I decided to leave early for the walk today as the heat yesterday was unbearable. We were not the only ones to have thought so – the park had a lot more people today – a lot of kids, some politely holding their parent’s hand and walking along. Most however, were racing each other. One little girl was even trying to climb a tree. Have you ever done that?
I have, we had a Guava tree at home in Delhi, and it was in my role as the elder sibling, to bravely climb up the tree whenever my mother was otherwise occupied, pluck the ripe fruits and then, throw them gently down to my younger sister. Personally, I liked the not-so-ripe guavas and still do. Once fell down and had a fracture – after the initial pain & scolding, I was thoroughly pampered at home & in school too – no class work, no home work, was waived a few tests, and enjoyed everyone’s attention as they wrote & drew on the plaster. From a very quiet, blending-in-the-background, sincere student, me and my guava tree became the talk of the class for over a week.
The laughing gang in the park also spends a lot of time clapping. All the members look over 50 years old and take turns in leading – very democratic, isn’t it? It is actually very infectious too, and many people while walking, start laughing and clapping. Goes to prove that we have truly descended from apes. But why clapping? Google Guru tells me that clapping not only helps in improving blood circulation & has other physical health benefits, but also enhances mental well being. Did you know that?
Didn’t your daughter have a love marriage and that too, with a man from a different caste? Came from one of the two men who were passing by. There was such censure in his voice – Andal would immediately say that it was none of his business whom she married – different caste or different religion. The other man totally ignoring his friend, went on about how happy his daughter was and that he was planning to visit them as they were expecting their second child. I smiled and felt sad for this man who had built walls around himself. Did his own perfect life have a guarantee of lifelong happiness? Is love such a bad thing? True Love is such a rare & precious emotion and so often, it is lost in the tussle with dear ones and society.
Today Bhoollu was doing Goolu’s duty, who was nowhere to be seen. He sat curled up near the main gate, eyeing all who entered the park carefully. Just then I see a young girl, maybe 5- years old, flexing her arms and showing off her muscles to her friend. I am sure she must have seen her elder brother or father do it & was mimicking it to impress her friend. I burst out laughing – and I remembered how the Aditi & Mithila tried to use new long words that they had heard from adults or read in books in their own sentences, often to our amusement and sometimes to our embarrassment. Love the careless disregard that children have. I have always found it difficult to learn new languages – actually no. I scored 95 in French in post-grad, and can understand so many languages. I think I hesitate to speak as I am not sure of my pronunciation, and am scared of saying something stupid and looking like a fool. Over the last 10 years, only the auto drivers have been subjected to my blossoming Kannada and they have rewarded me with stares and smiles.
We return home to the entire house smelling like a cookie. If only the aroma could be bottled into a perfume. Aditi has been baking her signature Nutella stuffed choco-chip cookies since last night for her colleagues. They have a potluck lunch planned for tomorrow. Don’t you wish you could sample one?
0 Comments