Arjun scrolled through his phone on a Sunday night, looking for nothing in particular — just killing time the way most people do: switching between apps, messages, and memories.
Somewhere between photos and old chats, he saw it — “Dad.”
Last call: 10 months ago.
Last message: “Call me when you’re free.”
He stared at it for a while, his chest tightening slightly.
He remembered that day. He was busy finishing a work project, thinking, “I’ll call him tomorrow.”
But tomorrow never came. His father had passed away a week later — quietly, in his sleep.
Arjun had never deleted that message. It wasn’t just a reminder of his dad — it was a mirror of everything he had postponed: phone calls, apologies, dreams, even love.
Life didn’t stop for him, of course.
He went to work, met deadlines, scrolled through social media, laughed at memes, and posted pictures with half smiles.
But sometimes, when the room went silent, guilt came in like a shadow — soft but heavy.
He would think of his dad waiting for that call.
He would think of all the “laters” that never happened.
One evening, his colleague Riya noticed he looked distant.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Just… life stuff.”
She nodded knowingly. “You know,” she said, “people always say time heals everything. But it doesn’t. Time just teaches you how to carry things differently.”
That sentence hit him hard.
That night, Arjun opened his contacts and began calling people — not to talk long, just to check in.
Old school friends. His mother. His cousin. Even an ex-colleague he hadn’t spoken to in years.
Some answered with surprise, some with warmth.
Some didn’t pick up — but he left a voice message anyway:
“Hey, just wanted to say hi. Hope you’re okay.”
Every call made him lighter, like he was returning borrowed time.
He started visiting his mother every weekend instead of once a month.
He began taking walks without earphones.
He learned to listen again — to others, and to himself.
And for the first time in years, life didn’t feel like it was slipping away unnoticed.
Months later, Arjun sat at his dad’s old desk, clearing out papers. In a drawer, he found a small note — his father’s handwriting, fading but clear:
“Don’t let work steal your time from people who love you.
They don’t need your success — they just need you.”
Arjun smiled through tears.
He finally called the one number he couldn’t before — his own voicemail.
He left a message:
“Hi, Dad. I’m calling now. Sorry I took so long.”
He sat there for a long time, phone pressed against his ear, listening to the silence — but for once, it felt peaceful.
Most people don’t lose others because they stop loving —
They lose them because they keep waiting for a better time to show it.
There’s no better time than now — to call, to forgive, to show up.
Because one day, that “missed call” might be the last chance you didn’t take.
Time doesn’t heal everything. It just teaches you how to carry what you lost!!
K
“जीवनं न संघर्षेण क्लान्तं भवेत्, अपितु प्रयत्नेन प्रज्वलितं भवेत्!!” – K
He who understands his own nature conquers life itself!!
K
