By Savitri Narayanan
“Where is my cat?” asked Anu as she completed her homework and came out of her room.
“Must be somewhere!” said mummyji from the kitchen. It was her practice to complete the tasks and put the kitchen in order before coming out on the lawn to chat with her friends. The other three houses in the complex too opened onto the same lawn where she joined Kamla aunty and Meena aunty for their daily exchange of news. Usually, they would be already be chatting there because soon after they returned from school, both, Anuj bhaiyya and Kartik bhaiyya went for karate classes whereas Anu and Saurabh went in to their study tables to complete their homework. They looked through the timetables and packed their bags for the next day before they went out to play in the Panchayat playground.
“Where’s my cat?” Anu repeated, “I can’t find it! When I came from school, Kittu was here at the door, followed me to my room as usual. I did my homework and came out, can’t find him now!”
“Look around again,” mummyji called out from the kitchen.
It was then that Anu’s elder brother Saurabh came out.
“Bhaiya, have you seen my cat?”
“It must be somewhere, playing hide and seek with you,” laughed Saurabh.
“When did you see Kittu last, mummyji?”
“What’s wrong with you, Anu? As if I have nothing else to do except track your cat,” mummyji sounded amused and slightly irritated too as she switched off the kitchen light and came out, “Must be somewhere around!”
Pradeep and Alwyn walked in with their bats; Saurabh took his bat too and stepped out with them.
“It might have gone out to meet a friend. We’ll look out for your cat, no worries,” he said and went out with his friends.
Anu kept searching but couldn’t find her cat.
It was getting dark, soon papaji would be home. Before he was at the gate, usually mummyji would freshen up, light the lamp and say her prayers.
Sitting on the sofa, looking dejected, Anu too said her prayers, ‘If only Kitti would be home.’
Soon papaji parked the car and walked in. The tea was ready on the table as he settled in his chair.
“Papaji, my cat is lost,” Anu was on the verge of tears.
“Cats stay within their familiar territory, baby,” said papaji. “Won’t get lost, no worries!”
“We couldn’t find Kittu,” in walked Saurabh, concern in his voice. “On the way back, we took separate lanes to spot it in case your cat has got lost.”
As they sat around, papaji could see that Anu was really upset and so was he! Where could the cat be? Run over by a vehicle? Stolen? Eaten by a wild boar or a jackal?
Anu’s cat had to be found!
Mummyji walked in with the tea, papaji took a sip thoughtfully and said as if thinking aloud, “The cat is either inside our home or outside the home, let’s do a thorough search; you both help mummyji to look in every room including the toilets and the attic; I am going out to play badminton will look around the neighbourhood with my partners. Don’t worry Anu, we’ll find your cat wherever it is!”
“Do you think we could report to the police?”
“Well, why not?” Papaji’s response was unexpected, “What is police for! We’ll do it! Just to reconfirm, you’ve checked in our neighbourhood including your friends’ homes, right?”
“Of course, papaji! Anu’s cat is lost!”
Unexpectedly, then came the familiar sound, ‘Meaw, meaw!’ Everyone looked around.
To their delight, from under the sofa came out the cat and cuddled near Anu’s feet!
(Savitri Narayanan is a retired educationist at present in Goa. A mother and grandmother, loves reading, writing and travelling.)
