Petting a Crocodile

• The mother's intention was not to scare the children. She simply wanted to give them a reality check - to make them understand the seriousness of the situation.

Janushi Raichura
I n the heart of Baroda, a town known for frequent visits from its crocodile buddies, lived Ritvik, a little boy who had just moved to the area. He was excited about one thing: petting a crocodile.
Yes, as long as he could remember, all he had ever wanted was to pet a crocodile. Yet, during every monsoon season, his mother locked him inside - or, to be more precise, locked the crocodiles outside.
But on his tenth birthday, he looked up at his parents with a plea in his eyes and, instead of asking for a gift, asked if he could pet a crocodile.
His father immediately said no. But this time, his mother placed a palm on his hand and asked him to be quiet before turning to Ritvik.
"We will go pet a crocodile, but on one condition. The theme of your birthday party will be crocodiles, and everything we do will involve crocodiles."
Ritvik and his father were confused by his mother's request, but they agreed.
When his birthday arrived, everyone came dressed as crocodiles, just as decided. They gathered around a crocodile-shaped birthday cake and ate it together.
"Let's all watch a movie together!" his mother suggested.
All the children clapped happily, excited to watch a new movie.
They drove to the nearest theatre, where the mother had booked a private screening. The kids were elated to discover that the movie was about crocodiles!
They settled into their seats, and the movie began.
It first described the physiology of a crocodile, showing close-up photographs that made Ritvik even more excited to pet one. It also explained the crocodile's habitat and lifestyle.
However, soon, the movie took a darker turn.
It showed the crocodile's feeding habits and began to portray it as the predator it really was.
Clips of crocodiles fighting fiercely with various animals and brutally devouring them were shown. There were even clips of crocodiles attacking lion cubs and humans.
The children slowly began to realize just how aggressive and dangerous a crocodile could be.
By the end of the movie, they were all shaken.
The mother turned to the children and asked, "So, does anyone still want to pet a crocodile?"
No one said yes.
The mother's intention was not to scare the children. She simply wanted to give them a reality check - to make them understand the seriousness of the situation.
Crocodiles were deadly creatures, not pets, despite how cartoons and movies sometimes portrayed them. It was unwise and unsafe to approach them. The safest thing to do was to keep away.
The mother then took them to a trampoline park.
Within minutes, the children had forgotten the frightening movie, but the life lesson stayed.
A predator is a predator.
And there is nothing cool about risking your life just to do something perilous.
Ritvik never asked to pet a crocodile again.