The Ghost In The Mist

15-6-13 , 5 am.Time to go to the mountains.Bruce Lee(my car, a seasoned campaigner), and I soon reached the foothills of Ponmudi (a beautiful ecologically fragile mountain near Trivandrum).
The weather was deceptively fine.We stopped at our favourite shed for snacks before venturing to negotiate the hairpin bends ..

Mountain weather can be tricky.In a jiffy,the sky darkened,the forest became dark and gloomy,and down came the drizzle.I was glad.We were going to have yet another day of fun for sure.By the time we reached Merchiston,the skies opened up yet again and the rain came down with high winds.We were soon in to the mist which was thicker than ever and almost completely obliterated the road.

So thick was it that even the road appeared hypnotizingly unreal.The trees and bushes turned in to eerie apparitions, harbingers of doom,fixing us with a malevolent stare.It was easy to imagine we were in a ghostly world,everything looked unreal.But Bruce lee held his nerve and took me safely to the very top.And there the Mist became impenetrable,strengthening it's vice-like grip with frequent showers ,making the road slippery,it's glistening surface,it's unreal sheen, merging into the general haze.

And then I saw it,a ghost,right in the middle of the road!

walking towards me or away from me I couldn't tell.Nor could I say if it was man or woman.On either side of the by now imaginary road,spectral figures watched me with hungry eyes.

And then as if by magic,the rain stopped,the mist vanished and Ponmudi,the dancing maiden,appeared before me in all her resplendent hues!!

I laughed at myself ,how she had fooled me,scared me out of my wits like a mischievous damsel!,concealing all her ethereal charm behind a fearsome countenance!!
And then the vision vanished ,and the mischievous maiden was up to her tricks yet again. Dense mist enshrouded everything and as I walked through it's thick veil,I received a real drenching.

                                          But I was really enchanted by the sheer beauty of nature and I had no intention of going away until I had enjoyed the heavenly bliss one gets only in such places..  
                                         

  

 

Eventually the sad moment arrived.It was time to return. Along the way as the mist thinned,I saw a board.

 

This board was a death warrant. It portends the end ,or rather, the beginning of the end.Where there is a heroine,there is bound to be a villain,to rape and murder her,after pouring acid on her face.

Ponmudi ,Oh! lovely heroine of my dreams,thy end is near.Thy beauty has proved thy undoing.As the sunny day brings forth the adder,so your incomparable beauty and charm has attracted evil eyes.
For Ponmudi,the death bells are ringing.This board heralds the entry of the villain.Will there be a hero to fight for her?To tear this board down and raze to the ground the evil forces behind it?
Only time will tell.

Note: This article has been written to highlight destruction of valuable eco-systems in the name of development from a layman's point of view.