Veranda Tales-Leopards can't change their spots

Storytelling has been an integral part of my life since childhood. I grew up listening to stories during the hot summer evenings and nights with my cousins. Mothers and grandmothers would gather all of us children for story time. It was usually pitch dark except for a very faint light coming from the flickering candle. Power cuts were as frequent as the hot and humid summer days. We all spread out on a cool concrete floor or bamboo mats on the veranda intently listening to fascinating stories about kings, queens, princes, princesses, and peasants alike. Stories about love, life, families, and people entertained and taught us life skills. These stories transported us to distant worlds, strange yet familiar. Often the same story told by two people sounded different as storytellers added new twists and turns adding their personal style and flair to the stories.

Storytelling wasn’t limited to summer evenings and bedtime. I was surrounded by adults who didn’t pass up an opportunity to share their wisdom using the art of storytelling. These rich vibrant oral traditions include songs, poems, stories, and సామెతలు (Sametalu are proverbs in Telugu). Men and women sing songs as they work in the fields, grinding grains and spices and doing other daily chores at their homes. Stories are often used to teach important life lessons, interpersonal skills, and survival skills. These stories and the time spent listening to them made our lives richer leaving an impression on me. This series is all about reliving those memories as I share these stories.

కుక్క తోక వంకర  (kukka thoka vankara)

Changing behaviors and habits that don’t serve us well is hard. This sameta conveys this sentiment using characteristics of a dog's tail. It says the dog has a crooked tail by nature and it can't be straightened. Dogs do have crooked tails for good reasons. Tail is very useful for swatting away flies and other insects. Dog's express a range of emotions using their bushy tails. They express love for their caregivers by enthusiastically wagging their tails while they eagerly look at them. Their tails wag differently while they walk by the roadside minding their own business. Their tails stiffen when they feel threatened or angry to appear formidable as they stand their ground.

All these observations of mine stem from sharing the roads with street dogs in India. I grew up with no pets around me. అమ్మ (Amma is mother in Telugu) didn't like dogs and నాన్న (Nanna is father Telugu) did, but deferred to అమ్మ (Amma) since she would be the primary caregiver for the dog. Our semi-nomadic lifestyle moving from place to place and house to house once every two years wasn't too conducive to having a pet. The only pets we had were chickens అమ్మ (Amma) raised on our backyard for a period of time, primarily for eggs. We named the chickens and it was fun to watch the tiny yellow fur balls follow their mama everywhere.

My uncle had dogs and I enjoyed their company on my visits to my grandparents’ place. One of them was రాణి (Rani is queen in Telugu). She looked regal with gorgeous black hair. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at people around her. She was very mischievous. Piping hot omelets were her favorite food. Omelets left unguarded on the dining table even for a moment would be snapped up and swallowed by రాణి (Rani). You couldn't leave any food on the dining table when she was around. She had the run of the house walking from one room to another and sleeping under my uncle's bed. She was the true రాణి (Rani) of the house.

She stayed with us for a few days at our place. I don't remember why though. I was taking her for a walk when she took off running. It caught me off guard and I fell flat on my face. I didn't think to let the leash go until I was dragged on the dirt road for a few feet. The scene was very  similar to the ones in cowboy movies where the villain ties the hero to a horse and drags him behind the horse. At least that is how I remember the incident.  I felt like a daredevil hero fighting evil people to save the world. My brand new dress was torn and dirty taking the fall and to save my tummy from severe road rash. My dear అమ్మ (Amma) immediately reached for her drishti mantra as she determined evil eyes of others were the cause of this incident. This incident and my encounters with street dogs contributed to my fear of dogs.

Street dogs in India are menacing.  I still have to dodge them when I go for walks when I visit అమ్మ (Amma). I invariably go out for a walk and then remember I didn’t get a stick to carry with me when I see my fellow walkers with sticks. I cross over to the other side of the street when I see a pack of dogs approaching me. You now have a new answer for “Why did the chicken  cross the road?” game.

కుక్క తోక వంకర  (kukka thoka vankara) sameta has a deeper meaning. It is used by people when they talk about their own or other peoples’ troublesome behaviors and habits. It is the same as, “Leopards can't change their spots” metaphor in English. This samata is used to say people can’t change their essential nature such as their character traits and habits, even if they try very hard. నాన్న (Nanna) used this sameta to describe people who don’t change their behaviors that don’t serve them well and repeatedly suffer the consequences of their actions as a result.

అమ్మ (Amma) mostly uses it to talk about her own habits she has been trying to break and can’t. She tells me, “కుక్క తోక వంకర లాగా అయ్యింది (kukka thoka vankara laaga ayyindi) or కుక్క తోక వంకర లాగా చేశానమ్మ (kukka thoka vankara chesanamma) when she eats something she is allergic to and couldn't resist eating. It is usually about her వంకాయ (vankaaya) vice. వంకాయ (vankaaya) is aubergine, brinjal or eggplant in Telugu. She loves వంకాయ (vankaaya) and can’t resist eating even though eating it gives her joint pains. She developed this allergy in her later years. I used to tell her to not eat before I wised up to understand  in her eightieth year, అమ్మ (Amma) earned the right to indulge in a few vices. When she tells me she has joint pains, I now say jokingly, “Must be your వంకాయ (vankaaya) vice”. I follow it up with if she enjoyed eating it and ask her to take medication if her joint pain gets worse. 

There is another story that comes to mind when I hear this sameta. నాన్న (Nanna) came home one day from work bringing back the story of a dog that was brought in for treatment. A couple of “brilliant” boys decided to tie a stick to their dog’s tail to straighten it. Poor dog was so miserable, tried hard to get rid of the stick and lost all the hair on her tail. Her tail was red and swollen and she was in terrible pain. They brought the dog to the clinic. నాన్న (Nanna) was really upset with these two boys. He treated the dog and gave them a talking to in his characteristically diplomatic way. He continued to treat the dog until she was better. The next day, I couldn’t resist going to the clinic to see the dog and meet the “intelligent” boys who learned the hard way by injuring their dog that కుక్క తోక వంకర  (kukka thoka vankara) is a universal truth.

I am still afraid of dogs, especially large ones. When they approach me on my walks or a visit to a friend's place, my first instinct is to freeze. I know they are just trying to be friendly for the most part, showing their interest by licking or barking excitedly. I am teaching myself to get rid of the fear. After conscious attempts, I no longer freeze even though I still keep my distance to make sure I am not in any danger. I am getting comfortable around smaller dogs enough to be able to pet them.

I recently met two adorable dogs, thirteen year old Cookie and four year old Bella. I felt totally comfortable around them as they enthusiastically greeted me at the door and tried to talk to me. They don’t have tails and the sameta definitely doesn’t apply to them. Cookie sports white hair and Bella has mostly black hair with white spots on her face, front legs, tail, and eyebrows. They stole my heart. I seem to be making slow progress on straightening my tail by overcoming my fear of dogs.