A CUP OF TEA

I can write an article on anything related to it.. but when it comes to actually cooking something, I simply CANNOT. I dont mind it, but then everybody else seems to.
Preparing tea was also a big cannot for me until the last month. A few years ago, when I was about 18, an embarrassing incident took place. My parents were out and I was in the house with my grandmother. A few guests unfortunately crash landed. Somebody had to sit with them and the other somebody had to prepare tea. My grandmother decided to sit with them and asked me to bring in tea. I was in a fix. What could I do? I tried to plead with her from behind the curtain to come and help. She was not even looking in that direction. I even tried calling her but she chose to ignore. I also tried to make eye contact to somehow remind her that I cannot. I was hoping for an eye to eye communication that failed miserably when she asked me, " Kya hua beta?". As if I was in a position to answer. I chose to enter the kitchen. I did not know from where to begin. Should I boil water first or put in tea leaves.. or was it milk??? How much of each was another problem. I stood staring at the ceiling as if waiting for a divine intervention. I did not realize that a good fifteen minutes had come to an end. Suddenly I heard my grandmother exclaim from the living room, "Shobhita chai lao beta, arre tumko to chai banani nahi aati na..mujhe bulaya kyu nahi... isko chai banani nahi aati( to the guests), mai abhi aati hu". I wanted to disappear. The anouncement was a nightmare. My secret had been revealed. It seemed to me as if the entire world had come to know that Shobhita doesnt know how to make tea. The guests added to my plight, "Arre nahi aunty please aap pareshaan na hoyiye, hum log chai pi ke aaye hain ".
Finally, here at Noida, I had to make tea for myself since there was no alternative. Somehow I manage to make a decent cup of tea for myself. It was a big achievment when I made that first cup of tea. Inspired and motivated, I decided to cook as well. I announced this to my family and friends, brought in all required utensils and also bought vegetables to last a month. Everybody was excited. Me too. Afterall I was going to COOK. I explained to everybody how badly I needed to learn to cook. "Arre agar abhi nahi seekha to kab seekhungi. Akhir tiffin ka khana kab tak khaungi... ". My exciting venture lasted a week. It had started with excitement and ended in despair. I switched back to the tiffin system. I needed to eat food and not the ashes of the vegetables. Conclusion: COOKING and CANNOT are synonyms for me.