In a rural town of northern Malaysia called Kuala Kangsar lived two close friends, Balbir and Mukhtiar. Both went to the same school, Clifford High. And both completed high school together. Balbir went on to India and became a doctor. Mukhtiar took over his father's business tending milch cows and market gardening in Kuala Kangsar. Balbir moved on and became a successful surgeon in Singapore. In time both got married. Balbir had a son, Bicky, and a daughter, Simi. Mukhtiar had a daughter, Satnaam.

Balbir and Mukhtiar kept in touch and occasionally Balbir visited Mukhtiar. But after marriage and the coming of the children, communication became less frequent.

As Bicky and Simi grew up, Balbir became increasingly concerned that his children showed no appreciation or regard for the wealth that he had worked so hard for and accumulated. They spent money frivolously One day, when discussing whether they should go for a holiday to Hawaii or Europe, Balbir decided that the time had come for the children to learn the hard facts of life, what poverty was all about. He also yearned to meet his childhood friend Mukhtiar again. That, of course, also meant a cheaper holiday than going either to Hawaii or Europe!

The children were excited. They had heard a great deal about dad's background and childhood from granddad, who lived in an Old Folk's Home nearby. "Can Dhadha Ji (Grand-dad) come too?" asked Simi excitedly. They knew that mum would not come because she was always going off to India to be with her family.

Mukhtiar lived in the house that his father, who now stayed with him, had built. Made of wooden planks with a semi-thatched roof of straw and corrugated iron with leafy trees around it for shade and acres of land. A stream of clear water ran across the property at the back and from the front porch one could gaze on the splendid views of the Main Range of Malaysia. He lived a few miles outside the town which is a former capital of the state of Perak where he delivered milk on his motor cycle which had a huge milk container attached on the back seat. Some distance downstream, were his cow paddocks with some grazing grounds adjoining a huge palm oil estate where he was allowed to graze his cows too.

Arrangements were made. Mukhtiar was thrilled that his long time friend was coming to see him. His father too, was very excited, as he would be able to see his longtime friend, Ram Singh, Balbir's father, whom he had not seen for many years! One week of great joy and bliss passed between the two families. The children and their parents enjoyed long walks, swam in the stream, played games, milked the cows, went to town to see movies and ate lovely food. They met up with Dad's old friends and enjoyed the company of other children their age and made plenty of new friends. Soon the time came to part company and Balbir headed south in his Mercedez Benz with his father and two children.

There was silence amongst them for some time, as they reflected on a beautiful week. Then the conversation started. "So, you monkeys, did you have a good time?" asked Balbir jovially, to cut the gloom of departure. The children readily agreed that they had a great time!

Then the conversation went as follows as they drove along south to Singapore on the main North/South Highway of Malaysia - a distance of about six hundred kilometers between Kuala Kangsar and Singapore.

Balbir: "Well children, the reason why I brought you to Uncle Mukhtiar's was to show you how it is to live in poverty. Uncle Mukhtiar lives exactly the way his father did - he has made no progress from what his father had achieved, is that not so Bapuji?" he asked of his father, who just smiled.

"The house he stays in is the same wooden house that his father built. OK, he now has a black and white TV set, beside his father's ancient radio, and he has progressed from a bicycle to a motorcycle for his milk-vending business. Look at us, we have a huge double storey bungalow in Singapore with a swimming pool worth almost three million dollars. We have two Mercedez Benz's worth about a quarter of a million dollars, the best furniture and fittings that money can buy and we have three servants attending to our every need. Both of you have 'investment portfolios' worth at least one million dollars each. All this was not easy to accumulate - it took hard work. Remember, I have come from exactly the same background as Uncle Mukhtiar and see what I have been able to achieve! You must not fritter it away."

There was silence as they all reflected on what Dad had just said.

"They seem so happy," ventured Bicky after a while. "They also have the best views - you can see the Main Range of mountains in the distance from their front verandah. We have a high brick security fence cutting out all views, which are almost non-existent in Singapore anyway! There is a beautiful creek running at the back of their house. It is so much more fun swimming in the creek than in our pool which Velu, our gardener, always appears to be cleaning and which is always full of chlorine."

"Yes, and we have one dog which is tied up most of the time and it is a chore to take him out for a walk on a leash, while they have four dogs and no one is forced to take them for a walk because they roam around freely in their vast property and in fact they are constantly with us and we feel safe with them," said Simi.

