Childhood Memoirs - 2

My first school was KV INS Dronacharya, in Kochi. Our family had shifted from Kottayam to Kochi and we were put up in a place called Chakkamadom, in Kochi. Initially my dad used to drop me to school and pick me up when he came back for lunch, but when he became busy with his work, he arranged a cycle rickshaw.

The first trip was a disaster. The school timings were from 9am to 2:15pm, and on the first day, he came to my home at 8:45am. My house was some 5km from school and in a cycle rickshaw full of children; we could never make up that distance on time. My dad talked to the rickshaw man the next day, and he promised to come on time.

It went on well for a few days until my next adventure came along. I was aged 6, a bit too young for such an adventure.

After school, when I came out of the school, I could not find my rickshaw amongst the ones waiting to take children home. So I waited as others left. There were just 2 children from my school in this rickshaw, and usually we were the only riders on our way home. Today the other girl had left since her dad had come to pick her up, so I was all alone. The classes of senior students got over at 3:15pm, and even they left for their homes and I was all alone. It was around 3:45pm when my rickshaw man came. He was all smiles when he came and was singing a song as he came by.

He said that he was held up with some urgent work and hence was late. He asked me to get in and we left for home. On the way he was singing songs loudly and was attracting the attentions of many passers by. I was enjoying every moment, he had never been so cheerful, and I loved songs. I also noticed that he was having trouble driving straight and also his feet kept slipping from the pedals. I was so naïve at that age, that I thought he was doing it to amuse me, to make up for being late.

He kept going zig-zag and the rickshaw once even went straight instead of taking a turn, crashing on to the gate on the other side of the road. The driver fell off the rickshaw on to the ground, hurting himself in the process, and when I saw stains of blood on his legs and feet, which he suffered from the fall, I knew that the things were not going well. I knew that he was having difficulty driving, but did not know why. Luckily nothing happened to me in this accident.

He got up, with great difficulty, slipping many times, before he got up on the rickshaw and started again on the way home. It did not go long as he lost control again, and this time one of the rickshaw’s wheel went into drain on the sides of the road. Again he fell off the rickshaw, while was safe, holding on to the sides of the rickshaw.

Unlike the last time, where the road was deserted, this one was full of people, who came to help. To my surprise, the people instead of helping, started beating him, shouting at him. A man amongst the crowd, came up to me and asked my name and asked him whether I knew the way back home. He told me that the rickshaw driver was drunk and they were going to take him to police. He said that he could drop me home.

I was 6 years old, had been in that place for a month and was not familiar with the locality. I opened my school diary and gave him the address, but it was of no use, even a few auto rickshaw drivers could not make out the address. We did not have a telephone at home, so calling home was out of question. We had not even put my dad’s phone number in the diary, so I was unable to call him too.

The worst thing was that I was too young to realize that I was in trouble. I was unable to realize that the person who came forward was invariably trying to help me. I started crying when the people started taking the rickshaw driver away, since he was the only familiar face in the crowd.

The man who came to help me was the owner of a cloth shop nearby. He took me to his shop, and gave me some sweets so that I could stop crying. He calmed me down and asked me remember my way back. I was so frightened with the sudden turn of events, but I realized that this person here was trying to help me and if I needed to be back in the comforts of my home, I need to help him to help me get back.

I told him that I have been traveling this way for a month, so I might remember the way. He caught an auto, and accompanied by one more of his helper at his shop, got into the auto. To my amazement, I could tell him where to go. I would have lead him for 20 minutes, when we came upon a junction, with roads leading to 3 other directions. Now I was confused.

It was a major junction, and I knew I had come through this way before, with my parents when we went out shopping. It also told me that we were near our house, since we usually walk to go shopping. Unfortunately I was unable to remember which way of the 3 would lead us home. The person who had helped me earlier asked me the way. He would have realized that I was confused, so he asked the auto driver to stop, and he asked me to have a good look around and then make my mind. I took a look around, since I was scared and also due to the anticipation that I was near my home, I did not pay attention to details. After a look around, I told him that we had to take the road to the left.

The person asked me yet again whether I was sure, he told me to calm down and take one more look. This time, somehow I managed to get a clear view of the things around, and I saw this familiar building on the road leading to the right. I was so sure that I had seen it before and I knew that this was the road that we need to take.

When we reached home, mom was in tears, standing by the door of our house, with a few of our neighbours to comfort her. She had called dad and told him that I had not come home till now, and he had left office in search for me. She could not find words to thank the kind man who brought me home, but she did get a sound scolding from him for being so careless as to send the kid along with a rickshaw man who was a drunkard.

Dad arrived home after a few hours and finally everything was in place.

Dad decided that he would do his duties from the next day, and from then on he dropped me to school and picked me back daily. The very next day, we went to meet the person who had helped me. I took dad to the place where the rickshaw had slipped off the road into the drains, and we looked around at the shops nearby. I recognized the person, and took my dad to the shop. Dad thanked him profusely.

From that day, till the day we were in Kochi, and whenever I passed in front of the man’s shop, I used to wave at him, if he chanced to look out while I was passing by. My dad was transferred from Kochi the next year, and I did miss this person for sometime.

After 3-4 years, when my dad got a chance to go back to Kochi, he did visit this person. He still remembered me and reminded my dad that had I not been a keen observer I would not have reached home on that day.

This was my first real adventure.