There was confusion in the eyes of the seven year old Surangi as they dipped mango leaves into the sandal-turmeric paste to anoint her. She did not know what marriage meant, she was just told that she would move into a new home in a village far away...
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Surangi had acquired the sobriquet of Madhav's tail ever since she began to trail him meticulously wherever he went. Arundhati and her gang of friends had managed to brainwash Surangi into keeping Madhav away from Rohini's amorous advances. On one hand Madhav found it mildly amusing to see the possessive streak in his wife but at other times he found her habit annoying.
"Do you mind? I need to pee! Are you going to tag along there too!" He once told her and she turned beetroot red with embarrassment. Of course the girls always went together when they needed to relieve themselves, it was time honoured unwritten rule among the village girls to ensure their personal safety. A couple of them always acted as lookouts to ensure that there were no perverted peeping Toms watching them or trying to bother them in any way.
One Sunday morning Madhav was given the errand of going over to Chandri's house to replenish the stock of soapnuts for the Oak household. Chandri's humble abode had a fascinating location, it was almost on the water's edge and the backyard opened into the wilderness. They had some soapnut trees in the backyard and besides the large heap spread out to dry in the sun Surangi espied clusters of fully ripe dark brown berries hanging from the branches.
After being soaked in water the thick soapy extract could be used as body wash or as laundry detergent. It also helped to bring a sparkle to jewellery and silver articles used for worship. Madhav gave Chandri's mother the money Yashoda had sent with him. Yashoda knew that Chandri's family was often cash-strapped and would buy their produce every now to help them along financially.
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Chandri filled a basket with a generous load of the soapnuts for Madhav. Surangi never missed an opportunity to visit the place, it was a naturalist's delight. Surangi and Madhav stayed there as long as they could, each for their own reason. Surangi kept her eyes peeled for all that she could observe. She saw a wading bird dip the insect in its beak into the brackish water before feasting on it, as if it were seasoning it with the salinity of the backwater. Elsewhere a hummingbird hovered before a bunch of flowers, sipping their nectar with its long bill. Somehow the bird seemed to know the precise moment when the flowers were full of the sweet treat, and rushed in to get his dose before competition got ahead of him.
A chattering of rose-ringed parakeets squawked noisily as they socialized before taking off to their feeding grounds. Since most of this avian life was unapproachable Surangi tried to play with the fluffy little chicks who marched in formation along with the mother hen. Their cheep cheep sound was music to Surangi's ears and Chandri would put a chick or two into her palm so that she could observe them more closely. The baby birds would protest indignantly, their little breasts beating rapidly due to the stress.
