Babies’ Day Out – Part 3 (Concluding Part)

What was I thinking? There was no way I could manage a truck load of kids who thought throwing the pink teddy at the people below from the balcony was a game. Ok, calm down, I thought. These things happen. You might want something but when you are faced with it, you are not prepared for its demands. Prepare yourself, I said to myself. It’s not too late.

By now I knew what each kid was like. I even had a small notebook where I made notes whenever I found a particular characteristic of a kid interesting. I should work on them, I thought. Yeah, but only if they turn away a minute from tearing up things, an inner voice said. ‘I can do this’, I said out loud hoping it thwarted the attempts made by the other voice.

‘Anju aunty!!!!!’ came the loud voice as if the building had come crashing down. I was almost prepared for anything but hearing ‘aunty’ a thousand times a day. That really put a lot of things in perspective. I was suddenly conscious of my still young 24 years.

I ran, as usual, at the direction of the sound. It came from the library. Oh my god! This is worse than the building crashing down, I thought when I saw the sight in front of me. Five-year-old Arun was lying on the floor, blood pouring from his right elbow. Five-year-old Reena stood next to him, tears streaming down her face.

‘What happened?’ I asked rushing in, going to Arun, lifting him onto my lap.

‘I wanted book’, she said pointing to a rack above. ‘He helped. Chair slipped.’

I was confused. The floor was carpeted; the tables and chairs were made of plastic. How could he have hurt himself? And then I saw it. The library was in a bedroom with an attached bathroom. After cleaning the bathroom, the maid had left the stick she used to poke the outlet pipe. Its edges were pretty sharp. It wasn’t too big, but stood standing up. When he fell, he had hit himself right at its edge. And somehow, Renna thought it was her fault.

‘Ok, Reena. Don’t cry. Heera, take her to the play room’, I told Heera, one of the eldest of the pack, being six.

I picked Arun up, huge tears and everything. I inspected the wound. Thankfully it wasn’t deep. I had a first aid kit in my desk drawer. I assured him that it wasn’t very bad and that his hand would be as good as new in no time and took him to the bathroom. I did all the necessary first aid and put him to sleep.

When I came out, I saw Reena still crying. ‘Hey. What happened?’ I asked going up to her.

‘She is always crying’, Heera said, as if it was Reena's full time job. ‘She didn’t eat also.’

‘Thank you, Heera’, I said smiling. ‘You have done a very good job.’ She left with a smile on her face, feeling very important.

‘Come here’, I said, placing Reena on my lap.

‘I make him fall’, she said between tears. The poor kid was so scared and worried my heart went out to her.

‘No’, I said firmly. ‘You did not make him fall. You are friends. He came to help you. That’s what friends do. Help and look out for each other. It’s not your mistake, understand?’ She looked a little confused, but nodded her head.

‘Look, you have seen Renu aunty?’ I asked. She nodded emphatically. Renu had been to the day care centre many times and was a hit with a few kids. Reena was one of them.

‘Renu aunty is my friend. She will never make me fall. She always helps me. You will never make Arun fall. You are friends right?’ I asked. She nodded with more understanding this time, a smile on her face. ‘Next time, call me if you want anything ok? I am always here.’ I put her to sleep too, after some more consolation and had a talk with the maid.

Arun’s mother was shocked when she came that evening and lashed out her anger. I calmly explained that it was nothing serious and apologized for letting it happen. And then, Arun did something I did not expect. ‘Ma’, he said. ‘It is not auntie’s fault. I climbed on the chair and fell.’

‘I have told you so many times even at home not to do all this. You never listen’, she scolded the child.

‘Please, don’t’, I said. ‘They are kids. They are a handful, but absolutely adorable.’

She finally calmed down and took him. When Reena’s mother arrived, the scared look on Reena's face told me she thought I was going to tell her mother about the incident. When I didn’t, she waved with a big smile on her face while leaving.

Somehow, the whole incident had brought a quiet over the place. The kids seemed more careful now. What was more, they seemed to trust me. They came to me if they needed anything and even listened to me when I said something!

Things had fallen into a comfortable routine. I started coming up with activities and games to keep them engaged and they loved it. It was like one big kids’ party everyday. I realized that it was easy to capture their attention and that they were willing to correct whatever was wrong, if told in the right manner.

