She sighs, tired from a long day, and sits down to scribble a few lines in to her journal.
She rarely does that. Something really profound must have happened.
May 2nd 2012,
My cousin and his kids came home from the U.S. of A last week. I ve been spending a lot of time with them.
Cute kids, they have a lot of energy,so many stories to share, it is so much fun being around them.. Well the younger one is a peach, the kid is in that place where they learn to talk, precious right?!
Had a really long day. But one incident just baffled me.
My nephew was filling his 'Ben 10' fanny pack with wrappers from all the chocolates and ice creams he had. It was so full he started holding them in his tiny fists and washaving difficulty holding the other things.
So my cousin says 'Why aren't you throwing all the trash away?? Why are you collecting everything?'
The kid complained, 'I couldn't find a trash can dad!'
For which he got a reply, 'No no, you need not search for a trash can , you can throw the wrappers here or for that matter anywhere!'
The kid obliged. What else would he do? He is four!!
Well thank god there was someone who cleaned up right behind him.
I grew up with 2 siblings who did not give any thought before throwing juice boxes, wrappers or cartons right in the middle of the road for 22 years. I even got into a huge fight with my brother over a Frooti bottle and didn't talk to him for hours and got into trouble with my parents for being arrogant, obnoxious and some other things I shouldn't even reveal here <Well, sounds stupid now I guess>. And today, this happens!!
Well I guess you tell and tell, but you only end up being such a bore to your own cousins and nothing ever changes!!
August 16th 2012,
It is one month since Tinku returned to India after her long trip from the U.S. of A, and I couldn't help but notice that she is being really clean about everything around her, conspicuously putting every juice box every small wrapper nowhere but in the nearest trash can.
I was very intrigued and grilled her for the reason [well my wicked plan was to work it on Pinku so he could change too.. ;) ] when she said that she was shamed by our nephew (the four year old with the fanny pack) in-front of his foreign friends. He said, and she quoted 'Se,e don't litter this place with all this plastic,if it is India, you can.. But you are not in India anymore,so here you ll have to put it in the trash can.'
Though I can't play this card on Pinku, it got me thinking. It took a long expensive trip and shaming by a four year old for Tinku to realize.. And the worst part is, she is educated and all!
I wish I could smack on Pinku's head and the keys fall in the right place, that would be so much easier!!
October 2nd 2014,
My cousin and his kids are visiting again. The kid threw some trash on the road.
I asked him to pick it all up and hold it till he finds a trash can when Pinku said, 'Well I don't know which India your father grew up in little fellow, but here, we don't do that anymore!'
He happily obliged!! Well, he is just six, but he ll never do that again. Not here!
<This is not fiction. It is very much veridical!>
Might not be as moving, but we are literate and sensible right?
So the next time you mindlessly stop to pee on the roads, realize that you are making approximately 60% of India's population vulnerable to cholera, diarrhea, typhoid etc..
The next time you drop a juice box on the roads, realize
that there thousands tourists who dread coming to India,well you are just slackening up the chance for a low paid employee to construct his own toilet.
The next time you spit on the road, the next time you throw a still- on-fire cigarette butt on the road, realize that there are many girls dropping out of the school because they don't have good sanitation facilities, you are robbing them of their future and dreams.
'Nirmal' or 'Swachh', good intentions can never let us down.
Every effort to fulfill our duties is also patriotism.
I am that change. I hope you are too..
So we can meet on the other side where the grass is greener and India is cleaner!
She rarely does that. Something really profound must have happened.
May 2nd 2012,
My cousin and his kids came home from the U.S. of A last week. I ve been spending a lot of time with them.
Cute kids, they have a lot of energy,so many stories to share, it is so much fun being around them.. Well the younger one is a peach, the kid is in that place where they learn to talk, precious right?!
Had a really long day. But one incident just baffled me.
My nephew was filling his 'Ben 10' fanny pack with wrappers from all the chocolates and ice creams he had. It was so full he started holding them in his tiny fists and washaving difficulty holding the other things.
So my cousin says 'Why aren't you throwing all the trash away?? Why are you collecting everything?'
The kid complained, 'I couldn't find a trash can dad!'
For which he got a reply, 'No no, you need not search for a trash can , you can throw the wrappers here or for that matter anywhere!'
The kid obliged. What else would he do? He is four!!
Well thank god there was someone who cleaned up right behind him.
I grew up with 2 siblings who did not give any thought before throwing juice boxes, wrappers or cartons right in the middle of the road for 22 years. I even got into a huge fight with my brother over a Frooti bottle and didn't talk to him for hours and got into trouble with my parents for being arrogant, obnoxious and some other things I shouldn't even reveal here <Well, sounds stupid now I guess>. And today, this happens!!
Well I guess you tell and tell, but you only end up being such a bore to your own cousins and nothing ever changes!!
August 16th 2012,
It is one month since Tinku returned to India after her long trip from the U.S. of A, and I couldn't help but notice that she is being really clean about everything around her, conspicuously putting every juice box every small wrapper nowhere but in the nearest trash can.
I was very intrigued and grilled her for the reason [well my wicked plan was to work it on Pinku so he could change too.. ;) ] when she said that she was shamed by our nephew (the four year old with the fanny pack) in-front of his foreign friends. He said, and she quoted 'Se,e don't litter this place with all this plastic,if it is India, you can.. But you are not in India anymore,so here you ll have to put it in the trash can.'
Though I can't play this card on Pinku, it got me thinking. It took a long expensive trip and shaming by a four year old for Tinku to realize.. And the worst part is, she is educated and all!
I wish I could smack on Pinku's head and the keys fall in the right place, that would be so much easier!!
October 2nd 2014,
My cousin and his kids are visiting again. The kid threw some trash on the road.
I asked him to pick it all up and hold it till he finds a trash can when Pinku said, 'Well I don't know which India your father grew up in little fellow, but here, we don't do that anymore!'
He happily obliged!! Well, he is just six, but he ll never do that again. Not here!
<This is not fiction. It is very much veridical!>
Might not be as moving, but we are literate and sensible right?
So the next time you mindlessly stop to pee on the roads, realize that you are making approximately 60% of India's population vulnerable to cholera, diarrhea, typhoid etc..
The next time you drop a juice box on the roads, realize
The next time you spit on the road, the next time you throw a still- on-fire cigarette butt on the road, realize that there are many girls dropping out of the school because they don't have good sanitation facilities, you are robbing them of their future and dreams.
'Nirmal' or 'Swachh', good intentions can never let us down.
Every effort to fulfill our duties is also patriotism.
I am that change. I hope you are too..
So we can meet on the other side where the grass is greener and India is cleaner!
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