26th August
That day I was on my way to my aunt's house. It was just an ordinary afternoon, nothing special planned—just a simple visit. While I was walking downstairs, I noticed my father working on the ground floor.
Suddenly he called out to me,
"Hey, come here for a second!"
Now, whenever my father calls me like that, it usually doesn't mean something serious. Most of the time it's just for a small chat or a little bit of playful conversation. Still, I went to him.
And the moment I stood in front of him, I followed my daily routine.
I said, "Give me some money."
He immediately made a face and said, "No, no… I don't have any money."
I replied dramatically, "I want to eat biryani. Give me 110 rupees."
He laughed and said, "What is this? Are you asking for 1000 rupees or something?"
I held his hand playfully and asked again, "Come on, just give it to me."
He shook his head again and said jokingly,
"Don't you have any mercy on me?"
Then, just for fun, I said,
"Actually… right now I feel like eating chicken butter masala with tandoori roti."
Without even thinking for a second, my father said,
"Then order it."
I was surprised. I quickly replied,
"Are you crazy? Later you'll tell everyone that I ate such expensive food in a single day!"
He smiled and said,
"Just order it. They will deliver it to the house."
But I insisted,
"No, no. Just give me 110 rupees. I'll eat biryani."
Then he asked,
"How much does that cost?"
I casually replied, "Around 300 rupees."
And again, very calmly, he said,
"Then order it. Let it come. I'll pay for it."
I looked at him and said,
"Are you serious? First give me the money. I don't trust you."
And this time, he actually took the money out of his pocket and handed it to me.
I took the money and started walking upstairs.
But while climbing the stairs, a strange thought suddenly crossed my mind.
Should I really spend this money?
Or should I keep it?
I stood there for a moment thinking.
Because honestly, there were many days when I had taken more money from him than this. I had eaten more expensive food too. But I had never felt anything unusual about it.
Yet that day… something felt different.
After thinking for a while, I finally decided—
No. I asked for the money to eat something, so I will eat that.
But at that moment another thought quietly settled in my heart.
Maybe all fathers in this world are like this.
They may pretend to complain.
They may say no a hundred times.
But when it comes to their children's wishes, they rarely think twice.
That day I made a promise to myself.
The day I stand on my own feet,
the day I start earning with my own effort,
I will remember this moment.
And just the way he values my small wishes today,
one day I will value his wishes the same way.
I know I may never be able to tell him all these things directly.
So today, I wrote it here.
And in the middle of all these thoughts and conversations, one funny thing happened—
I completely forgot to go to my aunt's house! 😅
Sincerely,
Your Sonai