The days flew by and I was more relaxed and happy in a obvious way. Renu was ecstatic to see me like this. Then one day, I had a surprise visitor. I had gotten the kids completely involved in a game of pictogram when mom entered.

‘Mom! Please come in’, I said. ‘Guys, you know who this is?’

‘Yes! Mom!’ they all chorused.

Mom looked around for a while and came and sat in the kitchen. I had given the kids something to do. The elder kids took turns monitoring if I was not around. It was Heera's turn.

‘It is nice, the place’, she finally said. She was sipping the tea I made for us. ‘And your tea has become better too.’

There. She just couldn’t resist it, could she?

‘I am glad you like it, mom’, I said. I meant it.

‘I heard about your place from a customer at the bank the other day. She always used to complain about finding someone to take care of her kid when she went at office. That day she looked very calm and happy. When I asked she told me she had found this great place called Blossoms to take care of her kid. She was going on and on about it for a long time. I just got a little curious. You are managing ok’, she said.

That was mom. I suppose ‘ok’ meant great and it was a huge compliment.

‘Thanks, mom’, I said smiling.

‘Ok. I’ll leave now’. And she left.

It was a few days before D Day when they came into my room.

‘So’, started my dad. ‘I hear things are going fine.’

I just stared at him. Fine?! Is he serious? Things were going great and he knew it. Quite a few more kids had joined in the past few weeks, mostly from reference that came from the great feedback the kids had given their mothers. There were almost forty now. I had even hired someone to help me with the kids. C’mon, it can’t get better than this in six months!

I opened my mouth to retort when my mom cut me off. ‘Chumma irungo’, she told my dad. She turned to me. ‘He is just joking. We know the place is doing very well. If not from anyone else, I hear about it from that customer almost every week. And now, it is four of them! Especially after they found out it was run by none other than my daughter.’ She couldn’t hide her pride if she tried.

‘Anju, we know we are talking about this before the deadline’, said dad. ‘But I think we have seen enough. Forget the success of the place. We have never seen you this happy. If it makes you so happy, it should count for something.’

My eyes went wide. I was suppressing a wild scream that was developing fast inside.

‘But’, he began. Alright. There was always a ‘but’.

‘We want to get some things clear’, he continued. ‘You can go ahead with the centre, of course. As for the second part of the deal, we are not promising anything. We will meet him and his family. There are certain things we are looking for. If they fall short…’

‘It won’t, dad. Trust me’, I said.

My mother was nudging him from behind.

‘Hmm… I suppose we can, now that you have proved us wrong about the centre.’ This was a huge thing for him – admitting, albeit a little grudgingly, that I was right. Well, there is a first time for everything.

‘Thanks dad! Thanks mom!’ I said running up to them and hugging them. That was a first too.

A little act of faith, someone had once told me…

It was the usual day at the centre. It was ‘freelance’ time. The kids were free to do what they wanted.

‘Anju aunty!!!’.

It was from the library. I ran, my heart pounding.

‘No crayons’, complained Anuj, holding up the empty box.

I heaved a huge sigh of relief.

Babies’ Day Out – Part 2

Everything happened so quickly. Within two weeks, my resignation process was completed and I was out breathing fresh air. Well, freedom comes with a price. The next thing I knew, I was neck deep in work, setting up the day care centre. My loan was approved. All of my close buds were helping me as much as they could, evenings on weekdays and almost whole weekends. It was obvious to my parents how much effort I was putting into this. They were just being silent spectators, waiting like the calm before the storm to pounce on an opportunity.

After much thought and deliberation, I decided to name the centre Blossoms. I stood there, in front of the spacious third floor apartment I had rented, absorbing the outcome of almost a month’s toil. It looked perfect. Dad had come once and taken a stern look around and left with a nod. Mom wouldn’t hear of it.

‘Kids are gonna love it’, I said.

‘Yeah, but it’s more important they love you, don’t you think?’ That was the ever practical Renu.

‘Yeah I know’, I turned to look at her. ‘I will do it, whatever it takes. I will show them that whether they like it or not, I am right every now and then.’ My eyes must have shown what I felt, for she backed a little.

