"Do not forget to tie the deunriya* I'd brought from the tantrik yesterday", she called out to her son. "Yes Maa, don't worry" he replied.
(*deunriya in Odia for amulets believed to be infused with magic charms)
Being disturbed with her only son falling sick quite frequently, her anxiety-driven conscience resorted to the last known solution apart from relying on the long list of prescribed medicines for his earliest recovery.
"What ddeunnriyyaaa....Maa", seated in her lap the ever-inquisitive five-year old grandson fumbled as he spoke. "Ohh dear.. that is a magic thread that could keep your loved ones safe and ward off all that is evil..." she smiled and continued "like the asuras who troubled Krishna".
Amazed by the strength of a thread, his eyes grew wide, "Even asuras, Maa!" "Yes", she laughed without being able to fathom what was coming next. With his tiny steps, the toddler dashed into the room where he knew his mother had hidden the stitching box filled with threads bathed in all the colors of his imagination. He picked up his favorite and ran to his new playmate---a just born baby-goat. "Maa, this is my magic thread to save my friend" with eyes that sparkled with pride and achievement.
The duo was almost inseparable and would run around the house inviting havoc and chaos. Months passed, and one day his play-mate went missing. Teary-eyed and pain gnawing his heart, he asked his grand-ma, "Maa...you said the magic thread would shield the asuras.. but where is my play-mate.." His father had sold it for a marriage banquet in the village. Consoling the grieving child and not knowing what to say, "Ohh such innocent little.. wipe your tears my child...your play-mate has gone to another place...he will come when he grows up and becomes stronger...come , I will buy you some toys". The hope of return of his friend in his eyes faded in a few days but it was his first lesson (of loss) in the mortal world. Death was a concept way beyond his age but nevertheless, he will soon learn about it.
(P.S.: Very often the food we accept for taste, we tend to connect it with our ego. Even though it seems to be immoral as we grow up or even if realisation dawns in the deepest corners of our heart, we fail to vanquish our ego and consequently, deem our actions to be legit. Hailing from the land of Jagannath Mahaprabhu, the author couldn't digest the fact that if the Lord of the Universe cannot accept this... then how can we..., maybe we can teach our little kids about kindness ...a little bit..ok, forget it!)