Nei tumi pashe ...

Aaj Nei tumi pashe

Tobu sediner kotha bhebe mon hashe

Barshar erom ek dine 

Hantu jole khelechilam dujone 

Chata ta giye chilo ude

Cycle er garage e niyechilam thai

Mukto howe lokdekhani bandhoner theke

Bowechilam sei joler dharay ...

Keno aaj nei tumi pashe ?

Erom ek din mone pore jay

Door bohudoor gechilam jethay

Tumi ami o tomar Gari

Bayre traffic bhetore movie 

Seo chilo ek sundor din

Keno aaj nei tumi pashe ?

Tushar brishti howechilo

Emon o to ek raat chilo 

French dinner ar long drive

Hotath kono kotha nai

Nechechilam sei tushar achchadito rastae

Din koto erom 

Koto guti guti khon

Bhalobeshechilam sedin

Aaj o mone ache

Guru guru booke 

Aajo sei taan baje 

Keno aaj tumi nei pashe ?

It's a deal!

As Indians, the instinct to bargain is rooted deep into our psyche . Be it for vegetables, hawker food, buying a vehicle or a house, we bargain still we strike a deal. It is necessary and even expected in the market. Sometimes, it does turn funny :).

I happen to remember this one time, on a train to Jalpaiguri, my brother started pining for one of those Chinese handheld videogames. I reluctantly enquired the price. 

The hawker said "You are getting it dirt cheap, I will give it to you for 950/-."

I: " I will give you 50/- for it".

And then the discussion went on and on until he came down to Rs.100 :). But finally I told him to keep moving, as I was determined on 50/-. My brother was like 'you never wanted to get it in the first place!'

Another incident comes to my mind about this very lovable lady at Howrah station. With a lot of luggage, she was looking for a coolie ( people who carry luggage ) when one of them came to her.

Lady: " How much will you charge till platform 12?"

Coolie : " Saatth rupiah ( 60 rupees)"

Lady : " Saat rupiah kyun? Abhi to pichle hafte bhara paanch rupiah tha !!! (Why seven rupees? Only last week the rate was five rupees!!! ;) "

Coolie : ??!!!???!!!!!!!

After all, quoting Benjamin Franklin -  "A penny saved is a penny earned."  ;) !

Instinctively yours ...

I woke up in the morning to find my baby crabbier than yesterday. This isn't how she generally is, she is a happy child. She had been running a temperature last evening. Little fingers drew my attention to the 2 boils on the leg. The first thing on my mind - 'Oh God, please let it just be heat rash and not chicken pox!' 

The next thing we know, the pediatrician confirms my worst fear, despite the crossed fingers!

Why? Oh why did that have to be my first thought??!! What are the odds of a 9 month old contracting chicken pox?! 

I have seen this happen too many times! My premonitions about her often come true, be it with an unforeseen allergy, an unusual remedy, a sudden move or things like if she would have dimples (before her birth)! My instincts almost never lie. Many a times I am able to prevent accidents, fix issues or just note a funny moment, thanks to that!

I remember an incident from almost a decade ago. Daily home calls were not the norm around then, more like once a week. It had been just a day or two since I had last called home. I had not been feeling well, just a fever but I was waiting to know if it was worse before troubling my parents. However, lying alone on the bed of my paying guest accommodation at Chennai (India) I suddenly thought of my mother. Just then my phone rang. I was so happy to see the 'Home' number on it and as soon as I picked it up my mom says ' Are you feeling ok? I just felt you are not, so thought of checking.” And she was almost 1800 KMs(Kilometers) away!

What else but a mother's instinct - hardly ever overrated!

PS: This has also been published by Chatoveracuppa .

I am sorry...

Sorry ...

It's a small word. But when really meant, it can melt the stoniest of hearts. It's also a word that's often thrown around carelessly, devaluing it and it's intent. It's also one of the toughest words to say. But why so?

Apology requires acceptance of our fault, intentional or otherwise. And that's not an easy thing to do. It requires being logical, understanding the other person's perspective, assume the possibility of the worst( we being wrong!) and then having enough guts to take up the responsibility.

I recall an incident from my childhood. I was around 8 or 9 years old then. The week of our story , I happened to be the 'Monitor' (a person appointed by the teachers to 'manage' the other kids) of my class. That day after returning home , I realized I hadn't seen my Monitor badge for a while. After searching a lot I concluded to have lost it. Now losing the badge meant informing parents and in turn getting scolded as I would need to pay Rs 5/- as penalty charges. So in order to avoid it all, I requested my Thamma ( Paternal Grandma) to please give me the Rs 5/- and hide this from my parents.

What my Thamma did next surprised me. Here goes the conversation that left me surprised.

Thamma: I will give you the money, but why do you want to hide it from your parents ?

I: If I tell them, I will get scolded !

T: Why will they do that?

I: Because I 'lost' the badge Thamma!

T: Why do you think you lost it?

I: I probably kept it somewhere and now I don't remember where. Or someone stole it :( .

T: Well you can't do much if someone steals it but u can keep it carefully at a safe place, correct?

I: Yes Thamma .

T: But this time your mistake was about being negligent. And if your parents scold you for that, accept it like you just did, and apologize. And try to be more careful in future . But don't be scared of making mistakes or accepting them. Just plan to rectify them going forward.

A scolding or hiding would probably have put me on a defensive mode, or worse, led to stealth. I am glad I was encouraged in the right direction in a positive way.

As I see it, an apology is best accompanied by forgiveness, specially if the person is really at fault, as Dumbledore says , 'People find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong , than for being right!' ;)

This story is also published at 'Chatoveracuppa.blogspot.com'