Return of ‘Prodigals’

Sushma Gupta returned today – after leaving her grandchild with its parents in the US. Razia Khan too is back, along with Nafisa Syed (of course). Razia promises to henceforth be more regular and would take no further liberties on her daily appointment with the Club.
Renu Babani is also back, after what seems to be an eternity. And surprise of surprises, she treated us to a boxful of toffees to announce her return. It seems she wants to put her conscience at rest for oversleeping all these days. So when she woke up this morning, raring to go, hubby Kishor was the first to be taken unawares. It was extremely nice of the couple (above) to celebrate the event with sweets.
For Yusuf Rassiwala though, the surprise treat was a wonderful way to not just start the day, but celebrate Dussehra as well. Some members however, joked that this was a self-inflicted penalty for absenteeism and must be taken as a precedent so that others would emulate their example. The more mischievous in the group kept wishing that Renu does the disappearing act once again and comes back with yet another box of toffees!
Jokes apart, a strange pattern seems to be emerging about attendance in the Club. Every time a set of old faces resurfaces, another lot would go underground. Today, regulars like Srichand Arora, Nahid Khan, Ramila Mistry and Dilip Babani, among others were not to be seen – almost as though one lot was afraid of confronting the other. Or maybe, this is mere coincidence. Only time will tell.

Renu Babani says:
Yes, no doubt, surprise of all surprises! Seems like many members have been absent, and the old adage definitely makes sense: 'When the cat's away, the mice will play' (thus pertaining to Mr Shekawat). Hopefully, everyone will start attending the morning sessions and let us challenge ourselves into seeing who becomes a regular from the absentees. Today was amusing and nothing like a bit of humour in the morning. The best laughter is being able to laugh at oneself!
--Renu