Balbir was not happy! "What about the expensive toys you have? Each of you has a TV in your own room, with cable network. Your rooms are air-conditioned and you take warm baths. Uncle Mukhtiar does not even have a hot water system! You have a chauffeur to drive you around; we go to the best restaurants in town; holidays overseas every year - in fact you get everything that you could ever possibly want!"

There was silence again, the only sound coming from the silent purr of the engine. Even Dhadha Ji, who was normally very chirpy, was in a pensive mood.

"You know it was such fun getting up every morning, taking a cold shower and joining Satnaam, both Grand-dads and Uncle Mukhtiar in doing 'parkash' of the Guru Granth Sahib and doing Jap Ji Sahib accompanied by the beautiful fragrance of Aunty Banto cooking the 'prathas'! Their food tasted so good, didn't it?" ventured Simi.

"Yes!" said Bicky enthusiastically, "must be because it was all fresh produce from their own garden!"

"Maybe, but I think it tasted so good because it was lovingly made by Aunty Banto herself. Our food is cooked by the servants and it never tastes good," said Simi. "Dad, does mum know how to cook 'rotian"? Balbir was silent. Mum was from a rich background and had servants to do her bidding all her life.

Bicky : "There was a sense of freedom at Uncle Mukhtiar's place which we do not seem to have at home. As it is, you are always worried about us getting kidnapped, so much so that we even go to school under security - our house gates are always barred and even to go for a walk, Ahmad has to go with us as our security guard. There is no such fear at Uncle Mukhtiar's house. Satnaam goes to school with her friends on the school bus - and the family spends so much time together. You are never home, Dad, always busy."

"But what about all the expensive holidays we spend together?" asked Balbir irritatedly.

"Dad, mum for a start never goes with us - she is always going to India. I am not really sure why we go on these expensive holidays except that we can brag about them to our friends in school. We go to Holiday Resorts, do some shopping and 'do the tourist thing' while you prefer to sit on the beach and get drunk!. This time we spent a week almost as a family and with a family. We went for walks together, we played games together, we went to Gurdwara together, we ate together and we slept together!! There was something so wonderful in this holiday which is hard to describe!" said Simi. "We are normally glad to get back home after other holidays. This time I wish I could stay behind with Satnaam - she is my best friend! I wish the holiday had never ended. I have never felt like this about holidays before."

"Remember, on Saturday, when we helped Aunty Banto cook food and went to serve it at the Old Folk's Home? I thought that would be hard work but I felt so good doing all this seva, and in the evening we went to the Gurdwara to do 'Rehraas' and listen to kirten. We have never done that in Singapore. We only go to gurdwara when it is someone's occasion, like someone has died, is getting married, or celebrating a birthday - and that is normally so boring. We seem to go to the Gurdwara for the wrong reasons - not to pray and get closer to Waheguru. Uncle Mukhtiar, Aunty and Satnaam go to gurdwara to pray. We seem to go to gurdwara to be seen, so that people know that we attended their program!" continued Simi.

"It is not possible to spend so much time together like Uncle Mukhtiar can, as he does not have the responsibilities that I have - sacrifices have to be made if one wants to progress. I guess perhaps we should go to Gurdwara more often..." ventured a quieter Balbir.

Simi : "Dad, we can spend more time together if we made certain sacrifices and changed our lifestyle. You and mum seem to have so many parties to go to and also parties at home. At these parties all you seem to do is to stand around with a glass of alcohol in your hand. I can see no happiness or fun in that. You have not had a drink for a week now and we have spent so much time together. I have never seen you so happy, talkative. I did not know that you knew so many jokes!! If we did not have all these parties, imagine how much fun and time we would have together?"

Bicky chirped in, "everything Uncle Mukhtiar does involves his family. There is always laughter in Uncle Muhktiar's house. Satnaam even helps him in milking the cows. I know we cannot come and do surgery with you but when you are home, we need to spend time together. Every evening before coming home you are at your Golf Club drinking with your friends and you normally come home after we have eaten and are ready for bed. And if you do come home early it is to dress up quickly and go off to some party with mum. We never seem to eat dinner or any meal together. Simi and I eat in front of the telly, all by ourselves."

"You have a beer belly. Look at Uncle Mukhtiar - even though he is bearded and turbanned and you are clean-shaven, he looks younger than you and he is certainly much fitter than you!"

Simi: "Sorry Dad, but your explanation that you have to drink alcohol to be socially accepted and successful does not hold true either. Look at Uncle Satwant, who is also a surgeon, he does not drink, he is with a turban and beard, and he is just as successful as you are?"

Balbir swelled with anger and was on the tip of an outburst when he caught sight of his father's serene face beside him and that defused him. He calmed down.

Contd....

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