My grandma was not well. My mother and I took her to the clinic in the next street. My five-year-old cousin Rosy, who was staying with us for the weekend, also accompanied us. We were in the waiting room when Rosy spotted a painting on the wall that depicted a little girl sitting on the balcony of her house and looking at the beach. “Nisha akka, see that painting. Why is that girl looking sad?” asked Rosy. “I don’t know,” I said irritably, as I was playing games on my mother’s mobile phone.
The nurse asked my mother and grandma to go into the doctor’s consulting room. “Nisha akka, that girl should be happy because her house is near the beach. But why is she looking sad?” asked Rosy again. I tried to make Rosy play on the mobile to quieten her. But she was only interested in the girl in the painting. I was annoyed and told her to go and ask the artist. “Who is the artist?” asked Rosy. I looked at the painting and saw ‘Mala’ written at the bottom. “The artist is our Dr. Mala,” I said.
Immediately Rosy barged into the consulting room. “Doctor aunty! Doctor aunty! Why is that girl in your painting looking sad?” she asked. Dr. Mala smiled and told us to wait outside. Since there were no other patients, the doctor came to the waiting room and sat beside Rosy.
“The girl in that painting is my niece Vandana. My elder brother is a doctor. He was transferred to a small coastal town called Muthukkadu. Vandana was excited to be living near the beach. She made friends with a girl named Tara whose father was a fisherman. One day Tara and her father went to the sea early in the morning in their fishing boat. But they didn’t return in the evening. Several fishermen went to look for them but no one could find them. Vandana would sit on the balcony for hours, hoping against hope to see the safe return of Tara and her father. But they never returned.” We felt sad as we all looked at the painting.
Connecting the dots
The next day, my grandma felt better. My father took Rosy and me to an ice cream parlour. Rosy was fascinated to see a big fish tank that had several colourful species of fish along with ornaments such as marbles, a scuba diver, a pirate ship and a fishing boat. “Tara is spelled T-A-R-A, right?” asked Rosy. “Look, that fishing boat has the name TARA written on it.”
My father checked with the manager who said that the fish tank had been bought from Tara’s Aquarium. We wondered if it could be the missing Tara and my mother called Dr. Mala. Her brother’s family was now living in the same city. After making some enquiries, they found that the aquarium was owned by Tara’s father! After Tara’s mother died, her rich elder brother wanted to take Tara away from her father. So, they had decided to escape from him and move to the city.
It was a happy reunion for Vandana and Tara, who are now 18 years old. They met Rosy and thanked her profusely. I decided to be observant like little Rosy and not be glued to the mobile phone when I go out.
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