Birthday Treat.

Amshula and her younger sister, Paravi, were more than familiar with the wildlife that lived in and around their village; the silent crocodile that lurked in the river; the egrets that nested on the river banks; the elegant sambhar deer and its speckled smaller cousin, the chital; the big, oafish water buffalo; the chattering, mischievous band of monkeys that lived in the forest, and which sometimes ran through the village at nighttime; the fearless mongoose. Once, their father had had to chase a cobra, which had been attracted by the warmth of the cooking fire, from their hut. They hadn't seen the elusive tiger, yet, although their father had told them about how he had once seen one lurking on the edge of the meadow where he was tending the cattle. And the village owed much of its existence to the working herd of elephants owned by the village headman, so those great lumbering creatures were as common a sight as the scavenging mynah.

But they had never seen an elephant that was drunk before.

Ganesh Chaturthi, the festival celebrating the birthday of Lord Ganesh, was only two days away, and their mother had sent the pair to the grove of mango trees to pick some of the fruit in preparation for the feast. The girls chattered away merrily on the way to the grove; both were excited about the coming festival. Their father had made the most remarkable idol of Ganesh, and they were certain it would be chosen as the idol of the year. And there would be lots of music and dancing, and Amshula was going to be one of the dancers. As they got closer to the mango grove, they heard a lot of snorting and blowing, accompanied by the sound of breaking wood and the occasional elephant trumpet.

They soon discovered the source of the commotion. A herd of wild elephants had invaded the grove and were gorging themselves on the overripe fruit which had fallen to the ground. They were having a great time, drunkenly bumping against the trees, grasping the brances with their trunks and shaking them vigourously, breaking some off in the process. Judging by the damage caused to the surrounding foliage, the party had been in full swing for some time. The girls stood and watched with bemusement, and they couldn't help but laugh as they watched the beasts staggering about on unsteady limbs.

Eventually, Amshula turned to her sister. "Come, Paravi," she said. "It seems Lord Ganesh has decided to celebrate his birthday early. We will come back tomorrow and see if he has left us any mangoes to pick." They turned back toward the village.

"Perhaps Mother will make something for his aching head."

Photo © Dilip Padhi (Featured in the M.I.L.K. Collection)

"Birthday Treat" © Writing The Image/Peter Stone 2007