The thunder could be heard from inside my bedroom as my friends and I sat together, laughing and reminiscing about our childhood while sipping tea. It was warm inside my room—the laughter, the joy, and the tea filled my heart.
As we continued talking, my friend Sajida started telling us about all the mischief she had gotten into as a child. The kind of child she was growing up, her mischief was something wonderfully filled with humour. I loved listening to her childhood stories because it seemed like she had truly lived a full and joyful childhood.
As our conversation went on, we started talking about fruits, and oh, the story Sajida had on this topic was hilarious—I can never forget it!
She talked about how much she loved mangoes. As a child, her father would buy a whole box of them. She didn’t remember how old she was, just that she was very small. One day, when she came back from school and went to her room, she saw a box of mangoes. The little girl that she was, she got so excited that she started eating them immediately—without even changing out of her uniform.
As she indulged in the succulent fruit, her elder sister came home and started looking for her. Their mother told her that Sajida had already been picked up from school and had gone upstairs to her room. But when her sister checked, she wasn’t there. They called out her name, but she didn’t respond.
The family started to worry. Since Sajida lived right next to her school, they thought she might have gone back to play with the other children. When they checked, the other children said she wasn’t there. Panic spread through the house. Sajida’s elder brother checked the houses of her friends and even the homes of women she used to visit, but she was nowhere to be found.
The house was in chaos—where could that little girl have gone?
After a long search, everyone returned home, exhausted and anxious. For some reason, Sajida’s father went back to the bedroom and decided to look under the beds this time. And there she was—little Sajida, fast asleep near the carton of mangoes, her mouth covered in mango juice, clear evidence of her secret feast.
Sajida laughed as she narrated this part of the story. She said her father simply grabbed her by the leg and pulled her out from under the bed, yet she still didn’t wake up. When she finally did, everyone stared at her with anger, but it didn’t take long for the whole family to burst into laughter. The situation, though serious at first, turned into a funny memory. The moment they saw her confused face, all the anger melted away.
Of course, she got a good scolding, but as she said, “Aren’t these little moments what make life beautiful?”
Till today, whenever I think of this story, I feel warmth—a soft embrace. It makes me glad and grateful for the moments we’ve lived.
By Christina K Sangma