Egg Biryaani

Hunger was ringing bell's in Asif's belly.

He walked briskly to reach home and have food. Suddenly, someone beckoned him. "Assalamu-e-lekum", it was Aslam, his old friend. Glad to meet him after long time, Asif replied, "Waa-e-lekum-ussalaam". Aslam told, "Bhai-jaan, its lunch time, lets eat lunch together. I know a good place close-by". Asif thought, its a good idea, and followed Aslam.

The place was quite shabby. Asif stared the place for a moment. Aslam told, "Dont go by the looks of this place, The food is tasty. Please Sit down". Asif stared at the seat. It had remnants of the previous customer. He shook the chair to remove those and sat. "Two Egg Biryaani", Aslam shouted to the bearer.

Asif took the glass, and was about to pour water into it, when Aslam stopped him, "Bhai-jaan, dont drink water from here, its not hygienic".

Tight Slap !!

Asif left home early.

He roamed around in the bright summer Sun, inspecting the various stalls and shops in the market. Occasionally he entered the shops, listened to the bargains that other people had. Then silently he moved on. After wandering all around, he thought its time to return to his home. He opened the door gently and entered in. It was unusually dark inside. He cried out loudly, "Ammi, why is it so dark here" ?

Slap !! Asif rubbed his cheek. Ammi had given him a nice tight slap. Asif asked the question with his face. Ammi replied, "I hope that has brought back light into your eyes".

Love Story

This one is replicated straight away from a Website.....Dont book me for plagarism !!!

God stored all the human feelings in a far-off island. Once due to Global warming the water level started increasing and threatened to sink the islands and its occupants. All the feelings started to escape. Love being blind needed help.

Love approached Sadness. Sadness told, "I prefer to be alone. I cant take you".

Love approached Happiness. Happiness laughed off, "I want to enjoy my life. I cant take you".

Love approached Richness. Richness boasted, "My ship is full of money and jewels. There is no space for you".

Finally, a hand grabbed Love and pulled it along with on it's boat. "What is your name"?, Love asked. "My name is Faith", it told. "In times of difficulty, I am the only one with you".

Race

Abbu was very proud. Once again, Asif had won the race.

"You don't look that happy. Are you tired" ? Abbu asked him.

Asif threw his running shoes in a corner and said, "I am worried about Aslam. He came second in the race, so he will not be part of the next round".

"Well, that is how life goes", Abbu said.

"From the start we practised together, worked hard together, trained for this race together. Now he is left out. Why cant everyone win" ? Asif said.

Abbu patted his back, and said, "You need to realize that the race is not over, pick up your shoes, the next race will start very soon".

Operation

"Come to the operation theatre", the Head Doctor announced.

The class was very excited, after studying theory for so long, they were going to do some practise for the first time. They lined up and qued slowly into the operation theatre, latex gloves were donned on each hand. They saw that a body was lying behind a green sheet. The sheet parted at the patients chest, which was clean and ready to be opened up.

The Head Doctor said,"Now brace yourself for the shock of your life. You are now going to see a very closely guarded medical secret. This is where theory departs from real life".

The students followed the Head Doctor to the table. With a Steel Scaple, the Head Doctor sliced open the chest, and parted the rib cage. Between the oozing blood, the students watched in amazement. The pumping heart.... It was an...... The girl with the black bindi because unconscious and was escorted out. The Head Doctor realizing the shock experienced by the young Doctors, said "Yes, you have now come to know of it. The heart is exactly like an Onion"!!

With this the Head Doctor now started making delicate cuts on the heart (Onion). He revealed the different layers hidden there. "Each of these layers have different depth and control the emotions of the man/woman.And each human has a different combination of layers and depths". Then he quickly went through the operation, as the students watched, still trying to digest the truth. Finally as the Head doctor made the stitches and closed the operation, the boy with the shining eyes asked, "What is the innermost layer of the heart, I mean the Onion" ?

Maali

He observed his Maali (The gardener) going from one shrub to the other, plucking some of the shrubs, cutting with his knife, and sometimes breaking ends with his dry hands. Sometimes, the thorns of the shrub pricked his hand, and then, one large thorn pierced his hand and he started bleeding.

"Serves you good Maali, The Shrubs have punished you for hurting them. Why are you hurting them? Let them grow", the boy said.

The Maali said," Master, by breaking them and cutting them, I am in fact allowing them to grow better, controlling their direction of growth. Overall it is beneficial for them".

The boy asked," But do they know that ? They look hurt" ?

The Maali said," Its OK if they don't understand, I will be happy to see flowers blooming on them".

Direct Konnection

"Maata, Pita, Guru, Devoo...........", the Preacher spoke loudly.

"What does it mean", the boy asked.

The Preacher spoke, "It shows that Parents are the highest priority for a human in this world, even God comes after them".

"Why so ? After all parents are also human", the boy said.

The Preacher smiled softly, "Yes they are human, but they are images of God on earth".

The boys eyes started to flow. He said, "What about the unlucky ones like me, who don't have Parents and who have no Guru" ?

The Preacher chuckled, and spoke softly, "My boy, then you are under the direct care of God, for he takes care of you himself".

Tick Tick Tick ...............

Painting was his new hobby. He wanted to paint everything.

As he sipped the hot tea, he surveyed the surroundings from his terrace for a good subject to paint. His attention went to the evening sky, the crimson that was setting in.... The artist in him recognized this as a good picture.

So he started off on his canvas, sketching out the sky and the dipping sun. His Abbu was observing him from behind. As he started to colour them, he struggled. Every second the shades of crimson changed. From golden to dark Crimson, and finally a colour that he found difficult to describe or mix on his palette.

Understanding his situation, his Abbu patted him, "Son, its life, it doesn't stay still for you, like an ever-ticking watch".

Point of View

The Brahmin got up with a start. Has the station come ? He got up and jumped from the side upper berth, where he had slept uncomfortably through the night. He saw the lower berth was empty and looked out through the window. He gathered the malayalam words and realized it was Palakkad station.

Relaxed now, he looked around, time was still 4.45. Most of the passengers were sleeping. He saw the person on the side lower berth coming in with a packet. The man settled down on the seat and started gobbling the contents of the packet. The Brahmin wondered, "Its 4.45 am, Shiva...... some people just live to eat" ! And he watched the man opening another packet and gobbling it down again. The Brahmin thought, "No wonder people are so unhealthy these days, they follow no timings for food, eat and make merry...... shii......."

The Brahmin started packing his bag, as he had to get down at the next station. The man asked, "Where are you going" ?.

