He wanders into the forest, enjoying nature. Suddenly, he hears the noise of an approaching train, behind him, with its shrill whistle. He is surprised, since there were no rail tracks inside the forest ! But then, there was indeed a train chugging along , and comes to a halt when it reaches him. He looks in astonishment. Now, the guard of the train jumps out and comes to him.

Sir, would you please take your seat in the train, reserved for your travel ?

Our man is surprised. He questions as to where the train was going. Guard replies that the train was on its way to HELL and it has come to pick up our man, with a seat reserved !

Our man replies that, considering the destination, he would not like to travel. The guard suggests a bargain. ' Ask anything and it will be given, But do not refuse to travel'. Our man is full of wisdom. He promptly asks the guard to give him a clock, which would be able to stop the time , at any part of his life, where he could continue life with the same pleasures of life reached at that moment, eternally. The guard smiles, and produces a clock from his pocket. ' Be careful with this clock, and when you press the button, it will stop and you will have to continue in the same status in life eternally' was his advice and after this, the train moves on.

Now, our man is very happy and plans for the perfect time in life to stop the time. He is young, educated and married. Still, there is time, he ponders, since he has not attained a wealthy position. A few years later, he becomes a rich man and when the thought of pressing the button in the clock, he could not make up his mind and wants to become richer.

Now, suddenly,one day, he suffers a huge loss in his business and becomes a poor man. "What is the idea to press the button now, when I am poor ", he thinks. " let me get back to the old status , atleast". After some time, he meets with an accident and has fractured his leg and even after treatment, he walks with a limp. The thought of pressing the button never occurs to him now. After a few more years, he suffers from Arthritis and ultimately, gets a heart attack.

Now, he goes inside the forest, as an old man, with no thought of the clock safely in his pocket. He is gasping for breath, since he could not walk a long distance also. Suddenly, he hears an engine noise, behind him, and the train comes and stops on its tracks.

The guard jumps out, comes to our man, and extends his hand, without uttering a word. Our man quietly hands over the clock and boards the train for his ultimate travel.

The story above, is from one of the 'weird stories' written by Mr.Robert Bloch. His story was very descriptive but I am writing this from my memory, in my words, without changing the subject matter.

Life is like that ! At the end of the day, it is happier to leave, than to linger on. Our only company is our good memories. Make the best use of life to acquire good memories by being useful.

Regards
Ramani