Good Old Days

Most of you can recognise all the four beautiful ladies in this picture ! Those of you who cannot......you'll know gradually.

Fifty years back in India, having a photograph taken must have been a big deal. Not many photographs were taken so people wanted to give their best pose. Just one or two photographs brought so much joy to people back then. It was nothing like today, when you can just click your digital camera or even your phone and capture moments with hundreds of photos. Mordern techniques has made life so easy and you can just pick the best photos and have them framed or however you want to display them.

Back then, photographs were rare. People kept them with great care. One photograph could relate to one story after another. It could bring back several memories. There are many such precious photographs of my family, which I will keep posting it here in My Blog now and then. But for now let's talk about this particular picture which I found in an old album in Patna.

In the above picture, I am sure all of them got dressed up for some celebration in the family and decided to get a group picture taken ! And I am sure this photograph in itself has many stories and laughters to reveal. Well, I am asking all these pretty ladies in this photograph to share the precious memories this photograph could reveal ! So, Amma, mummy, S.Fua and C.Fua.....
please let us know how, when and why this photograph was taken. We would love to hear any story related to it. So please share.

And if any of you have an old time photograph, please share it with us on this blog and the memories related to it. I am sure your stories will brighten up our days, and bring us all even closer than ever.

New Year Celebrations

For us celebrating Christmas and the New year was having fun, fun and lots of fun! We got started with arrangements, ideas, event organising, and planning games well before date, and how we enjoyed it. Our priority was to provide full entertainment for our elders, so that they could enjoy the day as well as feel proud of their kids. We put up variety entertainment shows such as dancing, singing, instrumental and acting.

I used to thoroughly enjoy the practice sessions we had, as I could boss over everyone, especially my elder sister(just kidding).I usually took the responsibility of synchronising all the instruments together, and give out notes to everyone.I was very proud of my orchestra team consisting of my elder sister on the violin, my younger sister on the sitar, my cousin sister on the guitar, my dad on the tabla and myself on the harmonium. For me, it was the world's best orchestra team! The dance practices kept everyone busy too. I was never good at dancing and left this part to my other sisters and cousins. Arguments, displeasure and tantrums took place amongst us kids,but never spoiled our enthusiasm for the big day!

But,the most fun days were the picnics we would have on the terrace or lawn on the 1st of January. I can never forget one such picnic,when we played lots of games. We were thrilled by the sportive response elders gave us.They danced, sang and had lot of fun.We brought our stereo system on the terrace and played different songs from movies for each one. The most uproarious part was playing musical chairs, when somebody sat on some other person as the music stopped(I am sure some of you must be smiling, remembering this hilarious incident)!!

All the kids participated in some form or the other. Arranging chairs, decorating the stage, designing costumes, arguments, agreeing on suggestions, or simply frolicking around were things none of us wanted to miss. On the whole our gang would have a blast! The delectable food was eaten by all with good appetites. In this way the first day of every year was spent with exultant cheer and happiness.

With most of us scattered here and there now, these parties have ended. I still celebrate every New Year with friends and family in my town. They are fun, but nothing compared to our old time celebrations.

Happy 2007 to all !

How do you say it again?

Back in 1984, I got the oppurtunity to visit many places in Italy with my dad, mom and little sister. Most of the people there, did not understand or speak english and their accented language sounded strange to us. But,with my dad managing fine till now, my sister and I hardly worried about the conversed accent.We landed in Florence really thrilled about visiting one of the wonders of the world-The Leaning Tower of Pisa. We stayed at a hotel near the Tower for the night.The next morning, my dad took pamphlets and directions from the hotel reception. With my dad as our guide,we walked confidentally, stopping at every place of tourist interest. And, finally, my sister and I followed my dad with unexceptional enthusiasm and energy, to reach the wonder of the world in Pisa. We walked for almost an hour,when my dad realized that we had taken a wrong path. My mom and dad decided to stop at a local shop and ask for directions. Now this man did not seem to understand what my parents were asking.
"Excuse me, how can I go to Leaning Tower Of Pisa?" my dad asked.
"Oh, Piezsa", he chuckled with delight and gave us clear directions.We thanked him and followed his directions , walking for another 15 minutes. But, to our dismay, we soon found ourselves in front of a big Pizza restaurant. So that crazy man with a funny accent thought we wanted to eat pizza?!! How frustrating! I felt deceived and tired. Anyway, my dad made more enquiries patiently, and we finally made it just in time before the closing of the Leaning Tower for that day.
By the time we walked out,it had begun to get dark.We walked back the way we had come until my parents looked a little confused on which road to take.My dad stopped to ask a few people directions back to our hotel.
"So what was the name of the hotel?" he asked us.
Nobody remembered. He thought for a minute and asked a man. "Excuse me, where is hotel plaza?"
The man walked away shaking his head. We asked a few more people we found on the way.
This time my dad tried, "which way is hotel piazela? No.
Then he asked, "can you tell us how to go to Pliazai hotel"? Nope.That did not work either.
"Is there a hotel nearby with the name pizilla, plaza or something?" Everyone shook their heads.
"Oh brother" I thought."This sure was going to be tough".
My mom checked the pamphlets my dad had collected from the hotel reception. Sure enough, she found one with the exact name of the hotel.
"Good thinking", we all exclaimed with relief.
A tall man came to us to help. My dad showed him the name of the hotel. "Oh, you mean Pizzelle gennaro de roma", he said with a strange accent.
"Oh whatever", I thought. "Just tell us the way!"
He gave us directions which I was sure my dad and mom did not understand very well. But, my dad in his usual cheerful spirit,walked and made us repeat "Pizzelle gennaro de roma" 5-6 times in the accent the man had just said. I did that unhappily just to please him.
To make sure for the last time that we were heading towards the right direction, my dad again stopped to ask someone. "Is this the way to hotel Plaza?"
Before that person could shake his head and walk away, my sister and I shouted, "no..it's Pizzelle gennaro de roma" in the accent we had just practised five minutes back.
The man looked at us, smiled and said, "sure, just make a right from that corner and your hotel is there".