The Brahmin said, "I am Lord Krishna's devotee, so visiting him at Guruvayoor. I am glad that after years of waiting, I am able to visit for the first time".

The man said, "Is it? My home is very close by. You can join me, if you don't know the way".

The Brahmin thought that this offer was very good, so he kept silent and accompanied the man. As the journey progressed, they discussed a lot of topics related to God and spiritualism. And the Brahmin was impressed with the man's views. Finally the man left at kunamkulam, and directed the Brahmin to the bus stop that led to the temple.

While leaving, the man said, "Nice meeting you. I have to rush home. I have a Iftaar party to arrange....................... Today is the 28th day of my Roza"

Didnt you notice ?

After 20 years of hard penance, finally Lord appeared before Gajapati. The Lord asked, "Gajapati, what do you want" ??

Gajapati replied, "I want you to be with me throughout my life".

Lord said, "I cannot, I have so many people to attend to" !

Gajapati said, "You have made a promise, you must find a way".

Lord smiled and said, " Tathaasthu" ! and he disappeared.

Long time later when Gajapati was at his death-bed, he called the Lord. Lord appeared and Gajapati started his complaints. Gajapati said, "Lord, you never fulfilled your promise, I never saw you around when I needed you".

Lord smiled and said, "Didn't you notice" ?

I came to you as your friend, as the postman, as the traffic policeman who stopped you on the rainy day, as your house owner, as your watchman, as your manager, as your chief engineer.........

I came to you as the death of your uncle, as the truck which hit your bike, as the Tsunami, as the crow who pee-ed on your shoulder, as the black cat who crossed your way..........

I came to you as the sun beam, as the September breeze, as the rain-drop, as the hot sun, as the dry autumn leaf, as the cuckoo in March, as the mosquito in your bed................

Didn't you notice ???

Gudiyaa

He inserted the coin, and then put one more tick mark against the piggy-bank. He counted to confirm. The marks added up to Rs. 40.

This is the amount he required so that he could buy the Gudiyaa that he wanted. He had seen the Gudiyaa in Ram-Lakhan Stores display pane. Since he did not get pocket money from his parents like his friends, he had to cut on his expenses. He walked sometimes to home to save the bus ticket, made books out of old paper to save on stationary, put 50 paise instead of a rupee in the Shiv-mandir hundi. But he did not mind all this at all. He wanted the Gudiyaa. So, he broke open the piggy-bank, and counted the money again. It was accurate. Enthusiastic and overjoyed, he ran to the stores. He showed the money and demanded, "Give me the Gudiyaa......"

The Shopkeeper replied, "You are too late. The last one sold out yesterday evening".

He travelled back to his home by bus.........

Thaniyaavartanam (The Repetition)

Asif came in to his home and flung his school-bag in the corner.

His Abbu was repairing the tape-recorder and observed Asif closely and noticed the change. Asif had something in his mind. He went to his room and found him laying on his face, probably crying. His Abbu, caressed him and asked, " What happened beta" ?

Asif, said in a feeble voice, "I find myself an odd-person in school. All the other children parents are rich and well educated. They boast about their lives and lifestyles. I feel very uncomfortable with them. I want to leave this school and come with you like Irfan works with his Abbu".

Asif's Abbu looked into his eyes and said, " No beta, you need to continue, or else you will find yourself in this same situation with your son"...........

The Problem Solver

Abu-bakkar was the famous problem solver of his times.

People called him the gifted one. There was also a rumour that he practiced black magic. Nevertheless People used to visit him from distant lands. He asked them to sit on his magic chair and then they recited their problems to him, and then he would ponder over those for some time and propose a solution. Many of them worked miraculously. For some he did not say anything. He asked them to go back. Amazingly their problems were solved automatically.

Then came a time when Abu-bakkar himself faced a big problem (too big to describe in my blog). He searched in all directions. He even tried to visit some of his competitors in disguise to get a solution to his problem. None of them worked, the problem continued to eat him away. He stood at the foot of the iron statue in the market listlessly. Soon it started drizzling and then it started pouring. He sat there drenched in the rain, hoping his problems would be washed away. The rain went after some time, the problems didn't. Darkness set around him, and then he watched the stars in the puddle in front of him. He saw the Iron statue, and then he saw himself. Un-shaven, frustrated, Abu-bakkar..... the famous problem solver..... Allah ! he exclaimed and ran, splashing the water in the puddle. He ran towards his home, entered slowly and pulled out the largest mirror he had.

Carefully he observed himself in the mirror. The mirror that now rested on top of the magic chair...............

Bhavra.... (The bee)

"Pappa, I need a photograph of a bhavra for my biology class on monday. Can you come with me to the garden to take one photograph" ? he asked. Pappa was busy with his laptop, trying to complete a presentation for his review.

"Its not easy, beta", Pappa said.

"Why, pappa. You take such nice photos. You should help me take this. Other wise I will take your camera and take it myself" ! he said.

Pappa gave out a squared expression which generally indicated agreement, "Ohhk! ...... I will come with you", Pappa said.

They went to the garden and after monitoring for a few minutes, he spotted a bhavra. He jumped and exclaimed, "Pappa, there it is. A big one". Pappa chuckled, since he knew it is not going to be easy. Pappa tried to focus the lens on the bhavra, but failed to do so.

Pappa knew, the bhavra is like the mind, hopping from one flower to the other..........

Wet Papers.......

Finally the day came for him to forget her.

Even though their relation lasted only for 2 days, the pain was excruciating. He couldn't bear it. He opened up his diary. He had written her name on every page of the diary. He read those 5 letters....... His mind wandered, there was some junk hindi movie called "Dhai akshar prem ke". But these were 5 letters....... 2X ..... he cursed himself, what a crap joke for the situation....... he started sobbing. Something he had forgotten since class nine when he was scolded by his English teacher. Eyes that have been dry since years started to fill with tears, " Roone de aaj humko, do aankhen sujaane de.......". He hugged his diary and cried.... cried and cried.......... He cried till his tear glands said enough..............So, he got up and switched on the TV. Flipping channels for 20 minutes, his fingers stuck when he saw " Jab we met" on one channel. He watched it for some time and then the idea struck him.

I will burn this diary he thought. He held the flame against the diary. But the pages, his memories refused to burn. They were wet..........wet with his love.........

Drip Drip Drip........

Drip Drip Drip........ Drip Drap Drip........

