U is for Unlucky : A Short Story

Every one told Sita that she was unlucky.

Hadn't she killed her mother right on the day of her birth?

 Wasn't it because of the fault in her stars that her father took his own life two days before her third birthday?

By the time she passed high school, the blame for the death of two of her closest friends in a drowning incident and the car accident that crippled her aunt who was her guardian, had also been added to long list of woes.

Her education had ended at eighteen when her uncle believing in all the rumors abound, refused to waste money on a no-good cause. Her dreams of becoming a teacher had died an early death that day.

At the age of twenty, a nomad scrap-dealer Raghu, fell in love with her and her uncle quickly married her off to him. After all, none of the youth in their village wanted a bad omen entering their lives.

On the day of their marriage, when a teary-eyed Sita confessed to Raghu, that he had unknowingly damaged his luck by marrying her, he laughed it off good-humouredly.

“Do you know that I make a fortune out of what other people consider useless? They don’t know the value of things they throw away as waste. In my eyes, they are gold. No one is ever born unlucky Sita. Understand that. Luck is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of thoughts and choice. You are my love and my lucky charm from today. Remember that.”

Raghu treated her like a queen and Sita became happier day after day.

Raghu enrolled her in the nearby college for degree and Sita started giving tuition to kids in the neighborhood to add to their earnings. She quickly became the favorite with all the students.

Just how much her life had changed became evident to Sita when Priya, her student and neighbour came one night to her house.

“Sita Aunty, Tomorrow is my mathematics board exam. First thing in the morning, I want to see your face. You are my lucky charm.”

“No Priya…See your mothers face and go,”repled Sita still unsure of her luck.

“No Aunty.Believe me. Whenever I behold you, my day passes charmingly. I saw you yesterday and my science paper was just awesome. I feared it the most you know,” declared Priya.

“Sita, Listen to her. You are a lucky charm indeed. See how much Raghu prospered and how happy he is now after you came into his life.” It was Priya’s mom.

Sita smiled partly in happiness and partly with relief.

Luck was indeed just a matter of thought and choices as Raghu said. She never would say or believe she was unlucky again.

 Years later, when her daughter-in-law passed away after childbirth, she took the child and embraced it lovingly, ready to confront anyone who wanted to brand the child as being unlucky.

 A smiling Raghu, her two daughters and son soon came in to watch her expertly calming down the wailing child.

 This story is a part of Blogging from A-Z April Challenge.

The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge was first held in 2010. The challenge is that we have to post every day of April, except on the four Sundays. April 1st is a theme with letter A, 2nd with letter B and so on till April 30th which will be Z themed. My theme is #Learning Everyday, I post about new random things every day.