“Jaaam! Gahana pokhari ghumera aamm” I tried to cheer her up. “Let’s race! She got up and grabbed her bmx and went out before I could even say anything. I followed closely behind her. As usual, we first went to maligaon and bought some ledo titaura and a five star I craved for. My dashain money, which was less than half of all" my sisters got was fast disappearing. I didn’t care though. I was going back to school right after Tihar and I wouldn’t need money anymore. We cycled back to Gahana Pokhari, parked our ride and sat on the edge looking at the drying pond. The titaura soon had its effect on our nose and the eyes. We took long breaths and finished it as soon as we could. Then I took my five star out, made a line right at the middle and broke into two. After finishing the chocolate, we stood there talking and making plans for tihar. I grabbed some round stones and hurled it from the side to the pond where it bounced off on the surface. WOW my sister exclaimed. She followed my suit. Seeing her happy and off the hook, I hesitantly slid in the guilt “makuri! Taile dus rupiya leko ho daraj bata?” Suddenly, she stopped hurling stones. Her smile disappeared. Her face began to squeal without a sound. She looked right into my eyes boldly and burst into tears “taile pani tyastai bhan thanchas?” Before I could console her, she got up dragged her bike and rode as fast as she could towards home. I stood there following her trails unable to forgive myself for accusing her in the open. Reluctantly, I biked back home with the pain sipping out of my heavy heart. ************** “Oyssss…yeta aaija na!” My sister stood by the door of the living room where all of us were watching TV. “K bhayo” I asked her in the corridor. “malai duita five rupee ko notes de na” “I reached my pocket and handed her the notes. She took my palm and pressed the same notorious ten rupee note on my hand. She began to head out. “kata jana lako?” I asked. “duita gamala kinera lyauchu hai? Kali didi ko pasal ma 5 rupiya matrai re!” “ani yo dus rupiya” she read my dilemma. She smiled at me painfully. “Dashain dekhin bachara raakheko thiyen. Sadhai bag mai thiyo” She scurried off. I was so happy, and I scurried off to relay the information to maami who was screaming on top of her lungs for us to come over for dinner so that she wouldn’t miss another episode of mahabharat! As things stood, one had just ended. *************** .... "Security check point samma aaija na ta" I hesitantly requested them. They firmly shook their head increasing my own vulnerability. A sense of cosy-discomfort seized all three of us as I hugged them a final goodbye. I began to walk towards the gate with a mixed bag of emotions. Distance creates subtle rifts. Over time they become irreparable gorges. How wrong I had been about this all these years! For most girls, a tear is a means of a hydraulic force to defeat the masculine prowess. However, the tears that trickled down my sisters' faces resonated strength of our bond that had been fostered over the years of innumerable memories. The reminiscences of joy, pain, tears, and laughter that smeared the entire spectrum, but were exclusively ours to cherish for life. Family is indeed like a constellation of stars. You might be millions of miles away from each other, but you will always be part of the same constellation. "Oys!” My sister let out a weak shrill. I turned back slowly. “Yo pali ta mildaina. Next year bhai-tika ma aauna try garr hai!” I nodded my head unable to speak. I felt as if I had grown up in titanic proportion at that instant in time. It could only be the 7th Bhai Tika I’d miss this year but it wasn’t as important as the realization that there wasn’t any distance among us. Ever! For the irreparable gorge I had invented with my fickle mind, I had reconciled it safely with my gorgeous memories. :)