It all happened yesterday when I returned to N.Del after enjoying a quick vacay at my hometown, C’garh. A dear friend of mine insisted on taking me to savor some Butterscotch milk at the city’s oldest and most popular haunt for flavored milks, Caventers. Knowing how I am new to this place and yet to build any affinity for the city, he thought may be Caventers would do the trick!

Soon I was treated to a bulky bottle of light yellow that contained more ice crystals than what was promised, milk! As I thoughtfully sipped the same, I noticed my dear friend, busy combing the Caventers’ vicinities for some more affinity-building gestures. The bottle, inconveniently big, both for my hands and face, probably hid my smile but certainly did not succeed in block my gaze that suddenly fell at the poor child who stood in front of me, a few inches away, in his effort to not make his adversities look so obvious!

Can’t say if he was dark or in desperate need of a shower, the divine law ensured that the innocence in the eyes of a 4 yr old remained just the same, be it the poor or the rich! He stood pondering, walking his index finger inside his mouth, probably the only taste he had felt since the break of the dawn.

In all the deprivation that one would observe without any efforts, I searched for some hues of happiness that must be brightening his world too. Sure enough, the soft sound emanating from his anklets that every mother would love to adorn her child with, along with his big tummy that made up for the absence of a dholak, as n when he wanted to entertain himself, made him resemble the child god, Ganesha. Of course, one would require a discerning eye for savoring such resemblance for the obvious elements of prosperity were miles away from his appearance. His persistent self stood hopeful, at a comfortable distance, perhaps, sensing my discomfort with the bottle by now.

Falling for this sight, I was determined to add my own stroke to this near finished painting that quietly radiated divine resemblance. Humming a song to myself, I poured the milk into a plastic cup and gently handed it over to the cherub in question. His eyes held the glass even more gently, but definitely after a quick glance of disbelief at me...! I saw his small hands firmly cupped around the plastic, careful enough not to crush it at the same time. I waited for his twinkling eyes to look at me again, smile may be…but his eyes were only dipped in the plastic! I waited for him to finish, without the slightest bit of hurry in my gait; after all, he was only a child! He finally tilted the glass and his head, for the want of the last sip.....finally obliging me with a smile! Soon, I made another round of plastic land in his hands, they were, ‘expert’ by now!

P.S. Caventers, less ice pls!