Photo by Mohammad Bagher Adib Behrooz Unsplash

Nana: Nina, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in school?

Nina: It’s my Diwali vacation Nana. I’m home for the next two weeks.

Nana: Two weeks! Yikes. Schools give way too many holidays. It’s a scam.

Nina: But Nana, holidays are so much fun. I have so many things I am looking forward to doing.

Nana: Like what? Bursting noisy crackers? Creating a mess?

Nina: Oh no, Nana. Quite the opposite. Mama and I have nice long heart to heart talks while we do Diwali cleaning together. We love it. I am so excited about painting diyas, making gulab jamuns and reading one of the classics with Mama like we do every Diwali vacation.

Nana: Oh yeah, your mother is home for the Diwali break, since she is a school teacher. So she’ll keep you entertained. Thank goodness. I was worried I would have to endure two weeks of you making a nuisance of yourself.

Nina: Aww Nana. Don’t be sad. You can join us. It will be fun. Especially, blowing soap bubbles, playing cards, making a Lego rangoli and eating jelly custard.

Nana: Hey those were my Diwali traditions with your mother.

Nina: I know Nana, and the rest were Nani’s. Mama shares them all with me.

Nana: Oh. We stopped them one she turned 15, and I was sad about it. By then she preferred spending vacation time with her friends. She still had time for her mom’s traditions, but somehow she had drifted away from me.

Nina: I know Nana. She told me she felt bad about that, and so she rekindled those traditions with me. Won’t you join us Nana? It’ll make her happy.

Nana: Okay fine. But you do know that on Diwali we play cards for money, right?

Nina: Yes I do Nana. I wonder what I’ll buy with all the money I win from you. Perhaps just a few noisy crackers.

Nana: Impertinent girl. I’m going to clean you out.

Nina: Just kidding Nana. I don’t like noisy crackers. I plan to buy Clue and start a new tradition of family board games for Diwali.

Nana: You’re still assuming you are going to win. Hmph. Your mom is a softy and lets you win.

Nina: She is Nana, and she says she learned it from you. She said you let her win, so she could have some special Diwali gift with her winnings.

Nana: Humph. I guess no good deed goes unpunished.