Childhood Revisited

More than torrential rains, the musical programme organized last evening at the adjacent garden had taken a toll on attendance at the Club. The ladies, it seems, had a gala time, dancing non-stop to the live orchestra played at the Saawan Ke Geet function. Little wonder they were in no position to move their tired feet this morning.
When we assembled today, we were just four – all men. Shekhawat announced that for the first time the Club was witnessing a complete absence of females, when in walked Neelam Garg. Mumtaz followed, then Kiran Sajjan, then Nahi Khan. And then the gossip mills began to move.
The subject today was a certain gentleman who was seen appropriating the pakoras served at last evening’s show and packing them carefully to take home. Apparently, he was caught in the act earlier also, at Sitaram’s daughter’s wedding. Shekhawat reported a similar incident at some picnic resort. Before any more of such embarrassing details could come up, Nahi Khan tried to diffuse the issue by pointing out that many others were equally guilty of ‘stealing pakoras’. Why pick on one person, she asked. That was enough for (at least) the men to clam up.
How cold, soggy pakoras (served in the rains) can engage the attention of an otherwise sagacious and worldly-wise group of adults speaks volumes about our mental maturity. Indeed, we are revisiting our childhood.
--Big Laaf