Little Minoo was tallest in her class. For a sixth grader she could reach the top of the blackboard with her foot long scale. The rest of the kids were completely in awe with this super human feat which only Mrs. Bhandari, the class teacher could achieve. And ofcourse Shivaji, the school peon. 

Whenever the teacher came in late, or a parent dropped by to get hold of a child's progress or if the principal wanted and urgent meeting with teachers, the class became Minoo's domain. Minoo was the brightest kid in the class and the class captain. Naturally, she was the chosen one, the one who could stand up to check commotion, bring order to chaos, the leader bearing responsibility for the clan. She was just fine with the job for she was a giant, though a gentle one she knew she had it all to wreak havoc. More importantly she made sure that the kids knew about it. She would take rounds in the class with her ruler, beating it to a tune in her palm, sniff for signs of trouble quietly bubbling in any corner, raise an eyebrow, squint an eye, stiffen the upper lip, briskly walk off to the board and jot down the name of any miscreant. This would instantly bring pin-drop silence to the class. And when the class acted all nice and obedient she would dish out an occasional show of her act. She would show off her reach in front of the entire class.Posing like an olympic diver making a pyramid with both hands in air, meditating, thinking of the applause after the splash, she would slowly inch the tip of the foot rule towards the upper rim of the blackboard. For a moment or two a deliberate hovering of the tip would ensue 'whoas' and 'ahs', just like the ones spilling out of the spectators as they watch the daredevil take a leap of faith.  While kids' eyes stuck to the rule-tip, some skipping a beat or two, Minoo like an amateur magician using distraction as the key would slowly and unnoticeable lift the heels off the ground and balance herself off the tip of her toe. The top of the blackboard, the summit would thus be fathomed by an explorer. Minoo has secretly practiced the trick on the terrace of her house since the day she saw ballet dancers on tv.

Shivaji would come in after every 3 periods to wipe the board off all the chalk. This wiping ritual was very important to little Minoo. She believed that wiping off the board with moist rag made the board magnetic, words would stick to it and get imbibed into her memory. Then she wouldn't have to spend her day learing her lessons, instead she could just sneak into the backyard and sing songs to the sparrows on the mango tree and to 'chote miyan', a wooden peg in ground, a clown from torso-up. Being the class captain she would make sure to get hold of Shivaji if at all he occasionally sneaked away to enjoy his biriee. She knew all his hiding spots, by the water cooler, under the school bell, neel trees behind the teacher's parking and mostly by the 'Birju ke dahi vade' stall just outside the school gates. She would hail him from the school gate. As Shivaji would enter the gates, she would scold him," Shivaji, biree is very bad, stop it!". Shivaji would offer his teethless smile and walk off to moisten his rag, "kal se chod doonga babyji". Shivaji was kind and hardworking. On Sundays he worked as a maali at Minoo's house.

One day Minoo was playing with other kids during recess and she saw something among the plantations. It was an egg. Small, polished white mothball of an egg. The news of this discovery spread like forest fire. In no time about twenty kids flocked upon the alien egg. Some were clueless and others were apprehensive. Someone tossed the idea that we can make omlet. Then someone came up with the story that if any human touched an intact egg, the birds would never accept it back. The new born would die out of lonliness. After this no one dared to go within 5 feet of the egg. Minoo, the finder, the discoverer was as anxious about its fate as anybody else present there. 

Someone said that maybe the parents have gone out to get food and hence they have just left it for the time being, they should be getting back any moment. This relieved a lot many. "But what if the relatives of the birds are watching from the trees. If they see any of us touching it, that's it". Another hush followed. Everyone started looking out for birds on the trees just like underground secret agents. "Seven, there are seven birds as far as I can see!". 

Minoo, a silent absorber to the entire thing was  in a way now responsible to put an end to what she had started. She scratched her head hard, not knowing what to do, "Hey bhagwan, sadd-buddhi do! Help me to make a wise decision" 

"Leaving it, just the way it was, is the best thing. God will look after it", someone pushed for it. The crowd was cut into half by now as the excitement had fizzed out.

