Child of Spring Read Online Free PDF Page B

seemed larger than expected. I turned to Lali. “Just how many wedding guests have you brought with you,
hanh
?”
    “We are seven,” she answered.
    Seven?
I counted by my finger joints: Lali, the mother-of-the-groom. Nandi, Pummi, Dev, and Hari, the groom’s aunts and uncles. That did not add up to seven.
    “Paki and Raju came too,” Lali said.
    “What? You brought Paki and Raju along?
    She rushed to explain. “They promised to be very, very good.”
    “And you believed them?” Lali was so gullible! Didn’t she know Paki and Raju
always
spelled trouble?
    But Lali quickly brushed me aside and assumed thedemeanor of a proper mother-of-the-groom. “
Bas! Bas!
Enough chitchat! Tell me about the dowry!” she commanded. “Is the bride bringing with her a large bed, a spacious
almarah
to hold her clothes, and plentiful kitchen utensils? What about necklaces, bangles, anklets, nose rings, and such? And did you include a pressed and starched dhoti and a fine wristwatch for the groom?”
    “First you must come in.” I stepped back to allow everyone to enter. “Welcome, welcome. Sit, sit.”
    Lali entered first, holding her head high. Dear Boy followed, perched upon Paki’s shoulder. Behind him came Nandi and Pummi, singing a wedding song. Raju followed, beating a ghee tin can, and Dev and Hari brought up the rear, dancing the
bhangra
dance.
    “Show the dowry,
nai
?” Lali demanded and I uncovered it for all to “ahh” and “ooh” over. I had scraped together a reasonable assortment of things: a few scraps of cloth, neatly folded; a small cushion for a bed; some old dishes; a matchbox chest; and a few other items.
    Paki squinted at the pile. “What’s that?”
    “Those are brass pots for Tikki’s kitchen,” I explained.
    “Is this a joke?” Raju asked.
    “And that?” Paki pointed at a chipped teacup.
    “It’s a tub for the bride’s bathwater.”
    “So nice,” said Nandi, but the two boys clutched their bellies and laughed.
    “Shut up, you
goonda
hooligans!” I shouted. “Mind your manners!”
    “Ha. That thing’s a
tub
?” Raju sneered at the chipped teacup. “Hee hee!”
    “Get a load of the
almarah
!” Paki added, pointing to Bapu’s shoebox. “Ho ho!”
    “Beware!” I told him. “I’ll run to your mother. Pentamma Mausi will twist your ears so hard you’ll be sorry you came!”
    “
Bah!
Good luck with that!” Paki said. “Amma’s at the Big House, collecting a sack of laundry to wash at the river.”
    “What were you thinking, Lali?” I turned to my friend. The
goonda
boys were clearly ruining the wedding.
    “Ho! What’s this?” Paki had spotted the
laddu.
    I lunged and blocked his path. “
Oi!
Stay clear of the wedding feast!”
    “The
badmaash
girl nearly knocked me over!” Paki shouted.
    “I want a
laddu
!” cried Raju.
    It got so noisy that Amma intervened. “So much
hulla goolla
! Take this ruckus outside,” she ordered.
    We gathered up the wedding things and ducked out of the hut.
    “Here I come, carrying the splendid pots, tra la!” laughed Paki.
    “Here I come with the lovely bathtub, tra la!” roared Raju.
    “Stupid owls!” I muttered.
    Outside the sun was blazing, but we went on with the ceremony.
    When the time was exactly right for the bride and the groom to walk around the sacred fire seven times, Paki jumped up and snatched Dear Boy from Lali’s arms.
    “Let go of my son!” Lali protested.
    “Will not!”
    “It’s my job to take him around!” she cried. “Give him back!”
    “You can’t do it! You can’t walk properly on that lame foot!” Paki taunted.
    Dear Boy was yanked back and forth, and before I knew what was what, the poor thing was on the ground in a little heap.
    “What have you done, you donkey?” I screamed.
    “Look! Look!” Lali shouted. One of Dear Boy’s arms dangled from her hand, the other from Paki’s.
    “I knew it! I knew it!” I yelled. True to their reputation, the
goonda
boys had brought disaster yet