From My Memory Diary, Page 2

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   I really wanted to make her happier.  I decided to make a call to my husband who was in his office.  I told him to bring the toy of a tiger while coming back.  When he came in the evening, he had three toys, one of a puppy, a cat and of course the third one was that of a tiger.  He couldn’t get the specialty of ‘tiger toy’ and bought some toys, fortunately there was one 'tiger toy’, as I wished.  That unexpected gifts made her very happy and took the ‘tiger toy’ in her hands (not cared for the others at all) and announced ‘this is mine’, indicating very strictly to her elder sister, who was five then not to make any claim for it!  That was a really very good toy, had the ‘looks of a real tiger’.  For two days, she was always carrying the toy in her hands, even while sleeping, she was holding it!  On Monday morning, she wanted to take that with her to the play school, but I made her finally agree to leave her ‘tiger’ at home’.  While leaving for school, she put her on a table in the drawing room, covered it with a towel and said in a very soft voice, ‘sleep, till I come’!!! 

  Once upon a time....

  "Mamma, please start, 'Once upon a time....", my three year daughter was forcing me to start the bed time story.

  "Mamma, this is the third day that you are not telling me the story on your own...Why you are sleeping all the time now....you are not feeding me also these days...."  I tried my best to keep my eyes open and turn to her who was in the bed, near to me with sleep in her eyes, but eagerly hoping for a new bedtime story ...I was down with severe back pain, in complete bed rest for the last few days.

  "Once upon a time, there was a small girl...."I tried to narrate a story for her.

  "Ohm..", I knew that, I was not able to concentrate on the story.  I lovingly kissed on her forehead.  She was holding my hand tightly.

  "Mamma, by tomorrow, you will be alright....? "

  ."yes, baby, you pray and sleep",

  "Ha, yes, I will tell my angel to make the request to God for that." She said with cute shining eyes.

  Somehow, I said something about that 'little girl’ in the story, and soon my little girl was fast asleep. 

  Mystery gift

   “Hope, we will have something special for dinner today.” Shreya typed the message and entered the mobile number of her father and pressed the option ‘send’. ‘Message sending to….’ flashed on the screen and soon the ‘sent message’ also.   But ‘why his name was not showing?’ this thought struck her in the next moment and she realized her mistake. 

  Soon came a call from the same number, Sherya doubted for a moment whether or not to pick up the call.  Lastly she took the call and started saying “Sorry,…”

   Hearing the sweet voice of a baby girl on the other hand, he laughed aloud and asked…. ”OK, what you want for today’s dinner?”

   Shreya replied quickly, “Chicken”.

   He again laughed aloud and said ‘bye bye’ to Shreya.

   The door bell rang….Priya looked down from the balcony….the delivery man from KFC was there at the door step.  She opened the door….and said clearly that they have not made any order.   Little Shreya, peeped behind her mother.  She couldn’t belive her eyes.

   “Madam….985644367 is  your number? The delivery boy asked.

   “Yes, but I didn’t order.” She said confidently.  Soon she picked up the mobile from the dining table and checked the dialed calls. 

   “Mamma, it is for me….Uncle has sent…”Shreya soon took the packet from his hand and rushed in side in full excitement.  “But which uncle, my child?”  Priya was totally confused. 

   The man started his scooter, Priya shouted “anyway, take the payment”. “Payment is done, madam”, he said while driving off.

   “Yeh, Sherya, tell me what is this happening?” Priya ran after her six year old daughter to find out the secret of the mysterious ‘home delivery’.

  A difficult question

   “Why only I write with my left hand Ma? All others in the class use their right hand to write.  Why not me?” she noticed this difference only during her UKG days. 

   “Your left hand can write beautifully for you”.  I said, trying not to cause her any inferiority complex due to this natural tendency. 

   “Yes, whenever, I try to write using my right hand, everything goes wrong”.  She admitted.

   “Don’t worry, Writing with left hand is fine.  Some people do so.” I tried to encourage her.

   “But why Ma?” She was not yet satisfied. 

   I thought for a while.  “God has given more power to your left hand”, I said hoping she will agree.

   “Oh, I see”.  She paused for a moment.  “But why only me in my class?”

