Drama on Second Street

As if out of a Bollywood spectacular itself, high drama unfolded outside our window for two full days. As dusk took hold, a small ring of red plastic chairs held quiet men tending a road-side fire out front of the white house's entryway. Occasional gesticulations and proclamations came from this ring throughout the night and they tended the fire still as we went to yoga in the pre-dawn haze. On our return there were more people gathered, and throughout the day more and more arrived. Oh, a funeral, we thought. Usually there is celebration, lamentation, and the regular amount of wailing and praising that accompanies the body as it is paraded around the neighborhood. But here there was only more and more people gathering, with somber moods engulfing the neighborhood. Then there were screams and shrieks, then yelling. This was no usual rite! From the safety of my window I saw a young man held back by 4 others as he screamed back at a group still at the door. With his red shirt ripped and fresh scratches on his face, he was put in a car and driven off. Emotions tense, arguments arose, voices were raised, more visitors came- now by the truckloads, and after an hour the man was back and fighting again, only to be escorted away again. Like a drunk frat plebe, he managed to get back in the 'party' three more times, ultimately running along the upper corridor of the house smashing windows. The cops were called, but they only stood around occasionally directing traffic. Through our landlady we found out that this was indeed a death situation. A young man has died and his family is claiming the property at the expense of his wife/widow and child, who are vehemently contesting this transaction as they will be out on the street. As feelings were running high the new widow needed some time to think and skipped town, leaving everyone waiting for her signature on the paperwork. Only one person knew where she went, but the elder constantly feigns lucidity and wasn't talking. More witnesses arrived to pay there respects and put their two cents in. For a day and a half this went on, and a dead body in the living room added to this urgency. Apparently pre-nuptual agreements are rare, but leaving a body lying around to help people resolve their issues quickly is common. By the second night the paddy wagon showed up with more brown-uniformed police, the crowd dispersed, and a relative silence fell on Gokulam once again.

--- aeryk ---