Every Sunday will be his father’s turn to cook. His cooking days, the whole house smelled of something yummy. Before breakfast, Bipu’s father called him from the kitchen. Bipu came up with a big smile.
“Bipu, can you go to the shop and buy some eggs?” father asked kindly.
“Yes, Appa!” Bipu replied cheerfully.
His father handed him a hundred-rupee note.
“We need five eggs for today,” he said.
Bipu nodded. Immediately, he slipped the note into his pocket. As he
started walking to the shop. He thought aloud,
“Hmm... five eggs... hundred rupees... and the balance amount.”
In the meantime, he smiled and counted on his fingers.
“Let’s see... there are five people in our family - Appa, Amma, Grandma,
Grandpa and me!”
“Oh! That makes one egg for each of us perfect!”
He was a bright eight-year-old boy. Everyone in his family knew very
well about him. He loved two things the most - asking curious questions and
solving math puzzles!
Bipu reached the local grocery shop. He greeted the shopkeeper with a
bright smile.
“Good morning, Bipu! What do you need today?” the shopkeeper asked.
“I need five eggs, Uncle,” Bipu answered.
Then he asked curiously,
“How much does one egg cost?”
“One egg cost six rupees,” replied the shopkeeper.
Bipu began to calculate in his mind.
“If one egg costs six rupees,
then two eggs cost twelve...
three eggs cost eighteen...
four eggs cost twenty-four... and
five eggs cost thirty rupees!”
He felt confident and handed over the hundred-rupee note to the
shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper counted five eggs and placed carefully in a small paper
bag. Then he gave it to Bipu and said,
“Here’s your change - twenty rupees.”
Bipu blinked. “Oh no, that’s not right!”
“Hundred minus thirty is seventy, not twenty!”
He didn’t get angry or upset. He simply waited quietly; the shopkeeper
got busy with other customers.
“Maybe he forgot,” Bipu thought.
“I’ll wait a little. Patience is a good thing.”
After a few minutes, the shopkeeper noticed Bipu was still standing
there.
“Bipu, is everything okay?” he asked.
Bipu shook his head politely and said,
“Uncle, I gave you a hundred-rupee note. The eggs cost thirty rupees.
So, the balance should be seventy.”
The shopkeeper frowned, thinking for a moment.
“Oh dear! You’re absolutely right,” he said apologetically.
“I must have thought it was a fifty-rupee note. Thank you for
reminding me!”
He quickly gave Bipu another fifty rupees.
Bipu counted carefully. Twenty plus fifty equals seventy. He said with
a happy grin.
“Thank you, Uncle! No worries at all.”
The shopkeeper smiled. “You’re a smart boy, Bipu. Keep using your math
like that!”
Bipu walked back home, holding the egg bag carefully as if it were
treasure.
When he reached home, his mother asked,
“Did you get the eggs, dear?”
“Yes, Amma!” Bipu said, showing her the bag. “And I also got seventy
rupees back. I checked it myself!”
He told his parents everything that had happened at the shop.
His father came out from the kitchen, smiling proudly.
“That’s my sweet boy! You used your math perfectly.”
“Well done, Bipu!” said his grandmother.
Bipu’s grandfather clapped his hands. “Bipu knows everything!” he
giggled.
At breakfast, Bipu sat happily at the table. He had learned something
very special that morning. The math wasn’t just about numbers in a textbook. It
was something he could use every single day!
***
No comments:
Post a Comment
I’m Prabakaran from Pallapuram, a children’s story writer who believes that the simplest moments often carry the deepest lessons. My stories are inspired by real life, innocence, and the magical way kids look at the world. Through this blog, I bring you Bipu’s adventures — stories that teach, inspire, and stay in young hearts.