Story from the closet

Me and the two Anil's, we used to go cycling after the school gets over. It was like we were the great explorers and no one will know about places if we do not find them. Mostly our trip used to start from the shady end of the colony. It was the only place where there were three story buildings while all across there were only two stories and for the highest rung single story. This was the place where your mom would not like you to go. Well our journey used to start from there. We used to take the narrow mud road "pugdundi" to the place called Bapugram for whatever reasons. And from there our fairy tale trip used to start. We used to cross a school which was not more than one room. But we never used to wonder how they could be teaching in this one room school because all that mattered to us at that time was the small playground in front of the school and the well in the ground that was very deep. From there we used to follow the kaccha road till it used to turn into pebble road. We used to stand on the paddles not sitting on the seat of the bicycle in order to balance it as the pebbles used to slip over one another. It was a steep down slope filled with pebbles and at times you had to move towards the edges away from the pebbles or else the speed will increase and brakes wont work. With all that maneuvering of the cycle we used to finally reach step farms at the side of the small stream. This stream was just few meters wide and a few meters deep with less than a feet deep water in it. With the sound of the water steam in the background we used to cross the step farms on the narrow pugdundi between two farms. On one side farm will be at level and on other it will be down .. well thats what makes them step farms. Soon the pugdundi takes you to the place where a tree trunk was put to cross the stream. Now this was even more tricky. The tree trunk was not flat and you have to carry the bicycle on your shoulders while balancing on the trunk.. or else you are down in the water. While crossing the stream, the sound of water used to grow louder and louder as if a whole lot of water is coming towards you but you can not see it. As we used to get off the trunk taking a sigh of relief that we made it; there was another even narrow fast flowing stream. Thankfully they had kept flat planks on it so that you can cross it and can not see the water wheel rotating. The loud sound of water was coming from the water mill that was used as a flour mill I guess. Once you cross the water mill another pugdundi will take you directly into the wide stream flowing gently with just a feet deep water. As you move towards the source of the water it used to get deeper and deeper. And finally you see the water coming out from the roots of a large tree. Some underground water stream decided to emerge at a place where a tree has taken its roots. So watching the water flowing out from the roots of this tree... you rarely see water so clean and transparent that you can see each stone lying at the bottom of it. In the water small fishes used to move scared from all the kids playing in it or rather may be they got used to of all the kids coming over daily and just to amuse them used to run helter skelter. We used to go to the edge ride our bicycle with full speed in to the stream till it used to get deeper and deeper and you are not able to paddle further. At this point of time we used to jump into the stream scaring all the small fishes. The fairy tale used to go on for few hours when it used to get late and we had to rush back to home before anyone can figure out where we went.