King Vikram hauled me on to his back, his eyes red with bloody intent.
- O King! I said. You are mettlesome but your mettle is worthy of appreciation. I will now tell you a story. At the end of this story, I’ll ask you a question. If you know the answer and speak it, I’ll fly away. However, if you know the answer and remain silent, your head will burst into a thousand pieces, in which case you will find it impossible to comb your hair properly.
The King walked on silently, but I began my story.
-Listen up O’ King, I said. Not very long ago, there was an honest man in one of those small towns that make up so much of our large world.
Now, this man, whose name was Kapil, never told a lie. To give just one example, when his computer broke and he took it to the manufacturer store to get it fixed, he began his complaint by saying, It was my fault.
Kapil’s honesty was only matched by his diligence. He worked tirelessly throughout the day for he had to support his parents who were now retired.
One day he received a job offer from the city of San Francisco. With the offer letter was a photograph. In the most enticing hues, it displayed a blue pond with a pink necked flamingo. Of course, Kapil wanted to go. But like any dutiful son would, he first asked his parents.
His parents were racked with dismay. His mother thought just how much she would miss her son’s company in the evenings, while his father thought just how much he would miss the whiskey that his son brought home for him in the evenings.
It wasn't much of a gate, but one hell of a bridge
But they smiled outwardly when their son asked Should I go to San Francisco?
-There’s too much beauty there…and by beauty I mean crime, the mother said.
-It’s not much of a gate, said the father, showing him a photo of the Golden Gate bridge.
These were persuasive arguments. Kapil declined the job offer.
Now there worked in the same bank as Kapil a man by the name of Amir. Continued…
