DADDY….DADDY COOL (18-Jan-2020)



A long story trimmed will help reduce the ignominy! 

On a business trip 7-8 years ago, a safe land call from a European city to my family back home in India probably brought a smile on their faces. My daughters narrated the fun with back-to-back home delivery dinners. I cleared my throat as my wife came on-line. The next few minutes it was a monologue for I was relentless in my gyan-session that food cooked at home sprinkled with love makes it divine; and the philosophy of daddy love as an essential ingredient for wholesome progress! At my tantalizing best if you will, I pretended it fell on deaf ears when she lamented her sufferings - an upset stomach and the challenge that she single-handedly managed everything. 

Landed home the following week with not a hint of what was in store. My wife had planned a short trip to her parents in Mysore – me home alone to manage the kids! My better-half’s instructions were heard but not registered, as she directed me to post-its stuck on the refrigerator. My kids warned me to pay attention but was I too overconfident? It all hit me like a scud-missile, as the family slipped into their slumber! 

As I wearily woke up, my wife winked; whoosh and she was gone in her 5 am cab. The daunting tasks stared at me, SQ was running high – Stress Quotient! I dispensed the liquid hand-soap onto my toothbrush; my mouth foamed which was not a pretty sight. I landed in the kitchen to boil the milk, least aware that I had lost my semblance accentuated by my jet-lag. I turned every switch on the board next to the hob, frantically looked for a gas lighter but failed to bring the flame on. My sleepy-eyed daughter walked in and nonchalantly turned the gas mains on, it then struck me of the uphill journey and a long day ahead. Multi-tasking got my hands entangled as I packed their lunch boxes! With SQ high I had many a faux-pas situation as I cursed in kids’ presence, consoled myself that daddy is entitled to err. A self-proclaimed multi-tasker at bay! 

Back home from office and the man-in-the-kitchen was determined to cook a simple yet delicious dhal. Questions danced - how many chillies, spices added at the front or back end? The green chilies in the hot oil had created a sauna atmosphere in the kitchen with all our eyes in tears. Lo behold my children were served the dhal. They cried literally, and we abandoned the spicy dish. I stared at the unfinished household chores - the maid had left a stack of vessels, the clothes needed to be folded; I had lost my abundant sanity! The unending list grew like they had a liberal dose of manure. Serenity now was my mantra. My kids had a special glow on their face when I announced that the day’s dinner belonged to our host Pizza Hut in the neighborhood! 

No need to emphasize that it was the art of hiding that bailed me out from the phone calls when I saw my beloved’s name displayed on my mobile. Good Lord, men need their spouses to hold them steady! Daddy Cool - an oxymoron?!

Comments

  1. RamaswamyJanuary 21, 2020 at 7:30 AM

    Hi Prasanna. Great post. So very true. The left hand does not know what the right hand does and most men think they are ambidextrous. Eagerly waiting for your next post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Prasanna HariharJanuary 21, 2020 at 5:10 PM

    My thanks right from my heart....

    ReplyDelete
  3. Durgesh MishraJanuary 27, 2020 at 12:12 PM

    Yes Sir, rightly pointed out that we need our spouse to hold us steady.Having said that we come across such situation to take care of kids alone for a day and stress quotient goes up.

    Nicely written...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Prasanna HariharJanuary 27, 2020 at 7:59 PM

      Thank you... the fact is we spouses complement each other well

      Delete
  4. UnknownFebruary 2, 2020 at 11:09 AM

    Good one! Keep up the good work.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Aalo MukherjeeFebruary 2, 2020 at 4:39 PM

    I would definitely like to put my husband in such situation, at least for once!

    ReplyDelete

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