The summer holiday

Contingency planning had worked to a button. Then on that fateful day my wife commanded me to ensure that no electrician, plumber or any rep...

Contingency planning had worked to a button. Then on that fateful day my wife commanded me to ensure that no electrician, plumber or any repairman enters the house for the remaining two weeks and that this would be the ultimate test of my administrative acumen.

The planning had started a few months earlier when our daughter intimated us that she and the grandchildren would come for a vacation in June-July from New York. We assured her the summer evenings would be fun. ‘‘As to the power and water situation, it was not too alarming.’’ We painted a rosy picture. We wanted our grandchildren to spend time with us.

The planning for their visit was carried out army-style. Power inverter, water pump, water purifier and various electric gadgets were serviced and kept in peak condition. A special effort was made to befriend the various repair experts so that they would make themselves available without delay. The family doctor was consulted about the basic precautions to be taken. Extensive arrangements were made to sanitise the house. As the monsoon predictions turned grim, all taps were set to deliver a trickle and showers the finest of spray, so that the kids did not waste water.

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On D-Day, our loved ones arrived. The little darlings settled down to some structured good times. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. However, the inverter, fridge and TV were repaired in record time. Then started my preventive maintenance routine. It was during one such session, when three technicians were working in the house along with a yoga instructor and three maidservants that my wife gave the fateful order — ‘‘No more maintenance in our flat!’’

Our grandchildren assured us that they loved India. Reality, however, dawned on me when they began insisting that we go back with them to New York. The four year old added, “Nana, you can bring back lots of water from New York so that you have sprinklers for the kids in your parks — like in Central Park.” (Manhattan). I realised, then, that we may have won the smaller battles but were on the brink of losing the larger one for their tiny hearts and minds.