The bouncing pumpkin

I was a civilian with no fauji background when I got married to an officer of the Indian Air Force. But it took me no time in adjusting to the ways of this wonderful family, thanks to the company of affectionate ladies. But the credit also goes to the very friendly bachelors of the unit who, away from home and bored with the routine mess food, actively followed the unique IAF tradition of “bouncing†on newlyweds. Bouncing means landing up unannounced at married officers’ homes and asking for dinner and drinks at odd hours of the night only.After our marriage my husband’s bachelor friends used to visit our house very frequently, needless to say unannounced. They came for coffee and pakoras in the rainy season, mango shakes in the summers and late night dinners throughout the year. Troublesome as it may have been for a young bride to cook at such a short notice for 10 to 12 bachelors with a voracious appetite, I had no choice my husband had been the gang leader himself till a few days back and had enjoyed bouncing others. Now, all of a sudden, he was at the receiving end.I for one did not mind catering to their demands for food and drinks and enjoyed those midnight meals, which were accompanied by a lot of noise and merriment. Those days, in the early eighties in Jammu, we were staying in temporary accommodation provided by the Air Force to junior officers. The barrack had an asbestos roof that would convert the silent walk of a cat at night into the walk of an elephant on dry twigs! Only later did I realise that it served a different purpose too of announcing the arrival of the “bouncing†gang.

We had hardly settled down in the station when in the middle of one night I was startled to hear thundering sounds from the rooftop. Terrified, I woke my husband, but he surprised me with his sheepish look and a knowing smile. Sure enough, they were his friends announcing their arrival by throwing stones on our roof. It was past midnight and all they wanted was food. Apparently they had gone to watch a movie and by the time they returned after the night show the mess had closed. No problem, there was a simple solution bounce a married guy.

I started making dinner for 15 uninvited guests. Feeling obliged, they offered help in setting the table and preparing salad, and in the bargain saw the chicken in the fridge that I had kept aside for the weekend. That was it. They decided upon finishing it and, boy, did they do a fine job of it. That they made up by taking us out that weekend is a different matter. How I managed that night only I know but it is a fact that I still cherish memories of those wonderful days their small demands of evening snacks after a game of squash or of paranthas and egg bhurji on a Sunday morning. No doubt sometimes one got exasperated, but the irritation always evaporated on watching them relish the home cooked food.Coming back to bouncing, every station has its own tradition but Air Force Station Guwahati takes the cake. When we were there around fifteen years back, the bachelors of a squadron had a unique way of announcing their arrival. They were a little more kind, unlike the Jammu guys, as the lady of the house was given some warning. Anytime during the day she would be greeted by the sight of a huge pumpkin at her doorstep. That meant that she should expect the bouncing gang at night.

As an Air Force wife I can confide that the sight of the bouncing pumpkin was ever so welcome.