The kids came running home after play last evening, sounding
very excited. The cause of excitement, as I learnt later, were a couple of
snakes in the open grassy land next to the apartment.
“Mamma the snakes
were mating,” the elder one told me, “or maybe they were fighting, because they
were coiled together”.
I was suddenly all ears, more curious to know where he had
picked up that word. Not wanting to sound scandalised, I casually asked him,
“What is mating?”
“I think they were trying to have a baby.”
Gosh. How do kids even begin to know all this?
“Who told you that?” I asked him.
“My friend, C, he is 7th std now, he knows.”
“Hmm… ” I said, half
expecting him to ask me how exactly do they do it!
“Will the snake lay eggs?” he wanted to know.
“Yea it will.”
“How are the human babies born? Did you lay an egg too when
I was born?”