Minoo, unconvinced to the core of her heart was still undecided. She had to do something. Ideas arose in her mind like a tidal wave and lost posture at the possibility of the dreaded story turning out to be true! She would not be able to bear the burden of alienating poor bird, were it to become one. She turned away from the egg with heavy feet and sunken heart. She knew it wasn't just right. The other kids just followed the class captain. Then suddenly, from the corner of her eye, Minoo saw something lurking in the distance. To her horror, it was a cat. The ruffain was waiting to pounce upon the treasure and looked like he was willing to take a chance and snatch it away right from the midst of it. This was it and Minoo ironed her decision. It was she who had to rescue the poor little unborn. She was just an instrument who would need to act and act fast.
She hurtled back, knocking a kid off his balance and tore off a couple of leaves. She stacked them together and made a canopy out of it. With one leaf she scooped the egg into the canopy. Aloe! the egg was still untouched yet in safe hands. Billykhan got tricked out of her meal. Minoo now held the canopy high into the air, away from anyone's reach but its savior. She slowly walked across the plantation into the school hallway. Flock of followers following Moses to reach the destined land. Near the water cooler was the school store room. It had an attic!!! She had remembered Shivaji talking that sometimes when he was very tired, he went to the store room to doze off for couple of minutes. No need for alarm for the chirping of sparrows in their innumerable nests made sure of that. 

Over by the wall was an old cupboard with an evident invasion of sparrows on top of it. The kids lined up behind Minoo eager waiting to see what would follow. Minoo turned to face the worshippers, pointed towards the cupboard top. She began her ritual, two hands up in mid air reaching up towards the celing. aHo!! gasp!! isss!! glub!! The canopy now slid over the upper rim of the cupboard and rested just fine. It was a class act. All the kids mesmerized by the feat once again. Minoo simply walked off the room. The recess bell was ringing shrill and the kids followed clapping all the way.

This was a day everyone remembered in some form or the other. For Minoo, her life took a new turn. 'Destiny' now pictured into her consciousness. Though she was happy to have saved a life she now began to question several things in her mind. She started feeling like a puppet. Who were her Billykhans? Who was her savior? Did God look over her too? Who looked after Iyee? Several questions and no convincing answers.

Couple of months passed by and Minoo was preparing for her exams. She did not need to specially study for it. She sat in her room, staring blankly out of the window. It had rained the other night and the bugs were bugging her. So many mosquitoes underneath the tube light. It was getting noisy with all the bugs buzzing in and out of the tube light zone. Then from within the underbelly of the tube popped out a head, big black bulging eyes stuck over limey slender six inches of wall lizard. At the first instant she got sick, felt knot at the bottom of her stomach tighten, yuckk!! gluck!!! eesish!!! It then slurpped out it slimy tongue and gobbled up a tiny wasp which was lazily hovering in its vicinity. Minoo froze in shock, then let out a big scream. She took out her foot-rule and wanted to shoo the dragon back into the dungeon. She inched up her ruler towards the tube but to no avail. She was terribly short for performing this act of benevolence. If only she were taller!  Another minute passed and Minoo sat there on the floor trying to cook up a way to save the poor mosquitoes. The head emerged and gorged onto another sweet helping of a beete. Poor Minoo, now couldn't hold back her tears. She couldn't take this gory onslaught anymore and shot into the living room catching her Iyee napping by the phone while her dad was catching the ten o' clock news. She just nosedived into Iyee's sari and Iyee, startled let out another cry. 

"What happened Minoo? Why are you crying?". Minoo kept on sobbing. All she did was point in her room's direction. "Please look into what's happened in her room, I am following the election bulletin", dad irately declared.

Minoo then dragged Iyee's palloo, Iyee following her with concern. Minoo pointed in the direction of the tube light and asked to watch. The fire in the beast's belly wasn't to be pacified so easily and hence it emerged without any further delay, performed its one-act and disappeared backstage to get ready for the next one. It was after all a full house! Iyee understood everything and the obvious rigmarole of thoughts that went through Minoo's mind. She saw Minoo trying to value everything in the face of either being right or wrong. Iyee knew Minoo stand on value for of life and was instantly overwhelmed with affection.

"Minoo, look at what I do.." Iyee switched the light off. Minoo stood there not knowing what had changed. She was still angry.
" Minoo, now that the light if off, more insects wouldn't sit by the tube. Now the lizard will not be able to see properly. So you see, God knew about this and if he wanted He would have made you taller, wouldn't He have?. So many insects have been saved. Now go to sleep"

It would only be years before Minoo would fully realize the lesson her Iyee taught her that day. If situation turned out to be out of our control then one could still fulfil a sane existence if he turned his blind eye towards it. All instruments are always in place.