We always remember our birthday and we dream of having an exceptional party. And if someone wishes us late or by chance forgets our birthday, we feel dejected throughout the day. This is the story of one such incident, but it has a deep message for everyone.

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Ali who happily lived with his siblings, parents and grandmother. Their grandmother loved everyone a lot. She was very old, yet sometimes she would recall things from her past and share with them. Sometimes they would believe her but at other times they would think that granny might be mixing up the facts due to her old age.

One day, when Ali was in school, suddenly while knitting, granny remembered something and she couldn’t control her emotions so she got up to tell her son (Ali’s father). She walked as fast as she could to his room and said, “You always asked about my birth date but do you know today is the day when I was born.”

She was excited and expected an excited response. Her son wondered how she could remember her date of birth in this old age when she forgot so many other things, so he didn’t pay much attention to this. She then went to Ali’s sister and Ali’s mother, but nobody believed her.

Disheartened, she went and sat in the terrace. When Ali returned from his school, he found his grandmother sitting alone with a sad expression. Ali asked his granny about the matter, but she said there was nothing to worry about

Disheartened, she went and sat in the terrace. When Ali returned from his school, he found his grandmother sitting alone with a sad expression. Ali asked his granny about the matter, but she said there was nothing to worry about. After a lot of persuasion she disclosed what was troubling her, nobody seemed to care that it was her birthday!

Ali thought of a plan. He took some of his pocket money and went out.

Some of Ali’s friends were playing nearby so he shared his plan with them and they all started to help Ali achieve what he planned. Ali went to the market, bought a cake, candles and balloons. As he returned home, a couple of his friends were already waiting for him. They all decorated Ali’s room and lit the candles. Then Ali called granny to his room.

As she entered the room, Ali’s friends started clapping and singing, “Happy birthday to you!”

Granny was stunned and surprised to see how these kids managed to arrange such a wonderful little party for her birthday – something she had never celebrated before! Some of Ali’s friends also brought small presents for her. Ali was so happy to see his granny with tears of joy sparkling in her eyes and he had never seen her smiling this way before.

She hugged the kids and cut the cake. Just then, the cheerful noise made other family members to come inside the room. All of them were surprised and felt ashamed for not believing granny at first.

Ali’s father was also happy and thanked Ali’s friends. Everyone praised Ali for being so considerate and innovative for caring about his grandmother and fulfilling her wish.

Published in Dawn, Young World, February 4th, 2017