The Strike
It was late that night as Neha got up. Feeling her throat dry, she grabbed a cup. First, she thought of drinking a hot cup of coffee. Then changed her mind and thought of boiling some tea. “I am tired, leave it,” Neha thought. She then remembered the bottle of soft drink that she had bought.
Neha walked towards the refrigerator but stopped in her tracks. There was a soft murmur, perhaps from the racks. She went closer and put her ear on the refrigerator door. To hear it clearly, she sat down on the floor. Without making any sound, she opened the door slightly. Now the murmur was heard clearly.
“We can't do it anymore,” said the tomatoes. “Why do we need to go into every curry and not those potatoes? They slice us, dice us, and make our puree. The red tomatoes were burning with fury.
"At least they accept you my dear”, said the broccoli. “The children of the house leave us on their plate untouched willingly.”
Somebody shouted, “What about us, don't you look at our state.” Those were the leafy vegetables left behind to date. “I will be of no use if they don’t use me by tomorrow, " said the radish, full of sorrow.
The carrots it seemed were not a part of those who were complaining. Some were already dried, and colourless, and some were dying.
“Those staying upstairs in the freezer are very lucky indeed.” The great wise Brinjal said, “We need to look like them and learn from them to succeed.” A chuckle could be heard from the freezer above. Neha dared to open it quietly somehow. There were varieties of ice creams, chocolates, and sweets. Neha realized these were some of those gifted treats.
She then heard a deep, serious voice. “Leave them alone, it is their choice.” The great yellow pumpkin had just woken up from his sleep. There were many of them there as it seemed they came cheap.
All the vegetables went quiet and lent him an ear. His words were regarded highly and always produced cheer. He continued to talk and cheered the troubled souls. “Every one of us plays different roles.”
"We humble vegetables play the role of special friends. Our relation to humans just never ends.” We work hard to provide them with life and energy through food. So be calm, dear tomatoes try not to be rude.”
“One more important thing that we shall all keep in mind. We are those best friends that humans may never find. So let us end the strike today,” said the great old Pumpkin. “Let us end the fight so we all win.”
Neha was stunned to overhear the conversation. It was a great realization. She understood the importance of good nutrition. She decided to follow it up with some action. The ice creams, Sweets and treats were then removed. Dried and dead vegetables were moved.
The vegetables were happy to end their strike. The household loved broccoli and sweets alike.
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