A tale of two friends...

Amma...band aid is my friend right?...said Winkie a long time ago.

I am confused....Why do you call band-aid your friend?

Because it didn't hurt me, right?

Oh. Just about 5 years old and he has already associated friends with good feelings. And that friends don't hurt you. Precious start!!! Which brings me to the tale of one of the biggest friendships of Winkie's life so far. His best friend Ab.

Ab joined the school just after Winkie's 4th birthday. And I think they took to each other right away and became quite chummy to the exclusion of the rest at times. I don't know the exact nuances of their chemistry and what I write here is pieced together from the tidbits of Uma's observations and my own recent ones on watching them together at their playdates.

There was another little boy, An. Winkie worshipped him for a long while and everyday at lunch time, would ask An if he could sit next to him. Sometimes, An would say yes, and sometimes he would say no. On the days when he heard the no, Winkie would be disappointed, but would accept the decision and sit elsewhere. It made me a trifle sad to sense that disappointment in him, but I suppose such feelings are inevitable in frail young friendships, which remain in the moment.

However all that changed, when Ab joined school. And Winkie found himself an ever-ready playmate, lunchmate and friend. It will always be an unfulfilled desire for me that I could not really watch them at close range in that natural setting. I would have loved to hear what they talked about, and how their chemistry played out, and if they had any fights at all and how they got over that! So to fill in all these blanks, at least in some measure I would turn to Winkie and ask him about Ab and their friendship.

Everyday he would tell me what Ab ate for lunch and what they played. There was a period of almost 3 months in which Ab went off to India. Winkie missed him initially but moved onto other friendships at school. But once Ab returned, they became closer than ever. And that's when Winkie would talk about him on his own, without any prompting.

Pretty soon, his involvement in the friendship turned more personal as he started visualising all these grand plans of taking Ab with him on the train to downtown, and going with him to the swimming pool and eating french fries (his favorite snack) with him. And that's when I realised that it was about time I struck some form of friendship with Ab's mom and get these two together off of school hours.

I initiated the proceedings and she responded enthusiastically gushing about how much Winkie was the subject of conversation in their home too. Its always pleasant to hear of two way traffic! And so, there it was. Their very first playdate and it was in Ab's home. Winkie, undoubtedly, was super excited that day and there was absolute mayhem and noise when the two of them got together. It was a hit!

The next time, it was Ab's turn to come home. And Winkie gave me specific instructions to make some french fries for his best buddy. I was mighty pleased that my son was recommending some aspect of my cooking for his friend's home-coming! :D. The two of them duly tucked in, and went cycling together. It was a beautiful evening and they were a delight to watch together. And when Ab left, Winkie howled at the sight of their car leaving our driveway.

I was determined not to let the end of school be an end to their affections, so we met again at the park yesterday. The scene that unfolded there is worthy of a Hindi movie screen. For the minute Winkie sighted Ab at a distance, he started to bounce up and down in uncontained glee (they hadn't seen each other for a week now), and came running to me to hug my legs in gratitude for making it happen. Ab was holding a little gift bag in his hand, and came running across the lawn towards his friend. Winkie started sprinting towards him too and that scene almost played out in slow motion in my fond mind. The only thing they did not do was hug outright, but they jumped together in excitement before Ab held out the bag and Winkie grabbed it and promptly thrust it into my hand before they held hands and ran to play. 1 and 1/2 hours went by and this time it was Ab's turn to feel the pinch of parting, while Winkie coolly declared that they would see each other once he got back from India.

We came home and looked inside the bag. Out came a Cars sticker book with stories. And the cutest card I have ever seen exchange the hands of two friends. Winkie didn't get it right away. And I explained to him how Ab was one of the sad faces and Winkie was the other and that they are going to miss each other.

Something about that struck him because he has pored over that card several times after that and at least once on waking up in the morning. This morning, he declared he did not want to go to India because he was sad.

Why are you sad Winkie?...we ask him, playing along, fully expecting him to say its because he will miss Ab.

Because that is my face on the card right...the sad face? So I am sad.

!!!!!!

The logic, as ever, is faultless. The innocence, as ever, is sparkling. The wit, as ever, is flowing unbeknownst to even him. And the story, as ever, ends on this high note! 3 cheers to little friendships!!!