Damayanti Bhattacharya, Class 7, Chaitanya Techno School, Panihati, West Bengal
Once upon a time, there lived the Rays. Mrs. and Mr. Ray were known to be very strict and well-kempt, and were also known to despise keeping pets indoors because they believed that the pets would disrupt their daily routines. However, their children, Shayla and Raaj, deeply desired to have pets. The Rays would always neglect their wish and would state that keeping pets in the household wasn’t allowed when they were children, and they won’t permit it now as well. This would always leave the two siblings heartbroken, but they knew better than to bicker with their parents.
They all had very busy routines. Mr. Ray was a professor and would leave the house early in the morning, while Mrs. Ray was a home-maker, so she would take care of the daily household responsibilities. Shayla and Raaj had afternoon school, so they would leave the house about one hour before the reporting time. In the evening, they would return, freshen up, rest in their rooms for a bit and then start their studies. They were occasionally permitted to go outdoors and play with their peers, but this was a rare occurrence. Mr. Ray would come back by 7:00 pm and then they would have dinner. After dinner, all of them went to bed. This was their daily routine, even though a few exceptions would occur, but very rarely.
Slowly, the two siblings had grown tired of their daily routine and would nag their parents to go on a vacation or at least a take road trip. After much stalling, the Rays finally agreed to take the children on a road trip. They were overjoyed as they were about to go on a trip after such a long time! The preparation had started a few days before the trip. The children were deciding how they would click cinematic pictures to post on social media, Mr. Ray was checking up on their car, while Mrs. Ray was busy telling her fellow aunties about the trip and the places they would visit.
On the day of the trip, everyone was cheerful and excited. Everyone got seated in the car after loading the belongings. Mr. Ray started the car and they were off! They drove through the lush green fields and the dense forests. During the drive, Mr. Ray asked his family, “There is a zoo nearby, shall we visit it?”
“Of course!”, came the reply from the children.
So, Mr. Ray turned towards the zoo. The path towards the zoo was mesmerising, there were tall sal trees on either side of the road and the dense forests further added an aura of mystery.
Suddenly Shayla spotted something peculiar! “Maa, look! Is that a… monkey?” she asked rather confused.
Mrs. Ray immediately asked Mr. Ray to stop and investigate, what the small monkey was doing on the road.
“It must have escaped from the zoo. Poor monkey,” said Mr. Ray.
The siblings glanced at each other and silently made a plan. They realised this is a rather great opportunity for them to have a pet! “Maa, the monkey looks so small, it must be a baby,” said Raaj.
Taking a chance, Shayla added, “It would be very nice of us to save it. It might perish if it lies here in the woods unprotected.”
Mr. Ray frowned, “You know the rule kids, no pets.”
“But papa, isn’t this what you taught us? To help living beings when they are in danger, especially animals!”
“I remember that, Shayla, but pets…”
“Dadi always used to teach us to help animals. Pity you are not understanding…”
Mr. Ray felt emotional as Shayla’s words struck a deep chord inside him, his mother’s teachings. For once, he stepped out of his monotonous life and said, “Alright then, let’s take this monkey home as our pet. But, only on one condition.” he added.
The children were so close to having a pet, they were ready to accept all conditions!
“Once this monkey is grown up, we will return it back to the zoo. Are you able to promise me you’ll be ready to leave it and move on then?”
The children’s smiles faded. Yet, they knew this was the only way they could have a pet, so they had to agree. After their agreement, the plan to visit the zoo was postponed and the monkey was brought to their home.
The children were very compassionate and empathetic towards their new pet, and treated it with utmost care and importance. They named the monkey, ‘Phooli’, and soon it became the buzz of the neigbourhood. It was a very playful monkey, but would refrain from hurting anyone or anything. It used to listen to everyone in their family and was very obedient. It had also imbibed litter training well! Even though the Rays were initially hesitant about their decision, they also came to love Phooli over time. Shayla and Raaj’s friends were also very enthusiastic to see it at their house whenever they used to come over. Surprisingly, Phooli had silently observed and learnt some of the games the children and their friends used to play and it also used to play with them. The only thing Shayla didn’t like about it was that it used to steal her favourite chips!
With time and patience, Phooli had become one of the members of the family. It used to help the Rays in household activities, and would also play with the children when they had time! However, the neighbours started to grow hostile because Phooli would accidentally pick fruits from their gardens, mistaking them for the Rays’ garden and would also enter the neighbouring premises. As Phooli became a visibly adult monkey and the hostility of the neighbours was clearly noticeable, the Rays knew it was time for him to return to the zoo.
They knew it would be hard to leave Phooli and move on, especially considering that it had become a part of the family. Mr. Ray was disappointed that there wouldn’t be someone to help him carry his paperwork and to drink tea with, Mrs. Ray was sad that there wouldn’t be someone who would provide her company, and the children were upset because there would be no one to play with them indoors. Yet, they knew this was the correct time to return Phooli to the authorities.
So, they went on to return Phooli to the zoo. The green fields seemed dull, the trees didn’t appear as enchanting as they did when they first arrived. Everyone was disheartened – the elders just refused to show it whereas the children expressed their sadness.
Initially, it was very difficult and heart-aching without Phooli. The Rays used to think about it all the time. The children missed the way it used to spend time with them and they all missed the way Phooli would lighten their stress. But deep down, they knew that they had to let go, to move on without it, but they just couldn’t bring themselves out of denial. Over time, just like sand slips through our feet when hit by a wave, the memories of Phooli started to fade. Even though the family members still missed it, their regular lives took over and they started living their monotonous life again.
After a few years, they decided that they would visit the zoo again, especially to meet Phooli and check on it. They drove to the zoo, their hearts pounding with excitement and nervousness. The Rays didn’t expect it to remember them well as it had been quite a few years, but the children were enthusiastic as ever to see whether it would recognise them. Once they reached the zoo, they immediately brisked towards the Arboreal section to contact the caretakers and ask about Phooli. One of the caretakers had taken them to the region where it used to reside. As soon as it saw them, it jumped from the tree towards the barricades. The guards immediately tensed up and blocked the barricades, but the Rays stepped up and requested the guards to allow them to see Phooli. The guards were initially confused by the bold request of the family, but they complied. The Rays realised that Phooli remembered them, just like they did. The Rays were extremely pleased and they rewarded Phooli with its favourite chips – yes, the ones it used to steal from Shayla! The children were also very happy that it remembered them and they clicked lots of pictures with it to post on social media and also to show to their friends. The Rays were very happy that Phooli was healthy and had also made new friends! After a few hours, the Rays bid their goodbyes to Phooli and drove back home, knowing that their pet remembered them and loved them just like they do!
