Advice

"Hello! You have bought the phone for sixty thousand rupees. If it doesn't have the right screen cover, the surface will get scratched and will look ugly. So, get a good cover for two or three thousand rupees, even if it is costly," Subbarao was seen advising someone on the phone. 

Before he could hear the reply of the other person, he got another call, so he said, "Okay..okay..as I said, cover...screen cover is important," cut the call, and picked up the second call. 

"You see! No matter how much a house costs, house insurance is important. If any unexpected calamity happens, insurance will protect us. Never feel that the Bank is linking insurance to the loan. If the Bank stops insuring, then in case of any loss, it has to be borne by you. If insurance is available, the insurance company pays the dues. In an unexpected loss, the family members will not have the debt burden. Instead, everything would be taken care of by the insurance." Continued Subbarao, advising someone else on the phone. 

"Hey! Half an hour back, I asked for a cup of coffee. I have attended four calls since then, and you haven't made coffee yet! Bring it quickly," he shouted at his wife, looking towards the kitchen. 

Subhadra, his wife, angrily put the cup of coffee on the table and said, "Whether you hear it or not, today I am going to tell you a few things that are on my mind. One is about you advising passers-by and everyone you get a call from. You said that the phone would get scratched and should be covered. The life of a mobile phone is two, three, or a maximum of four years. If it gets scratched, we stop using it earlier. Today it might be worth sixty thousand rupees, but after a year or two, it has no value in the market."

"You also suggested that a house should always get insured. Insurance will indeed help people in case of emergencies. But, why don't you follow such advice? Without understanding that children also have hopes and thoughts, you decided that your understanding was correct and kept them away from you by hurting them with your words. If you had spoken kind words like providing a cover for the phone, they would have been happy and been by our side today. You didn't realize that just as insurance protects people in a disaster, children also help you in times of need."

"The love you have for coffee is not there for me. Here I'm shivering from fever, but you will never notice it. You are so self-centered. Who can teach you all these niceties?" spoke Subhadra, looking at Subbarao, with pain on her face. 

"Once scratched, it could never get repaired. Realizing that well, I advise others. If you can bring our children back home, I will be careful this time," Subbarao said casually, giving her another piece of advice. 

Some lives are lived like this only…