Perhaps only once in a lifetime for most of us, if we are lucky, we get to meet somebody who profoundly affects our lives, the way we think and the way we behave.

The following is an account of such an encounter. I have tried to keep it as close to the facts as I recall them. Because
sometimes real life and real people are larger than fiction.

I hope I have done it justice.

He was in a deep slumber when it hazily made its way
first through his subconscious and then his conscious
mind. He opened his eyes and remained very still.
There! He heard it again. A rasping sound… Like
some kind of a scratching noise. He wondered what it was.
Where it was coming from. Probably a damned rat, munching
onto something down in the basement. Maybe making its
merry way through a book, he thought with mild dismay. He
did not abhor rodents as much as most other people did. Of
course he did not exactly like them either. Nobody did. But he
could tolerate their existence. At least till tomorrow morning.
He made a mental note to do something about this problem
first thing. With that thought he was about to slide into deep
sleep once more.
But then he heard something again. A louder sound this
time. Now he snapped fully awake. This was different. More
rhythmic. He tried to locate its source. Much harder to do this
with the lights out…
It was coming from the door. The front door. Like a tap,
exaggerated by the darkness and the silence of the night. He
waited, again, for what seemed like minutes. Nothing.
“Just my imagination,” he concluded, relieved.