Shejali Singh Maharjan
I remember waiting for my school bus while my father was talking to one of his friends. I got bored but when I saw a cute little street puppy in front of me, I was excited. I tried my best not to pat it since it was dirty but its cuteness made me too curious. However, when I went to pat it, it looked the other way and ran. Not only the puppy but also all the other street dogs ran in the same direction.
Right then, when I tried to see why they went, my school bus arrived. I quickly got in and settled down, and curiously looked out through the window. The bus started moving but in the meantime, I got glance of two children. One was a boy, of around 13 years of age, and the other a girl, of around my age: 10. They both were poorly dressed. The girl had a messy ponytail and the boy had ruffled hairs. They both were holding biscuit packets in their hands. I knew I had encountered them before.
A few weeks ago, I almost bumped into someone while rushing towards my home. I shocked the other person and immediately said ‘sorry’ but she had already gone to other shops to deliver tea. She seemed so focused on what she was doing and was managing to keep a smile while delivering tea to different shops. “Thank you, Maya,” the people said as she delivered tea.
That day, instead of doing nothing, I decided to do my homework as focused as I could be, as Maya seemed doing when she did her job. By the time I was done with homework at around 8, I saw Maya again. This time she was playing with and feeding street dogs. She did not show any sign of tiredness, and looked cheerful even after a busy day. I did not only learn about hard work but also that no matter how busy people are, if they love you, they spend time with you.
Right after the day I encountered Maya, I went on a Saturday walk with my brother to buy a few things. I bought half of the food items and waited outside the shop. While waiting, I saw police and their dogs coming by. A robber had just escaped and the policemen were trying to finding him. Being a ten old child, I stupidly took out a packet of biscuits from my bag and opened it to feed the police dogs. However, I did not get to feed them because a ruffled-haired boy stopped me. He carried a huge sack of garbage in one shoulder; his other hand stopped me from feeding the police dogs.
“Sister, you should not feed the dogs right now because disturbing anyone while they are working is wrong,” he said instructively. I nodded in surprise and dropped the biscuit packet into my bag.
“Mansul come here quickly,’’ the garbage truck driver said, calling the ruffled-haired boy. The boy went to the truck and dropped the bag of garbage into it. I later went back home and thought of what I had learned.
After seeing both of them this morning, I thought I would never encounter them again but I unexpectedly did. It was a rainy night around 10; I and my family were returning from a party. I was feeling sleepy, so I rested my head on the window until a scream took all the sleep away from me. My father stopped the car and the car lights fell right upon a bunch of teenagers running away, being chased by dogs. But the shocking thing was that the girl who was crying aloud was Maya and the two injured bodies beside her were of a dog and the boy, Mansul.
We took the dog to the vet clinic and Mansul to the nearest hospital. My brother said he would stay with the dog in the clinic and we stay in the hospital with Maya and Mansul. On the way to the hospital, Mansul kept rambling, “Don’t beat him please…” breathlessly. I quickly thought of what might have happened.
Maya explained to us what had happened and it went like this: Maya and Mansul were staying with the dogs in their usual place while some teenagers were playing cricket on the road. A teen jokingly hit a ball at one of the street dogs. The dog started barking at him and the teen suddenly got angry and yelled, “How dare you bark at me! You a stupid dog!” He hit the dog with his bat until blood poured down the dog’s face. Mansul came right in the middle and saved the dog and shouted, “Please don’t beat him.” However, he was beaten very badly.
Soon Maya and Mansul’s father came to the hospital and told us that we could go home. The dog was all well while Mansul still needed rest for a few days.
I returned home, lay on my bed, and recalled whatever had happened. Firstly, I learned courageousness from Mansul and secondly, I found out from Maya and Mansul that they had spent all their money to buy biscuits for the street dogs. How generous of them!
I was sick for the next two weeks and found out that Maya and Mansul had already left for their village with their father. After that, I went down to the place Maya and Mansul fed the street dogs. I saw a small note left behind. It said, “Please take care of the dogs while we are gone….Maya and Mansul.”
From that day, Maya and Mansul’s story was heard, and people treated all the street dogs like their friends in our neighborhood. They not only changed me but also the people around them. The things I never learned perfectly from famous people had been taught by two poor children. What a surprising journey of learning!
[Shejali Singh Maharjan is a student of Grade Nine at Sanskriti International School, Thulo Bharyang, Kathmandu.]