Oh, thank godness! I was so relieved to see our hotel.

Oh, those days !

I had written this poem back in 1990.I thank Tuttu for preserving it and sending it back to me to post here.

Long ago I once remember,
That time we were twelve together.
Schools were closed and we were free,
Lying idle under a tree.
An idea suddenly struck to one,
Making an ant-house would be fun!
Oh, we worked enthusiastically,
Running for things excitedly!
Until a big problem arouse,
There was no ant in the house!
Thus our search for ants began,
I found a few inside a can.
In the house that we had made,
Gently with care the ants were placed.
Daily we stole and brought sugar pills!
The house soon was full of ant hills!
One day however someone suggested,
The ants might feel as though arrested.
Taking one's freedom was very bad,
Realising this fact we all felt sad.
We released the ants reluctantly,
and watched them all disperse silently.
Two days later all were gone!
We felt desperate and forlorn.

Sometime after I now remember,
The twelve of us were again together.
Hearing a cry we went to see,
To our surprise under the tree
Three little sparrows lay there hurt,
From their nest they fell on earth.
We closely examined their legs and wings,
They were terrified the poor little things.
We found the birds unable to fly,
If we left them they might die.
To keep them back we gave a try,
But none could reach, their nest was high!
Someone came running with a tray,
Gently we made the three birds lay.
I carried them carefully inside my room,
The centre of attraction they became soon.
Some brought grains while some brought bread,
With all these food the birds were fed!
The day after the birds seemed happy,
They chirped, they sang, they were jolly.
Seemed they got rid of their ailment,
We all cried with joy and excitement.
The entire day we remained with them,
At night our elders forced us to bed.
But oh! The next day as we gathered,
We realised some agony the birds had suffered.
Our little friends collapsed gradually,
With tearful eyes we watched helplessly.
Their end had come, their journey finished,
For days we cried, our joys had vanished!

As time passed I again remember,
The twelve of us as usual together.
Found a puppy outside our gate,
Whimpering over, I guess its fate!
It's colour was white, that of snow,
Eyes shone with an unusual glow.
We brought for it a bowl of milk,
Which it somehow managed to sip.
After the meal it seemed happy,
We took turns to hold the puppy.
Elders would never like this pet,
For it might make the carpets wet.
Secretly,we decided to find a place,
Which our elders could not trace.
We entered our study room silently,
Found a suitable place presently.
An hour passed, we heard a noise,
Outside the room we heard a voice!
It was us, elders were looking for,
The puppy was quickly hid in a drawer!
We immediately sat with open books,
Our countenance gave those studious looks!
Our parents entered all surprised,
What we were upto none realised!
Finally time came for us to leave,
Nobody wanted to go and sleep.
We placed the puppy on a cushion,
Covered it with a piece of linen.
We all bid the puppy goodbye,
Midnight I woke hearing it cry!
Others were up too hearing the whining,
The puppy oh dear, was infact now howling.
My dad opened the study room curious,
Seeing the dog the elders were furious.
Sight of the messy room made us pale,
We cursed the dog, it was waving its tail !
We were scolded for the entire event,
The puppy was made to sleep with a servant.
Next day he took the puppy away,
By chance he found its mom on the way.
We were relieved to hear all this,
Prayed for it's happiness where ever it is!

Time has passed and we have grown,
Busy with problems of our own.
On occasions we get a chance to meet,
We talk of past, their memories sweet.
We recall those times, those lively days,
Those little joys, those childish ways.
From burdens and responsibilities we were free,
The beauties of life was all we could see.
Though time has left us all apart,
Childhood memories cherish in each heart.
The joys and sorrows we shared together,
Lifetime through we will remember.

The Creation

Written by Shubhangi Malvika

The birds, animals & clouds
makes the earth feel proud.
The flowers and the green grass
look pretty,but if you ask
the sun when it sets
that scene is the best.

The plants bushes and trees,
spread happiness that we feel
But feeling the presence of God
makes the creation beautiful to all.

