Riya and Priya were two sisters. They lived with their grandparents. Their grandfather was the most cherished person in the family and society. He was knwon as Lal Singh in society and youngsters used to call him grandpa out of love. Everyone respected him the most and his words were considered final and everyone was bound to follow him. But this respect was well earned by him. He uses to say that people will respect you for your deeds and he indeed lived a life which was exemplary and everyone in society had much respect for him. His deeds spoke for him, it was not the age but the life that he lived gave him the respectable position in society.

 

He used to tell bed time stories to Riya and Priya. But, today he decided to tell them his own story. He told them that today he will take them on a journey to his childhood days when life was very different. He told them that when he was a small boy he lived in a village. His home was msde up of clay and there were no pakka houses at that time. Unlike today there was no facility of electricity or water. His mother used to  carry water pot onher shoulders or on her head and walk miles to fetch one pot of water. She used to do this everyday, not caring for harsh winters, severe rains or scortching heat.

 

He used to be a naughty child, he had his gang of five friends, all of them studied in near by towns in hostel. In In vacations they used to visit their parents. One day he was playing his friends when a naughty idea stricked their minds and they started throwing stones in direction of water pots that were carried by ladies. They were practicing their shooting skills which they had learn in school. The game continued for a while but then it was his mother's turn who was passing by from there and a stone hit her pot and water in pot started leaking. She did not notice it but when she went home she found her pot empty. She was very upset as she had travelled many miles far to fetch one small pot of water. So when his father came home from a hard day at work, she told him about the notorious gang that was playing such pranks.

 


His father was the head of the village, he decided to find the gang and punish them all. So his father kept an eye on the route from where ladies used to carry their water pots. And very soon he got hold of this young children who were playing such pranks. He was shocked to see that the gang was of none other thanhis own son and his five best friends. He decided to punish them but punishment was to be given keeping in mind the age group of this children. So he decided to make them realise importance of the facility that they were getting at their home.


He asked mother of all the six children including his wife to let this boys go and fetch water for themselves. Their mothers were restricted to provide them water or food unless boys would fetch a pot of water everyday. Boys secretly opposed this punishment but could not do anything except to follow his orders. From next day onwards boys started fetching one pot everyday and this went on for a week. They said sorry to him but his father was yet not done with his punishment and so he changed their form of punishment now. Boys were relieved from their duty to fetch water but were not provided with oil to lit their lamp at nights and were forced to stay in darkness and all alone. Boys were yet very young and were scared to pass dark nights in a lonely room. But this is what they had to endure because of their wrong deeds. This went on for 2-3 nights. Boys assumed that punishment was over. But, they were wrong, now Lal's father decided to sent them to farms everyday for few days and they were given the duty of removing chaffs from wheat. All these went on for few days and vacations were about to get over.


Boys were very tired by now and they asked Lal's father for mercy. Lal's father told them that he loved them all and he would never want them to face any kind of struggle in their lives. On hearing this, Ram could not help but ask Lal's father as to why did then he gave this severe punishment to them when they had said sorry. Lal's father called Ram to sit near him and with a warm pet on his back he said that he was proud to see children like them and he punished them because he wanted them to know the value of what their parents and all elders of the village were doing to raise them up in a better situation. He wanted them to understand that their mother walked so many miles just to fetch a pot of water so that she can feed them with good food and water. He wanted them to understand that their father was working hard on fields so that he can provide them good cloth and educate them properly. He wanted them to understand that without light, life would be so difficult. So every punishment that he gave them had a meaning behind it and it was never intended to hurt them. He wanted them to understand and value all the facilities that were there in their lives.

 

 

 

Suddenly a bell rang and grandfather had to stop his story telling from in between, he asked Riya to open the door and check who was there on their door. Riya found Ramu uncle standing on the door. She told her grandfather that one of his best friend from his nototrious gang was there to meet him. On hearing this Ramu uncle was amazed and Lal told him that he was narrating to girls, the incident of severe punishment that they had endured. On hearing this, Ramu uncle had a big laugh and he nodded his head in acceptance saying that the incident changed their lives and he would ever forget that incident and also had shared this with his grandchildren. He told them that today's children are lucky to have all basic amenities of life very easily, they can operate so many electric items at one touch but they should also know how their elders lived their lives and should value today's technology and the facilities taht they are getting.

 

Lal, the grandfather, finally summing up the matter told to girls that the moral of the story is

  1. Value facilities that you have in your life.
  2. Do not misuse technology that had provided them with facilities their elders could not even think of.
  3. And, finally value their elders who work hard to provide them with all the facilities.

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