Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Elegy in the death of a home

I don't want the blog to sound like an endless rant. But this matter deserves respect. It is a direct link to my heritage. As much of a nomad that I am, I have very few places that I consider home. A place where I take off my masks, and be myself. A place where I don't have to ask permission for most things. And this place has so many memories. But I have to confess a lot of it is because of the age that I was when I was around there. Still, it was one of the most beautiful places on earth.

It was a place that instilled calm in everyone. Anyone at the height of tensions could just go sit on the verandah and just feel the home fill them with calm. You could notice that the instant they start to talk.

The home had small rooms, but very cozy. I used to sleep really well when I was there. There was a magic to the cool feel of the old place...and to the soft hum of the table fan...

My grandmother's sister used to live there alone most of the time or with some hired help at times. She used to be happy anytime I go there. I would just go and get some laddoos or Vada for her and that used to make her happy. Conversations with her were always pretence-free and straight. No interpretation needed.

Aah...the old attic - and the hours I spent there searching for hidden treasure. and I often did find some though mostly in books. But it was an adventure always what with the fear of the mythical crazy cat that apparently used to stay there.

My grandma's sister remains a spinster her whole life. There was not much that happened differently in her life, but she would get up at 4 every single day. We keep asking her not to. But she couldnt get rid of the habit ever. And mornings as you come and sit at the grand table, coffee would be ready. Needless to say she is an excellent cook and I enjoyed her food very very much.

My post wouldnt do any justice to the place without the mention of the ice box. There was never a need for a refrigerator at the place. Every food was fresh and cooked daily. But there was an old ice box...a really old one. You could put ice in the bottom trays and then the top compartments could be used like a refrigerator of sorts...

But the funny thing is that this ice box had been turned into a library of sorts. I come from a family of hyper enthusiastic readers. Though at that time they couldnt afford most books, they got their hands on a lot of comics. And I think I have read every single one of them atleast 15 times. My mom's uncle who used to come there often would make fun of us calling it a reference library. but it was what it was...Something about those comics - we could never get bored with them...

Some of the classic Batman, Superman, Phantom, Flash Gordon, Garth and Bahadur...very well written and imaginative...I am talking about the time before when Batman and Superman used to be sane and straight forward. It is funny. Life was pretty straight forward and simple there.

Well, it is just a dream now. The place is no more. I know it hurt a lot of people who doesnt deserve it. Ironically, Batman and Superman took a turn to fight mutants and crazy new villains. Life started to curve and climb. And the home was built for a much purer life.

A sign of the times...

2 comments:

Gauthaman Koyamparambath said...

Damn.......Nice work...Wah Wah.....Damn again....Love your blog...

Gauthaman Koyamparambath said...

Yes yes i agree...life without purpose is not that bad..But its fun finding one's purpose....Hee heh...Looking foward to your new blog.....

T.C