When I put my hand inside a dirty puddle and caught a water rat

A page from the personal diary of Giaa Maanek There are so many memories that bring a smile to my lips. I remember one incident pretty vividly from the days when I was studying in the 7th standard in Vasant Vihar High School, Thane. I used to hate my history teacher and always looked for means to trouble her. During rainy days, huge water puddles formed outside our school gate. We friends used to jump into the puddles and enjoyed when water splashed out of it. We got lot of scolding from our parents but we didn’t really care much and continued with our masti. One such day rumours spread that there were water rats in the puddles. I got excited and decided to catch one. So I stood in front of a puddle and kept looking at it. Suddenly I saw a water rat in the puddle. I ran to a nearby shop and got a polythene bag. Then I did something unexpected. I actually put my hand inside the dirty puddle and caught the rat. I caught it and put it in the polythene and then in my school bag. I didn’t tell a word to anyone and went and quietly sat on my desk. I was waiting for the moment when my history teacher would enter the class. She entered and I dropped the polythene bag on the floor with a rat inside it. The rat ran all around the classroom and everyone started howling and screaming. It was a sight to see the teacher standing on top of the desk. Everyone panicked and I had a ball. Till date whenever I meet my school friends we laugh out loud the moment this incident is mentioned. Another funny incident occurred when I visited a coffee shop once. I entered the shop and was looking for a seat. It was Sunday evening and the place was quite crowded. So I was keen to grab a seat. I saw an empty chair and sat on it without realising that it was not kept properly. The moment I sat I fell flat on the ground. Everyone started laughing at me and to avoid embarrassment I started laughing on myself. There are lot many incidents to share which I will do it some other time. For now, stay happy and keep laughing.