"balle balle" and "she doesn't have any best friend"

we spent last evening at a friend's place. it's a family of four, with two lovely daughters, aged 7 and 3. the two are simply adorable together. expectedly, the younger one mimics every single thing her elder sister does, bobbing around her, after her, and on top of her, all the time.

neither girl speaks hindi. i of course am mortified about this, but it's a non-issue for both parents. yesteray, the mother said that i was free to talk to them in hindi if i so wished. so i went one step further, and taught them balle-balle, complete with the shoulder and hand movements. after we'd danced around saying balle-balle a few times, we decided that they would greet their dad with the same, when he arrived from work. since there was still some time to go before he would come home, every 10 min or so, i refreshed their memories by repeating it. the 7 yr old easily remembered both the phrase and the movement, while the younger sibling could focus only on either one initially, but soon perfected it. the bell rang, and the girls' little worlds were mad with excitement. the reception party comprising both girls could barely stand still and stay quiet, behind the door...they had planned to jump out at their father. as always, the moment stretched forever, until finally the dad arrived. at the right time, they leaped out, shouting and dancing. the dad, used to a jubilant welcome, was not taken aback by them jumping at him out of nowhere, but they would not stop doing balle-balle until he did it too. so there they were, a party in full swing, while my friend and i couldn't stop laughing. it was a moment of simple and unadelterated joy, one that i hadn't had in a while.

another episode. the elder one had drawn and cut out a mask, a girl's face, and used bright pink feathers for ears. her face had been coloured pink, she had long eyelashes and a smile. and on the paper was written ROSIE. i thought it was really original to use feathers for ears (if i had to use feathers on a face, i'd have unthinkingly used them as hair), and i told her so. she was thrilled, once i'd explained what 'original' meant. then i asked her who Rosie was. and she said, "my best friend" (the mother quietly told me it was the name of her favourite doll). then, "no...actually, jenny is my best friend". the little one was quietly observing all this, and probably felt left-out. she chimed in, "i also have a best friend". to which pat came the response from the elder sis, "she doesn't have any best friend". all eyes and ears were now on the little one, who was suddenly feeling intense performance pressure. she bravely said "i have". the 7 yr old continued, "who? who? you don't have any best friend.". this was said with a flourish that meant "and that's the end of the conversation". the little one, not to be beaten, piped in, "mallika". i said, "yes, mallika!! malika's your best friend.". for tthat, i was granted a beaming grin. the elder one, slightly sheepish now, turned to me and says, "she has only one best friend. i have many". the mother, who was busy making coffee all this time, said gently, "but best means only one. you can't have many best friends...only one best friend". the elder one, full credit to her, recognised the logic of the comment without seeing it as an assault. the 3 yr old's beam had now reached her temples. the elder one then said, "but mama, anni is also my best friend." anni took this as a cue to jump into her sister's lap and give her a hug, and eveyone lived happily ever after!

thank you so much, A and I. and yes, you can have as many 'best friends' as you like, and remain best friends for each other.