Demon in the head

Raju was a young boy, 12 years old, who lived with his mom and dad in a city suburb. He liked going to school, reading fairy tales and most of all he loved playing with his friends. Everyday after school he would come home, finish his homework and then go to play on a ground in the locality where he stayed. The ground was about a kilometer or so away from his building. The road was less frequently used but was safe nonetheless.

One usual winter evening he came home from school and followed his regular schedule. "It's cold, wear your jacket. It gets dark soon so don't make it late", said Raju's mother just as he was about to leave home. "Yes mom, don't worry", he said and ran out to play. The kids played till late evening, they were so engrossed in their play, they did not realise it was dark already. "I better go, it's quiet dark and the lane I have to take to go home is not lit up very well", thought Raju. A friend had got some berries to eat, all the friends took their share, then dispersed and went their way.

Raju was walking home hurriedly, a little scared. He had some berries left which were a little rotten. He threw the berries in a dimly lit bylane. As he walked a little further, some movement behind him caught his attention. Hesitantly, he turned around and was shocked with what he saw. He saw a huge black shadow of a demon on the wall of a building, in the lane where he threw the berries. He was extremely scared, he couldn't believe his eyes, he was trembling with fear. The demon in the shadow opened it's mouth wide and Raju could see it's fangs. The mouth of the demon opened so big, it could have swallowed Raju easily. The demon then revealed its huge claws. Raju who was back tracking, couldn't stand anymore, he turned around and ran home, sobbing.

He reached home and rang the door bell. His mother was in the kitchen and took time to open the door. He rang the bell again and again and again. "I'm coming, why are you so impatient", she yelled from within and rushed to open the door. Raju hugged his mom tight and cried profusely. "What's the matter Raju?" asked his worried mother. She got him a glass of water. After drinking water, he explained everything to his mother. She took him to his room, sat on the bed and made him lie down with his head in her lap. She gently patted his head and in the reassuring comfort of his mother's love and affection, Raju fell asleep. That night, at the dinner table, Raju's mom narrated the story to Raju's dad. "I will go with him tomorrow and see what the matter is. I'm sure there's nothing to worry", said Raju's dad.

The next day Raju refused to go to play after doing his homework. His dad returned early from work. They had tea together after which his dad said, "let's go and check this demon you saw yesterday". "But he's big and dangerous dad", said a scared Raju. "Don't worry we'll sneak up on him, he won't know we are there and moreover, while I'm there you need not worry. I'll look after you", said his dad. The two wore their jackets and walked to where the demon was seen by Raju. They hid behind a parked car and waited, but saw nothing. "May be the demon comes to eat, yesterday I threw some berries in the lane and then the demon came", said Raju. His dad had carried some biscuits with him. "I'll go throw these biscuits and come back, you wait here", said his dad. He threw the biscuits and ran back to hide behind the car. Suddenly a huge shadow appeared, just as Raju had described. He started trembling again. "Don't be scared, we'll just sneak up and peep around the side wall", said Raju's dad. They picked up sticks and like detectives, with their backs to the wall parallel to the road started walking sideways towards the shadow. They reached the lane and his dad peeped first. He saw the demon and then turned back to Raju. "Just be calm and look around the corner, look at the demon but be quiet, you don't want to attract it's attention", said his dad. Fearfully, Raju sneaked around the corner and was shocked at what he saw. He suddenly burst out laughing, "it's just a little mouse dad!" he exclaimed. The mouse opened its mouth and Raju saw how it's little teeth looked like fangs in the shadow on the wall and how it's little feet looked like claws. Both father and son had a big laugh. His dad then explained to Raju how the mouse on the wall and a light source close to it was responsible for the shadow being so big.

"So Raju, you see there's an important lesson to learn here. We are very often afraid of the demons in the head. We get scared and our fear, causes the problem to look much bigger than what it really is. The problems, more often than not, are small but our perception of them is big. The little mouse is like the real problem and the shadow is like our perception of the problem. Sometimes you only need the courage to face your problems. Come out bravely and face the problems head on and you realise two important things. First is how small the problem is and the second is how strong and courageous you really are. So in life don't be afraid and run away from problems because they seem big, that's your perception, face them because you are stronger than you think and the problem is smaller than you imagine", explained his dad to Raju as they both held hands and walked home.