A day after Diwali, the roads were uncharacteristically empty and the buses were running free. That of course did not mean a respite from office with its share of deadlines. By the time I had clocked in close to 11 hours, it was almost 7 pm, and I was ravenous. After quickly getting a take-away (a very spicy Frankie), I was walking towards my bus stand, when the title of the post happened.
A stray dog was greeting almost everyone coming to the bus
stand enthusiastically. Tail wagging, eyes shining and tongue hanging, he came and
welcomed me by trying to lick my hand. For once (in my life),
I wasn’t scared, and sat down to pat him. He was wagging furiously and looking
hopeful. It then struck me that he might be hungry. I thought about the
packed Frankie, wondered if all the extra chillies would benefit him, and told
him sorrowfully, “Unnum ille da enn kitte”*. He immediately ran to the next guy
and started giving him the look.
Well, that was mortifying. There were two practical things I could do:
Give him the Frankie, which was sure to cause him some harm, or ignore and catch a bus. So, I did neither, walked about half a kilometre to a
local paav waala and got a pav. I had
worn my only dressy-pointy heels that day, and my feet were killing me. I
drudged on, waiting to see his look of happiness (Ya, I am very selfless like
that).When I finally reached the bus stop, it was close to 8 pm, and he was nowhere to be seen. I waited for about 15 minutes, and then walked around to see if I could spot him (at one point, even trying to closely inspect an overturned garbage can). By 8.30 pm, I was ready to accept that I had made a fool of myself and caught the next bus home.
At home, of course, I told my mom that I had a lot of work in office.
PS: Do dogs like Paav? It is the second time a dog has
rejected my humble offerings
*I have nothing to give.
6 comments:
aww! did a bit of googling now da. Apparently paav is not a good idea for the dogs, biscuits should do the trick next time around :)
Ya - got a packet of parle-g yesterday. It is totally irrelevant that I have finished almost half of it today.
Hahaha! Your concern for state animal welfare is overwhelming :P
And the dog also seems to understand Tamil. Shiva Se-Nai yaa irikkumo?
Your footnote should be your title (*I have nothing to give). The dog apparently realised so much and left :-). But I have to say - Not in a million light years would I (or anyone I know) go to such lengths to feed a dog.. er... Canine... That makes you very special.... I am sure the dog will see the "Human" side of it one day :)
:) No it doesnt make me special Kunal! I am sure everyone would have got the message and moved on. I am not sure what possessed me to be so thick!!
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