Elizabeth and Paul

shekhar

To my 11 year old daughter, Kaveri

You left for India last night leaving me in NYC.  Really missing your  laughter.

Luckily I have friends here, with whom I will spend emotional time . Not defined as just being ‘truthful’ or honest, but going beyond that. Becoming vulnerable.  Vulnerability is the essence of a real relationship  between people.  Vulnerability is the essence of your  relationship with yourself, with God, with everything. Become so vulnerable that you become like water. Accepting of everything,  And then let go of everything in its flow.

Here’s a story for you.

There was a little girl that fell in love with two pigeons. One was a beautiful white pigeon, and the other shades of blue and green and grey. She named the white one Elizabeth and the other one Paul. Everyday she would rush back from school just as the shadows of the afternoon were getting softer and longer. Elizabeth and Paul would flutter together and sit on the sill of the bedroom the little girl shared with her younger  brother.  Not facing towards the bedroom but always towards the backyard of the house.  There they would sit in a very regal manner. Facing outward gently speaking to each other in what the little girl called ‘gooterrr- goon’.

The little girl was convinced that Elizabeth and Paul came from the kingdom of  ‘Gooterr – goon’ and had lost their way.  She would rummage through the store house of the kitchen and feed them with any seeds she could find.  Of course being an Indian household, it was full of lentils, grains and seeds of all varieties. So there was no shortage of food for them.  Every evening at 4 o’clock the little girl would start a conversation with the Elizabeth and Paul.  She would make the guttural sounds of ‘gooterr- goon’ and they would respond back. She was convinced they were trying to tell her something, and if she would learn their language, she could help them.

No amounts of arguments from her parents that the pigeons just came for the food would convince her otherwise.  The fact is that when her little brother would try to go ‘gooterr-goon’ with them , Elizabeth and Paul would just fly away.  She would show the family the hundreds of pigeons that would fly back  to their homes every evening, and ask why only Elizabeth and Paul would come to see her.   Soon the family became used to their little daughter going ‘Gooterr-goon’ every evening. A sort of ritual. And the pigeons became accepted as part of the family. They would fly away to wherever pigeons go, and come back the next day at the same time.

Till one day Elizabeth, the white pigeon, never came back. Paul would be there, looking lost and lonely. But not Elizabeth. The little girl would go out and shout at all the pigeons that would fly by and go ‘Gooterr-goon’ as loud as possible. It was then that the family realized how familiar they had got to Elizabeth and Paul’s visits.  As they watched their little girl come back with tears in her eyes because Elizabeth had not come, they would hug her and all pray that Elizabeth was fine and happy wherever she was.

Then one day Elizabeth did come back. She looked sad and weak. And when the little girl went ‘Gooterr – goon’ at her Elizabeth would not respond. To her shock the little girl realized why. Somebody had shot Elizabeth. The lead pellet from the air gun was still embedded in her throat.  Anything that Elizabeth pecked at would just come out of her throat. It was miracle she was still alive.  It was a horrific sight and the little girl panicked and thought Elizabeth was going to die, and that she had come back to the little girl asking to help.  The whole family was distraught.  They all realized how much they too had come to love the pigeons.

The little girl’s father was one of Delhi’s more famous doctors. Unable to take Elizabeth’s suffering he took her into his surgery, and cleaned her wounds. He took out the pellet that some unthinking cruel person has shot her with. To that person it was just a game, a sport. But to Paul, Elizabeth was his companion. To the little girl, her best friend. To the family now, a a precious life that needed to saved.

I still remember how my father gently cleaned the wound, and then stitched together Elizabeth’s wounds, saying words of comfort to my sister.  But because I was a ‘man’ he would look me in the eyes. The expression telling me that there was little chance for Elizabeth surviving. I remember my mother bringing Elizabeth into our prayers every night.

Elizabeth did survive. I watched in wonder as her wound healed, as the wound of a human being would. The family stood around happily on the day Elizabeth could finally eat without the seeds spilling out of her throat. She never got her ‘Gooter-goon’ quite back, but she was active again and could fly as she did before. I have never worked out how my father, a pediatrician, could operate on a pigeon and heal her, but will always remember Elizabeth for bringing such joy to our  family.

So dear kaveri. The grandfather you only remember as a much older man struggling with age, was once the most compassionate doctor I have ever seen. Your aunt, my sister, once a little girl consumed with fantasies, dreams, love and life, now coming to terms with the experiences of life.  Remember that compassion is the greatest gift of them all.

