—
Just a Slogan
THAT DUSTER IS a weapon. Umma uses it against dust, clutter and all signs of untidiness. I retreat to my room, which is what you might call a strategic move. Just in case she takes it into her head that I need to be dusted off, too.
In the safety of my room, I try to make sense of things. Something is bothering me about that book, and it’s not just the story.
It’s Book Uncle, I decide. Why did he give me that funny look before he handed me that book? As if he would like to say something but couldn’t find the words. He seemed distracted. That’s it. As if something was on his mind.
Is something wrong? Maybe I am just worrying for no reason.
I turn to the story in the hope that I can unravel its puzzle. How strange that such a skinny book can leave so many questions in my mind. I flip the pages to see if maybe there was something I missed.
Doves. King. Trapped in a net. Hunter. Get help. Get free. The end.
“So what?” I say out loud.
“So what about what?” says Umma, brandishing the duster over my head.
“Help!” I say. “I surrender.”
“No need, silly girl,” says Umma. “How about you help me instead?” She points to a pile of books on the floor by my bed. Then she points to the shelf.
“Get my drift?” she says.
“Umma,” I tell her. “I get your drift. I get it fine.”
We get to work. She whisks the duster over my shelf. I put the books away. While I do that, I tell her the story of the doves and the hunter.
“That’s an old Indian story,” Umma says.
“I know. Book Uncle told me. But Umma, what’s the big lesson in it? For me, I mean?”
“I can’t tell you that,” she says. “I can tell you what something means for me. How can I tell you what it means for you? Only you can know that.”
I tell her about Book Uncle’s motto. Right book, right person, right day.
“So why was this such a great book for me?”
“That’s just a slogan,” she says. “Right book and all that. He just likes to say that. Don’t take it too literally.”
“What does that mean?”
“Taking something literally?”
“Yes.”
“As if every word of it is true,” she says. “You know, it’s just a catchy slogan. It gets more people to pick up a book. Nothing wrong with that. Don’t take it too seriously.”
Then Umma looks around my room, nods her head and moves on with her duster to the next target.
Too literally? Too seriously? Is that how I’m taking it? Is it just a slogan?
I don’t think so. I think Book Uncle really does find the right book for the right person. On the right day. That I am pretty sure about.
Before I can arrive at any conclusions, Wapa comes back with enough toothpaste to polish up the teeth of the entire Indian army.