A Thank-You Story

Daughters cannot and should not be blamed for situations they did not create. To begin with, they did not ask to come to this life. Having once arrived, they have been conditioned to put their entire trust on this monstrous monument of faith called "mother". Holy mother and holy child, I tell you a secret, it is a trunk full of lies. Mothers are disastrous failures and daughters are not meant to duplicate it. So this evening, I decided to live up to her little expectations and at least have a story for her, which could double up for all that she means to me! 

On the terrace of a tall building, lived a sturdy water-tank, by the name of Thank. It had a little fellow of a washer for a friend called You. Well, disbelieve me if you will, but it's name, indeed was,"You". Now what can we say about Thank. Rather, let me tell you about Thank. Thank was a thankless being, very distant from being courteous, and static in pride -- a tank-full is really quite a lot. To be frank, no one knows till date, what Thank is so thankless about; I mean it is just another essential resource for the entire building. This was exactly what You told me one day. Erm, sorry, You told Thank one day.

"Cmon Thank, be a sport! Why so grumpy?"

Thank was angry. "You puny You! What do you know about what it takes to be me?"

"Tell me. How difficult is it?"

The sky changed colours, it was about to pour. Thank went into one of its rare pensive moods. "Look at the birds, flying away to their trees. Look at the ants, crawling underneath. Even the spider, it is running towards the web it has been building off me!"

You looked concerned. "I understand. But how does that anger you?"

"Why not?" screamed Thank."All day I am their playground, even to the hefty amount of dirt in the water inside me. But everyone goes! Everyone leaves me!" In a second, the stature of Thank was one of pity. You were moved to understandable tears. I mean You was.

"That's a lie" You asserted. "I am with you, all the while." Within its mind You were, oops, was saying 'though stuck to you'. "We will forever remain, tank and washer. Like those mothers and daughters who live under our terrace. Look at them fight, not talk, disagree, but in the end, they are somehow 'stuck' to each other. Like that?"

Thank wondered for a while. It began to rain, slowly at first and then very, very heavily. "You mean that?"

"You means what You says, always!" To that, why don't we build a nameplate to ourselves? 

Thank was pleased and obviously forgot about all those who deserted it. "What will it read?"

"Why, Thank-You!"

 

They taught us, our elite breed of convent teachers, "Sorry, Please and Thank-You" are the three golden words to be used generously. I beg to differ. Use them judiciously, only when you mean them. 

You are most welcome, by the way.