‘Whoa! Easy, tiger. You’ll do it. I believe you’, she smiled. She always knew the right things to say to make me feel better. And she said that I did too. I was not too sure of that, but I would not know what I would do without her holding my ground.

‘Ok. The stage is set. Now, the strategy…’ I began.

‘Yes, yes. We’ve heard ‘The Strategy’ a thousand times. The brochures and pamphlets are ready. Nod and we’ll take care of the rest’, said Vinya, another of my guardian angels. It is things like these that assure me that I haven’t been all bad, because otherwise I would never have been blessed with such wonderful friends.

Phase two of ‘The Strategy’ was in full swing. The group had officially named it that. We had done all possible advertising that we could with the budget, and Nitin, our ‘marketing strategist’ had even gone around to a few places explaining it to people. ‘I can make cow buy milk. Don’t worry guys’, he had said.

Now all we had to do was, wait, for mothers who were willing to take to risk of sending their precious kids to a whole new place. We had announced the details of our opening date, and we were all there, waiting…

‘Do you think we should go for lunch?’ asked Renu. It was almost noon.

I looked at them. They had all waited patiently with me since morning. I couldn’t do this to them. ‘You go ahead guys’, I said. ‘I’m not too hungry.’

‘There you go again, showing your worry on your food. You come or we wait. C’mon, do you want to bear the sin of making so many poor, hungry souls wait?’ Did I say Renu knew what to say to make me feel better? Well, she also knows what to say to get me all chafed.

‘Ok, ok’, I said getting up. ‘I’ll come.’

‘Excuse me, is this the Blossoms day care centre?’ came the voice from the doorway.

My heart was beating so fast I thought it would jump out any second.

‘Yes it is. Please come in’, I said putting on my best smile.

She looked to be about thirty. I was guessing she probably had two kids, the elder one three or four. She came inside and just looked around for a few minutes. I didn’t disturb her. I let her take it all in. A mother was allowed to know what she was getting her child into. I may sound hypocritical here, but I never stopped my parents from knowing. If they wanted to, I always complied.

The apartment was spacious. It had a small shoe room that led into the biggest hall I had ever seen. That in itself served the majority of the purpose. I had converted it into a play area. There was a small slide on one corner, and lots of toys all over the place, neatly arranged. Building blocks, trucks, cars, soft toys for the quiet girls… you name it, it was there. I had carpeted the entire floor to avoid injuries caused by a hard fall. The walls were painted with those cute Disney paints with cartoon characters jumping and skating here and there.

She moved into the next room. Apart from the hall, the apartment had three big bedrooms, two with attached bathrooms, a separate bathroom and a kitchen, which was spacious enough if some of the kids decided to run around there. I had converted one bedroom into a library of sorts. It had copies of all the famous fairy tales, comics, colouring books, stationary… you get the drift, lining the walls. I had placed small tables and chairs around the room. The bedroom served its original purposes. Having beds was out of the question. Instead, I had purchased some small quilts and mattresses and a few pillows. The kids could use these to nap on the floor.

The lady inspected the bathrooms and kitchen and finally turned to me. ‘You run this place right?’ she asked.

‘Yes, ma’am. These are my friends. They are here to help me’, I said, the smile still in place, introducing everyone.

‘I’ve gone through the details in the brochure. I am fine with the fee. I like the place too. I have two kids. One four, the other two’, she said. Bingo! I should say I am already getting the hang of it. ‘I will be working from nine till five’, she continued. ‘Shall I start bringing the children from tomorrow? Is there any form that I should fill?’

That was a nice start. Slowly we had people coming in, if not on the very first day. I now had twenty kids to manage ranging from ages two to six. Everything was going fine, except I was having a difficult time taming the kids. My one-thing-at-a-time concept failed here. Every time I heard an ‘Anju aunty!’ it was almost always a scream than a mere call, which me run from one room to another. I had hired a maid to take of the kitchen chores and cleaning. Otherwise, it was pretty much just me and the kids.

‘What’s happening, Renu? This was supposed to be good. I was supposed to love doing it!’ I wailed over the phone one night. I had stopped four-year-old Anuj at the nick of time from falling into a huge bucket of water head-on that the maid had kept for cleaning that day. He had come there straight after helping three-year-old Roshan colour his face with sketch pens. I had only three months left until D Day. My parents still showed as little interest as possible, but always alert for news.