   “Oh..that may be because….”I was stammering.  “May be you might have told God, that I love my left hand more…”.

   “Is it so? Did God ask me? But, I don’t remember….”.  Though she appeared perplexed for a moment soon she appeared satisfied with my answer and ran away.

  Experiments

  “Ma, what will happen if you insert paper into your nostril? Will you die?” he asked in a low voice.

   “It is very dangerous…Yeh, why you asked so?”  I turned back abruptly; I was certain that he might have done some mischief.

   “Did you….?”.  He smiled mischievously.    

   “Oh…my God!”  I looked into his nose, it was full with paper!

   “Now, what to do, he may get breathing trouble.” I was worried.  I tried to pull out the papers, no , I couldn’t.  I asked him to do so, he said, “before coming to you, I had tried a lot, but it didn’t come out.”  He said without looking at me. 

   I was sure that he knows, that he has landed in some problem, I tried not to make him get panic.

   “But, Seema aunty, didn’t die when she put coffee beads into her nostrils in her childhood.”  He was trying to console himself, by reminding me about an incident happened when my sister was small.  I had narrated that incident to him as a story.  I couldn’t even smile.

  I asked him to sneeze, hoping that the paper will come out.  But, he couldn’t do so.

   I thought of any other way to help him…

   I made him lay in my lap, then with the help of a safety pin I took out the papers slowly.

   I was quite relieved, he hugged me tightly, I kissed on his forehead, reminding him not to be so naughty.

  He is missing....

   The shopping mall was much crowed.  We waited in the queue to enter ‘Big Bazar’. He was getting impatient to go inside.  The shop was also very crowded.  Finally we reached near the door.  The security person gave me a token and asked me to keep my belongings there.  I put my shopping bag there, and entered into the ‘Big bazar’.  Soon, I realized that, I have left the token also there by mistake.  I turned back and took it from there and put it into the side pocket of my hand bag.

   “No, he is not with me…”.  I knew to my shock.   My eyes were frantically looking for him.  I turned to the guard and asked about him.  “Madam, I saw him going inside.”  I rushed to the various corners in that floor, hoping to find him soon.  “No, he was not there, even near the kid’s corner.”  I became panic. 

   “Did he take the escalator and go upstairs? I was tensed.  “No, he won’t do that alone”, I cleared that thought soon.

   “Then, where he has gone?  Somebody kidnapped him….I was in tears when that thought crossed my mind. 

   By this time, the security person had passed on the message to his assistants and soon, two - three persons joined me looking for the child.  They announced his name again and again requesting him to come back to the entrance counter.  But, there was no trace of him….I was totally shattered….

   I started calling him loudly….but no reply. 

   I ran around the floor hysterically calling his name, all the shoppers were staring at me….darkness filled in my eyes….I was almost fainted.

   “Madam, is
this your child? I hurriedly reached there.  He stood hiding in a corner, behind a rack, he was frightened….he was trembling….I rushed to him…..embraced him tightly….thanked all Gods.

   He was sobbing.  I took him in my arms.

   We came out of the shop.  We returned home, on the way, we both were silent.  I could feel his unusually tight grip on my shoulder. 

   I opened the house.  I sat on the sofa… I was in fears….I tried to turn his face to me….He was also not back to normal, he hid his face in my Duppatta.  I caressed his forehead gently.   He broke into tears….I didn’t stop him, tears were rolling down my cheeks also.

   Finally, he raised his eyes to me.  “I mistook someone else as you and followed her….But when I realized that, I couldn’t find you….I was so frightened, ….I heard you calling me….but my voice didn’t come out….”.  He said.

   All the scenes in the mall were flashing in my mind also….both of us were still under fear. 

   “Ma, don’t tell this to Pa now…He is far away…then all the time he will be worried for us…whenever, we go out…”.  He raised his head to me ….hoping that I will agree to his idea. 

   It was still unbelievable to me…Lost & Found….I closed my eyes in gratitude to God….I kissed on his forehead again and again.

  A Monday morning

   It was a foggy winter morning.  I was walking fast carrying Annu, to the bus stop. I feared we were a little late.

  Sharma uncle was coming from his morning walk. He stopped us and told my daughter, “Going to school, that too on mother’s shoulder, no, no.....You