without any further nonsense... here it goes..and yea..I didnt bother to proof read..so forgive all errors
TINA AND HER DADDY!
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Tina was 10 and as per the customary Saturday morning routine, walked up to her dad after her bath sat near his foot and dumped the dry towel at her dad's lap. Her Dad picked the towel and started drying her hair. A different way of father-daughter bonding but they loved it even though they would never admit it. TIna loved to act as if it was his fault that she had to wash her wiry hair and her dad loved to pretend as if he got annoyed when she did it every single time. Saturday mornings is when Dad decides to tell her about his aspirations for her- On what HE wanted HER to be.
Family legends that were handed down at every yearly gathering seem to give her the idea that dad bought her a World map for her christening when she was 3 months old in an attempt to educate her. The legend also told her the sorry state of the map after it was handed to her- stomped, torn, scribbled and chewed on till no place could ever be identified on the map. Dads can go so annoyingly overboard!.
At 10, she was listening to her dad talk about his dreams on how he failed to get admissions to a medical school and how he wanted her to become the first doctor in the family and make him proud. It annoyed her to listen to it for the umpteenth time but it was her DADDA and she loved the head massage. After a hefty lunch, she went back to her room and did what she did best- DREAM. Too bad, the cruel world never pays people who dream. They had to WORK in huge buildings which looked like a pile of match boxes and not talk to each other-what a bore! She dreamed of boys who had cooties, she dreamed of being an officer. Her dreams were different each day- one day she was a police officer, the next day she was a salsa dancer and yet another day she was the wrestler on crazy shows where people jump all over one another and tear each others clothes. Then it was time to stop dreaming.
Monday, it was school time again. The quintessential girl she was, Tina loved to please everybody. She loved to please her teachers and friends and always was in time for her work. She did not really work because she wanted to, she worked because it made her happy and her teachers happy. For her classmates, she was the angel among earthlings! She was happy being the 5th ranked student in the class but her dad was not. So it was time to work for daddy's feelings to be made better. In a year, she was the topper and daddy's smile made her smile.
Years passed, she grew older, Puberty struck but routines never changed. Dad still dried her hair for her, she continued to have her Saturday special futurisitic dreams- the content varied though. Now 16, Tina's dreams were the quintessential sweetheart's dreams- dress like a diva get the world's best boy- He is well built, plays a guitar, sings for her without looking effeminate, is funny and most important is a ONE-woman Man and is extremely loyal- Product of the dreams indeed! "A girl can dream", she thought to herself and shut her eyes to continue her dream- he sometimes looked like Leonardo di caprio and some other times like aamir khan based on whose movies she had seen last. Sometimes he even resembled some vague football stars and the guys in romance novels. Her hero was different unlike those of her friends- he was not real and she was happy the way she was. Her dad was happy with her unreal hero too! He was determined to keep his favourite little girl as late as possible! His little angel was already showing dangerous curves that the society does not react well to but he was proud of her. Her niceties were so popular, that even the worst of the devils loved her a little too much in a sister-ly way. Whatever the curse of the SISTERHOOD was , he could not understand but he was really happy about it.
In two years, it was time to choose her college and courses. She started writing things down- WHAT did she want to be? After all the mindboggling confusions between finding the cure for cancer and refereeing mens football worldcup, she decided to do what she thought she might love- Painting. Tina ran out of her room to her dad, as usual, to tell him her decision. There he was, sitting with his glasses on, hair looking more salty than pepper with a serious look poring over all the med school applications. Dad was working for her, like he worked all 18 years of her life- FOR TINA, her selfless dad always teared up tina-her dad would forget to buy a shirt for himself for his birthday but would go all the way and hunt down a zillion dresses to get her that perfect metallic blue ghagra. She didn't mind being called sentimental- her dad was important. She decided she was going to sideline her goals as stupid as it sounds and enrolled in med school.
Over the years in med school, she suffered and cursed herself for getting such an awesome father for whom no sacrifices seem great. Her dad was her hero. If only he was mean to her, she wouldn't mind hurting his feelings probably but her dad was her dad! For a 23 year old doctor, having her dad as a hero and being single might not mean a lot-especially when the girl is dreamy! Some things never change and these things include several items apart from the world's greatest comfort food-chocolates. The Saturday routines continued. Her dad still had dreams for her- he wanted her to specialize, he wanted her to get married and he wanted grandchildren. Tina still got annoyed- but it was her daddy! She still had her dreams! The hero was now a more mature and suave gentleman who understood her. Six pack lost its prominence in her list through the times. Now it was all about finding a "nice " man!
Tina realized, it was not bad afterall. She was the valedictorian of her class. She wasn't another Juno or a jilted school girl. She had a sparkling resume in her hands. Most important of all, She was everybody's darling- Maybe it was God's blessing to this beautiful girl with a heart of Gold, People fell over their feet trying to help her. She also realized her dreams of being an artist. It didn't have to be professional, she still painted and the neighbourhood personalized classes were as good as she wanted it to be. Life was good! Except, her romantic hero was still missing in her life!
There will be many many more Saturdays. Perhaps the dreams would continue a few more years till she is able to fixate her man and give him ONE FACE that doesn't change. Dad has always done what finally works out for his daughter. Dad knows best. Maybe in a few years, she might be able to find her guy and bring him to her dad for approval or maybe her dad will tell her about her hero on a Saturday!
Life has a way of working out! Tina will never grow up! She was and will always be her Daddy's favourite daughter. Nothing will change that! Giving her dad a peck on his cheek after another random dream, Tina ran into the yard. She was going to bike through the nearby park. Who knows what surprise an inconsequential trip to the park might hold!
Kumkum Bhagya
Arjun
