“Woof!” The sound was so faint that I would have missed it if I hadn’t felt something brushing my feet. Looking down, I saw a feeble pup standing shakily near the bench where I was seated. Wondering from where it had wandered, I scanned the park, hoping to find the litter from which I presumed it must have strayed. Unable to find its family, I decided to carry it home.
My daughter Maitri was overjoyed to see the new member in the house. Although she already had Minnie as her companion, she was thrilled to have a new friend, and so was Minnie. Choosing a name was the simplest task. The pup had a white coat with a little blob of black on its tail. The unanimous decision was, of course, Snowy! Eight-year-old Maitri was efficient at looking after Snowy, having tended to Minnie when she was a tiny kitten.
Under Maitri’s love and care, Snowy slowly started looking stronger and healthier. It was a pleasure seeing all three play around the house. Snowy’s favourite sport was following Maitri everywhere. He wouldn’t leave her side for a minute and eagerly waited for Maitri to return from school. Thankfully, Minnie liked her new friend too. She didn’t mind Snowy prancing around her, playfully pulling her tail.
Everyone in the family had met Snowy, except Nani. Maitri’s cousins would come over the weekend to play with Snowy. His soft brown eyes immediately won everyone’s hearts. The next time we visited Nani’s house, we decided to take Snowy with us. Having heard so much about him, she was eager to meet him. She was overjoyed to see us and melted away no sooner than she saw Snowy cosily snuggled in Maitri’s arms.
Nani squealed in delight seeing the small bundle of white. “This is the most adorable pup I have seen,” exclaimed Nani, wanting to take Snowy in her arms. Snowy leapt from Maitri’s arms into the extended warm hands of Nani. The two days passed quickly. Nani and Snowy were inseparable. It was delightful seeing Snowy follow her everywhere in the house. She spoke to him as though he were a small child. “Snowy, do you see my glasses?” “Woof!” came the reply from near the side table where Snowy saw them. “Snowy, do you like cream biscuits?” Snowy’s affirmative reply was loud enough for the neighbours to hear!
Soon, it was time to leave. Nani was restless since that morning, as though she wanted to say something but couldn’t understand how to express herself. Finally, when Maitri hugged her to say goodbye, she said, “My child, you’re lucky to have a companion like Snowy. I wish I too had someone like him. I know you are very fond of him, but can you let him be with me as my friend?” Maitri gave Nani a tight hug. She kneeled and asked Snowy, “Will you be Nani’s new friend?” The woofs drowned her remaining words.
I was surprised at Maitri’s decision. Snowy and she were inseparable. I knew she would be miserable staying away from him. Snowy too loved her immensely. He was deeply attached to Maitri more than to any of us. I took Maitri to another room to have a word with her. “Maitri, you love Snowy so much. Are you sure you want to give him to Nani as a pet?”
“Mama, I love Nani too. She has gifted me so many lovely things and made me happy. Today is the first time she has asked me for anything. It is my turn now to make her happy.”
Love truly has no boundaries and limits. It is only in lovingly giving that we make it priceless.
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– Munira Dalal
About the Author:
Munira Dalal holds a B.A. in Sociology and is a respected educator with nearly two decades of experience teaching across various schools and coaching students from all boards. She is also a Level 8 trained Abacus instructor. Munira’s creative flair extends to designing greeting cards, leading to the successful launch of her brand, SHABNAM, which offers a collection of exclusive, self-designed greeting cards. Her poetry, covering diverse themes, has been widely appreciated and awarded in renowned literary forums, including Asian Literary Society, POEMarium, Prose and Poetry with January Khan, StoryScrapers, Penmancy, Poetry Planet, and Beyond The Box. In recognition of her outstanding contribution to literature, she was honored with the SAMPOORNAM MEMORIAL AWARD 2018 by the Asian Literary Society.
