A Play in Three Acts

Hustle and bustle, the great day is here,
A wedding in the family, a day to cheer!
Chairs laid out in the great hall, orders
issued and followed rarely,
Flowers are up and proclaim grandly,
So-and-so weds so-and-so's cousin's nephew's niece!

The ladies are up to dress up the bride,
the guests, family, relatives flow in, a tide,
the groom with the fellows, chats merrily
and the maamis await the hour anxiously,
the chatter fills the air as the tension is mounting;

The baby's mother is helping the bride with her chain
while the babysitting grandfather much to his pain,
discovers the disappearance of the precious grandchild,
Oh! in panic drops the fruits in his hand,
the concerned authorities not notified
the guests, faces grim, have outside filed;

Let not the hosts know! cries a voice,
Oh yes, agrees another, we have no choice,
the roles are reversed and now,
the guests play their parts
and Act one starts with searching every crany
While the bride appears on stage to start the ceremony;

The guests are reseated and shift nervously,
their faces, their secret concealed painfully,
and the mother smiles a foolish ignorant smile,
Slowly but surely a few slip out, in the streets calling
the drums beat and the nagaswaram plays all the while
Pujaris chanting, tension ever mounting, and the groom smiling;

Pretty girl child, eight months old,
searching all the back, front, mud,and tar streets
but to that question, nay, they are told
Act two begins and the drums quicken their beats
the mother comes out by some strange chance,
Grandpa gives away all, at a single searching glance;

Mother turns pale, guests nod as the news spreads
the bride, notices the sudden change
as the uncanny silence descends
and whispers to her mother, Strange.
The groom's smile fades as decibel levels rise
people stand up, disbelief questions truths and lies;

A kindly gentleman, brings some order to the mess
biding enthusiastic musicians to please halt
the guests clamour and compete to confess
Silence! called for again, Grandpa admits his fault
Looks of horror are exchanged by ignorant ones
while others confirm the safety of the other little ones.

Great great grandma says, you silly little boy
and Grandpa studies his shoes like a guilty school boy
The ancients sit back with a disapproving air,
the search resumes, upstairs, downstairs and under the stair

A dramatic piece begins act three and ends act two
played with gusto by the musicians at a cue
from a guest who's identity no one knows for certain
An admirable ironing women streets away, cast as the finder,
steps in and holds forth the child explorer - tableau, curtain,
who remembers that day as her first adventure.