Raghuram And Stray Dog

     Raghuram was awoken by a thump. At first he was startled and sprang out of his bed. But later got furious after seeing what has happened to his lunch which was put on a small trunk beside his cot by his mother. The rice was scattered on the floor. And that wily dog is going out through the opened door. What a pity! Besides not having lunch he has to clean up all that mess now. It bothers him a lot.  
   

     Of late this has become a daily routine for Raghuram. Who comes late at afternoon from college and sometimes slumps on his cot before finishing his lunch. Then that stray dog comes and spoils everything. And he has to spend that afternoon with an empty tummy. He is living in a little hut with his parents. They are out on the field doing farm work and he doesn't like to close doors in the afternoons as it gets dark in their hut. Although he was very fond of dogs, especially puppies, this dog is really getting on his nerves. So he decided to teach that dog a killing lesson. A lesson that it wouldn't forget for the rest of its life. 

     Raghuram, unlike his friends, always wants to do things in a different way. He didn't want to go for traditional methods against dogs like beating with a stick or throwing stones. During his school days while he was preparing a project for a science fair, he unexpectedly invented a simple but dangerous weapon. It is like a hybrid between traditional bow and modern gun. One day he was seriously making his hydraulic machine using disposed syringes. While doing that, he pinned needles of those syringes to a candle so they wouldn't hurt anyone. After some time he needed to inject some water into his hydraulic system. So he took out one of those needles pinned to the candle and attached it to a syringe filled with water. Then he started to push the plunger of that syringe but it didn't go and water didn't come out of the needle. He wondered. Took the syringe in his both hands and started to push its plunge using his two thumbs. Suddenly he heard a loud pop and the needle was disappeared from the syringe and the water in that syringe was spilled in front of him. He was bewildered and tried to figure out what exactly has happened.That needle left a small scratching mark on the wall facing him. He found the needle that was bent in "U" shape and lying in a corner of his room. He still couldn't make out why all this has happened. Suddenly he glanced at those needles, which were pinned to the candle and he immediately made out the reason behind this mishap. The wax of the candle got stuck with the needles and this chocked the water from gushing out of the syringe. The pressure generated while pushing the plunge of the syringe thus catapulted the needle with enough force so the needle got bent in "U'' shape after hitting the wall. He immediately rushed out taking remaining needles with him and tested them with a syringe filled with water and air alternatively. It worked well,especially on soft targets like the stems of trees. He felt very excited and waited for a right moment to introduce his finding to his friends. Of course that never happened, But the idea of that little experiment remained in his dormant memories.

     

     So now he decided to use that weapon on this annoying dog. A punishment that no one could ever have given to a stray dog. So he made everything ready for the next day. He lied under the blanket on his cot pretending to be asleep. The dog reached his hut.Peeped into it and saw Raghuram sleeping on his bed. So it slowly sneaked up into the house and reached for his lunch that was put on the top of the little trunk. It began to smell the delicious curry served with the rice and trying to remove the covering on the rice. Raghuram was eagerly waiting for that very moment. His weapon was ready in his hands. Just one quick push on the plunge, the dog would never forget this pain. All he has to do is to wait for the ripe moment and find a soft target on its body. The dog, unmindful of the danger dangling upon it, happily eating the delicious lunch and making puffing sounds. 

      After a careful watching, Raghuram decided to aim for the belly of the dog, the only soft spot where the chances of the needle missing its target are few. He was ready to strike. He felt agitated. But before he was going to shoot the needle, he just tried to imagine how much damage could that needle do to the dog. After shooting the needle it goes straight with bullet speed and strikes its belly. Then the dog will release a hysterical cry and rushes out of the hut. It jumps, wriggles, moans and does all sorts of feets to get rid off that deadly needle. Thereafter it dare not to look at this house. The needle remains stuck to the stomach. After some days it gets infected and the dog will experience a terrible death. Death!!?? I'm going to kill a dog? The very idea of dog's death made Raghuram felt a pang of guilt in his heart. He looked at the dog. That was very skinny. Its body was bruised and pus was oozing out of its wounds. It was eating food with such an eagerness and excitement as if it was the last day of its life. He felt pity for the dog. He gently shooed it out of the hut. He wondered that how could he thought of such a cruel plan. He spent some time with unrest as he was unconvinced of this sudden change in his decision. However he felt relaxed by the evening.

     Next day, before eating his lunch,Raghuram took some portion out of his lunch and put it in the leaf of a teak tree outside his hut. You know for whom it is left,don't you?

-By Viroti Somasekhar