not twins

That sounded logical. I was not sure of the family planning rules, which seemed to change every now and again.
The government frequently said things like, “You will get money if you get sterilized after two children, sometimes “only if both are girls”, sometimes, if you got “sterilized after one child.” I had stopped keeping track. Nothing seemed to deter the ones who wanted more children. Not money or threats.
She kept bringing the first child. His health was poor, he was underweight, his nose dripped constantly and he had a vacant adenoidal stare. He was a wheezer. A week or two after treatment his weight always picked up, his mouth remained closed, the dripping was better, but he then he had diarrhea. Then we would be back to square one. Once the diarrhea recovered, he would start wheezing again.
Once she came and said, ”can you see me out of turn? The taxi is waiting. We have to go for a wedding. He has diarrhea.”
I looked out of my window to see if she was telling the truth. I saw four identically dressed boys of marginally different sizes.
“Who are these ?’ I asked.
“They are mine.” She said.
But there are four----.
She looked sheepish. My husband said you would get angry if we had four boys and I have not had a sterilization. We registered the first and second with the same name.”
I thought of my consternation and bewilderment each time he/ they came with their weights going up and down like a yo-yo. In my records they both had the same name and birth date, but were actually 11 months apart!
I don’t know who I was investigation for eosinophilia, anemia, milk intolerance, adenoids, failure to thrive!!!
“Why? Why?” I asked.
“We want a girl---“
I