Martha and Robin had just then had their second born - the most adorable baby boy. Of course with every new born in the family every body was excited and we were all throwing names around left, right and centre. It was Marcel, then Marcus, then I tried Alexander (anything with –-ndra) but I was quickly shunned off – go figure - and finally Martha, Robin and Mariella settled for Reuben. Thank goodness, the baby could not understand us otherwise he would have thought all of us insane as each day someone would have a different name for him.
“Aunt Sandra, can I come see Shaggy too?” she had asked me one evening, when I called to speak to Martha, who is my cousin.
“Well, baby, I don’t think it’ll be a good idea.”
“Whyyyy!?” She has that never-ending ‘why’ thing.
“Well, for one thing, there won’t be any children.”
“Whyyyy!?” She can go on with the ‘whyyy’ until dawn, I tell you.
“Because it’s a grown up concert.”
“Whyyyyyy!?”
“People might trample on you.”
“Whyyyyy?” Here we go again, I had thought.
“Because they are tall and big and you are short and small.”
“Whyyyyyy?”
“Because, it just is, baby.” Tell me, howelse would I have replied to this.
“But they never said so in the radios and tv!” For a five year old she has such CIA questions, I tell you.
“Well, they probably forgot.”
“Whyyyyyy!?”
“I don’t know baby.”
“Okay, can you bring him to our place for dinner then?’
After this, I quickly asked for Martha - of course after telling her to ask Daddy Robby if Shaggy can be invited over. Usually I would spend a good half an hour trying to explain to Mariella and replying to all her ‘whyyy’s’ but that day I was in a hurry. So reluctantly, she gave her mother the phone.
The next day, I called again. I have a ritual of calling my cousin, Martha, and Mariella everyday – well, at least ten times a day to be honest. Don’t ask what it is that we talk about. Mariella, the telephone operator answers the phone.
“Daddy Robby said Shaggy can’t come over,” she announced after exchanging greetings.
“I’m sorry, baby.”
“But he can go to aunt Tunu’s place, can’t he?’ Tunu is Martha’s best friend and a good friend of mine.
“Well, that will be difficult, baby.”
“He could sleep over at aunt Tunu’s place.” This was said very innocently – though at time I wonder as to how much she knows. Mariella loves having people at her place – but morever she’s so good at ‘hooking up’ that I sometimes run for cover! “And then he could marry her!”
She believes everybody should be paired. I’m guessing this comes from seeing her mom and dad always together. My mother always says you bring up a child surrounded with violence he will grow up to be violent and vice versa, if you bring up a child surrounded with love she will be full of love.
Of course she was very disappointed when she learnt that Shaggy would not be able to marry her aunt Tunu and let alone sleep at her place.
Like a much needed fix, I call Mariella and her mother the next day – always in the evenings, when Mariella is back from kindergarten and her mother back from work.
“So how is baby Marcus, baby?” The new born baby was then known as Marcus – not yet Reuben.
“His name is not Marcus anymore?”
Okay, who is the smart person who came up with yet another new name? I wondered. Could it be one of the grand fathers. It had to be!
“It’s baby Shaggy!” Mariella interrupted my thoughts excitedly.
“Shaggy?” I wondered out aloud. How had come up with such a name?
“Yes, baby Shaggy!” She had shrieked excitedly!
“Who came up with that name, baby?”
“Me!”
“You? Why?” Yes, the “why” does rub off, by the way.
I never got an answer as to why that new name – apart from a shrill of giggles. I later concluded that if she had decided if she couldn’t have Shaggy visiting her, then she might as well have her own baby Shaggy at home.