There seemed to be no correlation between the pattern of the rains and the tears that flowed down from his eyes. Still it flowed. Rains from the heaven and tears from the eyes. But both have to stop. That's nature, the sun has to come out. So he wiped his face and opened the make-up box. He used all the bright colours that were present. Red, orange, yellow..... some silver. Colours that mask the truth, like raincoats........ They just keep the rain out, but cannot stop them. He remembered that he had a blue raincoat in childhood...... he smiled, memories are always funny..... and added more colour......

The announcement boomed across the ring......"Next item.....Raju Joker......"

Avada Kedavara !

I hope J.K.Rowling will not mind this simple story based on her Story !

Avada Kedavara ! Shouted Lord Voldemort.

Harry Potter was thrown back by the the impact of the Curse and he lay on the cold forest floor. But he was not dead, he rose again.

"But this is impossible", cried the girl with the black bindi. "Avada Kedavara is a death curse, unforgivable as you described earlier. How can Harry survive it. It does not make sense".

"Rowling is a great writer", said Professor Bandopadhyay. "She has imbibed basic human science in the form of her magical creation".

"But how " ?? This was the common question that echoed through the classroom.

Professor Bandopadhyaya explained, "She explains in her book that when Lord Voldemort cursed Harry, he actually killed a part of himself that was inside Harry. This is the same thing which happens when you curse someone in real life. When in a relation each one of us has a part of the other inside us. Acts of cursing just kills your own self rather than the other person. Isn't Rowling a master of human relations"?

Colour Pencils

No wonder he was so happy. Pappa had brought him a latest set of colour pencils.

He opened the box carefully and laid out all the colours one by one on the table. He sorted out his favourite colours and removed the ones he disliked, black, brown, dark green etc. Thinking of the drawing homework he had to submit, he sat down and opened his drawing book. Soon he was engrossed in sketching a beautiful home. A home full of happiness and joy and prosperity. Satisfied with the sketch, it was now time for him to colour it.

As he started to colour it, he realized his folly. He stared at the sketch for sometime and then he decided, his favourite colours are not enough, he needs to add more colours..........

Who will do it for him ?

Adapted from an old folk tale

Kishore was engrossed in solving the quadratic equations homework that he had to submit the next day. Suddenly he heard a click. His heart thumped. Could it be the house owner. He looked around quickly. All the furniture was covered as usual. He packed his books quickly into his school bag and then hid it behind the sofa. He hid himself in the bathroom loft. The houseowner entered with his 3 friends.

"See, everything furnished. But whats the use. I have covered everything up to avoid dust", the house owner said. He shrugged off the sofa cover, almost revealing the hidden school bag. The cloud of dust left everyone sneezing. "See, For one year, this house is closed. I want your help to clean this. I want to get rid of this house. Even if somebody lived here secretly, I would not come to know". His friends laughed at the idea and as they discussed, he closed the door and left. Kishore came down from the loft and started breathing regularly now. He was afraid. Where will he go now ?

"Dont worry, nothing will happen", the watchman assured him. And like he said, a few days passed away without any developments.

But one day, Kishore heard the door open again. The Houseowner came with his brother-in-law. "Please help me to clean this big house. We can do it this sunday", and they left quickly.

"Dont worry, nothing will happen", the watchman assured him again. And like he said, an entire month passed away without any developments.

Finally, one friday night the houseowner came alone, he had brought some tools and washing equipments with him. He kept it there and went away.

The watchman said, "You have no option but to leave now. He has decided to do it himself".

1

"I am a big Zero in the world"! said the boy with shining eyes, "I have lost in every aspect of my life. Why are you laughing. Dont do it, I feel really bad when you do it. I thought you are my friend, but you are behaving like a sadist. Enjoying my state of mind", he said.

The girl with the black bindi smiled again and consoled him, "Dont worry about being a zero".

"So, should I count the zero's and make omlette out of it"? he replied.

She said, "You are partially right. You should count them, but not eat it. You should store it".

"But why" ? he said, "Its hurting me".

She said, "Because, 1 day you will get a 1, and 1 along with lot of 0's is valuable"

He said, "So are you the 1" ??

And it fell on his Head !

It was a rather hard day for the boy.

And why not, collecting fruits from the largest orchard in England could tire the best of athletes. But mental torture along with the running around can really drive anyone crazy. But today was exceptionally bad. His parents had told him that there is no more regular school for him, as they cannot afford it. The Boy was always interested in mathematics, and...... "Boy! If you do not complete 10 baskets of apples today, you will receive thrashing from me", the Butler shouted.

And the boy continued climbing trees. As he neared the last one, he saw an apple high up in the tree. He climbed on it. The fruit seemed to elude him, and he had to climb higher and higher. As he plucked the fruit, his gaze fell on the setting sun, in the far west. The hustle and bustle of the evening birds settling into their nests. The evening brought a gloom to his mind and he sat there, on the highest branch of the tree. Suddenly, his temper rose. "God you are so cruel to me", and he threw the largest apple in his hand towards God. He saw it rise high into the crimson sky, and strangely it seemed to come back again. Caught in a strange position and unable to move, the apple fell back right on his head. And he wondered why ?

"Boy!!!! ......... Isaac!!!", the Butler shouted, "What are you doing up there" ?

A Night to remember

So Finally it happened. First night! As the Iron gate closed and the door was bolted with the Godrej seven Lever lock, Ruben's heart started pumping. He was just 20 and the night he feared the most has come. First Night! In a Jail.

He looked around and found a man sleeping peacefully. A cloud of calmness and contempt covered his face. Irritated by the situation, Ruben started banging his head on the concrete wall crying about his misfortune. The noise awoke the other prison-mate from his slumber. "What happened, Brother" ? He asked.

"My Life is Finished". Ruben Said.

The other person twitched his nose and replied, "Says who" ?

Ruben howled, "I am supposed to go to college and I ended up in jail".

The other man asked, "How long is your sentence" ?

Ruben hissed, "Two weeks for a petty fight".

The other man, went by his side and then started discussing Ruben's life. Initially reluctant, Ruben slowly opened up and explained the story of events. As the story progressed deep into the night Ruben felt much better. At the end, the other man patted his shoulder and said, "Dont worry brother. Hope for the best. Today is the last day for me in this cell. Tomorrow morning a new world awaits me. Sleep peacefully".

Next morning Ruben woke up, feeling better. The sweeper opened up the lock and started sweeping the floor. He said, "How was your night with Kasab yesterday" ?

Ruben yawned, "He was quite supportive".

The sweeper replied,"Yes. I know, He was always a nice guy. He went today morning. May his soul rest in piece".

