18. Summary of the lesson "The Woman on Platform 8"

The story "The Woman on Platform" is written by Ruskin Bond. The story was about a twelve-year-old schoolboy named Arun. It was his time to return to his school, so he sat on platform no.8 at Ambala station. His train would arrive probably at midnight. So, he continued to walk up and down the platform, feeding broken biscuits to stray dogs and searching books from the bookstall. Very soon, he lost interest in his surroundings. He felt lonely and bored. Suddenly, Arun heard a soft voice from behind. It was a woman in a white saree, looked pale and had kind dark eyes. She wore no jewels. After a brief introduction, she invited Arun for some refreshment at the station dining room. Arun felt shy to go along with her. But the woman's tenderness made him go along with her. The woman seemed to take pleasure in watching him eat. While eating, he opened up and told her about his school, friends, likes, and dislikes. The woman spoke very little and listened to him without hesitation. Arun's school friend Satish, along with his mother, appeared on the platform. Satish's mother thought of the woman standing near Arun as his mother. Before Arun uttered a word, the woman said that she was his mother. Satish's mother said that many suspicious characters are hanging around. She said that one should be very careful of strangers. Satish's mother looked sternly at Arun and advised him to be cautious in the absence of his mother and never talk to strangers. At that time, Arun said, 'I like strangers'. After some time, the train arrived on the platform, Satish and Arun get on to it. Satish's mother and the woman were standing on the platform talking to the boys. The train started, Satish said, Goodbye, mother. They waved to each other. Before the train left the station, Arun called the woman as 'mother'. He continued to look at the woman until she disappeared into the crowd.