The Sentence

He looked around the crowded room. The group of people were gathered around the round table, discussing his case animatedly. Looking at them , he was reminded of the jury members in the film , 'The Twelve Angry Men'. Except that, this was not a movie. This was his life that they were debating and arguing. He let his eyes wander around the room.

At the center of the crowded room, sat the man who would pronounce the sentence. The judge.In regal clothes, aware of his own importance, his face inscrutable, the judge surveyed the room and the people in it. He looked at the judge. he had no idea what words would come out of that mouth - but he realized one thing. Today whatever the judge spoke, would determine his destiny. He looked at that splendid form - and prayed.

The judge cleared his throat. A hush fell around the crowded room. "We have decided".You could have heard a pin drop. "This man", he tried to make himself as small as possible as every pair of eye was trained on him, "is sentenced to life imprisonment". Everyone looked delighted. "Without parole". He looked at the judge , hanging on every word.Could what he was hearing be the truth? The judge continued, "I sentence this man to holy matrimony, wedded to his beloved, whose happiness shall be his sole purpose in life".

Sachin surveyed the room. And smiled.

p.s : Iam getting engaged this Sunday ( May 13th ). Marriage in mid July.