The Crooked Tree

There are few aspects of childhood that zooms you back light years; like you are on Alladin’s flying carpet. One such aspect is Comics. Storybooks. Nothing excited us more than picking up the latest Amar Chitra Katha from the book stands. Most children of the time gone, had two definite must-own things. One comic. The other is LEGO building blocks or a toy train that went round and round on tracks joint together.

Comics Mafia

Anna would buy us 3 kids one story book or a comic each of our choice. We would hold them like mini life boats in deep sea, clutching it to our bosoms. When we reached home Anna would sit in his cane arm chair and like Mafia, he would demand us to deposit the comics to him and chase us to go and study. This even during vacations! Whoever studies during vacations?! After a while you can see Anna reading the story books with a child like glee!

The Marketeer

You, like us must have made your own little library of all the storybooks you owned. We had a humongous collection of comics. My younger sibling Ramachandra, had them all bound in two sets. One set was of Amar Chitra Katha (ACK). Other was Phantom and Mandrake and few other comics. The marketing streak was in him! The ACK was lent out to friends to read for Rs. 2/- a day and the Phantom bundle was for Re.1/- a day. Ram was all of 7 years something!

Today, enhanced with his gift of the gab, a Mechanical Engineer with feathers of marketing skills and an IIM swaying proud in his cap, Ram reigns the automobile-globe from Chennai.

A Story for tonight

I was delighted when I came across this book which had most of the ACK stories, in Srinath’s library. I must tell you that I was killed for choice while choosing the story to narrate to you. Allow yourself to go back to your childhood’s forgotten story-time. I am sure you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed sharing it here. Here goes…

SONS-IN-LAW

One day while hunting in the forest, Emperor Akbar saw a tree that was particularly crooked. He stood looking at it for a while and asked Birbal, “Why is that tree crooked”?

“That tree my King, is the son-in-law of all the trees in the forest,” Birbal replied.

“How do you know?” Akbar asked.

“Because of the saying Jahanpanah, ‘a dog’s tail and a son-in-law are always crooked.’”

“Does this mean that my son-in-law is also crooked?” Akbar roared.

“Of course,” Birbal replied.

“Then have him executed,” Akbar ordered.

A few days later Birbal requested Akbar to come to the square where the execution takes place. Akbar saw that there were three crosses erected there- gold, silver and iron.

“Who are those for?” Akbar enquired.

Birbal explained to Akbar. “The gold is for you. The silver is for your son-in-law and the iron cross is for me.”

“Why are you and I to be executed along with my son-in-law?” Akbar was perplexed.

Birbal continued, “Because you are a son-in-law to your father-in-law and I too, am a son-in-law.”

Akbar laughed heartily and ordered to let go his son-in-law.

This is such a simple story. It takes me to something similar… to a Whats App post I received in the school girls’ group. It says,

‘Being aware of a single shortcoming within yourself is far more useful than being aware of a thousand in someone else.’

My take is that, all of us are like that crooked tree; crookedly built-body and mind. It is this acceptance that makes people continue to be in our life and make our living more worthwhile, in their own way. What’s your take? I would love to know.