All these days getting published meant publishing a post on my blog or on the school blog or a little article being published in the school magazine. Today, it has taken an entirely new meaning. One of my stories is actually getting published in a book by Notion Press. More importantly it is one of the 21 stories selected from numerous entries across the country.
This is a big achievement for me! I am super happy and excited. I’ll pause as I soak in the blessings and good wishes and thank you all for supporting me and my writing with your likes and encouraging comments on my blog posts.
Check the details here: https://notionpress.com/stories/anthology_title/pause-v2
As for the story that got me this recognition! It is ‘The Box’. You can read it at https://soansrezones.home.blog/2019/04/03/the-box/
Soans Rezones 
Reblogged this on Havoc and Consequence and commented:
‘the Box’
Little Myra was the first one to see it in the morning. It lay there in its entire splendor, a beautiful silver box with a big blue bow on top. She screamed in delight. It was the most beautiful box that she had ever seen. Her howls brought in a rush of footsteps towards the room. Soon there was small motley of people in the room. The elders were amused & the young ones were awestruck. They all had the same questions in mind, how, when & from where had the box come? No one dared to touch the box. It was then that grandpa Matthew, the head of the family took charge. With slow measured steps he proceeded towards the table, reached the box and touched its bow. The bow could not be untied rather it acted as a handle to open the lid. Everyone held their breath in anticipation. Grandpa Matthew opened the box. A paper lay inside the box with just two words printed on it “Confession Box”.
The elders lost interest and soon went away to busy themselves with their businesses. Only the children remained with their grandpa Matthew. They adored him for he was the only adult in the house who had a patient ear for all their fancies and fears. He was that old Santa without the white beard who was always there to fulfill their wishes which the other elders had no time to do. The children were keen to know what the words meant and why the elders had lost interest all of a sudden. Once they understood what it was they too lost their interest & went away. The box lay there abandoned, as if it had lost its existence.
Days passed by and no one noticed the box. It just lay there in its lost glory unwanted, uncared for. It was Toby, the eldest of the lot whose conscience had been pricking at him. He suffered terrible stomach ache because he ate the whole tin of cookies without sharing a single one with anyone. He had to maintain silence since his act had gone unnoticed and unpunished. When he couldn’t take it anymore he simply wrote about his deed and put it in the box that had appeared mysteriously. To his surprise he found the same tin of cookies near the box, the next day, with a paper inside it which read, “Share It”.
A few days later Felix wrote about how he stole a few marbles, was banned by his friends and couldn’t bear the loneliness. He got a few marbles in the box and a paper which read, “Return & Apologize”. When little Myra wrote sorry for pulling their pet dog’s tail, the box rewarded her with her favourite chocolate and told her, “Don’t Repeat”. Soon the box became the focal point of Grandpa Matthew’s grandchildren. Every few days one of them would write about something and the box would diligently reward and instruct them. The box had become a guide for the children which was making them morally responsible.
The elders of the family treated the box with disdain. But when each child had a story to tell they too became curious. Uncle Raymond, the eldest son of Grandpa Matthew had been incurring some losses in his business. He too tried the box and as usual the box didn’t let him down. It contained a little money and the suggestion, “Own Up, Learn & Move Ahead”. Soon the box was advising the women of the house about love, unity, domesticity etc. The men of the house were relearning about life and the children about values. Every time someone put something in the box, it would help them, reward them and always suggest something in a short printed message. The box had become more of a counselor to all. Everyone was happy and nobody ever thought of trying to find how the box acted on its own.
Tragedy struck the Matthew household all of a sudden. Grandpa Matthew slipped near the table which had the box on it. He had a nasty fall and everybody was worried about him. Days turned to weeks but he could not recover an finally succumbed to his injuries. The box again went into oblivion. It was about a month since Grandpa Matthew’s death. The family was crawling back to normalcy. One day the family was sitting together for dinner when Little Myra asked why the box had become silent. She went on to explain how she put letters in the box and didn’t get any reply since the day Grandpa had taken that fall. The elders looked at each other, something had clicked. Uncle Raymond told Myra that the box would start doing so soon; after all he was the new head of the family!
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