“Close your eyes.”
“No Papa. Not right now. Let me do my homework.”
“Oh come on! Just one question.”
I could never say no to him, mostly because he would get his way anyhow. He is till date the most stubborn man I have ever known. We had been playing this game for years and I had memorized the location of every object in his room, but he was never short of surprises.
“Alright. Just one.”
“What did I just place in front of you? Don’t cheat ok.”
“That’s not fair! My eyes are closed.”
“Don’t open your eyes. Take a guess!”
“I don’t like this game.”
“Come on. Answer the question fast! You need to finish your homework before your mother comes back from work.”
“grrrrrrrr! You are the worst.”
“Take a guess, come on.”
“How many chances?”
“Three. You know the rules.”
“ummm! A pack of cards?”
“YOU CHEATED.”
“No I did not and I win!”
“How did you guess it?”
“It’s almost 5 pm, but I will play only after I finish my homework.”
“I will wait.”
My grandfather taught us – me and my brother – everything he knew. Well, almost everything! We were the centre of his universe. Through us, he once said, he could live all those moments he had missed out on with our dad. His grandfathership had three key agendas:
- Teach us how to read and write Urdu, which he often mentioned he regretted not teaching his son.
- Teach us how to play cards like a pro.
- To be a maverick and not let any drawback draw you back.
The last one has always been the key driver for all my strengths. His methods were strange and I vividly remember one of our arguments.
“Papa, I can’t find my compass.”
“What do you need it for?”
“To draw circles! What else can a compass do?”
“I mean is it a geometry assignment?”
“No, it’s just a silly science project.”
“Then draw it without a compass.”
“How? It needs to be perfect. I don’t want to lose marks.”
“The aim of studies is to learn. Why does it have to be perfect? This is your chance to learn how to draw circles without depending on instruments. Wouldn’t it be fun if you could do that?”
“I don’t need a lecture right now, I need a compass.”
I stormed out. But that was not the end. After this incident I noticed that my instruments would suddenly disappear for brief periods of time. Eventually I leant to draw, only to discover that I was good at sketching and went on to win various competitions at school.
And till date, I can close my eyes and describe his room as if I were there!
stereogramar 