An elaborate meal was ready and the kettle had just been set on the stove- it was time for her boy to return home.She looked forward to this time of the day when he came running up the stairs, she would open the door before he could ring the bell and envelope him in a bear hug. They chatted about their day over a steaming cup of tea.
Today, he was late, which was unusual.She was getting restless.Maybe he went to visit a friend she thought. She heard footsteps and rushed to open the door.
“Ma’am your son was at the Elphinstone Railway station waiting to board a train, a tragic incident occurred, a stampede which claimed 25 lives,unfortunately your son was one of them.”
The kettle let out a shrill whistle,she poured herself a cup of tea.The last one she would have at the table in memory of her son.
(150 words)
Linking up with Tina and Mayuri
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Published by Akshata Ram
Chartered Accountant, Story Teller, Dreamer, Voracious Reader, Blogger, Mommy to a little munchkin, Shopaholic, Day Dreamer.Passionate about my career in the corporate world and aspire to break the glass ceiling, at the same time nurture my passion for writing. My niche area is short stories, I also write on parenting, sexism, life's experiences, micro blogs and flash fiction. I have won the best Parenting blog post at mycity4kids.com the largest parenting website in India, 4 times and several of my posts have been published in the #MostPopular category on this site garnering millions of views. I also write on Bonobology, Rivo Kids, Women's Web and Youth Ki Awaaz. My blog has been chosen as the Top Indian Blogs for the years 2018-2019,2020 by TopIndianBlogs website and found a place in the prestigious Top 22 Indian Literary Blogs in 2020 @TopIndianBlogs.
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www.akswrites.com 
Wow, the table, the stairs and the legs….. masterfully done.
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Thx so much Lav!
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There must have been a mother, a family waiting for each of the 25 people who lost their lives in the stampede. A tale closer to reality than fiction. #WordSante
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True Namrata- the thought makes me shudder
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Heart-wrenching. Innocent lives lost in the city where people go about their daily lives and makes me so angry. I know the station and this bridge is too small to accommodate the growing the population.
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True it’s really sad
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Tragic, Unfortunate and heart-wrenching….no more words to describe how it feels…..
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Very true Prasanna
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A very topical post. Tragedies bring out the best and the worst in humans. A very poignant story, Akshata. Absolutely heart-wrenching. Welcome to #WordSante
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True Varad. Glad to be a part of #WordSante
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Nyc writeup..
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Thx!
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So weird. When I saw the picture, first thought that came to me was of ephinstone too. But i thought of a story where the boy walks all the way to the far end of the platform (for some reason I had still to fill in) to take the empty bridge and whilst he is climbing he hears the noises of the stampede on the overcrowded one. Yours is pretty awesome too!
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That’s an awesome one Kanika!
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My heart skipped a beat!
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Yes I Am sure it did
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Ohh this is so sad! The worst any mom can face:(
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True Sara
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So heart-breaking! I just choked on my coffee. Sadly, this is so possible these days. My heart goes out to the Mum.
#WordSante
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Very true Vidya the thought makes me shudder- I leave the house but ain’t sure I am coming back
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Sounds so real… the fabric of tale is so engrossed in reality that its difficult to discern that its a work of fiction!
Fantastic take on the prompt Akshata.
– Anagha From Team MocktailMommies
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Thx so much Anagha – unfortunately it’s the reality for someone.makes me shudder
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Akshata! A timely and grave reminder of a post! This incident is simply so sad…the callousness of the administration, government. I wish our officials were more proactive and concerned about us, citizen who vote for them..hoping for ´Acche Din´. It is sad….Keep writing!
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Yea it makes me sad too especially when I heard about a bystander molesting a dying woman- how low can people stoop?
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We rarely pause to think of the families of those who perish in tragedies.
How skillfully you’ve shown us that rarely seen side, Akshata.
Beautiful writing, as always!
Thank you for writing for #FridayFotoFiction
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Thanks so much Mayuri for your kind comments as always! You are one of the sweetest bloggers I know
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Oh my god, I wish no mother has to hear such a news about her child! Thanks for linking up with #FridayFotoFiction
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Ya Tina it’s heartbreaking
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Wow…
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Thx Rashi!
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Anytime akshata
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