Gola-Waala

After the celebrations of the match Anwar started his walk back to his home. Skillfully he avoided the crowd in the gully and maintained a good pace. If he gets a minute late after 2-o-clock, he is sure to get a sound beating from his ammi. Ting.... Ting...... Ting..... Ting, the Gola-waala was coming towards him, pushing his cart in the hot afternoon. Anwar's throat quenched. There is always time for a gola, he thought. He searched his pocket for a rupee and he was glad to find one. Ammi never refused him a rupee for small joys. Sliding the bat on his shoulder he walked slowly towards the Gola-waala.

He watched the colourful bottles, red-orange-green-yellow-kaala-khattha-lime-golden.... his eyes now wide as a cricket ball. "What do you want master"?

"Orange" ! Anwar said, "a little of red, a little of green, a little of yellow, little of kala-khatta, a little of red and little lime too......."

"Do you want all that for a Rupee.... "?, said the Gola-waala shaking his head.

"Yes", Anwar said, his eyes pleading to the Gola-waala.

"Ok, here you go", the Gola-waala prepared and gave the gola to Anwar, who did not waste a single moment to jump on it.

As Anwar jumped away towards his home, the Gola waala, muttered silently, "Why cant anyone be happy with one flavour" ?

A Cup of Tea...........

I Thank my friend Nilesh Ghetiya for sharing this story with me......


The popularity of Professor Bandopadhyay's Classes was spreading all over the school. Professor Tripathy could not approve to the fact that someone can teach children philosophy in a science class. Determined to teach him a lesson, Professor Tripathi went to Professor Bandopadhyay's classroom.

The lecture had already started. Sensing that the class was in perfect silence and wrapped in attention, Professor Tripathi settled down at the last bench, awaiting a right moment to involve in a debate. He noticed that everyone was watching a glass bowl kept on the Teacher's table. Professor Bandopadhyay was sipping tea and he had asked Mukil to carefully empty a bag of tennis balls into the glass bowl. "What a fool", Professor Tripathi thought to himself. After the bowl was filled to the brim, Professor Bandopadhyay asked, "Is the bowl full"?. Professor Tripathi thought, "What a dumb question, Of course it is full". The students sensing a trick remained silent. Professor Bandopadhyay told, "There is always space for more" and then emptied a bag of marbles in the bowl. After emptying, Professor Bandopadhyay asked, "Is the bowl full"?. Now Professor Tripathi was careful, he could see the trick. He was sure that Professor Bandopadhyay was going to add more things. So he shouted, "There is room for more and I can see you are going to empty the bag of sand hidden behind you into the bowl". He was proud that he spoilt Bandopadhyay's class. Professor Bandopadhyay, said calmly, "Is the bowl full"?.

Now Professor Tiwari's mind started ticking. He searched around the room for another hidden bag, but couldnt find anything. Professor Bandopadhyay took the cup of tea and emptied into the bowl.

Shocked by what he saw, Professor Tripathi sat down on the bench. Bandopadhyay started speaking, "Do you feel, If I had started first by emptying the sand into the bowl, Would I had the space to accommodate the tennis balls"?

The Boy with Shiny eyes told, "No Sir, There would have been no space". Professor Bandopadhyay said, "Very Good. I see that you all have become very sensible and have understood that prioritization is very important. I want to explain that this bowl symbolizes your mind. Fill it with important and Good things, otherwise smaller, un-important things will occupy space and you will miss out on the important things". And then, he started picking up the bowl, indicating the end of his lecture.

"Wait", shouted Professor Tripathi, "You did not explain, the cup of tea". Smiling, Professor Bandopadhyay said, "Good Question. Does anyone in the class want to explain that" ?

The girl with black Bindi spoke, "Sir, It means, that whatever you fill your mind with; You should always have room for sharing a cup of tea with your friends".

After the class dispersed, the students saw Professor Tiwari sharing tea with Professor Bandopadhyay.

Kites.......

Adapted from a malayalam film "Thaniyaavartanam" written by the great script-writer, Late Shri. Lohitadas.

Pin-drop silence is the class........... Professor Bandopadhyay had started his story. He had drawn a boy flying a kite. Slowly he started narrating.

The boy was flying his kite. The Kite rose through the smooth wind, above the banyan trees and slowly towards the open blue sky. The boy maneuvered the kite and sent it steadily upwards. On the way up, an Eagle saw the kite flying so high. Curious and surprised at a kite flying so high, he asked the kite, "How come you are flying so high"? The Kite now a little pleased with himself replied, " My aim is to fly to the moon". The Eagle said, " Good, then go ahead". The Kite said, " But you see this thread on my tail, it is controlled by the boy on the ground. He pulls me and keeps me in tension. I wish somebody could free me of this bondage". The Eagle said, " I can help you" and it cut off the thread with his talons. Without any restraining supports the kite started to flutter and started its downward descent. Finally it landed in to a quagmire and sinked slowly into it. The boy followed its descent and seeing its fate started crying.

The girl with the black bindi spoke, " The kite deserves its fate, such an arrogance".

Professor Bandopadhyay spoke softly, "Children, I encourage you all to dream high, become great achievers, I and your other teachers and parents will guide you and show you the way. But never consider our love as a bondage. It would really hurt us to see you come down. Our desire is to see you all succeed."

Salty water droplets blotted the text in Kishore's diary.

Bomma-rillu

Anwar was happy with the trip to the sea shore so far. There have already been two games of cricket, one ride of the horse-cart, an hour of floating in the shallow waters and of course Candy-floss, Buddhi-ke-baal as they called it.

Physically tired, but mentally pumped up, Anwar looked around to find an activity to expend his energy. He saw his ammi packing the bags. It will take atleast 30 mins to gather and pack, he thought to himself. He started playing with the sand, to find small crabs, and started digging. He got bored soon. He watched the mound that he had unearthed. Slowly he started giving shapes to the mound. Within 15 minutes, a small castle of dreams started to etch out in the sandy beach. His mother was also watching intently, admiring his passion and dedication for this activity. He went on to make detailed walls, doors and windows on to the castle. Oyster and Crab shells bedecked his castle, adding to the strength. Smack!!! landed the ball on to the tallest tower. The entire castle collapsed and the evening wind levelled the mound soon.

Ammi carried the sobbing Anwar on her shoulder, consoling him that when he grows up he can build a real castle.......

Simple Harmonic Motion

Kishore forgot that he has the next class on the 5th floor of his college, and he started running to the classroom. He glanced at his watch, and found that he was already late by 5 minutes. Kishore was really irritated with the course of things, nothing seems to go right at the moment. "Why is this happening with me", he was wondering.

