The Guest Who Never Came

Mr X was supposed to come to our place
for lunch this last Saturday
( He was in our neighbouring town on work)
And so I bought some extra milk
and some bananas, and used my last
mango of the season to make custard,
early on Saturday morning!
I took out the bowl of chholey
I had kept in the freezer, to defrost.
But then he said he couldn't come that day,
so the custard went into the fridge
and the chholey back in the freezer
and we went to Khan Market
to buy a present for
a young friend's fortieth birthday.
And so I acquired an exquisite pair
of silver earrings from Amrapali
and a stunning cotton saree from Cooptex,
and that evening, after dinner
I ate a bowl of custard.

Mr. X was supposed to meet us on Sunday
but we had prior commitments,
and he turned out to be busy too,
though we would have rearranged our plans
to meet  him!
So we went out for lunch with family members,
came home and had a quick nap,
before we went out for the evening function.
Since I couldn't nap, somehow,
I ate the remains of the morning's bread upma
and a bowl of custard, just in case dinner got late.

Then he was supposed to come over
on Monday afternoon
and spend the night with us,
before catching his flight home on Tuesday.
So I made up the guest room bed
and put fresh towels in the bathroom
all ready for our guest, whom we were expecting
in the afternoon or early evening
and was wondering what to make for dinner,
when the spouse called him
(just after we had had lunch)
to find out where he was.
I offered the spouse some custard
but he declined, so I had some
(it was thinning out by now,
losing texture, but still delicious).

He said he couldn't make it that day,
but would come today (Tuesday),
on his way to the airport.
I thought he'd be having lunch with us
so I changed my plans for a shopping trip
with a friend, only to learn from the spouse
that he was was expected only in the afternoon,
and not for lunch,
and that the spouse would go with him to the airport,
so that they could catch up on the long ride.

So my friend and I went shopping,
and I come home to discover that
our man X will not be coming home at all,
since he had got delayed at his work place,
but the spouse will be meeting him
at a hotel near the airport.
So the spouse has a quick lunch and leaves,
I have a leisurely lunch, and a bowl
of by now very skinny custard,
and put the dregs of it in the freezer.

My dear Mr.X, thanks to your not coming to our house consistently over the last four days
I have ingested a great many unnecessary calories.
The next time you plan to visit us, I will start cooking only once you are inside our home, after making sure that you are actually going to stay for a meal.