‘Relax’, she said. ‘You knew this was going to be tough. Remember your vow. Hang on. It’ll become better.’

My reply was just a grunt.

Continued...

Babies’ Day Out – Part 1

‘Mom’, I announced marching into the kitchen. ‘I’ve decided that I am going to quit my job.’

‘Yeah, sure’, she replied without turning.

‘I am serious. This might be my tenth declaration, but I am dead serious this time. I’ve even drafted a mail to my manager’, I replied, making sure the seriousness reflected in my voice.

Immediately, the ladle she was holding fell into the kadaai. She turned. ‘Yen naa! Inga Vango!’ I closed my ears at the ear splitting scream as she called my dad.

‘What happened? What did you do now?’ he asked looking at me. This is so unfair! Why should I be the reason every time something is wrong? I agree the probability is a little high, but it won’t hurt him to have some faith.

My mom spoke immediately. She never misses grabbing the opportunity to tell her version of things, however hard I try to beat her to it. ‘It seems she is going to quit her job. She has even mailed her manager!’ she said, panic evident in her voice.

‘What? No!’ I looked at my dad. ‘I’ve just drafted a mail. I haven’t sent it yet.’

‘Let me get this first. You want to quit? Why?’ he asked.

‘Because, like I have so clearly put in the last many months, I don’t like it. I am not content. I hence don’t feel I am doing justice both to me and the job. I’ve held on as long as I could. I think I’ve had enough’, I finished.

‘You could move to another company’, he suggested.

I looked at him exasperated. ‘Dad it’s not about the company. It’s the whole thing! This is how it’s going to be wherever I go’, I said.

‘Kadavule! It is so difficult to get a job these days. So many people are suffering. And she wants to give up the one good job she has. Please get some sense into her’, my mom went on.

‘So what are you planning to do?’ my dad asked.

Ok, here goes. If this was bad, be prepared for the worse, I told myself. ‘I am planning to start a day care centre’, I said, the confidence in my voice completely belying the tension inside me.

‘A what?!’ asked both of them in chorus, as if I had just told them that I was going to join a terrorist group, or worse, marry a Muslim boy. How is that worse, only they would understand.

‘A day…’

‘Yeah we heard you. How do you think that is even going to work out?’ my dad asked. Meanwhile, my mom was in the Puja room, praying fervently.

‘Fund to set up the centre is not a problem. I have saved quite a bit and I can even take a loan. I’ve been reading stuff from the net and I now have a fair idea of how to go about it. I have asked some of my friends for help too. Not for funding, to set it up and stuff’, I clarified immediately, reading his mind. My mom was next to me, applying viboothi on my forehead. ‘Mom, stop! I am perfectly sane. No ghost is haunting me, nor am I scared out of my wits and nor have I gone mad’, I said, trying to control the rising frustration.

This is how it started. I realized that putting your foot down is really not that easy. After days of argument and hours of lecture about handling job difficulties (which, according to them, was the real reason for me quitting. My parents thought I was chickening out), understanding the importance of holding onto a job in today’s difficult world and my shortcomings in many things, my dad came to my room one evening.

‘Where are you planning to set up your day care centre?’ he asked.

The question took me by surprise. This is more than enough, I thought, smiling to myself. I immediately explained the whole plan. I even showed him the notes I had taken during my research. He didn’t say it out loud, but I could make out that he was pretty impressed. My mom, always alert, suspected that something was up and came into my room. When she saw what was happening, she immediately flipped.

‘Enna panrel! Are you actually going to let her go ahead with it?’ she asked, both angry and panicked.

‘No’, my dad said. I was feeling a huge mixture of emotions from confusion to anger. ‘I am going to make a deal’, he continued. ‘Alright, Anju. I am tired of the arguments. I have a deal to make. If you agree, you can go ahead with this.’

I was a little curious. ‘Ok. Go ahead’, I said cautiously.

‘You can start your day care centre. But, I am going to give you six months. If it doesn’t turn out too well, you find a proper job like your present one and marry the guy we choose’, he finished without even an iota of hesitation.

I looked at him, blinking several times, not believing what I had just heard. ‘This is too much. You very well know six months is very little time. Plus, I have told you I like someone who I want to marry. You have been trying to get me out of it. So now you think you can kill two birds with one stone? No, dad’, I said, my anger rising. I felt completely betrayed.

