Power Failure
One evening just as I was getting ready to watch a cartoon show on television, there was a power failure. The television set just went blank, the lights went off and the fan slowed down and stopped. As it was getting dark, I hoped that the power would be restored soon but it was not to be so.
Soon darkness enveloped the neighborhood. We hastily lit candles so that we could find our way around the house. As we had only three candles, my mother sent me to the sundry shop nearby to buy more.
“Sorry, no more candles”, was what the shopkeeper told me. The neighbors had bought up all the candles. At home my father managed to dig out two kerosene lamps. We lit these too and kept the darkness out.
Without the fan running, it was oppressively warm. Furthermore there was nothing to do but wait for the power to come on again. All of us sat quietly in the living- room. We had grown so dependent on electricity. Without it we felt so uncomfortable. I used a book to fan myself.
Finally it was time for bed and still there was no power. Nevertheless I groped my way to my room, changed and lay quietly in the darkness. It felt so strange without the familiar lights around me. Anyhow I fell asleep after a while.
The power came back on only at dawn. By then we did not need it anymore.
