comfortable and started waiting for time to roll on.

Just in the other table infront of mine, I could notice a filthy looking man gazing at me. I didn’t dare to look up to him again. I urged my eyes to choose a different direction. Human are keen and obliged to do what they are supposed not to. This particular human pshychology worked with me at the moment. I took a double look at the man. To my surprise, I could see the man holding a pencil in his hand with a great difficulty and trying to sketch something on a paper. I wondered what the man was doing but immediately withdrew my eyes. In the mean time, my coffee arrived. With the first coffee sip to my lips, I drove my eyes to a teenage couple occupying the table at my other side. I was concious enough not to be caught watching them while they were fooling in a childish manner. Looking them enjoy, I flipped back to my teenage days, which I had left behind.

Looking at them hidingly and flashing back to my days of teens, I finished the coffee. But before I could head to the counter, pay the bill and leave the café, the same man approached my table. He sat in the chair right in front of me. He then kept forward the sketch he was working with. My astonishment held no limit, when I could see myself on that piece of paper.

The portrait was roughly sketched. With so much effort, he had given it a realistic look with my curly hair flipping aside my shoulders. I was speechless. I complimented him for his attempt and thanked him with heart. Alas! To my distress, I came to know that he couldn’t speak and couldn’t hear either. I felt so sorry for him. He couldn’t even hear the appreciations i had made to him.

With his expressions, I could understand that he wanted me to keep the portrait. I nooded and thanked him. As he was about to leave with a smile on his face, I stopped and gave him some money. He looked up to my eyes, gave a smile again and took hold of money I had offered him. He then left the café. I couldn’t hold back my eyes from him until he was out of sight. My eyes then reached for the paper to look at the portrait again. I was all hit by the sentiments by the moment. I could notice the portrait having the sunglasses on its head. I took the sunglasses off my head, put them on my eyes and stepped out the café treasuring a beautiful moment of my life.