A sweet reading experience at hilltop - Old man and the sea

 A Paithalmala trip was arranged amid scorching summer

Trees those used to play the role of middlemen in the dealing of heat between sun and earth decorated the interiors of concrete buildings. The sun's trade was therefore directly with the earth, especially in the valleys. It made the valleys and so called ‘urban cities’ reflectors of anger of sun. In contrast, wind and trees at mountaintops bought majority of heat directly from the Sun. Instead, the earth was given a blanket of tender soothing climate.

For us this trip was an escape from frying pan to wintry evening. After passing through the heat and dust of Kannur and Thaliparamba, we slowly drove through the temperate climate of Kudiyan mala to the drizzling Paithal mala.

Despite the tiring driving, the coolness and greenery of Paithal Hill made everyone feel refreshed.

After check-in at Paithal Hill Resort, everyone went for a walk. I sat on a chair to have a view from the balcony of the villa. Sun was about fall behind the hills. Reddish sky was slowly beginning to blend in the darkness of distant mountain.

Since there was nothing else to do, I took out Ernest Hemingway's ‘Old Man and the Sea’, from my bag and started reading. By the time cold wind from top of the mountain swirled my body and went back, old man Santiago who never gets tired of failures, Manolin - only person in the town who does not lose hope in the old man, the sea that holds never ending mystery like its waves and marlin fish that doesn't give up to old man’s determination, clutched my mind tightly

After 84 days without catching any fish, he returns to the sea with the determination of a spider re-weaving a web that has been broken many times, despite being ridiculed by the locals and his own glorious youth. 

Dusk faded and darkness spread over the mountains. After the walk, my friends came back, so I had to stop reading. By that time, Santiago had already sailed into the deep sea, into the darkness of uncertainty. 

When I came back to the balcony of the villa after dinner with friends, moon was shining on the mountains. Again I went back to Santiago's world. Santiago pretended he was not alone in the deep sea, talking to himself, the seabirds, and the little fish. He survived day and night by catching small fish using his net, eating some raw and salting the rest. I’m not going to write about Santiago’s fight with Merlin fish as it's the heart of the story and I want you all to read the book. By the time I folded the book and went to bed, he had tied the big fish to the side of the boat, fighting against the waves and his own weakness.  

When I woke up the next day and looked out, I was mesmerised by the beautiful magic arranged by nature. ‘Paithal’ is the baby in the mountain group in the locality. The one who looks up to the sky among the surrounding giant mountains.

When I observed the big brother mountains from the villa situated on top of Paithal, I could see artwork made by sun on the big mountains. Contrasting combination of rays and shadow made mountains beautiful. It was as if water and fire coexisting in an ocean where there’s an unlimited flow of petroleum. 

The mountains at the eastern end had more shadows than the other mountains. Dark trees in the shadow looked at the trees shining in the sun with an envious grin.

Friends were not up yet. I took the book again. 

The killer sharks come one after the other in front of Santiago, who is fighting to reach ashore with his canoe like a conqueror. When Santiago tries his best to reach the shore and only the skeleton of the fish he caught is left, we, the readers are the once who get exhausted.

As Hemingway tells us through Santiago, “A man can be broken but not defeated,” our weakness gives way to hope and fighting spirit.

Upon reaching the shore, Santiago falls asleep, to a dark hole, a state where there’s no dream or awareness. 

By the time he wakes up, word spreads in town that Santiago has landed the big fish after furious fights with the mysterious sea, cruel sharks and his own helplessness. Santiago symbolises struggle and resurrection. The novel ends as Santiago goes back to sleep, telling Manolin that they will go fishing together the next day.

When I finished reading the book and looked outside, the sun had reached a little higher. I don't know if it was the determination of Santiago or the beauty of the mountains shining in the sun, there was a new hope rising inside me.

Even after we bid goodbye to the mountains, returned to the heat of the town, my mind was wandering between  Santiago struggling in the sea and the beautiful Paithal Mala standing humbly surrounded by bigger mountains.

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Ernest Hemingway is an American writer who earned fans all over the world with his unique writing style. He was a propagandist of writing without the colour of embellishments or the trappings of epithets. He believed that the use of authorship was best to keep the readers engaged in his story. In order to keep the adjectives away, he used strong and powerful nouns and verbs in his novel. 

 Hemingway interacted with the readers through metaphors. This line written in the novel “A Farewell to Arms” is an example of that. He likened the First World War to 'not being able to do anything when your house is on fire'. How better to express the desperation of someone who is helplessly watching the devastation during war.

Hemingway created his world through short sentences. He firmly believed that one powerful word is better than a hundred words of dust and fringes.

Hemingway's style is a model for aspiring writers. Let me conclude reminding you that this is a humble effort to share my experience with ‘The old man and the sea’ that bears no resemblance to his writing.