My son, Pachu hadn’t been back from school for over 15 minutes, which was very unlike him and I was worried. Just as I decided to go out and see if I could figure out the reason for this, he came running towards the gates of our compound and seemed relieved to see me. He had a slightly scraped elbow and his bag looked dirty. He looked as if he had cried sometime back on the way but was acting brave for his mom. Worried, I bent down to hug him. “Can I take biscuits for the dog?” he said against my chest.

Although I was worried about the cause of the scraped elbow, I couldn’t help but laugh at this un-timely request. You see, everyone in my family knows that my sweet kid doesn’t like dogs. I took him in the house and told him that I would give the food for the dog after he would tell me what had happened.

I studied her as she waved goodbye. She was standing on the couch so he could get a better view of her through the glass pane. Her protruding belly, almost touching the window.

After a huge grin, there was a sense of relief on her face. I found it strange. Why was she alleviated to see her husband go to work? The relief turned to a pleasant smile as she left the window to get to her unending chores. She saw me looking at her with questions in my eyes and asked "What are you wondering" If I understand properly, there was a slight tension on her face before the relief, so yes, it was relief. But why the tension?

I am the vehicle of the poor and the vacationing comfort of the rich. Amusingly, I didn't fall in either of the categories. I landed on the soft feet of a very gentle and wise man. He used me with care inside the house. His wife was a neat freak and didn't allow me outside the house, ever. Their house was my whole world, I don't know what the outside held for me but I wanted to feel the tickle of the green grass, the cold of the asphalt or so many textures and feelings that I didn't even know existed. Other than this complaint, life was comfortable. He used me with care. I was the first thing he looked for after coming home. He had many shoes and boots for outside wear but I was the only one he wore indoors.