Not Now, Not Now!

Rohini Nilekani

I asked Ajji, “May I please have some laddoos?”
“Not now, beta, maybe tomorrow.”
But I did not want to wait till tomorrow.

I asked Ajja, “May I go out to play with my friends?”
“Not now, beta. Maybe after your nap?” But I did not want to wait till after my nap.

I asked Ma, “May I wear these new clothes?”
“Not now, beta, you can wear them when we go out.” But I did not want to wait till we went out.

I asked Papa, “May I open that nice
looking box?”
“Not now, not now. You must wait.”
But I did not want to wait any more.

Why do big people always say,
‘Not now, not now’?
That night, I went to sleep feeling angry.

The next day, I woke up early and went into the kitchen. Ajji said, “You can eat these laddoos now.”

Ajja said, “We can play cricket now.”
Ma said, “You can wear these clothes now.”
Papa said, “You can open this box now.” And they all said, “Happy birthday!”