THE FIRE OF ENVY

 Cook your gruel on your fire of jealousy, it cooks faster. Wow, what a proverb I have made! But is it a proverb or a scientific topic? Whatever it may be, what an achievement it is for me! Probably, I would get the Guinness World of Records for the greatest discovery. It will be really superb to show-off my Guinness World of Record to the rest of the students in my nursery. A four year old getting the award is unusual, but who cares? Only if I knew how to convert envy into fire, then my gruel would cook the quickest on my fire. "So what are you dreaming?’ my mother demanded breaking into my precious thoughts. Parents always interrupt at the wrong time.

‘Nothing,’ I lied as we reached the shoe shop. Not any shoe shop, it was a famous shoe shop.

                 I proudly strutted inside, while surreptitiously craning my neck to see if any passer-byes  were watching me enter such a famous, high-class and posh shop. Unfortunately, all were so preoccupied that nobody noticed. What a pity!

                We passed through shelves of fancy shoes, all of varying sizes and types. A man from the staff hurriedly came forward, stuffing a shoebox in a glass cabinet in a slapdash manner.

‘What can I do for you Madam?’ he asked to my mother and my elder sister. That’s right, my elder sister. My main cause of jealousy. I was always compared to her and was called little. Little! There is only a difference of 5 years, but no! She is big and I am small! She is constructing triangles while I am still stuck drawing slanting lines! She has an identity card and I don’t! She is learning computer while I am still rolling clay with a toy rolling pin! The injustice of it all! 

                 The man from the staff acted as if he couldn’t see me. Some people don’t know my importance! Sniffing in disapproval, I let the man show us the seats. I hoisted myself up, banging my knee in the process.

‘Here, here, little girl, ’he said cajolingly, helping me up. I glowered at him sourly.

‘So madam, let me show your elder daughter some shoes!’ he said excitedly, rubbing his hands gleefully. Yawn, so boring. So then, the drudgery began as my mother and my dear sister selected shoes.

                   Instead, now I took to watching my fellow shoppers. All was so interesting. I watched the customers beadily and gaped at a fabulous pair of colossal high heels as it passed under my nose, finally hitting me on my forehead.

‘Oh sorry-‘the plump woman, who was carrying the heels, began coolly before spotting me and then saying with a foul and a simpering smile, ’Did you get hurt, little girl?’

             I, who had puffed myself up with swagger until now, cast the lady a dirty look. Out of all adjectives in the world, she had to use the word little? She could have used dainty, but no! I sniffed in disapproval.

‘Little girl,’ said the irksome lady, still wearing her perfunctory smile, ’I asked are you hurt?’ I tried to look supremely unconcerned, but all I succeeded in was to scowl as much as possible for being called little. I couldn’t muster enough courage to answer back and took to looking at my mother’s handbag as if it were a very interesting film.

            Abandoning all her blandishments, she said blandly to my mother, ’I’m sorry if she is hurt. ’And then,  the lady pranced away, looking at me as if I were a disgusting and an ungrateful beast.

‘Madam, do you want to buy shoes for this young lady?’ asked the salesman, winning my grudging admiration in an instant. Young lady, not little.

‘Yes . yes, ’my mother answered a little impatiently.

              The man took out some measuring tool and told me to keep my foot on it. I never felt so important in my whole life. I made a superior face, removed my shoes and kept my foot proudly on it.Oh, what joy! Then he took out a tape and started measuring my foot, right from my pinky and dainty toes to my soles, much to my happiness and my mother’s annoyance. He then put my foot on a shoe-like cutout made of foam. I felt as if I never had worn shoes and started wondering whose were those shoes which had previously adorned my feet.

             Then, to my greatest annoyance, he took out small shoes! With all my admiration for him vanishing in a second, I glowered at him with deepest loathing.

‘Just a minute madam, boss is calling, ’the man said hastily, getting up hurriedly and rushing away.

