Billy the Kid

Imagine this: A group of kids playing outdoors. One of them feels hungry, runs to her mother, and says, “ Mummy, I am hungry. ” The doting mom, showing a victory sign with two fingers, says “ Two minutes ”. Eagerly the kids wait for the two minutes to get over, wondering what is in store. The excited kids frolic, playfully steal from each other, slurping down the last bit. This image stayed with my cousins and me when we watched it on a Black and White Television. The cost of one packet would be that of about half a litre of milk, so it was a " TREAT " that one could indulge in only on special occasions. Having no access to such privilege, we had to wait a long time before we could get our hands on it. A few summers ago, my older cousins who were permitted to use the gas stove volunteered to help. The first step was to read the instructions carefully and follow it to the T. We did exactly that, or so we believed. We anxiously saw it being cooked, waiting to grab our portio

Thanks to the lockdown, to break monotony Ved, Vaishali and I decided to celebrate Diwali and Christmas. This not only gave us a much needed reprieve but also helped us learn more about the festivals. Being the LMS* that I am, it wasn't until December 23rd that I brought the Christmas Tree and some decorations. The advantage of being an LMS is that you spend less time than needed on " aur dikhaoo, aur dikhaoo " (show me more).  LMS = Last Minute Shopper 😅 Beaming with pride on my achievement, I walked into a barrage of questions. " Where is the Candy Cane? Where is the Angel? Where is the Mistletoe? " " What are you talking about? I got the tree and the ornaments " I blurted. It was then that I realised that there are so many elements that goes into decorating the Christmas Tree. Sheepishly I had to concede defeat and promise to take them shopping for the many missing items. After the second run at shopping (this time at leisure), it was good to see t