The Story of "A Story and a Story-Thief"

(This one's from my archives: 4th December 2011)

“Mamma – a bedtime story, please” Boon asked.

“Yes Mamma, pleeeeaaase” Yanaika agreed, while Mamma and Papa (I) were both feigning sleep. I was mentally tired from some client interactions earlier in the day, while Mamma was made tired through the day long antics of the two naughties.

Mamma played a small game … “Kids – I’m tired tonight. Papa may go on tour again – so why not press him to tell a story. He has a very nice stock”.

  

Much as I loved the importance that my children often give me – I didn’t feel comfortable with the comment that the Queen had just made. “Why me?” and “why tonight??”, I felt – as sleep started bringing a sense of numbness in me.

  

However, the chantings of “sto-ry, sto-ry, Papa…pleeeaaaase” kept growing on both my ears and sleep itself was undecided as to whether and when it should strike me. Result: I was getting angry … Angry at the children for the chanting and not understanding my problem. Angry also at the Queen for putting me in this situation while she had already started breathing heavily.  I felt most unfairly treated and the chanting seemed to grow in shrillness till I could take it no more!!

My mind raced to find a shortcut out of this predicament and then, out-of-nowhere, wisdom struck!! It seemed as if a bulb somewhere inside my mind was suddenly switched on. I told the kids “Okay… do you wanna hear a story about ‘a story and a story-thief’ ? It’s short, but it’s unique and if you know how to ask, there are two long stories after that“

“Yes.Yes.Yeahhhhhhhhh. Great Papa. Good Papa” went the kids. So I started the story…

╠

Once there was a papa who had two lovely kids –a son and a daughter. The kids asked Papa for a bedtime story, and since Papa loved the kids so very much he obliged. He narrated them a very long and interesting story and was happy that the kids were listening Little did they know that somewhere in the same room, there lurked a story-thief. As soon as the words were coming out of Papa’s lips, the thief was stealing all the words and the words were never reaching the children. When Papa finished the story and asked the children how they enjoyed the tale – the children laughed and said … “But Papa, you were only moving your lips. You never told us the story!!” Papa started repeating the same story – but the story-thief was very clever. She sprinkled some powder on papa and papa forgot the story that he just told. Therefore Papa narrated another story that was longer and more interesting than the first one. Needless to mention, the story thief stole all the words, and the kids heard nothing. And because the story-thief sprinkled the powder, papa had once again forgotten the story he had narrated. Finally Papa and the kids gave up and that was the end of the story about the story and the story-thief!!

  ╣

Boon and Yanaika were furious. “Papa – that is cheating. You never told us a story.”

“But it WAS a story. I did tell you that this would be a short story” - I replied.

Boon was quick “But you also told us that there are two long and interesting stories after this”

“Well, you have to find it and know where to ask. All you need to do is find the story thief and ask for those two stories to be narrated back” I quipped.

Yanaika was almost in tears “But Papa … why don’t YOU tell those two stories again”

“But the story-thief has sprinkled magic-powder on me that made me forget the stories” I explained

Before Yanaika could cry, I said “Okay, let’s all play detectives and find the story thief”.

A big “Yeeaaaah !” meant that the kids were still game. So I asked them “Do you think Papa stole the stories himself?”

“No” replied the kids in chorus “Why should Papa steal his own story”

“Boon, did you steal the stories?”, I asked.

“No Papa. If I stole them I would not have asked to hear them again”

“Did Yanaika steal the stories?” – I asked again.

“NO. I did not steal them. Even I could not hear the stories”

“So who else is in this room? Who could have stolen the two long and interesting stories?? …”

A few seconds of silence and then ….

"Mamma, please return the stories that Papa told.”

“Mamma –please tell us the two interesting stories “

“ !@#$ ^ ^%*()*(&^ %%*&*”

I don’t know when I had dozed off last night – but the Queen seemed upset this morning and I had to make my own tea!!

ZzzzzzZzzzzz
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