He silently walked into the classroom and settled down at the last row. He watched the Blackboard, and found it cluttered with lot of trigonometric equations. Among the equations, he found the lesson topic for the day, "Simple Harmonic Motion (S.H.M)". After 40 minutes of fighting with equations and sin-cos functions, professor Bandopadhyay, started summarizing the lesson. Kishore woke up from his siesta, and tried to concentrate. Proffesor Bandopadhyay's lecture is generally boring, but the summary was usually good and concise.

Bandopadhyay spoke, "So, as you see, even though the motion of the pendulum seems to-and fro in a linear space, in reality, the to and fro motion is the projection of a point rotating on a circle with constant speed. In other words, even though the point is rotating in a circle with constant speed, if you view it from a particular point of view, the point is oscillating !! Amazing isnt it ?? "

The class dispersed, but Kishore was still there in the last row, scribbling his learnings into his diary.

Boomerang

It was a lazy sunday morning, and the clock was lazily pointing 5 minutes to 9.00 a.m. Most of the kids in P&T colony were still in dreams, except Raju who was ready, taken bath, had the breakfast and ready for his favourite sunday morning show, "Mowgli". This particular day they showed Mowgli discovering the boomerang and playing with it.

Curious with the boomerang, Raju tugged his father who was also watching the show.

Paapa, does this really work ?

Yes beta, specially they are used by people in Australia.

Can I make one ?

Why not, It works on simple principles of aerodynamics........ One minute, reduce the volume, the phone is ringing.

Who was it, Raju's mom asked ?

It was Manilal, he wanted some money to help with his son's engineering admission. How can I help him ? I have so much other expenses these days. My home loan EMI is Rs. 25,000.

Raju shouted, Paapa really will you make it in such a way that when we throw it, it will come back to us after some time ??

Humans.... Equals ?

The year is 3520 .......

The Earth is still ruled by apes. Those were the days when humans were the latest addition to the poultry animal lists, and human meat was a craze in the local restaurants.

Mutendu, decided that he will also try human flesh. So he went to Hotel Paradise for lunch, which claimed that the meat was fresh and any meal will be ready only after 2 hours (Still lot of human parts are considered venomous, specially the soft portions in the skull and ......). Mutendu reached at 10.30 am hoping to receive his lunch on time. The table attendant, asked him politely his order.

I would like to have a human. Please suggest me a good dish, Mutendu said quietly.

The waiter said, American: very large soft, indonesian: very tender, Try Indian Sir, it would be very spicy and enjoyable.

OK, bring me an Indian, Mutendu quipped.

The waiter enquired, Do you want north Indian Sir, or South Indian ?

Hmmm.... South sounds fine, Mutendu replied.

The waiter elaborated, In south Indian, you have Kannadiga, Tamil, Malayalee, Andhra types.

I think, I have heard about Andhra, bring that quickly please, Mutendu said, staring at the ticking watch.

Sir, In Andhra we have Coastal, Hyderabadi, Godavari and Guntur styles, the waiter listed out.

Mutendu had lost his patience, Bring a Damn human, you $%$$%........ I dont care what it is, I guess all are the same.......

Chicken Puff

The brahmin went with an empty stomach to the Silverline bakery opposite kundalahalli gate. He watched greedily at the delicacies on display, and ordered fresh samosas. He contemplated on the work he had done through the day and was grinning, thinking about his success.

Bhaiyya, give one chicken puff, the girl in a tight black jeans, blurted out. Her husband was standing calmly, one hand on her shoulder.

The Brahmin tried to ignore them, but still kept observing them from the corners of his eyes.

No darling, he will not eat. He will not like it, the husband said to her.

No yaar! He will like it, the taste of flesh will make him healthy, the girl muttered.

This sentence rang a bell in the brahmin's mind. Ghor Kaliyug, he exclaimed in his mind. Today's youth have such corrupted mind, and their minds are filled with filth. This young modern couple feel that their children at home will be healthy by eating chicken. The next 5 seconds, the brahmin prepared his speech that he was about to lash out on the young modern couple. He threw away his paper plate, picked up his bag, turned away from the couple and started towards the counter to pay up. I will teach them little dharma today, he was mumbling, trying to recollect all the relevant slokas.

As he turned back to the couple, he noticed that they have vanished. On the road, he saw a pale skinny dog enjoying a chicken puff. He went back to counter, and ordered, bhaiya give me a chicken puff.........

The Magical Expression

The year is 3020 .......

The Earth is now ruled by apes. The last families of humans were all bred in captivity. The Apes were perplexed by the strange behaviours of the humans and conducted lot of experiments on them. The biggest hindrance they faced was understanding the human language, which was pretty complex for them. Finally after lot of work, Rheamus, the Ape-scientist was able to map the human language with their language.

Rheamus ran towards the cage where he had a human family in captivity. When he reached there he saw that the guard was torturing the male with his magnetic stick. He observed the game for a while. Whenever the guard poked at the male, the human winced in pain. But whenever the female and the child cried, the male gave a strange expression. There was something magical in that expression. The female and the child would calm down on seeing this expression. Rheamus had not mapped this expression till now. Curious, now he summoned the guard to stop his game and push the male to his examination. Once again, the female raised her voice, causing the male to give the same expression again.

Rheamus asked in the new language he had decoded: Human, what is this expression that you give to your loved ones ?

Human: It is man's greatest gift. It is the only thing that saves us from the hard life on earth. In our language we call it Smile.

The Chaukidaar

Once again, a relevant tale adapted from Vikram Betal.....

Sharan was the Chaukidaar in the patrol post in the outermost frontier of the country. There was hardly any activity in those high mountain ranges. Occasionally cries of migrational birds disturbed Sharan's sleep which was his favourite hobby.

During one of his siesta's Sharan saw a dream that the frontier was in heavy attack. The enemy across the border had sent a huge army, with the latest MIG's to cover the infantry. The border was too unprotected to handle such a heavy attack from the enemy. He woke up with a start. He checked his watch. It was 4.00 a.m. He ran to the watch tower and picked up his binoculars. No one around. But the dream haunted Sharan throughout the day. It made his restless. He thought of what his mother told him once. That dreams early morning are bound to get true.

He reported his dreams to the regional base post and the news spread to the center. The government launched spy drones in the area to track the movements of the enemy. The reports were really shocking. The drones reported heavy enemy movement near the border. A high alert was sounded and war preparations were in full swing. Meanwhile, Sharan was summoned to meet the Commander-in-Chief.

Commander-in-Chief: How did you come to know of the development ?

Sharan: I dreamt of it.

Commander-in-Chief: Good. You are awarded with Rs 5,00,000. Your information helped to avert a major danger to the country. Today we are prepared in advance to face their attack.

