The Perfect Cake

One day, Rishika brought a homemade cake in her tiffin box. Banni had never tasted such a delicious cake before. She wanted more. Rishika told her that it could be easily made at home in the microwave. Excited, Banni quickly noted down the recipe.

As soon as she got home, she rushed through her lunch. Mom was surprised, normally, it is an hour episode. Banni told Mom, she wanted to bake the cake herself. Mom was happy to see her enthusiasm. Banni went into the kitchen, and in just 10 minutes, her cake was ready.  

She asked eagerly, “How does it taste, mom?”

Mom took a bite. It was half-baked. She was not sure what to say.

“Well, I really liked the presentation. The gems on the top make it look so beautiful”, Mom said.

“Thank you, Mom! but how it tastes?” Banni pressed.

Mom smiled gently. “It is good, but it is a little uncooked inside. Why don’t you taste it yourself?”

Banni took a bite and frowned. She did not like it either. Disappointed, she sighed.

Mom comforted her, “I took many years to learn cooking, still I make mistakes.  You can try again tomorrow”.

Later, when Mom went to the kitchen, she found it was a mess. But she decided not to bring it up with Banni today.

The next day, Banni came back with more tips from Rishika. This time Mom told her in advance to keep the kitchen clean and Banni agreed. This time, the cake tasted a little better, but something was still missing. Banni was disappointed again. The kitchen was still a mess, but Mom chose to stay silent.  

The next day, Banni went to the school and busted on Rishika, “It is because of you that my cake isn’t coming out right! I am sure you are hiding something from me.” They got into an argument. Frustrated, Banni came home and declared, “I will never bake the cake again.”

Mom listened silently. She did not push her. But in the back of her mind – she kept thinking how to encourage her daughter again. A few days later, while working in the kitchen, Mom suddenly called Banni.

“Look at our kitchen window,” She said. “A bird is collecting straws.”

Banni looked. “Yes, But why?”

Mom smiled. “She is trying to build a nest to lay eggs. Can you remove the straws so that she can go somewhere else?”

Banni eagerly agreed and threw away the straws. But the next day, more straws appeared. It was fun at first – removing them again and again. But the bird never stopped it bringing them back.

After a week, Banni grew tired and gave up. Yet, the bird kept going. Eventually, it built a beautiful nest outside the kitchen window. Banni kept thinking, “Why did not the bird get tired ? Why didn’t it give up?”

A few days later, she told her mom, “I want to try baking the cake again”.

Mom was happy. The cake still was not perfect, but this time, Banni cleaned the kitchen properly and asked for honest feedback.

Mom Smiled. “It is better than last time! you are improving.”

Banni nodded. The next day, she went to school and politely asked Rishika to explain the recipe again. This time, she listened carefully to every detail.

A week later, she baked the perfect cake. Mom and Banni enjoyed eating it almost every day. But she had learned something far more important – patience, persistence, and the joy of trying again.