Grandmother sighed deeply as she looked at the bundle hanging by the nail. How many days had it been since anyone touched it! In neglect and disregard, the bundle had become tattered and worn. Just looking at it made her feel sad. Who would believe this is the famous "Grandmother's Bundle"!
Inside it were countless fairy tales, anecdotes, heroic legends, mythological stories, and many other heartwarming tales neatly arranged!
Whenever Grandmother selected a story from these and told it, the faces of her grandchildren would light up with wonder and joy. The sparkles in their eyes would reflect the rainbow-colored lights of the imaginary world. Looking at their satisfied, bright, cheerful, moonlit little faces, the long afternoons and star-filled nights passed by for Grandmother. Ah, those days were full of joy! Both Grandmother and her bundle were treasured beyond measure. Thinking of those days now fills her heart with heaviness.
It’s not that the stories have run out. Inside the bundle, kings and queens, monsters, ghosts, fairies, devils, and tigers still roam free. Grandmother still wakes up eagerly every afternoon waiting to tell stories to her grandchildren. The children—calm, mischievous, naughty, and sweet—are still there. Only the gatherings for storytelling have broken down. Today's children are no longer interested in stories. They no longer crowd around Grandmother to listen to tales whenever they get a chance. Instead, they prefer watching TV or playing computer games. And then there’s this adult’s mobile phone. It's like the hidden treasure of King Solomon. When they hold it, it feels like the whole world is in their grasp. Between school, tuitions, cricket coaching, art lessons, dance lessons, music lessons, karate lessons, swimming lessons, and other various trainings, when they get a rare moment of free time, they rush to the TV. Or they get absorbed in the mobile or the computer. They no longer even remember Grandmother's stories. When Grandmother tries to say something, they just say, "Oh, Grandma! Don’t disturb me, let me watch the cartoon."
Grandmother saw that a huge problem was emerging! She couldn’t even find her grandchildren nearby! At first, she felt a little hurt. But in the next moment, the resentment faded away, replaced by a kind of stubborn determination. Her grandson was watching TV intently. She tiptoed over to him, wrapped her arms around him, and said, "Come here, I’ll tell you a beautiful story."
"Oh, Grandma! Stop it. You and your weird stories! All old and rotten..." Her grandson showed his irritation again and returned to watching the TV cartoon.
"My story is even better than this cartoon," Grandmother said, not giving up.
"No way!" Her grandson looked at her in disbelief.
Grandmother said, "Believe me, it’s a very beautiful story."
"So what?" he said dismissively, "Your story can’t be seen. Look at this, on TV we can watch Tom and Jerry, Chhota Bheem, Avengers, Transformers, Shaktimaan... Everyone is visible, we can hear their voices, see where they are, what they are doing, everything can be seen. But your story, we just have to listen and imagine. No way to see it. How boring!"
"You can see my story too," said Grandmother. "If you try a little, you’ll be able to see kings, queens, demons, fairies, tigers, lions, everyone. Just when I tell a story, you need to listen carefully, close your eyes, and try to imagine. Right away, everything will become clear."
"What! Is that even possible? How can anyone see with their eyes closed?" Her grandson's voice was full of disbelief.
"It’s very possible, you can prove it yourself." Grandmother said with determination. She was not ready to give up that easily. She continued, "Today, I’ll tell you a story, and you can close your eyes and see if you can picture it." Grandmother smiled mysteriously.
-- When will you tell it?
-- When you want to listen.
-- Before going to sleep tonight. Will you tell it then?
-- Of course, I will.
The grandson turns his head joyfully away from the TV, meaning he's also looking forward to hearing the story.
Grandma is very happy today. Her grandson will listen to a story after a long time. Her heart is overflowing with joy. Grandma comes into her room and takes down the story bag. It has accumulated dust and dirt after hanging in the same way for so long. She slowly brushes off the dust and cleans it. Then she carefully opens it and pulls out a story—one of the best stories to tell her grandson.
The night has deepened. A moon, like a silver wheel, has risen across the sky. Its light floods the room through the window. Grandma's bed is now bathed in the moon's glow. And her beloved grandson, with a moon-like face, lies there. As Grandma combs his thick hair, she says, “Look dear, how beautiful the moon is tonight! I will tell you the story of the old lady from the moon tonight.”
-- Which old lady?
-- The Moon Old Lady. She lives on the moon. She sits there and endlessly spins thread on her spinning wheel.
-- What? Someone lives on the moon? There’s no oxygen there.
-- But the Moon Old Lady lives there...
“No, no, Thamma, you don’t know. No creature can live on the moon. There’s no air there. How would you breathe?” The grandson interrupts before grandma finishes her sentence.
Grandma is shocked. Her grandson knows so much! She is surprised and delighted. Changing the subject, she says, “Shall I tell you another story? The story of the fairies?”
-- The story of fairies? What are fairies like?
-- Fairies are very good. They love good children very much.
-- Where do they live?
-- They live in faraway lands.
-- How do they come here?
-- They fly through the sky.
-- Are they birds?
-- No, no, they’re not birds. They look exactly like humans, but like birds, they have two wings. The wings are colorful, like a butterfly's.
-- Is that so? Humans with wings like birds? Then they must be aliens!"
-- Aliens? Grandma asks in surprise.
-- Don’t you understand? Aliens are creatures from another planet. Fairies must also come from some other planet, flying through the sky to reach Earth.
Grandma laughs upon hearing her grandson's words. Indeed, her little grandson is learning to think about so many things!
The grandson says again, “Oh grandma, have you seen a UFO? A flying saucer?”
-- No dear, I haven’t seen one.
-- I haven’t seen one either. But flying saucers do come. Aliens secretly come to our Earth to see it. They must be riding in flying saucers, and that’s how your fairies come, right?
Grandma says, “Maybe that’s true. Maybe you’re right.”
The grandson yawns and, with sleepy eyes, says, “Then tell me the alien story, grandma. I mean, the fairy story.”
-- I’ll tell you, but not tonight. You’re already sleepy. Go to sleep now. Tomorrow, after you come back from school, I will tell you the story.
-- The alien story?
Grandma smiles and nods her head in agreement. The grandson asks again, “You will tell it, right? Promise?”
Grandma gives a small nod and says, “Of course, I will. Promise!”
The grandson, feeling happy, hugs grandma. In a few moments, he falls into a deep sleep. As grandma strokes his head, she thinks to herself that she will have to rearrange her bag of stories. Times have changed. The seven seas and thirteen rivers are no longer distant or difficult to cross. In fact, so much is no longer unattainable for this generation of grandsons and granddaughters. Her grandson’s eyes are filled with imagination, but he also holds knowledge of science and reality in his heart. She must tell him stories that nourish his imagination and, at the same time, quench his thirst for knowledge and curiosity.
Once the grandson falls asleep, grandma sits up. Then, she takes each story out of her beloved bag and begins to rearrange them all night, in a way that will match her grandson’s mind, his expectations. She will never let herself be defeated by mere machines like TV, computers, and mobile phones.