THE CLOCK TOWERMAN

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Saturday, October 11, 2008
THE CLOCK TOWERMAN

skip to main | skip to sidebar THE CLOCK TOWER MAN


Saturday, October 11, 2008


Posted by syed at 4:53 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
THE CLOCK TOWER MAN

The Clock tower man

An elliptical drop of water hailing from the shallow night skies landed on my dormant eyelids and brought me back to life. Rejuvenated, I woke up startled to find myself on the fragile wooden bench adjacent to the ancient clock tower in the suburbs of the city. After a brief lapse of time I acknowledged the fact that the demon drink had brought me here. I swore never to touch liquor again-something that my dipsomaniacal spirit and convivial habits would never allow. I sat up gripping the dog arm of the bench to take a prolonged glance at my sordid surroundings.

The dilapidated remains of a garden where a family of asters , entwines and hibiscuses initially dwelled was now inhabited by wild berries and congress grass. A thick patch of wild grass grew monstrously circumscribing the ruin. In the geometric centre of the garden stood the clock tower-a fifty metre high massive stone edifice designed and brought to life by some notorious communist martinet.

The structure was overwhelming –a huge mass of mined stone leading to one gigantic functional clock, an epitome e of the harsh communist disciplinarian laws that flo0urished about two hundred years ago. The frame of a lonely gargoyle which sat still in a ‘pondering over’ pose at the summit of the establishment instilled fear in the eye of the beholder. An iron ladder, permanently and structurally attached to the structure began from the base to reveal a door-like structure at the top of the tower below the spire, exactly adjacent to the clock face.

I realized it was raining, my expensive white satin shirt all drenched by this mysterious force of nature! An unexpected flash of lightening synchronized perfectly with the calliphonous soft ring of the clock striking one. for a moment I thought I saw a figure of some sort-a shadowy phantom behind the cock face. I almost concluded that the figure was just a product of my own alcoholic imagination when another bolt of lightening lit up the earth ,clearing all doubts and establishing a pungent memory of my first sight of the clock tower man…………….

A momentum of fear established in my initially intrepid mind. My body refused to react. A peculiar sensation caught hold of me – a curious instinct to find out who he was and if he existed! The figure was surely not a reflection due to the scarcity of any high structures around the area. There was only one possibility – the clock screen was partly transparent and the phantom had to be inside! I got up to my feet and found myself walking briskly towards the clock tower, my black leather shoes producing a spray of muddy water on every step. I grabbed the conjoint ladder an initiated upward progress with a degree of adroitness. Every rung became hell for my fatigued somatic sinews and it seemed bloody hours before I finally reached the top. A rusted door handle belonging to an even more rusted door awaited me. I took a deep breath and successfully mustered enough courage to make me grip the handle, revolve it and push the door open. What I saw inside ….i can never forget….

The wreck of a door creaked open. In the radial proximity of ten metres a nocturnal bird took off leaving her children behind. It was dark. All I could see was blackness…somehow I perceived the existence of another soul nearby. out of nowhere a single flash of lightening lit up the chamber through the flimsy clock face for a brief moment….a moment brief enough for me to see his face………

Here sat an old man- a geron .his white beard hung a few inches below his prominent shapely chin. His eyes I couldn’t see but somehow I knew they were gray- all mystic people have gray eyes. His apparel I couldn’t notice either, but somehow due to the enigmatic aura he had cast around himself I perceived it to be a cloak or robe of some sort.

He sat completely still; an equable expression resting on his face, a shiver ran down my spine, reaching out to my trembling fingers. I closed my eyes……………when another pair of eyes suddenly lit up and the clock tower man actually spoke-“you’re finally here!”
Posted by syed at 11:51 AM 1 comments
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THE CLOCK TOWERMAN