Chapter 2 Nice Neighbour

All my neighbors say their neighborhood is very nice. Hearing this sets my mind on fire. I want them not to take the name of the neighborhood from now on. But what to do, every person has some compulsion; Mine too. Then someone or the other comes and keeps sprinkling salt on the wound - 'Your neighbor was praising his neighbor a lot.' Brother, why won't he praise? Buddha and submissive neighbors want everything.

It happened the day before yesterday. Sharma ji's servant has returned my cot. Even after one year, two months and four days, she came back because there was no life in her. The tigers were loose and Adban was missing. Sharma ji had asked for it last year on the occasion of a guest coming to his house. At that time the wife had said, "Give me the broken cot." But I was struggling - "What will the guests say? The best bed should go." That cot was the picture of 'before use' in the newspaper advertisements and the one that came back the day before yesterday was the picture of 'after use'. I also asked in a hushed tone - "Brother, where has the rope of his advan gone?"

The servant said, "I will ask Babuji." My neighbor was also so kind that he sent a reply from the servant at the same time. His rope for drying clothes had broken, so my rope has helped him a lot. In a day or two they will bring new rope from the market, then they will send my request back. Hajela Saheb next door is fond of reading newspapers. he says this

He says, "I have Statesman at my place and Hindustan Times at your house. I know that these newspapers use big paper, but by reading both together I find out the truth." Well, I know that he is also wasting paper, no newspaper comes to his house. He is so punctual that his voice comes exactly two minutes after the arrival of the newspaper - "Why brother, has the newspaper arrived?" The newspaper flies away and returns only after I return from the office in the evening. I console my heart by thinking that

There are many places where newspapers reach the next day and the people living there get to read stale news for a day.

Let me tell you a secret, lest you alert my neighbors. All my books have my friends' names written on them. Its secret is that I buy books and the whole neighborhood reads them. Many times I thought of giving up this hobby, but how can one give up a habit that one has craved for? Earlier the books used to go to the neighborhood and remained there. To avoid this disloyalty, I have come up with this trick that as soon as I buy the book, I put someone else's name on it. Due to which the neighbors return it and even if they are not returning it, I can insist on them - "Brother, it is someone else's book, it is eating away my life." Since the day this strategy was implemented, I have got eighty percent of the books back.

It has become unheard of to ask for tea and sugar, but even my bucket and pan are borrowed. One disadvantage of giving everyday things is that no one comes to return them, I have to make five-six trips to their house.

Take the example of a bucket. Babu Ramakrishna had asked for it and taken it away. The first time I went to take it back, as soon as I entered the door I came to know that he was not at home, the next time he was taking a bath. I remained sitting for fifteen minutes, but his wife sent word that he would go to the puja room as soon as he took bath and would leave after an hour. Brother, I had to get my bucket, so I also kept waiting. One day, from my balcony, I saw him entering the street and immediately came down and caught him keeping his bicycle in his living room. Seeing me, he laughed angrily and he himself remembered the bucket. Calling out to the servant, he said, "Give Arun ji's bucket."

The servant came out, "Daughter-in-law is saying that it is lying drenched in oil, we will clean it in the evening and send it back ourselves." I smiled out of courtesy, "Brother, there is urgent work. Order it, we will clean it ourselves."

He also scolded the servant, "Go, bring it like this. It's his bucket, the poor guy must be getting stressed. You guys remember to ask for things..." Leaving his scolding incomplete, he turned towards me, " Arun ji, I was thinking of returning every day, but the work was not done and the truth is that the work is not done yet."

The point is that the bucket came back completely clean and his words while taking it back made me feel that by taking the bucket back in just ten days, I was "doing them a great injustice."

Shoot the small things, take the big things. Diwali last year

Before, painting was going on at my house. One day, at ten in the morning, the voice of Bhatnagar Saheb, my neighbor's neighbor, came. Arun ji is staying at your place. Uncle was sitting next to me. He was very calmly watching my Raj panting on the stairs. Said, "Yes."

"Please send it. My water pump is filled with hard water. The mechanic has come to repair it. He will return it in some time. I replied, "I have asked for the Quran. You will take it after Raj leaves in the evening. I have to send it back tomorrow morning. If the topcoat is not finished then there will be a problem."

Bey laughed, "You also do wonders. These days, catching a mechanic is no laughing matter. I have been searching for him for ten days, then today I have caught him. It will take a total of fifteen to twenty minutes."

I gave up, "Okay, order it."

"Who should I order it from? Please send it to your Raj." The then gone Raj returned after three hours. On enquiry, it was revealed that he had been asked to hold the ladder lest it slip. The second time I proved to be a better neighbor in this also. Raj was panting, this time Sharma ji came. "Is Raj working in your house?"

"Yes," I said, "send it to my house today. A couple of holes need to be plugged, the rats have made a mess of it, and more repairs need to be done." Being a good neighbor, I sent Raj to his house as soon as he arrived. five

After a minute, Sharma ji asked, "Brother, will you have cement at your place?" Hearing the name of cement, the tools became loose. After standing for ten days, two sacks were found. "the point is....

"Don't worry. My brother-in-law's nephew is in the supply. Just give me one pan and my work will be done for today. I will bring you the sack in a day or two."

I had to reluctantly say yes. After one sifting, one of my bags became empty. I remembered the joke right there. Will you have matches?" And after taking the matches, "Then there must be cigarettes also?"

Can anyone stop me from being a good neighbor by losing a bag of cement and two days' wages today? The neighbors are afraid of my wife, but to what extent can she control the good and bad habits she has acquired since childhood.

The whole neighborhood says that I am a good neighbor and my wife and I are left in awe.