A boy tiptoed his way to our house, quietly slipped an envelope through the crevice under the main door and disappeared as surreptitiously as he had come.
Suspecting mischief by some naughty child I got up, hurriedly picked up the envelope and tried to catch the lad. But he had vanished. The envelope contained a beautifully handwritten invitation card.
It read, inter alia: “You are cordially invited to the birthday celebration of ‘Our dear Jason’ at flat no xyz. Please bring your pets also, if any”. The invitation was a bit unusual and vague that surprised me. I could identify the family staying at the address given in the card. But who is this ‘Our dear Jason?’ We had never heard of this person.
When did Jason land in the family? The name did not gel with the family’s surname.
Was Jason some close relation of the family whose birthday was being celebrated because this time Jason happened to be with them. Well, whatever the situation, the hard fact was that there was a birthday celebration at the place of one of our neighbours. And we had been cordially invited to it. So, in the interest of good neighbourly relations, it was incumbent upon us to go there and share their joyous moments.
A birthday party implies giving a gift befitting the status of the recipient. So, I rang up the host to find out the age of the birthday boy or the birthday girl. Prashant, master of the house who answered the phone call, had a hearty laugh.
“Oh, my goodness, it is you, too! It is neither a boy nor a girl. Jason is our pet.” And then he underscored the point, “Please don’t call him a dog. It hurts me. Call him by name — Jason. He is a member of our family, you know, lovely boy.”
My queries about Jason’s identity etc had been answered in one go. “He is too precious for us, particularly to our son Ajit who is Jason’s elder brother. Please do come and do bring your pet if any” he reiterated. Prashant revealed that the boy had written out the invitation cards and invited the neighbours on his own without the knowledge of his parents. They were happy that their naughty son had provided an occasion for an unplanned social gathering.
I ended the call and this time it was my turn to have a laugh. I told my wife who Jason was. As we had never attended the birthday party of a dog (Sorry, Prashant) we decided to enjoy one in the company of a canine.
However, this “birthday boy” needed a different kind of gift. Having bought some dog delicacies, including dog chewables, biscuits and other edibles, we reached the venue on time. Wow, what a scene it was. So many canines — all attired in their best.
‘Birthday baby’ Jason was dressed in attractive grey, complete with a black bow that lent him a “manly” look.
While other species barked, Jason, a pug, remained quiet (pugs bark sparingly). Jason was obviously the cynosure of all eyes. And he seemed aware of being noticed and admired by the audience — especially one female pug named Genie.
Jason gave an intense look to Genie, which she returned in full measure. However, Genie appeared to convey the impression that “she” was unconcerned and had not taken any notice of Jason’s charming looks. Honestly speaking, “she” looked no less seductive that lovely evening.
I was critically watching the entire goings-on in that unusual gathering of two species — canines and humans. Singing “Happy birthday, dear Jason”, some of the hosts offered the dog biscuits. He gladly accepted them, but growled at other dogs who tried to partake of them. He zealously guarded them against any intrusion.
The only exception was Genie who hesitatingly moved ahead and picked up the delicacies without any hindrance. In no time, Jason and Genie had become good friends.
As the hours passed by, the guests left one by one after having their own fill of high tea. Only the keepers of Genie and I stayed on for more chatting with the host couple. They would have spent a little more time but Jason and Genie were getting too cosy and chummy — and coming too close. The visitors decided it was time to go home.
Jason gave them a nasty look with the natural snort that all pugs have. The taut leash that was pulling Genie away amply indicated that she too was not willing to go back so early. The bonds had become too strong.
Lalit Raizada is a journalist based in India.
