Old people invariably feel that they are smart in talking. I’m genuinely smart in many aspects and talking is only one of my many attributes!
An youngster of the family, while preparing coffee this morning for him, asked me:
‘Appu mama, why not a half cup for you? Strong coffee . Your second dose!’
I never say no to any inspiration boosters and replied : why not? Make it a full tumbler. You know, I never go for anything half or a quarter?’
‘ You’re a complete man’, he complemented
Yes, I’m!
The coffee was really strong and tasty. ‘Coffee should be coffee, women should be women!’
‘You bring women always in your talks ,’ he said when I turned to his wife and told her :
‘Now I know for sure why you, with your charming face and sweet voice selected my nephew as your life partner!! Didn’t you, in your first meeting, ask him to prepare coffee and he obeyed instantly ?’
The boy’s mother leaped from nowhere dragged him to a corner and admonished ; ‘you prepared and served coffee to your would be wife, even before the wedding was finalized by us ? ‘
‘No Amma, how could I ? Did you send me alone to see the girl ? All my half a dozen sisters, cousins, a dozen of them , were with me when we went to meet the girl . And you were the head if the group! How could I have , before the watchful eyes of you all, obliged her?’
‘Don’t say obliged . Say obeyed . You became her slave on your very first meet. Appu mama never tell lies . I know him’
The old lady, praised my trustworthiness for the first time !
‘Mom, Appu ( I won’t call him ‘mama ‘ now ) was not even present on the occasion and you know that! What he said now was not based on facts but on his fancy imagination. And you also know that he is good in that’
Now the good lady started suspecting whether I lied for the first time in my life. She looked at my innocent face and vibhoothi -coated forehead and confirmed to her son ‘ no, he is a ‘yogyan ‘ a decent man ‘
‘Paramayogyan’, chuckled her son .
Anyway the lunch served by her daughter in law , had the taste of my compliments to her in the morning! It was fantastic!
But, next morning when my nephew was preparing coffee for him, he didn’t enquire whether I would like to have a second dose !