Innocence is bliss!

I love kids and I am really good around them. I play with them, talk to them and sometimes carry them or hold their hands and walk in my street showing them the crows, street dogs, cows. I also show them the vehicles that pass by just to see that bewildered ‘What just passed me so fast?’ look. Honestly, there was a time when I was not good with kids. I enjoy them from a distance but when they are left to my care I am a disaster. I don’t know to talk to them in their language. So if you have left your kid to me an hour before, when you come back we would be minding our own businesses. I have been sad about not able to gel with them as good as my mother. My mother, she is a very amazing person (although we have a lot of differences, if there is a trouble she will be the first person I will be looking for) she was the one who taught me how to talk to kids and play with them. Fortunately, there are a lot of kids (about the age of 1 and below) in my neighbourhood and most of them are always in my house. They love my mom and she would force them to play with me. She would dump the kid to me and run to the kitchen. Initially, we blink but later we wouldn’t have a choice. We will start exchanging looks, then toys and finally we would be playing like the best friends in the whole world.

Now, kids come home to spend time with me too. They ask for me to my mom if they can speak or they come to my room crawling searching for me. When I see them smile at me I forget the world! I stop whatever I do and start playing with them. Recently, there is this darling who came to my house. My mother can sense kids even from a kilometer away (Well, in a good sense of course! Don’t mistake her). So she picked this cutie pie who lives in a house opposite to my apartment. The first time she came to my house was, if I vaguely remember was in October 2012. She was only 8 months old then. With her big round eyes looking around the house she had just entered she was clinging on to my mom and staring at the huge cabinet full of collectibles and soft toys. I smiled as soon as I saw her. Apparently, she did not! We have a chandelier in our living room so my mom – the expert asked me to switch that on which I promptly did. The moment the light from the lamp filled the room she looked up surprised and smiled at the lamp. Ah! Such bliss that smile! I switched it off. She immediately looked down to see me. I went closer to her and extended my arms and she just pounced on me and saw the chandelier again. I cannot take my eyes off this little cutie and from then till this date she spends a good 4 – 5 hours in my house playing with me. She prefers a lot to be with my mom though.

Last month, she turned 1 and her laughs and toddler talks fill my house. She started taking baby steps and of course holding my hands we walk the length and breadth of the apartment. I keep admiring her. She tries to run when she sees the other kids in the apartment run which right now is huge for her. She does get upset over it at times when I lift and throw her in the air. When she comes back down she is full of smiles. I do it numerous times to see her beautiful innocent smile.

Yesterday, she left to her native and my mom is missing her more than anybody. It was a sudden plan and she would be returning only after a month L On the day she left we brought her home at night. I tricked her into showing a crow (at night, well that’s why I love kids they believe whatever I say!) and made her come to me from her mom. I carried her back home and the moment she entered the main gates of my apartment she was squealing and laughing. She was so delighted to see my mom, they are such best friends I tell you! Both of them were playing to their hearts content in the next few seconds. After an hour, we had to leave her back home. She was not ready to let go off my mom she cried very badly that my mom had to dodge her. She loves crows for reasons nobody knows! So my mom tricked her into showing a crow, hid behind the compound wall and ran away. She stopped crying immediately and her mother took her in.

Everytime she smiles, laughs and plays I see a beautiful innocence in it. The innocence we lost ages back. And I wish maybe someday all of us could be like these kids live for this moment and not worry about the future. Who cares what it holds for us, let it unfold when it is supposed to! I wish that we regain that beautiful innocence J