Under Bapu ki loving gaze...

Under Bapu ki loving gaze...

It was a strange moment.. Everything was going perfectly... As planned... It was forenoon of a Oct 1999 .in Saket Court.. Delhi..In magistrates office.. All  my near and dear ones around me.. My family ....close friends...my to be hubby's brothers.,..I fondly noticed our professional mentor and guide Dr Srinivasan along with my uncle  duly ready with pen and all to be our honoured witnesses ..it was a pleasant October morning...yet there was something unsettling..I felt myself perspiring a bit.. There was a strange sense of nervousness and apprehension coming over me.. For the first time I was getting jitters... I was realising the " magnanimity " of our decision.. It was overwhelming... The religious -cultural gap in our marriage was playing on my psyche hugely on my mind at that moment.. " will we be able to manage the gaps".. A voice echoed inside me... " No religious ceremony.. No conversion ., Are we doing the correct thing., ? Will we be able to sail through?" .. The noise inside me was getting deafening.. I tried to divert myself and smiled nervously at the magistrate..

The magistrate looked closely at me smiled and said " Aapka toh poora parivar aapke Saath hai.. Bahut lucky hain aap dono"...as if to assure and console me... I smiled back at him gratefully...but still the slightly overwhelming feeling continued.. As the magistrate asked us to exchange rings.. I looked up at my fiancee.. He looked back at me with a calm smile.. I could not trace a hint of jitteriness in him ...I felt my nerves calming down., " All is well and all will be well".. I told myself... Extending my finger for the ring.. And then the magistrate thrusted that " overwhelming " register at us with the Ashoka symbol and Union of India flashing boldly at the top .. It had the marital oath on it and " Please Sign " he directed us.. We both bend down together to sign it.. Just at the last moment I looked up again.. I saw the proud and loving eyes of my father.. Emotional moist eyes of my mother and sister. Lots of happy cheerful faces of close friends and relatives .. Looked back at me.. And then just for more I happened to look up at the wall .. Right above our heads.. And then I saw Him.. That simple bespectacled man with a very kind face ..He was fondly and very proudly gazing down at both of us.. He seemed to be saying  " Go ahead nothing can go wrong 👍"...suddenly I relaxed..smiled thankfully back at him and confidently bend down to sign on the dotted lines.. After flow of congratulations greetings and hugs .. ..as we began to walk out of the court .. with moist eyes I looked up again at the wall and whispered a silent thank you to the bespectacled man on the wall .. As Bapu continued to smile back at us with a proud gaze...