Sharan: Thank you Sir.

Commander-in-Chief: OK. The reward will be sent to your village in Hajipur.

Sharan: Hajipur ?

Commander-in-Chief: Yes, You are dismissed from Indian Armed forces from this very minute.

The boy with the shiny eyes

She noticed the stare the first day she entered silently in the class. The stare was strong and directed at her bindi, for some reason. She is used to boys staring her, she knew she was beautiful; but this was different, she felt a ting of uncomfort, like never before. There was a strange but beautiful shine in those eyes. However she was ignored it for the moment. Silently she occupied the desk along with the bottled-glassed girl. As the semester progressed, the number of students in the lecture hall dwindled. Only she and the boy with the shiny eyes remained in the lecture. They used to discuss the subjects and exchange notes and of course some smiles.....

The semester end was really painful for her, because that meant that she cannot see him for 2 months. She had a shared auto with other girls to her hostel, so she couldnt wait for him and see him. On the final day of the exams she waited alone at the college gate. She waited till all he students had left, but couldnt find him. Dejected she went back to hostel and next day early morning she caught the train to Haridwar. When she reached home, a bitter surprise awaited her. Her father had arranged her education in a college close to her home and she was to attend that from the next semester. All formalities were complete. Painfully she attended that college from the next semester.

She never saw him for a long time, but whenever she saw her brother play with shiny little marbles, her mind went back to the memories of the boy with the shiny eyes.

The girl with the black bindi

A silent shadow entered through the door, so silent that almost no one noticed her entering the classroom, except Rohan. He eyed her through the corner of his eyes, observing her black bindi very carefully. Never seen her before. She seemed to be surrounded by a cloud of calmness. Silently she occupied the desk along with the bottled-glassed girl. As the semester progressed, the number of students in the lecture hall dwindled. Only Rohan and the girl with the black bindi remained in the lecture. They used to discuss the subjects and exchange notes and of course some smiles.....

The semester end was really painful for Rohan, because that meant that he cannot see her for 2 months. He searched her after the exams but couldn't find her. It only added to his pain. At last all the exams were done, but still he couldn't meet her. Painfully he went back home. He spent 2 months of vacation thinking about her. With lot of resolve he decided that when he meets her next time he will propose her. On the first day of the new semester he reached to college by 6.00 am. She didn't come. He waited another day. She didn't come. He enquired at the office. They told that she has left the institute.

He never saw her for a long time, but whenever he saw a small black spot, only one thing came to his mind, the girl with the black bindi.

New Shoots

Continued from "Flowers by the Window" posted on January 31, 2010.

It was true that Manoj spent a few sleepless nights thinking about the colours that he missed, but life did not allow him to think too much. Office work and other issues made him aloof of the things he lost. But yeah, there were moments of isolation when he closed his eyes and found darkness and when he opened his eyes, he found darkness again. On such days he would go to the window and caress the wilted flowers which have turned from pale red to pale white, almost translucent in the bright March sun. And slowly they peeled away, petal by petal leaving a skeleton behind. A memorial of the colourful days. Manoj stopped visiting his window.

It was time for the monthly cleaning. Manoj pulled down all the curtains and opened the window panes for cleaning. It was then that he spotted it. New shoots coming out

Fresh life was starting, without him realizing it. It was small and tender, but held lot of promise. And it was heading straight for his window! He was lost there dreaming in the bright Sun, woken up by the cries of his room-mate. "What happened" Manoj asked ? "My girlfriend and me had a bad fight and we broke off. We decided we will part ways and never meet each other again".

Dont Worry, Manoj said, "Very soon new shoots will spring up".

Birthday Cake

It was his Birthday. The entire day was spent in receiving greetings through phone and e-mails. All the care and attention made him happy, and he wore a smile through the day.

In the evening, his friends brought him the birthday cake. It was a wonderful one. It was round, and had three layers of vanilla, pineapple and chocolate. And the icing was a crest sputtered with dry fruits. And finally it was topped with cherries. Truly tempting. He couldn't wait to cut the cake and have a taste of it. So, finally after the clapping and song of Happy Birthday started, he picked up the knife and sliced the cake through the center making a nice piece for himself. Somebody picked up the piece and was about to push it through his mouth, when a bell rang in his mind. Today was a friday. He never ate non-neg on fridays. He is a murderer all other days, but turns to a saint on friday. He pushed his friends hand and excused himself. Why?? His friend asked. As a rule I don't eat non-veg including eggs on friday, he said. Very well, bad luck....his friend said, and all the others helped themselves on the cake, as he watched it from the corner of his eyes. After 5 minutes, there were only crumbs remaining and they all cleared the place.

Before going to sleep, he wondered, that was no bad luck, why have I imposed such rules upon me ?

The Death Overs !

It was the last four overs, the "Death overs" as the commentators call it. Sachin looked around the field, the field was spread around. Most of them were at the boundary ropes. Its time to take some risks, he thought in his mind.

The next ball was aimed at the middle stump. Sachin carved the ball out and pushed it towards mid-on. The ball ran quickly in the turf of the Brabourne stadium towards Kaif, who was at the edge of the boundary rope. He ran quickly towards the ball. Sachin called for two, and ran the first run hard. He pushed the non-striker Pollard for the second run and started off for the second run. But there was a loud no from Pollard. Sachin applied his brakes, turned back quickly and stretched the bat just in time to avoid being run-out.

He walked over to Pollard for a chat.

We could have taken that risk for a single. The asking rate is climbing. Things are getting difficult, said Sachin.

No said Pollard, in such a difficult situation, you cannot afford to be run-out. You have to be there to take risks with the boundaries and sixes. You must take the team home. I could not have risked you for a single run. You are worth more than that. No war can be won, if the soldiers are dead.

Pollard walked back to the crease and took his guard to face the next delivery. Sachin was at the non-striker, thinking if he had just learnt a gem......

Bill Payments

It was another argument that Raghu had with his father..... This doesnt work in today's world Dad ! Raghu exclaimed.

It does, beta. Sooner or later, you will understand it.

No Dad. My friend Vishal, he doesnt do his assignments on his own. He and a bunch of friends freak out most of the time and then when it comes to submission time, they gather answers from seniors notes. They mug those ready-made thinngs. Other guys are not as smart as Vishal so they scrape through the exams. But look at Vishal, he is now the Topper in the class. Does he have any standard ?

You said it my son! He doesnt have a standard. Sooner or later, people will realize his standard.

But by that time, everything will be over. I will be out of college, in a new institution, with a new Raghu as my class-mate.

