Daddy's Day Out

 There is so much we learnt from our father being with him, looking at how he worked, with so much dedication to his bank, to his work, honesty, responsibility, how he handled everyday issues...while our mother took care of everything else at home and of the family, a typical day during our Dad's working period is nothing short of a thriller movie...Dad needs to be there at the bank on time as one set of the key keys are with him and they cannot afford the public to be waiting for the bank to open even a few minutes late...that being the setup time to be met, the distance to cover with the traffic still had quite an uncertainty...while the start time of the bank is to be met, the end time hold time is quite long...coming home very late every day, the next day starts slightly late and then there is a heavy push to meet the timing...Eenadu needs to be read fully...and any interesting political event or a good article (there was no dearth of those then) will add to the OCV...one strong morning coffee and two teas later, the complete newspaper done is a necessity before any next task is done...there are a sequence of tasks each taking minimum delay before he gets on with the Puja...by now we three sons realize it is going to be delayed unless we optimize the tasks...I get the flowers for the puja...my brother brings out the bajaj chetak and starts it the first time of the morning...chetak doesnt start easily so he keeps it ready by the time Dad comes out so it gets a quick kick start...getting it started is an art...bending it sidewards so the fuel gets into the engine, coming back to the other side and kick starting is an art...another brother gets the shirt ironing done...mother keeps the hot upma under the fan and additionally fans it so it gets less hot and can be eaten faster...I get to polishing the shoe...brother helps mother in setting up the hot carrier with spoon and keeps the lunch bag ready near the scooter keys so he doesnt forget...another brother keeps the hand kerchief, comb, wallet ready...mother makes sure some decent change is kept in his shirt pocket along with his pen...by now tha haarathi is done and father quickly rushes to get dressed...combing and face powder are a must irrespective of anything...bringing the ironed shirt, getting the shoe polished, getting the chetak kick started, getting the lunch carrier ready, completing the quick hot breakfast each of these need to meet their own setup times to be able to meet the overall timing...then there is always a bank form that needs to be filled and signed by mother or a register that he worked overtime at home that he needs to carry without forgetting...and one of us need to get the progress report card signed...when he horns twice and accelerates the chetak and turns the right, there is a relief of meeting timing in all the corners...for the day...the next day, the timing closure begins...with a fresh start...Daddy's day out has always been a thriller...always cherished those days...