He didn’t even flinch. ‘It’s a deal. Take it or leave it’, he said, turning to leave. My mom looked satisfied, almost smiling.

Oh, no. I am not giving up that easy.

‘Ok’, I said. ‘It’s a deal. It works both ways’. They turned in rapt attention. ‘If I succeed in my venture in six months, you agree to what I say.’

‘And that would be?’ he asked.

There you go. ‘I get to keep the centre, of course. And, you let me marry the guy of my choice.’ There, the bomb is dropped.

My mom looked at me as if what I just told was sacrilegious. My dad, on the other hand, was deep in thought.

It took a while before he said it. ‘Deal!’ he said.

He left my room, my mom right on his heels shooting a thousand questions. I could hear him saying things like she won’t make it, don’t worry… and I immediately squashed the pang of disappointment at their lack of confidence in me, deciding not to dwell on it.

An opportunity is all I wanted. I will show them, I vowed to myself.

‘Somebody stop me’, I said in typical Mask style and dialed my best friend, Renu, to tell her the news.

Continued...

Once Upon a Walk – Part 2

‘You must know the members of my family. Hell, you would even know my employee id’, I began. ‘I do not want to get into those details. To put my life in two words – it sucks. Pardon the swearing. But I am having a tough time with just about anything right now. I am not going to hold you partially responsible like some do, ‘cause I know I am not too devotional or anything. All I want is to know if it is going to suck forever’, I finished.

He did not say anything for a long time. He appeared to be deep in thought. ‘Hey look! A butterfly!’ he suddenly exclaimed.

What?! Ok that’s it. I started walking ahead in a huff, not caring whether he was coming along or not.

The next thing I knew, I almost bumped into him. I looked behind me, confused. ‘You know, you really should appreciate all these beautiful things that I took so much pain to create’, he said.

Ok, if not anything else, this confirms that he really is God. I would have to choose between Superman and God. I chose God.

‘You know, I didn’t tell you my story so you could admire your own creation’, I retorted.

‘I should have known this would be your response’, he chuckled. ‘Ok so your life sucks. Yeah we use the word too. Maybe not as often as you do’, he added looking at my startled expression.

‘So what do you think you should do?’ he asked.

‘I am trying to face it head on, but it isn’t that easy. In the end, I am like a zombie who just wants to be left alone to sulk’, I sighed. ‘I don’t even know if I am good or bad. I fight with my parents, you know. Duh. Of course you know.’

‘I never judge my children. But I can say this. I fought with my parents yesterday ‘cause they said Pakistan would win the match’, he said.

I thought he was joking but he looked sincere. Hmm. That should tell me something about myself, I thought.

‘Just because you want certain things your way it doesn’t make you bad. I did not create all my children to be an exact photocopy of the other. I know what you want, your positives, negatives… everything. What matters is whether you know in your heart if it is right. If you really do, you can put forth your argument to me when you come up there and I’ll decide if you go to Heaven or Hell’, he winked.

‘Is everything a joke to you?’ I asked, my irritation obvious.

‘Let’s just say, I like things sunny side up. When worrying is not going to solve your problem, might as well have fun and celebrate it.’

‘Yeah that makes sense. I’ll try’, I said dryly.

‘I am not asking you to be a saint. I am already doing that job. Position taken. Just shake a leg. Enjoy life as it comes. Chill!’ he said.

I just stared at him. ‘Yeah I love HBO’, he grinned.

I sighed. ‘Ok’, I said. ‘I’ll try.’

‘That’s good for a start’. He smiled. ‘Listen, you are not alone. Things are a little rough now. But no one is going to leave you. Remember, love means you can never be apart.’

‘Hmm… That is a nice one. And true, I suppose’, I said smiling.

‘There you go. Hang in there. And one day, everything will work itself out. You’ll be happy as this bright and sunny day.’

I looked at him expectantly.

‘Oh no no. No. I am not hinting that I am going to let you have things your way. You have to work for it, my dear. Be prepared…’ he went on.

‘Sorry. Too late for damage control’, I laughed and skipped through the bushes, completely enjoying his perplexed expression.

‘Hey’, I said turning to him. ‘Now how do I get home?’