Rivers and lakes do their duty
and adds to the earth's beauty
the birds above us fly
the shining stars in the sky
this creation of nature thus
is a gift from God to us.

The awful pudding

My parents were used to attending a number of parties hosted by their friends and insisted on us accompanying them too.Now,we three sisters were not very fond of such parties,but had to agree on going to some of them.We had to look good, be in our best behaviour, smile at everyone even if your mouth started hurting after sometime, be polite and not act rude, praise the food served and etc.etc..........like it is at such formal parties.

I remember at one such party, after getting tired of putting an ingenuine smile, talking and appreciating everything around, my younger sister and I escaped to a silent place in the garden with our bowls of dessert.It looked like some uncooked pudding and did not give an appealing look,but we had to take some, afraid of projecting disrespect to the hostess.After a bite both my sister and I decided to dispose off the dessert.We could not go back inside to find the garbage and throw it.What if someone caught us.Instead we started looking for a safe place to throw the pudding in the garden and walk inside with empty bowls.We would then tell the hostess,that it was a perfect dinner with very good food.That would make everyone happy including my dad,who always liked to venture out new dishes and never believed in throwing away food.My mom was like us, not very adventurous with food,but my dad wanted us to try new things and appreciate the good part of it.Yes, of course! But then our taste buds could find nothing good in that dessert ! Both of us looked here and there and decided to throw away the pudding behind a tree.We walked towards the tree, looked around to see if anyone was spying, and was about to scoop off with the spoon,when "hey"someone called us from behind.I knew it was my dad's voice! My sister whispered to me to act cool as if we were just enjoying the pudding.My dad hurried towards us with a bowl of pudding looking around.
He looked at us and said "What in the world is this made of?Can you find a place where I can just throw away the pudding?"
The two of us looked at each other trying to control our laughter.
"Yes, sure.Throw it over here.That's what we are trying to do" I said.
The three of us quickly disposed off the dessert.We went inside with smiling faces not giving a clue to anyone about the victory we had just attained. The pudding must have been really horrible, for my dad threw it too!
Guess what.The next day the cleaner found pudding thrown in almost all lone places and corners of the house ! That bad was the dessert! I am sure the hostess never tried to make that pudding again!

Waiting for snow and spring

I was being repeatedly shot with one question after another about winter and spring by my just turned four year old daughter, Anusha.She was finally convinced by my answer that when it snows it's winter and when flowers begin to bloom it's spring.From then on every morning she would religiously look out of the window to see the snow or flowers.
"Mummy,there is no snow,no flower.What is it outside?"
I patiently explained to her that it is winter,but it does not snow everyday.You have to wait for the snow.She was disappointed,but to my relief decided not to bother me with her further queries.
Days begin to pass,my daughter still waiting for snow.I almost began to feel sorry for her.Why was it this very year that Mother Nature decided not to bring any snow? Of course, Anusha had played in twelve inches deep snow last winter,except that she no longer retained those memories.
Finally my daughter's patience was rewarded.It was almost the end of January.I checked for school closings early that morning and went back to sleep.I was woken up after about an hour by shrills of excitement by my two kids.
"It is all snow outside" I heard her talking to her brother in amazement. My angel's wishes had come true. I got up happy and pulled the curtains to make the snow visible from every room.The sun was now shining and reflected it's light on the accumulated white snow making everything brighter than ever. My kids rushed with their chores, ready to play outside.Used to the Indian climate,I am not very fond of snow,but had no intentions of ruining their fun!I bundled them up with scarves and snow jackets.My husband could not hold his excitement either,as he could take the liberty to stay and work from home too. Both of us decided to clear the driveway while the kids played.
Anusha,all excited jumped and played in snow,helped her brother make a snowman.Then they dug in the snow with shovels. I took a few pictures of both of them. She seemed very happy. They lay on the floor and made snow angels.My son threw snowballs at his sister.This kind of upset her.Her small hands with fat gloves could not make good snowballs. She was not ready for this kind of defeat.She made a big fuss and began crying.I took her inside,with her brother and dad right behind me trying their level best to comfort her.
That was the end of it! She no longer wanted to play in the snow.
"I like spring better" she stated.
Now she looked out of the window everyday, hoping to get a glimpse of any flower outside the house.
After about a month she came running to me one day,and tried to pull me towards the front porch of the house.I followed her,and to my surprise all the daffodil and tulip bulbs I had planted had begun to give leaves. "Will the flowers come soon,mummy?"she inquired.

I told her that the plants needed water and little sunlight to grow. She ran to get her cup,filled it with water and began pouring it over the plants.Excited she made a dozen trips in and out of the house carrying water in her cup.She would observe the sunlight,water each and every plant holding the cup in her tiny hands.She did this everyday and petals began popping out of the plants.She was thrilled to see the beautiful yellow daffodils which had begun blooming by the next week ! The tulips are yet to bloom.
But, my prettiest flower, my daughter, was all blooming with joy and happiness ! Yes, spring is here !