When I woke up 15 Years younger

Blogchatter under their Bloghop series  gave the  prompt " I woke up 15 years younger" to write on, for the week January 24- 30th 2023. As I pondered over the topic and travelled back 15 years, I found amnesia was also setting in  and when I woke up, my mind was a total blank. I do not remember anything. It is scary. There is this lady who says she is my wife and that the  two  persons in the house, in their late teens, are my sons. 

It is like I am a baby myself. My sweet wife is teaching me to make sense of things. She says I have to go to office. I am not going though, atleast not until I can get a hang of myself,  know the home and its environs first. My wife is so loving. She says we have had arguements in the past and few big fights as well! I don't remember. How can anyone fight with such a nice person? My sons invite me to participate in their activities and interests. I don't mind as I have no preferences myself. Did I have likes and dislikes? Was I so busy that I had no time to spend with family? My younger son's friends were surprised when I joked and laughed with them. " Earlier, your dad hardly paid any attention to us, just a nod and he would be in and out of the house" they tell him. 

Today, I am going to the office on my wife's loving insistence. She is taking me and assured me that she would take me personally to my boss and work station. She would explain to everyone that I had a fall at home and therefore had mild memory issues. I have met many people in the office. They are so kind and ever willing to help. Some are surprised at my frequent smiles and  peals of laughter now and then. 

At the canteen I met Ramesh. He gave me a rebuking and exasperated glance. "How can you be so friendly with Madhav after all he has done to ruin your career?!" he fumed. I did not remember anything. I liked Ramesh and Madhav the same. In the morning Madhav was a trifle tentative when he entered my chamber but had relaxed when I warmly shook hands with him. He seemed to me a good fellow. Perhaps without the baggage of the past, we can be good friends and effective colleagues, complementing each other. In any case,  the "New me", who has been coming to office for a week now, is unable to understand what they refer to as the 'rat race'. I seem to have no such ambition to climb ladders - just the desire to be happy in whatever I do and have happy people around me as colleagues. 

These days my prayer is to be able to retain a part of my blankness of mind, that it not get corrupted as I experience  more in the 'new' life . Oh Lord let me not develop strong likes and dislikes. Let me just like and appreciate whomsoever I come into contact with. After all,  each of them have their pluses, the bright side and may I have the wisdom to dwell on those rather than search for the weaknesses, 

NB: This post is in response to Blogchatter's #bloghop prompt: www.theblogchatter.com