Written piece
The extra-ordinary surprise
Sudha Puri
India
About this piece
A story for young children in which six-year-old Ramaa turns ordinary moments into a game she calls Surprise. A bunch of safety pins prompts her mother to tell the story of their inventor, Walter Hunt, and the two decide to mark the day as a celebration of everyday creativity.
The Extra-ordinary Surprise
Six-year-old Ramaa had started playing a new game. She called it-Surprise.
“Is there a surprise for me in lunch?” she once asked her mother.
“Yes, aloo parantha!” she said and presented a crisp, smiling face shaped parantha topped with small white butter cubes as teeth.
The surprise?...a different presentation!
Ramaa once asked Mummy, jingling a bunch of safety pins - dangling from a single pin, “Is this today’s surprise?”
Her mother, back from a grocery shopping trip, was emptying a bag. “No, this is not for you. But a story, I recently read about these, surely is!”
“Story!..yes!” exclaimed Ramaa.
“So, this pin was invented by an American inventor, Walter Hunt. It is said that he was fidgeting with a piece of wire worrying about paying off a small debt and the idea of creating a safety pin popped into his head. He designed it with a spring mechanism and a clasp to cover the sharp point. This prevented injuries that happened with straight pins.”
“Maybe that’s why it is called a safety pin.”
“Maybe.”laughed Mummy.
“Could we celebrate today as Safety Pin Surprise Day, just like the Children’s Day and Mother’s Day?”
“International Safety Pin day celebrated on the 10th of April…the recorded date of Walter Hunt receiving the patent for his invention.”
“But it is not celebrated grandly like- Earth Day.”
“ No, no.. but sometimes to celebrate this day, workshops teaching how to use safety pins in jewellery-making, knitting or sewing are conducted.”
“Idea! Let’s celebrate Safety Pin day as Creativity Day. I am sure Mr. Hunt must have looked at ordinary things wondering , ‘can I make this better?’ I will always remember this nearly forgotten inventor while using the safety pin – today’s extra-ordinary surprise!”
Both Ramaa and Mummy chuckled.