Lost Dog

Shyam was a blind 10 year old, who lived with his mother and maternal grandparents. His family was poor, and was completely dependent on his mother's income even though her typist job was a low income gig.

When he was 7, Shyam listened to a commercial on TV that said guide dogs made lives of the blind so much easier. Shyam immediately ran to his grandfather and begged him for a dog. Shyam's grandfather did not want to disappoint him by pointing out that they couldn't afford to buy or maintain one so he was given a guide dog, Shyam called him Mike. This was the first time Shyam came in the presence of a dog, he had hardly ever been out of his house, he was home schooled.

Shyam's grandfather suddenly became sick one day, they had to admit him in the hospital, but his frail body could not handle the pain anymore and he gave in. After the funeral, Shyam and his family returned back to his house, he called Mike out having missed being with him, Mike didn't come, he usually barks when he is called. Shyam took a walking stick and searched the entire colony, but he could not find him anywhere. He asked his mother, she said he must have run away somewhere and he will come back. He couldn't not just wait and not do anything, Mike was his brother, so he took the only photo he had of Mike and him and went out to enquire, he asked a couple of passerby's if they had seen the dog in the photo, they gigled and said no, a little girl was walking by, and he showed her the photo and asked if she had seen the dog in the photo, the girl in a confused tone questioned "what dog?, I don't see a dog in the photo, all I see is you and an old man with a rope on his neck".