Madame Pristina's Pesky Pet

Madame Pristina was a good housekeeper. 

She was always busy. She never had the time to answer her phone or to meet friends. She woke up before the sun's tender rays touched her doorstep.

 

Every morning she washed clothes and put them out to dry using dainty clothes pins. She mopped the floor, cleaned the kitchen, and cooked breakfast. Then she went out into the garden and plucked flowers for the vase in the living room. After that she washed her car, dressed up, and went to get groceries. On coming home, she cooked lunch and also did some baking. Then she brought in the dry clothes, ironed them, and hung them onto hangers. 

Madame Pristina did not have any pets because she disliked the fur of cats and dogs on her carpet. She thought birds and fish smelled awful, and hamsters were simply out of question. Anything out of place in her house annoyed her and she liked to stick to her daily routine.

One day, when Madame Pristina went out into the garden, a little fly took a free ride on her bunch of flowers. It sat still while she arranged the flowers in a vase. 

Art: Irene D'Cruz, 75, India

Madame Pristina sang her favourite song as she went about her chores:

"On a wonderful day like today
I defy any cloud to appear in the sky 
Dare any raindrop to pop in my eye
On a wonderful day like today...."

The little fly sat still on its floral perch and listened with glee. 

Madame Pristina wandered into the kitchen to prepare batter for cookies. 

She merrily sang on loudly:

"On a wonderful morning like this
When the sun is as big as a yellow balloon
Even the sparrows are singing in tune
On a wonderful morning like this..."

The fly followed Madame Pristina and sat on top of her head. She was busy mixing the cookie batter when...

PLOP!

A drop of the batter fell on her apron. Madame Pristina made a mental note to wash her apron as soon as possible. Then she continued with her singing...

"On a wonderful day like .... EEEEEEK!!!!"

Something terrible happened. The fly flew down from Madame Pristina's head and settled on the drop of batter on her apron. It stood out dark and unsightly on her starched white apron. 

Madame Pristina did not like flies. Or insects. Or reptiles. Or any creature that made her house dirty. 

 "EEEEK! You pesky fly! How did you get into the house? OUT, OUT you go!" 

She took hold of a saucepan and tried to shoo the fly out of the kitchen. The fly  wanted to hear Madame Pristina's song and showed no signs of leaving. It stubbornly sat on the light bulb. When she tried to shoo it away from the bulb, she hit the bulb with her saucepan and it broke into a hundred pieces. The fly landed on the cookie batter in the bowl on the kitchen platform. Madame Pristina punched the bowl. It fell down and the batter ran out in a sticky mess on the floor. The fly then perched on the wastebasket. Madame Pristina kicked the wastebasket. It tumbled down, and the garbage spread all around. 

Madame Pristina was exhausted and exasperated. She pointed her long finger at the fly and said:

"You, you, pesky fly! Just wait till I get you!"

The fly flew from one place to another and soon Madame Pristina's house looked as if a hurricane had hammered through it. 

When night came, she was tired and sleepy. She determined to get rid of the fly the next day and got into bed. 

In the middle of the night, she felt someone tickle her nose. She woke up and saw that it was the fly. 

"Oh you pesky fly! Will you not give up? Just wait till I get you!" So saying she ran around the house chasing the fly once again. 

The next morning, Madame Pristina could not do any washing or cleaning up. She was too busy trying to get rid of the fly. 

When it was time to get the groceries, she got into the car, turned the key, and gave out a sigh of relief. She imagined how peaceful it would be to be away from the fly for a couple of hours.

As the car moved onto the main road, she noticed the fly on the windscreen. 

"Oh no, you pesky fly! Have you followed me into the car? Wait till I get you" she said shaking her fist. 

The fly followed her into the shop and back. Once again it settled on the bunch of flowers in the vase. It annoyed Madame Pristina all day and did not let her sleep. It simply refused to leave.

After a few days, Madame Pristina got used to the fly and just let it be. She went about her daily chores as before and sang loudly. The fly ate from the blobs of food spilled in the kitchen because Madame Pristina carefully kept all her food covered. 

As the days went by, she got used to the fly in her house. She called it 'Pesky' and talked to it while she went about her business. It became her pet. 

Every morning Madame Pristina sang her favourite song loudly:

"On a wonderful day like today...." 

Madame Pristina did not get annoyed anymore when things in her house were out of place or the laundry was not done. She sang more and more so her voice grew sweeter and sweeter. Pesky listened quietly in appreciation while perched on the bunch of fresh flowers. 

One day, while practising her singing, Madame Pristina heard a loud buzzing sound. She said,

"Shoo, Pesky, don't bother me!"

What really happened was that the radio in the house made the buzzing sound. Pesky decided to leave Madame Pristina and go out to meet old friends. 

When Madame Pristina realised that Pesky was nowhere to be found in the house, she went out in the garden all the while singing a soulful song urging him to come back.

"O come back, o come back, o come back dear Pesky to me! To me!" 

The neighbours heard her sing and gathered around her in a big group. They were so impressed with her singing that they pleaded with her to sing at the grand show at the Opera House in town. 

On the day of the grand show, Madame Pristina stood before a large audience. She missed her pet Pesky who had silently encouraged her to become a good singer. 

As she began to sing, a vibrating buzz of background music complimented her song and she found Pesky sitting on the microphone! 

With great joy, she sang, 

"On a wonderful day like today...
May I take this occasion to say
That all people should go down on their knees
Show that we are grateful for days like these
For the world's in a wonderful way
On a wonderful day like today..."  

 (An original story by Aashoo inspired by a fly that has entered the house this week and refuses to leave! The art is contributed by a young-at-heart grandmother from India. Protected by Copyright. 2016.)