Son, everyone has to pay up for their actions. If you see someone getting away with something that means he will have to pay up for it soon. If you feel you are paying up for something, then you will get the return for it. It is the simple economics of life.

Dad, such dialogues are only good in Ramayan and MahaBharat. Please stop this discussion and come with me. I need a mobile connection. It is time for you to pay up. Raghu Grinned.....

They went to the Vodafone showroom. Raghu said that he wanted a new connection. The shop-keeper asked, "Do you need Post-Paid or Pre-Paid" ??

Raghu's father couldnt help smiling as Raghu turned Red at his face.

Song of Hope.....

It was a dark morning by the godavari river. The sun was yet to rise. The stony silence was punctured by the gurgling noise of the mighty river. Ravi was waiting there at the banks. Lonely and lost. He had been stuck like this few other times before in his life. But this was really dark. He looked around. There was no silver lining visible as they preach in fables.

Suddenly a cool song flowed across. He wondered if he is hallucinating. It came again, this time closer, the song and the mysterious singer was approaching him. Then suddenly, the song started moving away. Ravi became alert, he started running on his tired limbs. The harder he tried, the faster the song was moving from him. He ran blindly in the dark, unheeding the scratches made by the shrubs and the thorns that pierced through his shoes.

Finally, it came into view, a village boy on his tiny cycle, with a transistor hanging on the cycle-bar. Suddenly he became aware of his surroundings. The sun had risen, and smiled over the grassy meadows. He was standing on a Highway. The village bus announced its arrival by letting out a loud horn. He wondered, where will this take me ??

Instrumental tendencies

Flute: I am very sweet to the ears, I am associated with lord krishna and have been the world's favourite for centuries.

Drum: I am very energetic, I am associated with all social events, and I can make people dance to my tunes.

Flute: But you are so loud and disturbing in nature. There are phrases used like " beating your own drum"

Drum: Dont be jealous, nobody listens to you. You are best at being a background music! You are good for lullabies because you put people to sleep.

Flute: Yeah! And you disturb sleeping people! You are always one dimensional. Just bang bang bang bang. I can bring out all emotions like love, sadness and I can be playful too. Your very nature is to be beaten, whic reflects your violent tendencies.

Drum: Oh Yeah! You just want wait and see. All your sweet melody will be drowned in the bang that I make. Nobody will listen to you. So you Lose! Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum ............. Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum.

Daag achhe nahi hote !!

Peeyush tried to tip-toe into his house. He tried to peep, if his mother is around. Sensing the silence in the house, he ran to the bathroom. Quickly he started to remove his clothes. Alas, mother caught him.

Peeeeeeyush !!! What are you upto ?? She Shrieked. Some of the glasses in the kitchen trembled. Show me what you are hiding.

Trembling, Peeyush handed over his shirt to mother.

She took it and glanced it in horror. Cow dung !!! How on earth, did you manage this ??

Hmm..... We were playing by the road, he said in a feeble voice.

With Cowdung ?? Mother asked.

Actually, there was no need, to get into this. We were playing by the road. There was cowdung lying by the side of the road. I dont know what got into me. I took a big stone and threw it on the cowdung. Then it splashed all over me !

Mother said, I hope it served you a good lesson. Beta, daag achhe nahi hote !

The Telescope

Mohit was a star-gazer. He spent most of nights alone, with his telescope watching the sky for stars. He found that the sky was the most reliable thing in life. The motion of the stars in the night sky followed a definite pattern. They never cheated him. Whenever he felt disturbed, he used to spend more time on his telescope, it brought great peace to him.

Then one night it happened, he saw a special star in the sky. It was brilliant! He checked all the maps that he had. None of them reported a star in that position. It was radiant, changing colors from deep red to orange. He was amazingly happy, he thought that this star was born only for him to see. He watched it for hours, the star draped itself with all the colors that he had known to exist. Is it a dream, he wondered, or is it ??? His heart skipped a beat. With hands full of fear, he moved his eyes from the eyepiece and moved towards the far end of the telescope. There he saw it. A small glistening piece of sparkle, that has flown in by air and settled on the lens of his telescope. He tore his hair, and in the next minute, smashed the telescope into pieces.

Several light years away, a nebula gave birth to a star. Only if Rohit had his telescope, he could have watched it ........

Train.....Train............

Gabriel got up with a start. He looked around, the first rays of the sunlight were pouring in from his windows. He searched frantically for his wristwatch. He found it under the pile of clothes in the corner. Oh God !!! Its 6.55 !!! The Train was scheduled at 7.30 fr0m Bangalore Central station. He ran to the bathroom, washed his eyes with the icy water, gargled loudly and contained the instinct to attend nature's call. He thanked himself for keeping his clothes ready and the bag packed. He jumped into his clothes and picked his travel bag. He glanced at his watch, it was already 7.10.
As the second hand ticked by, his legs cut through the cold stagnant morning air. Finally he reached the road, and caught an Auto. There are 15 more minutes, you will get there, he convinced himself. The roads were empty and a feeling of achievement started to flow through his veins. He checked his bag, he confirmed the ticket in the left pocket, his ID proof in his pocket. He felt satisfied. I have done this so many times, the Train will wait for me, he smiled confidently. He glanced towards his watch, 2 more minutes. It seemed as if time had jumped. It cant be..... I have booked a ticket, the Train cannot leave without me, he thought confidently. He got down from the Auto, paid him the fare and made a dash for the platform, the Train has to wait for me, he was now begging in his mind. He saw the Train standing in platform number 16. He ran up the stairs, the train hidden by the bridge. The Train announced its departure by letting out a loud horn, that boomed through the railway station. Nooo.... the Train cannot leave without me, he cried, I have booked a ticket long back. He ran, still hoping that he will be able to catch it, he ran, pushing others in his way. Finally the Train came to his view, it had gathered speed, pacing away from the railway station. Nooo!!!! he cried aloud, but he was helpless, he clutched the ticket, realizing that he had lost his chance, the Train has left!

He looked up at the heavens, a large cloud that covered the morning sun moved away, blinding his eyes....

Flowers by the Window

Manoj shifted to his new apartment in July. July is the month of rains, when the heavens open up to spray the thirsty earth with cool showers. The month is enjoyed by nature and humans alike. Tender new shoots sprout from the earth, hoping to grow tall and reach the sun. The Bogan-villa that grew outside Manoj's apartment aspired to grow taller and steadily moved towards Manoj's window that was on the first floor. Every morning Manoj would wake up by watching the warm sun that beamed through his window, unaware of the growth below his window. By September, the Bogan-villa started touching the frills of the windows, and come December they danced on Manoj's fingers when he drank hot tea on cold mornings. They bloomed magnificantly in the mornings when Manoj came to dry his clothes by the window. Manoj was careful of the small thorns that the plant carried and hardly noticed their beauty.