His smile was back. He pointed to his ear. What’s that supposed to mean, I thought looking around for a clue. He was gone when I turned back around. There, I thought. Just what I needed. I then heard a voice.

‘JANANI! Are you going to wake up now or not?’

Once Upon a Walk - Part 1

I was standing at the very edge of the cliff. I could see an endless span of green and brown caused by the foliage and rocks all around me, and for an unimaginable depth below. I did not know how I got here, or where I was. I had no idea how to get back home or what I was supposed to do. I felt a light breeze on my neck and a shiver ran through my spine.

‘Hi’, said a voice behind me.

If I were someone who got scared easily, I would have jumped at the voice and fallen off the cliff. Taking a second to compose myself, praying it wouldn’t be someone from the forest tribe here to make me their lunch, I turned slowly. It took me a few moments to register the person standing in front of me.

He was wearing white pants and white shirt and had the widest smile I had ever seen on a face. What surprised me most was, he was standing there as is he was standing in the backyard of his house. As if he owned the place and knew its every nook and corner. But this place has no corners, I thought.

‘Who are you?’ I asked all my senses on alert. The man may look pleasant. But who knows, even psychopathic murderers look pleasant.

He smiled. ‘Didn’t anyone ever teach you to greet someone when you first meet them? It’s ok. I am not here to cause you any harm’, he said as if he had read my mind.

‘Whatever, you haven’t told me who you are’, I said, my alert senses refusing to back down despite his assurance.

‘I’m God’, he said as if he introduced himself this way everyday.

‘Is that your name?’ I asked.

‘No. It’s who I am’, he said.

I couldn’t help laughing. He even found that amusing. He was still smiling when I stopped. He looked as if he was waiting for me talk. Is this all he can react, I thought.

‘You’re joking right’, I said, a scene from Bruce Almighty popping up in my head.

‘I know I may look like Morgan Freeman in Bruce Almighty. But I really am God. And this is not our uniform. We just like wearing white and whites ‘cause one, we like the serene look it gives us and two, we don’t have to struggle with keeping them bright and clean like you do to keep your whites clean’, he said, the smile still intact.

I blinked a few times. ‘Ok you’re freaking me out. You’re putting in words whatever I think and it’s freaking me out.’

‘Is this proof enough or would you like me to perform some miracle, Janani’, he said, throwing in my name for good measure. Still smiling, of course.

‘Oh please stop smiling as if we are sitting in Pizza Hut. I am standing here at the edge of a cliff God knows where and someone comes and tells me he is God’, I said. ‘God what am I going to do now. How am I going to get out of here’, I muttered to myself.

‘I do know where we are. You use my name in every sentence and still don’t believe it’s me standing in front of you’, he said with mock disappointment.

‘Ok ok, so you’re God. Tell me. Where am I and how do I get home’, I challenged.

He threw his head back and laughed. ‘This is just so you. When people start thinking what wishes to get fulfilled as long as I am in front of them, all you want to do is get out of here’, he said as if he knew me from the time I was born.

Well, if he really is God, he probably does know me from the time I was born, a voice inside me said.

‘Fine, just please tell me what I am supposed to do’, I said, resignation in my voice.

‘I have a while before I have to go back. Why don’t you and I have a small talk until then? We can talk about anything you want’, he said.

I just stared him. Is he for real, I thought. I am here in the middle of nowhere and he wants to have a chat? Oh wait a minute, he somehow knows what I think. Too late.

He just looked at me expectantly, waiting for a reply. Oh well, I thought. Might as well have a few minutes of talk and find out how to get out of here than antagonize the only living soul for miles around.

‘Ok’, I said. ‘But you help me get home afterward.’

He laughed. ‘I do not leave those who need my help stranded. Come, let’s go for a small walk.’

I looked around trying to figure what ‘path’ we could possibly walk along and found none.

‘Let’s walk that way’, he said, pointing to a narrow path leading into the bushes and trees. I was almost getting used to his answering my unspoken thoughts.

‘So tell me’, he said. ‘How’s everything in life? How’s everyone at home?’ he said a few moments later.

‘You’re God. You should be having a fair idea’, I replied.

‘I do. I’d rather hear it from you.’

And so it began. My journey of… I really don’t know what…