WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE, NOR ANY DROP TO DRINK

I saw the giant sea waves approaching us as if they would engulf us completely. Maa shrieked. I didn’t understand why because I was having fun. It was like a huge swimming pool. Being a child, I didn’t realize that we were in danger.

         It was Sunday, 26 December 2004, 8:30 AM to be precise. I was in Kalpakkam, a coastal area, where everyone was still revelling in the Christmas fervour. My sister and I, 8 and 4 years old respectively, were bicycling around the house, giggling and chatting. Paa, being a fitness freak was out to play badminton a few kilometers away. Our house was on the seashore, giving us a beautiful view from the portico.

        I saw the lady who lived in a creepy house which was nearest to the shore cycling fast towards us. My sister and I imagined her to be a witch and used to challenge each other to go into her house and come back. Whenever we walked on the street, we used to tiptoe past her house because we were afraid of her. As she approached us, she shouted: “Run! Run!” We were frightened. We first thought she was chasing us but then realized that she was actually warning us.

       A wave just appeared out of the blue and soared nearly thrice as high as our house’s height and was fast approaching us. It seemed as if it was chasing us. We went running towards our house with water following us several times as quickly. “Maaaa!” my sister made a frantic call.  “Maa! Didn’t I tell you the other day about the dream I had of water flooding the township? The water is really here. Come and see outside!” said my ‘ever- childish, never-so-serious’ sister.  Maa came out only to see the water at our door step entering the just-mopped house.

       Maa quickly lifted me and held my sister’s hand. Everyone around was running away from their houses. We scurried through the water, which was waist deep for my mother, hoping to escape to a safer place. I saw people around me — old, young, some even handicapped — struggling to carry their belongings and valuables. I also noticed various animals, mostly cows, being tossed around like rag dolls by the water.

       We waded through the water to a maidaan, where people were rushing to, because it was higher than the ground level. From there, we took a bus to Anupuram, which was a safer place. The bus was specially meant for transporting people to a safer place. We went to a family friend,  Revati aunt’s house in Anupuram, where her family welcomed us with care and concern. We were safe, at last. But there was no sign of Paa. We were unable to contact him, because mobile phones were not common in a middle-class household at the time.

        The adults went to various places in and around Kalpakkam trying to search for my Paa everywhere. Although we were put to sleep, the adults spotted Paa in a place near Chengalpat, a nearby town. He was trying to locate us in tsunami victim camps. I vaguely remember Revati Aunty calling Paa’s name when they found him, and Maa’s expression at the time.  I was in a state of trance, clinging on to Maa’s shoulder.
    
         When I woke up, it was dark, it must have been nearly 10 PM. I found that I was lying on Paa’s lap, who was caressing me. Maa was next to us, holding my sister. In hushed whispers, they were talking about how lucky we were to be alive. That moment, I can’t describe how safe and secure I felt.