The dishes would be washed when her maid landed up in the afternoon.
"Do uncle Igor and Dada ji like to drink coffee or tea after lunch?" she inquired from her grandmothers.
"I think we will all have coffee. We are yet to get acclimatized, it will be better to drink hot coffee for a few days till our system adjusts." Mira responded.
Tania asked her grandmothers to move to the library, and she would be bringing coffee for everyone.
She made the coffee and kept the coffee mugs on the tray along with sugar and then headed for the library.
As she entered the Library, she saw that the seating arrangements had changed. Both her grandmothers were sitting next to each other as if to exchange notes.
Her grandfather and her uncle were examining the different types of stones kept as decoration pieces on her father's bookshelf. The stone collection had been kept in such a way as to differentiate the medical books from other books.
She served them coffee and then went to stand with her grandfather.
"What are you examining?" she asked politely.
"Your father's stone collection," her grandfather replied.
"He had this stone collection hobby from his childhood. As he went on to college and then to study medicine in Russia, his stones were left behind kept in boxes at home. All boxes are properly labelled. He used to trade some of these stones with others especially when he found that some people were ready to exchange their stones with his stones."
"Yes, it seems he continued his hobby here and built his collection from scratch. He used to check all his stones practically once a week."Tania replied. They are all pieces of rugged stones that have a streak of some metal or precious/semi-precious stone in them. The clear ones are small polished pieces, like the malachite, which is a green stone with lines on it."
"Dad had segregated the rock pieces with streaks in them from the ones from which you could extract the colored portion only."
The same is the case with Amethyst, the purple colored stone. Once the purple color gets removed, it shines.
Dad had kept separate boxes for the rock pieces from the cut pieces. The real big pieces he would use as paperweights.
Soon all finished their coffee. The grandmothers were practically falling asleep. It seemed that they were tired from the flight and needed proper rest.
Keeping their health in mind, she suggested that they re-assemble in the evening around 5 p.m. for tea and snacks. At present, they should proceed to their rooms for a siesta.
The grandmothers were practically falling asleep due to the sumptuous lunch. It seems that they were tired from the flight and needed proper sleep. Tania had suggested that they take a siesta and re-assemble in the evening around 5 p.m. for tea and snacks.
The relatives proceeded to their rooms for a siesta. Tania picked up the coffee cups and plates and after dumping them in the kitchen sink, she also proceeded upstairs to rest. It had been a long day indeed for her today.
She decided to follow the suggestion that she had given to her relatives. She set the alarm clock for 5 p.m. and lay down on the bed covering herself with a light quilt and promptly fell asleep. After all, she was tired too.
Soon she went into deep sleep and drifted through waves and waves of time. She could not figure out what was going on. In her dream she saw a huge temple. She saw someone standing in front of the main entrance. Her clothes were completely different. They seemed to be of some previous century. The girl was wearing a white sari with a golden border and numerous motifs all over the length of the sari. Her head was adorned with a diamond studded golden tiara. She was wearing numerous gold bracelets studded with precious metals. Around her neck there was an equally beautiful gold necklace with embedded diamonds and sapphires. She was standing at the center and there were other girls besides her carrying big plates made of gold and silver containing fruits and sweets as offerings to the temple deity.
Tania could hear this girl talking to herself. "Strange, when have I been able to hear people in my dreams?"
The girl was saying something that sounded like, "I hate him, I hate him, I hate him! I have no intention to marry that prince. I don't like him."
"What an outburst! Who is she and who does she hate?" I wish that she turns around so that I
can see her face at least," thought Tania.
The look on her face changed and it seemed as if she had received Tania's thoughts telepathically. The girl turned and gave Tania a direct look. Tania could not understand. This princess was in her image. As if Tania was looking into the mirror.
"How come, how is this possible?" Tania thought.
Just then the girl spoke. "I am you from a past life. You have forgotten yourself."
"My name is Sanya and I need to remind you what happened in your past life, to unravel the history of this life I am living."
"My Uncle wants to take over the throne. My father, the present King has just died. I do not have a brother and my mother died many years ago, so I am now to occupy it."
"My Uncle wants me to marry a prince of the neighboring state who is as bad as he is." I don't want to marry that good for nothing spineless chap who is on my uncle's payroll. I want to marry someone else."
"But why are you telling me all this?" said Tania.
"How am I connected to what all you are telling me?"
"You may look like me. But that does not mean that you are me."
How do I explain things to you? You are dreaming at the moment and I can come to you only when you are in a dream like state." was the response of Sanya.
"Let me answer your questions to the best of my ability. Maybe you will not want to listen," said Sanya.
First question- Why am I telling you all this?
"The reason being, you will be facing a similar problem shortly. I have just come to warn you."
Second question- How are we connected and why am I telling you all this?
"You and I are not look alike. We are the same persons but belonging to different time periods."
Third question- You may look like me but that does not mean that you are me?
You and I are not alike. However, we are the same persons belonging to different periods of time. I am your past life."
"You must have heard of the saying, 'History repeats itself'. Well, I have come to remind you that your life is going to go in the same direction of history repeating itself."
.
Tania was taken aback. This person seemed to have all the answers but Tania was confused.
"OK, tell me the story about the incident you faced or are you going to play it before me?"
"You are such a dumb head ! A PhD in Ancient Indian History and still you cannot understand what I am trying to say?"
"Look here, there is no need to call me names. I am a bit confused. I had fallen asleep and then I dreamt you, a duplicate of myself, telling me how to live my life?"