The true essence of having a furry friend

 Short Story

The tale of two distinct siblings

Chapter 1

December 21, 1980 New Delhi

All the relatives are anxious to see the baby and want to lift it in their hands. The very renowned and Padma Vibhushan felicitated member of the family Mr. Pushpak enters the hospital with a load of presents and a beautiful bouquet. The scene changes after the announcement of the baby by the nurse. It is a girl! The desperate and restless father rushes to see his wife and the baby girl controlling all his emotions with great difficulty. Manoj Kumar is overwhelmed to see his little princess and slowly caresses her. Ms. Ritu on the other hand is waiting to cuddle her and unfortunately is the second last in the que, patiently waiting for all the relatives to finish their caressing. Mr Pushpak hands over the beautiful bouquet to the couple and leaves the operation theatre with an indescribable smile on his face. Usha was taken home and was slowly put in a cradle by her cheerful father. Where am I which world is this? Why is everything so clumsy and polluted in this world, it was so nice in the other world. Few months went by Usha was quite bored growing up alone when one day, she was in a for a surprise.  Her parents brought a cute male puppy a Rajapalyam and surprisingly unlike other infants she goes and hugs the puppy with all her innocence and love. The two of them grow together.

Usha in the evenings used to sit with her brother and play the game of dolls where her brother was a guest and Usha was a symbol of hospitality serving Shyamu ( her pet Rajapalayam brother) a nice cup of hot tea with some imaginary dumplings made from refined flour.  Usha did not like playing with ordinary stuffed toys but wanted proper Barbie doll sets. She did not like sharing most of the toys with Shyamu and kept all the fancy toys for herself.   Manoj Kumar was a very lively father buying his daughter all the fancy toys to play with aiming not to deprive his daughter of anything taking in account all her likes and dislikes. Usha’s mother was also a prodigal in terms of purchase of toys and clothes for Usha as Usha did not like most of the stuffed toys.

There was one major difference between Shyamu and Usha which I think my readers will understand with the passage of chapters

Chapter 2

November 26, 1983 New Delhi

The school bell rings. Usha happily packs her school bag and lunch bag and runs to her mother who was waiting near the parking lot to pick up Usha. The young girl is aged 3 now studying in Montessori but as ardor as an infant. She was liked by all her teachers for her charm, manners and creative thinking. After returning home Usha keeps her bag and opens the fridge to have a sip of Cavin’s milkshake but unfortunately is disappointed to know that the milkshake was over and became very stubborn for having milkshake. After 30 minutes of explanation by her father she accepted that she was being too stubborn and apologized to her parents for her behaviour. Meanwhile Shyamu who was a 3 year old lab adult was sleeping on the veranda floor instead of sleeping on his bed. When Usha went to play with Shyamu after hours of disagreement she was surprised to see Shyamu peacefully sleeping on the veranda floor and not on his usual mat.

Usha was very fond of Shyamu and always cared for his convenience and comfort which made her go immediately to her mother and ask for his mat. Her mother told that the mat will make him lethargic and for that reason they threw his mat. After watching him peacefully sleeping on the veranda for many hours Usha wonders that she was disagreeing on not having milkshake for hours but on the other hand there is Shyamu who is an adaptable and accommodative boy sleeping on the floor and not craving for a mat but is unable to learn from it and shows ignorance towards it.

Chapter 3

January 25, 1984, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh

The family shifts from New Delhi to Shimla to Usha’s maternal parents’ house for two years. The moment Shyamu is unleashed after their arrival in Shimla he jumps, gallops, dances, and foot-taps like a horse rather than a dog to see the serene environment and the grandeur of the Lesser Himalayas. Usha looked a little displeased while she met her grandparents and did not show any interest in the place and was lost in her own thoughts. ” What happened my Mermaid ?Why do you look unhappy?” asked her grandmother looking little apprehensive on her manners and face expressions. “I am perfectly fine grandmom just that I am a little tired after the journey”. Lunch was delicious on that particular day comprising of Chole Bhature, Aampanna , Lucknowi pulao and Kheer for dessert. Usha still looked a bit uncomfortable despite having such delicious delicacies specially prepared for her by her grandfather. Adding to the worry of her kin she did not even utter a word while having lunch on the dining table. This behaviour of Usha daunted her parents and they went and spoke to her trying to understand her inconvenience. It did not somehow workout, so they left her alone for some time in her room.

