During my
studies in Leicester, I used to frequent my cousin in London a lot. During
these visits only I happened to meet Kanchu (pseudonym). He was from Sri
Lanka. Well a perfectly normal guy but had a fetish for cleaning. Not a bad
thing at all but his was bordering on insanity!
The routine
included cleaning of his room and toilet twice or thrice a week, and kitchen
about once a week. But his passion lay in trimming the yard grass. Even the
lawnmower bowed before his obsession and refused to work anymore one fine day
with a bang and rising black smoke. Through innumerable kicks and howls it
still refused to budge. Ultimately kanchu decided that he required help.
Some suggested going in with the big carver's knife Rambo style. While another
more scientific idea was suggested that he could attach the cutting wheel of
the mower to the axel of a bicycle in place of the wheels, create a balance by
attaching a pipe or something and make a manual mower. Dissatisfied with all
the “cumbersome” inventions being suggested, he devised an ingenious plan. Yes
a very clever plan indeed. He'd cut all the grass with SCISSORS. Not the big
one used for cutting bushes but small Cartini scissors that Mom uses while
stitching or Dad uses for trimming their hair. Yup! That very small tiny
thingy. We bucked him up and waved him goodbye as that was the last day we ever
saw him. It's been years and you can still find him in Bridgewater Lane,
Wembley patiently cutting grass. His beard may have grown and clothes tattered
but that won't deter him from the path of nirvana “A CLEAN BACKYARD”.
