Sometime back, I had a father son duo living in my neighborhood before they shifted a few years back to some other place.
A nice simple family. An ageing father who lived with his young son.
The father was a very nice guy, very decent, good to talk to and had a very wholesome view of every subject, owing to his immense experience in life.
The son, on the other hand, was a boorish kind of a fellow. Very arrogant, very stubborn and generally doing exactly what he liked to do.
He used to taunt everyone, pick up fights at the drop of the hat, made personal nasty remarks against other people in the society and generally had the opinion that what he did and said was the only way there was, to go in the world.
Often I had watched him ignore his Father’s word or even talk back to him when his Father tried to advice him about something.
I, once, asked the Father, how come he didnt say anything about his Son’s behavior.
And his Father, very calmly said to me, “Beta, I am old, I am not going to be here forever. My son will have to face the consequences of his own actions. I can only guide him towards what I think is right, but if he insist on doing his own thing, what should I do? Infact if I argue with him too much he might get angry and throw me out of the house. Then I wont be able to make even the small changes that I can, while staying here.”
So, I asked him, “But he is your son, dont you care for him?”
And he smiled as he replied, “I only care for him as much as he cares for me. However, I do have to live the rest of my life in peace… You do understand that, dont you?”
And I did understand him. Sometimes it is better that the Father sits back and doesnt meddle too much in the Son’s behavior. After all, the Son will pay for his mistakes in his own way, when the time comes. Right?
At other times I couldnt help but think, “Agar sahi time pe ek kaan ke neeche maar diya hota to….”
Disclaimer: This post is not related in any manner to Modi saying, “Pranab Da cared for me like a Father would”…What!! No !! Seriously !! Its not …. 😛
The Desi Cracked Pot 