With January, the flowers started to become pale with the cold weather, and that is when Manoj realized the missing colours.

Ustaad

Note: I have read this story in my 12th standard English textbook. Narrating it here again.....

Subhan-allah...... Akbar said after listening to the latest composition by Tansen. Allah has given you a great voice Tansen.
Sukriyaah.... Aalam-panaah.
Who is your Ustaad, Tansen.....I am eager to meet him. Please arrange for him to meet me.
Gustaaki maaf ho Aalam-panaah, he lives in the high ranges of the himalyas..... he does not go anywhere, we have to travel to him.
So be it, I want to meet him and listen to him, Akbar said.
Jo Hukumm.....
So they travelled up the high ranges and across the difficult terrain, and after 2 weeks of travelling they reached the foot-steps of the cave where the Ustaad resided.
Aalam-panaah, its close to dawn, we can listen him in his morning saadhana....
And then the raaga started to flow, Akbar stood there stunned by the depth of the raaga that flowed and echoed through the mountains.... Eyes moist with the heart-touching music that flowed from Ustaad's throat.
Subhan-allah.... your Ustaad is amazing, he sings 100 times better than you, why cant you sing like that ???
Tansen bowed his head and said, Aalam-panaah, I sing for you........, My Ustaad sings for HIM.....

Atomic Theory (Chapter One- The Basics)

So, You have interview in Atomic center for inventory management and since you are so expert in that, but have no understanding of Atomic reactions, you want to learn some basics. Right??? Shyam said to Mujahid in the empty first class compartment of the Mumbai local.
Yes, Mujahid nodded.
So shall i start with nuclear fission?
Mujahid's blank face was not encouraging. Start with something very basic, he said.
How about the periodic table??
Mujahid scratched his beard.....
OK, say we start with the atom, thats where all things start, OK ? Shyam said.
OK!!
See the atom has some positive parts, called protons, some negative parts called electrons and some neutral parts called neutrons. Understood so far ?
That was easy, Mujahid nodded.
Ok, Great! So, when God made the atom, he made the positive and negative in equal number, so the atom is always stable. Not only that, the protons and neutrons are very much central to the atom. The electons that are negative are external to the core and they revolve around the core.
Wow, Interesting! Mujahid Exclaimed. Listen, my station has come, and i need to get down, explain me more tomorrow.
Sure, Shyam said.
By the way, next time, dont blame me for my negative actions Shyam, those are my electrons in action, Mujahid grinned and jumped of the train.
Phew! Has he understood correctly? Shyam wondered, now alone in the train.

Eclipse.c

Are done with programming my lord ??
Hmm, I dont think, I can stop this. Working on a small piece of code....... God smiled,
*----------------------------------------------------*
* File Name: Eclipse.c *
* Copyright (c) God Corp. AD and BC *
* All Rights Reserved *
*-----------------------------------------------------*
#include
main {}
{
Recurrence = My Wish ! God: I will update later
for {i , 0: Recurrence, i++};
if { Moon = In Between Sun & Earth}; ! God: Loop Body
Darkness;
End;
End;
}
*---------------- End Of Code -------------------*

My Lord, Why is that you are playing with planets ?? Why in broad daylight, you want your children to see darkness ?
God smiled as usual and spoke, Darkness, is momentary, it doesnt mean that the sun is not there. In broad day-light the eclipse will evoke the dark behaviors only to be exposed to the sunlight minutes later.

The Safety Net

Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ......
The noise was deafening in the market place, so loud that the housewives gathered to buy vegetables had to shout, and beans were interchanged with Spinach and Brinjals were exchanged with Green chillies...
Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ...... Dum dum dum ......
But the boy didnt heed the noise, all he could see is the pole at the other end, his body balanced perfectly on the rope tied between the poles. With full concentration he took one step at a time moving slowly towards the pole at the other end. Sweat flowed down his brow. When he finally reached the other end, he bowed before the crowd and jumped down to the ground to collect the coins offered by the crowd.
Somewhere far away, in an indoor auditorium, the chant grew louder, Hip Hip Hurray... Hip Hip Hurray... Hip Hip Hurray, Come on Rahul you can do it...Everyone shouted, including Rahul's parents and his school teachers.
Rahul stood and waved his hand to the audience, and they cheered him more. He started his walk to the other pole, with confidence. He took a momentary glance downwards, then back straight ahead. He had a smile on his face, because he knew, there was a Safety Net below.

Hereditery Reflections

Note: This Story is adapted from " Vikram Betal" collection. If the story resembles to anyone dead or alive, it is purely coincidental !

Raja Veermani of Kalinga was deeply in love with Neelakamalakshi the princess of Barcapur, despite the strained relations between the two states. One day Raja Veermani slipped anonymously into Barcapur and managed to release Neelakamalakshi who was under house imprisonment. On their way they had to pass through the deep woods and the mighty Mahanadi river. The horse used by Raja Veeramani was tired and as soon as they neared a village he decided to exchange it with a fresh one.

Your Majesty, there are only two horses available, the stable-person said. The young one you can exchange for free, whereas the older one, you have to pay 20 gold coins extra.

Raja Veermani, a avid student of economics was surprised at the strange pricing strategy and hence asked the stable-person to explain this. The stable-person replied, Your Majesty, the younger one will not cross the river, it is afraid, so you will have to take a longer route that will lead you to a bridge. The younger one's mother was afraid of water, hence this horse is also afraid of water too.

Raja Veermani pondered over this reply for a moment, and then bought the older horse. He took the route back to Neelakamalakshi's palace and dropped her there. They never met again.

The Railway Track

Biju was playing in the field along with his pet Baalu, the buffalo. Baalu kept running, and Biju was persistent with his chase. Slowly Baalu moved towards the railway tracks that marked the boundaries of the land owned by Biju's father. Baalu seemed to have tripped on the loose gravel on the railway tracks and finally Biju caught him. Both of them sat at the steel track huffing and puffing from the game. Biju gazed far ahead along the railway track. The hot sun seemed to create a miracle. Biju rubbed his eyes. Paa, he called aloud.

His Father was close by and came next to him. See Paa, the railway tracks meet each other far far away. Paa smiled silently, and answered, No my son, the railway tracks do not meet each other. They travel miles and miles together, perfectly parallel to each other. Like the two banks of a river, like north and south pole of a magnet, they never meet each other.