Smackdown on a Smackdown

As the house grew quiet and Nina and I were getting ready for bed, we noticed a howling in the big house next door. We immediately recognized it as Nithin's cry and at first shrugged it off, assuming he was getting a bath. When it didn't stop, and I thought I heard other suspicious noises along with it, I stepped outside to investigate. Since we moved out, Amma, who had lived downstairs with us and whatever children happened to be living with us, was alone so little Nithin had been brought back downstairs to live with her. It made me nervous knowing that he would be down there alone with her, as I know she can be really rough, especially with him. I have gotten used to her love taps for him, even her more disciplinary swats, but the repetitive sounds I heard from another house and several rooms away made me sick to my stomach. As I stepped outside and peered in through the kitchen window I could see Amma in the living area and could hear her yelling in Telugu, obviously at Nithin. As soon as I saw her raise her hand high and come down with a loud, nauseating smack followed by a piercing scream from Nithin, I knew we had to do something. We immediately went upstairs (even though in our pajamas we were wearing our most inappropriate clothing -- shorts) and reported what we saw to Assin, Bendang's wife. With Amma, one has to be careful. The language barrier is high and her temper can flare. I love her, but she has her own plethora of problems and often takes her anger out on helpless little Nithin. Bendang went in and there were some strong words exchanged (though we couldn't understand them) and soon Nithin was headed up to stay with the boys.

2 year old Nithin

How could anyone in their right mind lay a hand on this innocent little babe?

There is no way we could have slept knowing that he was over there being manhandled by an old and cantankerous woman. Maybe we are just as afraid of Amma as Nithin is, after all we did hide behind the stairs watching to see that he got out rather than face the beast ourselves, but as long as we brought the beating to someone's attention, then we have done our job for today. Whether they think we are softies or not, no matter the cultural differences, it is never okay to treat a child that way. Never.