Cold conditions are not so favourable for Shyamu as is he is a Rajapalyam and cannot tolerate snowing conditions. Around 5:30 a.m. in the morning it started snowing heavily in Shimla and the roads were getting fully covered by snow. Usha gets up in the morning at around 5:00 a.m. to use the restroom and finds that Shyamu despite snowing so much, can tolerate the snow and uncomplainingly watching the beautiful stars through his half-open eyes. Usha was dumbstruck after seeing this sight. She was not able to adapt to the surroundings due to the weather and change of place, but this dog has already adopted to the surroundings and looked blissful.

Chapter 4

March 18, 1984 Kullu, Himachal Pradesh

“Yahoo! I am enjoying it” shouts a lady while kayaking in the river Beas. Usha asked her mother what was going on and why was that lady so excited while kayaking? Her mother explained her about Kayaking. Usha looked bewildered and did not understand a word due to her age. Her mom understanding her expression chuckled and told that she will understand Kayaking when she experiences it as an adult. The family was travelling to Manali from Shimla for a family vacation and halted at Kullu for getting refreshed. Shyamu was also with them enjoying the serenity of the picturesque mountains, wagging his tail whenever he saw a kayaker. The family headed towards Manali after halting near the banks of the river Beas in Kullu. On the way Usha sees a small girl with a pretty doll and immediately looks at her old doll giving a very dissatisfied gesture. Her father observes this and asks her the reason for her discontentedness, she replies saying that her toy had become very old and she wanted a new toy set like the one which the girl standing outside is having and she was very stubborn to purchase that toy.

Her father said that it was unable to buy a toy now in the foothills. Usha’s persisted stubbornness  angered her father and she was severely scolded by her father. Her illuminated face turned sad and she kept quiet with tears  rolling down her cheeks and during this time she saw Shyamu comfortable sleeping in the boot without any sense of discomfort unlike the other dogs who want specific kind of dog seat to lie down on. Usha ignored this quality immaturely and continued her sobbing.

Chapter 5, The Lawrence School, Lovedale, Ootacamund, March 1995

Years pass by, Usha confronts adolescence and for her holistic development her parents send her to The Lawrence School, in Ootacamund.  Mr. Pillai the postman arrives to Usha’s dormitory and gives her an envelope, a letter from her parents that came in the form of a huge shock, Shyamu was no more!

Usha could not control herself and fell unconscious. The campus doctor was called to attend to her. After 3 hours Usha recovers and sits on her bed thinking about something.  ”We were such good siblings, he used to lick me while I was a young infant, he used to somehow adjust with my mood swings and always made me happy and a whole lot of things. He was her best brother, friend, philosopher, and guide. She thought he empowered her, encouraged her during all her triumphs and turmoil.  He was such an indefinable young dog “she writes in her personal memorandum after mourning the loss of a pet as valuable as a gem. She remembered the moments spent with her pet dog and considered those moments in which He taught Usha very good values and especially during the milkshake tussle, the toy crib, and many other such instances. This was when Usha realized the essence of values and learnt how different was he from her. Shyamu was very selfless, self-sufficient, and sought pleasure in smallest of the things unlike Usha who embraced extravagance and luxury.

“Shyamu, you were not my pet but my brother. I have learnt my lessons of life from you. I will never forget your contribution in making me a better human being! Miss You brother!! “

The audience erupts into an applause as soon as Usha finishes her speech. She was invited to inaugurate her book ~ Shyamu.  Usha had grown up to become a very famous animal rights activist and an author, has written more than 20 books on animals.

 

A story written by Mast. Pranet VP