Why did you leave us so early..........

I was in my office when I heard that Raghu the mahout of Ayyappankutty is dead in road accident..

Ayyappankutty is the dearest elephant and Raghu is the dearest mahout to all of us ........
Why did you go so early.....

When did I see you last ? It was the night of the festival, The percussionists had gone.. so had others who were enjoying the 'thimila pattu' . except a few of us finalising the accounts..

Those were the last shots of the episode every year... we would go back home with 'unfinished accounts' ... the usual deficits...

I was starting my bike and I saw you sitting calmly on the stage, and you were the calmest mahout we have ever met.. you stood out from the rest of the mahouts....

And when asked, you said you would leave very early... and when I invited you for the morning coffee, you said no, because already the night was over and it would be inconvenient to the ladies of the house.

In the morning, we were in the kitchen enjoying the morning coffee and we heard the sound of chains of Ayyappankutty. I went to the road and saw you walking past our house...

I did not call you then... just stood there watching you walking by the side of Ayyappankutty through the stillness and darkness of the early morning....

We always thought that Ayyappankutty was the luckiest elephant around to get a person like you to be in charge. How many times have you brought Ayyappankutty to our Rajavihar and Vishala. You would stand there with a graceful smile with Ayyappankutty before us.. We would give cocunut to Ayyappankutty.

This year also you came... we talked about your family.. I told you something like you looked too young to be a grandfather... You talked to Vellyettan also over phone when he called me at that time.

You had no ambitions and did not take life too seriously... but took things as and when you faced them..

And you left us in the early morning after the festival... and I did not call you.. but stood still watching you with coffee in my hand...

Now I wonder why I did not call you then..... or reached you and talked to you.... and shook your hand...

Why did you leave us so early, Raghu, You could have waited for some more time and had breakfast with us before leaving...

Why did you leave us so early ?