Life as a Pariah sees it

I am Moti, a Pariah. Peep into my life and find out what it is like to survive on the streets. It bewilders me to see that if dog lovers can shower love and affection on their pedigree upper class pets then why not on us. Why be so mean to us?

Survival in sewer of food
I begin my day in the morning around 6 am whena I am kicked and shooed away by the sweepers. There are times when stones are thrown at me or a stick pokes into my bony body reminding me that night is over and yet another hard day beckons me. I shake myself and come out of my dreamy night and then the search for finding tit bits starts. Some days I find stale bread, rotis, mutton bones, and when luck is on my side I also find a half eaten chicken or langar plates to lick from. But all this never comes easy. For each bite I have to compete with other dogs, may even get bitten or snapped at, but that’s life my friend for us street dogs, we have to grab it before someone else takes it.
Not all days are bad, some days I come across a kind and gentle family who feed me milk and biscuits. Some even pat me on my head, play with me, and say loving words. In return I thank them with a wagging tail! But there are also days when I am shouted at, stones are thrown at me, and I have to hide under the filthy drain or behind thee broken cars to save my life.
Why this
difference?—I ask!
I am amazed by seeing the amount of food people throw away. If only they could feed me and my friends with this food, life would be so much easier for us. But then I think, maybe it’s God’s way of providing us with food. Man’s anger or hatred against us is something I have never been able to understand. On one hand they have pedigree dogs in their homes who are fed so many good things, they are loved, and taken care of; and on the other hand, we are chased away from the streets because the so-called Pedigreed Pets are on their way. What humans fail to see is that in the end we are all the same race just different breeds, so why this difference?
Weather wraths
we face
The most difficult and tough times are in winters when we have to shiver and cuddle up against each other for warmth, while our well placed brothers and sisters wear coats and are inside their cosy rooms in a warm bed and blanket; or in summers when we have to hunt for water and many times drink from the dirty drains. We have to take shelter from heat and rains under cars and many times we are crushed under the very car we take shelter under. While our friends enjoy in their air-conditioned homes and cars, go for walks with a shiny collar and leash, and if we try coming close to them we are hit with sticks, kicked and shooed away.
Sick or old–Nobody cares
We are not asking you to take us into your homes but can’t we just lie and sleep outside your homes and be given a meal a day. Is it too much to ask for! Who is there to take care of us when we fall sick, when we’re old and frail to fetch food? Nobody!
The hard and harsh reality is that I and my fellow friends are all alone in this cruel, selfish world and we have to fend for ourselves or else just lie and wait for a speeding vehicle to crush us and take away what little life there is in us…
My teacher
hardship of life
But in the end, I must admit my life on the streets has made me tough to face the hardships of life. It teaches not just fighting, but also sharing and caring with my friends. Running carefree with them, tugging at them, playing with them, barking at and chasing a car make my dull, monotonous life worth living.
I pray for warmth,
love & happiness
I don’t mind being reborn as a DOG in my next life, but can God be just a little bit partial and give me a better life. Can I have the taste of both lives – one outside on the streets and one inside where I am surrounded with warmth, love and happiness? Well it seems a dream for many of us but you never know, the grass is always greener on the other side.