Junior Vocab
Arjun's Laddus
Meera: "Arjun, why are you sitting under the table with your lunch box?"
Arjun: "Shhh, Meera. I’m hiding. Amma packed laddus, and if Karan sees, he’ll ask for all of them."
Meera: "But it smells so strong! The whole classroom knows you have laddus."
Karan: "Hey, what smells like Diwali in here? Is it… laddus?"
Arjun: "Uh-oh. Meera, he found me."
Karan: "Whoa, you have a mountain of laddus! Can I have one? Just one?"
Meera: "If you give one to Karan, then Riya will want one, then I’ll want one… you’ll be surrounded!"
Arjun: "That’s why I’m hiding. I don’t want to be surrounded by people grabbing my laddus."
Karan: "I’m not grabbing! I’m just… standing very close and staring."
Meera: "Also drooling. You’re surrounded by drool, Arjun."
Karan: "Fine, I’ll stop staring. But I really love laddus. My dadi makes them with ghee and cashews."
Arjun: "My paati made these. She said, ‘Share them with your friends.’ But I also want some for later."
Meera: "What if you choose who gets them instead of everyone crowding you?"
Karan: "Yeah, we can sit in a circle. No pushing, no grabbing."
Arjun: "So I won’t feel surrounded like a laddu in a pressure cooker?"
Meera: "Exactly. You’ll feel like the host of a party."
Karan: "Okay, I’ll sit here. Far away. See? Not surrounding you, just waiting."
Arjun: "Hmm… Meera, Karan, come sit on this mat. One laddu each now, and I keep two for home."
Meera: "Deal. And we keep everyone else from crowding you."
Karan: "Yeah! If anyone comes too close, we’ll say, ‘No surrounding Arjun, please. One line only!’"
Arjun: "This is better. I’m not squashed by people, just surrounded by friends."