136 thoughts on “Elizabeth and Paul”

  4. Dear Kaveri
    I just have to add to this story and cannot let go this strong image of your grandfather that flashes thru memory pages each and every time I visit a Doctor..
    ‘DOCTOR DADA’ he was,to my twin sons who are now thirty four years. They were born in his presence and he took care of them till his very end.
    As babies, as young boys then as young men, DOCTOR DADA always warmed his hands his stetescope against an ancient room heater before he examined them! Oh, where have all those doctors gone-I ask this question so often today.
    Well Kaveri when the Millenium dawned Doctor dada came to visit Pawan and me with his sister in law and we toasted in my new millenium flutes ..his glass sits with me still in my armoire and if you ever want it …..it is YOURS.

  5. amazing piece of writing… made me feel the pain of that gai for Elizabeth… Every life is precious even though it can’t speak or our inability to understand what it speaks… and yes compassion is the greatest gift…thanks

  6. Mr Kapoor, thank you for this wonderful story. You dont know what it meant for me.
    Thank you once again 🙂

  7. Remarkable.
    Absolutely a brilliant way to inculcate some fine values into our children.
    Thank you for sharing.

  8. Sir, I know that you write very well and i am nothing to give you marks but i have a question in my mind , i have seen so may people specially celebrities who changed their getup time to time . I know that you has a great personality but …

    when will you change your getup ?

  14. What an amazing power to tell stories and slipping in some values in between the sheets. Shekhar, thank you.

  18. Beautifully narrated. Thanks for sharing this special memory with all of us.
    Reminds me of my own experience with a pigeon that used to sleep on my window sill and was wounded during Makar Sankranti, the kite flying season. With some help, we managed to cure the wounds in her leg. The joy that you feel when you accomplish something like this is truly unforgettable.
    Please keep writing.

  21. I’ve learned that when I decide something with compassion & kindness,I usually make the right decision. Remarkable story..beautifully told..will surely narrate it to my seven year old daughter,tonite.Thanks for sharing it.

  28. Beautiful story. Could actually feel the little girl’s pain when Elizabeth did not come back. Thank you for shaing.

  29. wow!!! simply amazing!!!
    i m thrilled to read your pen sir!!! truly admire from the bottom of my heart. keep going sir.. we need more such great works..

  31. Got glimpses of the child in the author as I read this story, almost as if they came from my daughter whose stories protagonists are always animals with strong personalities and emotions. The compassion in your father did the magic of saving Elizabeth!!

    When I was young, I would notice the horror in the eyes of the goats as their companions were butchered and torn apart in front of their eyes in meat shops. That hapless, innocent being tied to a pole would call out for help in a choked voice. How traumatic for an intelligent, sensitive mammal that waits for its own turn!!

    Shekhar, your twitter images have a picture of Bishnoi tribe mom feeding new born abandoned deer as her very own. It’s such a powerful image, simply beyond words !! Would encourage everyone to take a look at it.

    Meanwhile, my 10 year old daughter loved this story. Hopefully, you’ll write more stories for Kaveri 🙂

  32. You are an amazing story teller. I believe the power of story telling comes forth when you are able to visualise yourself in that context and you are reminded of similar experiences in your own life. I could almost see the little girl going gooter goon everyday with the pigeons, playing with them , stroking their soft feathers. I could feel the pain of Elizabeth’s wounds and the little girl’s heart break and most of all I remember all those little stories my parents used to tell me when I was a little girl of kindness, compassion and courage.
    Thank you Mr Kapur, you are truly inspiring

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  35. Shekhar Ji,
    You are just amazing.. For me you are the best storyteller in the world. You put so beautifully in words… ‘Gooter-goon’-this word just took me in my past and brought tears to my eyes. Yes, compassion-greatest gift.. Compassion is the basis of all morality. Please add some more stories.. Love to Kaveri n God bless her.
    Regards

  36. Pranaam Shekhar ji,
    You are amazing.. For me you are the best storyteller in the world. You share your feelings in such a way and put so beautifully in words… ‘Gooter-goon’-this word just took me in my past and brought tears to my eyes. Yes, compassion-greatest gift.. Compassion is the basis of all morality. Thank you for sharing such beautiful thoughts through stories. Please add some more stories.. Love to Kaveri and God bless her.
    Regards

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