JOIN USThe pandemic had us isolated for two years from our family members who lived abroad. Then a tsunami hit us in the form of our children, their spouses and our grand children. More than them, their luggage consisting of two large suitcases per head, and innumerable other bags and backpacks with their precious laptops peeping out overwhelmed us.
For want of space in our middleclass home they lay scattered all over creating a maze that I had to figure out to navigate safely. Two bags came filled with children’s favourite toys, which were quickly abandoned for the dabbas, plates, cups and spoons freely available in my kitchen. Soon, they metamorphosed into musical instruments and an ear-splitting orchestra ensued!
The already fragile infrastructure of our home collapsed altogether. One day, as it dawned, taps went dry, hot geysers stayed cold, the grinder ground to a halt, and LPG emptied.
As if to add fuel to the fire, our cook, suddenly overcome by devotion, left on a pilgrimage to the lord of seven hills, Tirupathi.
Amidst this chaos, my son seated his four-year-old in front of me and instructed me to tell the stories that I used to tell him when he was of this age. Which mother in the world is not flattered by this? I decided to tell not just the story but animate it. A part-filled glass jar, a few pebbles and a shape-cut black crow on a thin cardboard were soon ready. The story session began.
“Once upon a time on a hot afternoon a crow grew very thirsty and looked around for water. He flew and flew and got tired but no water.” My bilingual grandchild shouted: “Tanni beku” and ran to the kitchen to drink water.
The story resumed after the break: “The crow saw a jar with water at the bottom but his beak could not reach. The clever crow spotted some pebbles scattered all over.” And then it was time for a a toilet break. When he came back I dropped one pebble in to the jar and said loudly ‘ONE’; another pebble saying ‘TWO’ -- I wanted to teach him counting and make him understand that water and the pebble cannot occupy the same space at the same time. I uttered ‘THREE ‘ at which point the little fellow snatched all the pebbles from my fist, dropped them all together making the water raise to the rim in a jiffy, dropping the crow in to it, not only to drink but also to swim!