‘Why is she getting big shoes and I am getting small ones?’ I demanded furiously, pointing at the shed my sister had selected for herself.

          Just look at the unfairness! I was getting small shoes and my sister was getting big shoes! I also wanted big shoes, but no! People are never fair to great, kind, ingenious and perspicacious beings like me. Don’t you think, after reading my ingenious idea of the fire of jealousy, that I, the greatest person of the universe, deserve bigger shoes than my sister?

‘You are small, that’s why you are getting small shoes, ’my mother said, for some reason, in an exasperated voice. She never gets my logic, which is a pity at times.

‘No, l also want big shoes, ’I said adamantly, surreptitiously trying on my sister’s shoes.

‘But these dainty shoes are so good! ’my mother cried in desperation, ’Look, these shoes glow when you walk!’

          Looking at those small shoes in disdain, I said scornfully, ‘Phooey! Who is going to wear such gimcrack shoes, huh? Not me!’

‘How about these? ’my mother asked, waving a pair of slippers in front of my eyes.

‘No, ’I said stubbornly, getting caught in the act of trying on my sister’s shoes and receiving a kick in return.

             My mother took a deep breath and then started to explain.

‘Dear, ’my mother said patiently, ’Look at the size of your feet and look at the size of your sister’s feet. Your feet are comparatively smaller. You will fall if you wear her shoes.’

‘No, no, I will not fall!’ I said indignantly, seizing the opportunity to wear my sister’s shoes. My sister immediately snatched the new shoes and left her old shoes for me to try on. No matter, no new shoes then no new shoes. At least I’m getting to wear big shoes!

           I slipped my feet into the my sister’s old shoes deftly, which was a great achievement as I had learned to wear my shoes correctly just days ago.

‘There!’ I said triumphantly ,’I did not fall!’

‘But you will fall when you will walk,’ my mother countered in an exhausted sort of way.

‘Pooh, pooh ,’I scoffed ,’I’ll walk and show you!’

              I strutted across the room, shooting triumphant looks at my mother.

‘See, I did not fall! I did not-‘I began jubilantly, but at that exact moment,  to my greatest embarrassment ,I stumbled. I tried to stop myself by wind milling my arms madly in in the air but unfortunately, I fell like the skinny models slipping on the ramp.

‘Impressive fall, ’my sister said snidely as I got up sheepishly. I craned my neck to see if anybody saw my embarrassing moment. I thanked my stars that nobody saw me and then, started thinking of excuses to reason with the 2 people who saw it, so that I could conceal the truth.

‘No, no! I did not fall due to these shoes,’ I reasoned indignantly.

           To tell you the truth, I did fall because of those big shoes, but as you know, you have to lie to gloss up things. For the good of people, you have to lie. Here, for instance, if my mother buys me big shoes then she will save money for small shoes are costlier than big shoes. Okay, that is a lie, smaller shoes are comparatively cheaper than bigger shoes. But, when I will go to collect my Guinness World of Record, how will I go there wearing those small shoes which look more like dried up crocodile hide than shoes? It will make a bad impression on people about me and they will not use my fire of envy, which is their loss. So, why not lie if it is for the people’s greater good?

‘You did not fall due to my shoes? Wow sister dear. If there will be a World Lying Competition held in future, then you will be it’s winner,’ my sister said with the air of an astrologer predicting grave danger. 

          I sniffed in disapproval, stoutly denying the truth, because if I didn’t do that then I will never get big shoes.

‘I want big shoes, ’I said adamantly, stoutly refusing to wear small shoes. To make the long story short, I got nothing in the end. Intelligent people never get the things they actually deserve. Don’t you agree?

            I walked out with my mother in a huff. I again started thinking about the fire of jealousy. Only if I knew how to make the fire of envy, then I would make it in an instant and my gruel would cook faster than the speed of light. I would not eat the gruel but give it to the museum as a proof that there is something faster than light. Another reason for not eating the gruel is that I hate gruel.

       Now, only if I could try on my sister’s new shoes..........