Ruth Sequeira

I've been looking out for inspiration for a new blog post for the past few weeks. Like most things that I'm searching for in my life it came straight to me, I just had to wait, with arms wide open. In this case, however, inspiration whacked me straight at the knee, in the form of a rubber cricket ball.

Goans don't usually welcome dry days, but after almost a week of being stuck indoor thanks to the rain and the thunderstorms, it was warmly welcomed. At times like these, the women dry damp clothes out, the elderly nervously go for their evening walks, the children run out to play and the men (being men) continue to watch Star Sports. Going according to what I have just mentioned, my brother Luke should ideally have been indoors, but when I went out into the garden, I saw him playing gully cricket with a bunch of school boys. I've always known Luke to have a very childish side, but it was only yesterday that I noticed a similarity to Peter Pan.

I walked over to where they were playing and the boys (being young boys) gave me a derogatory stare, which very clearly conveyed their message - 'girls aren't allowed here'. I walked ahead, smiling from ear to ear, hoping to make friends, but judging by the intensity of the vibes, I wasn't too confident I would. Luke didn't notice me at first, but when he did, he gave me a very sheepish smile. When the boys saw their captain and coach smile at me, they decided they should end all hostility.

I had seen most of these boys in their half pants, running around, creating chaos, but I didn't know them by their names. I asked Luke for introductions, but he was too busy bowling. Over time, I figured out a) their names and b) that Luke didn't know their names. There was eleven year old Cyril, who Luke called Damien (“a stark resemblance to Damien of 'The Omen'”), ten year old Pritish whom Luke called “Munna”which is incidentally his father's name, then came ten year old Daniel, who Luke referred to as “you” and finally 8 year old Emanuel who was tagged “smally”.

The boys were playing the usual roadside cricket, with basic rules of; “If the ball hits the red wall, you're out”, “If the ball bounces once and then you catch it, your out”, “If the ball goes all the way to the yellow wall. It's a four” and finally and most importantly, “If you break someone's windowpane, everyone must flee within 15 seconds”.

It was very amusing to watch the boys playing, I am absolutely certain that the kids I played with 15 years ago were more skilled than this lot. Daniel didn't seem as brave as his biblical predecessor and often gave a little shriek when the ball headed in his direction. Damien, on the other hand, was a bit too bold. When fielding he took his position right in the middle of the pitch and at some point he was nearly smacked on the face by Emanuel, who was finding it difficult to control the heavy bat. Pritish was the only guy who seemed to have some cricket in his blood and gave Luke some competition. Little Emanuel sat with me for most parts of the match and when he did venture on the field, he was very distracted and missed quite a few catches, which annoyed Pritish greatly. In the one hour that he did play, he slipped and fell five times, which is more than the number of runs he scored.

I joined the boys at their game and unlike earlier, the boys seemed to have no objection. On the field, we were all the same sex and the same age. We were now buddies. I was glad to have met these young lads and shared the evening with them, I was transported back to my childhood,(not such a long time ago) where I was always the only girl playing with all my brothers' friends. It was a complete deja vu moment when I was bowled out and was given a second chance by these fine gentlemen, because as one of them explained “you're a girl”.