Romancing tomorrow

'Romancing tomorrow'. This is a guest post written by my husband.He has kindly agreed to write his article in my blog.

Romancing tomorrow

Tomorrow is a concept, a beautiful concept, but not a reality. It is at best a presumptive or prospective or plausible reality but not an absolute reality. It is true that bards and bandits have woven ballads and bizarre poems around it. That does not in any way bestow on it a currency as for example, today.
Tomorrow! I love you with all my heart and soul. Today is dull and drab. What is today? It is a grind, it is horrifying and scurrying. Running from pillar to post. Tomorrow, ha my beloved! How much I miss you. Your unjustly labelled procrastination. Even if you are that, I will say, that you are the life and soul of all that is and that will be. Everybody loves you; the whole world adores you. My life companion is jealous of you, I hold you so tightly that she feels that I am flirting with you and that that hug is rightly hers.
Saints and savants, poets and pugilists, philosophers and pedagogues, pagans and purists, meek and the mighty, lowly and the lost and pugnacious and obnoxious all sing paeans about you. They lie at your threshold to have a glance of you or to be glanced at by you.
Regular shoppers will be aware of a slogan engineered by clever traders. They promise things on credt for tomorrow which never comes. Even such ordinary folk know the value and beauty of tomorrow. Chasing tomorrow is an elusive pursuit. As the saying goes, tomorrow never comes.  You can say today is yesterday's tomorrow, but you cannot say that it is tomorrow. Who has seen tomorrow? Not any living being, I reckon. Even though some astrologers and soothsayers claim that they can see tomorrow, after all what is prediction about, nobody can verify this claim because it is at best a conjecture or a science of possibilities and presumptions.
The invention of 'tomorrow' is a boon to many of the weak-hearted, and of course to procrastinators. If it is entertainment, I want it now at this very moment. If it is work, the first question that comes to mind is whether I can postpone it for tomorrow. Our work piles up like this because tomorrow never comes. Then we fret and fume and complain that we are overworked. Having said so, you cannot still ignore the concept of tomorrow. As distance lends charm, tomorrow sheds its charm all around.We make detailed plans for 'tomorrow' as we cannot do that planning tomorrow, since tomorrow is still in the stage of imagination if not hallucination.
Rightly or wrongly, justifiably or unjustifiably, in certain quarters tomorrow is equated with procrastination and delaying tactics. The truth is that there is some truth in this belief. A large segment of the populace either because of inertia or difficulty in grappling with a problem or situation puts off things for the morrow.
Stigmatised with procrastination, ruin and rumination will be their repast with hardly any scope for reparation or respite and often resulting in rumpus situations. Even though subsequent alacrity may, to some extent, mitigate the damage, most of what is obliterated will be irretrievable and irreconcilable. Such a situation may devastate a man's equipoise and cause severe mental disquietude. Procrastination is the commander of evil and feeble forces. Procrastination is also known as the virtue of the wise. If this enemy within is not routed in a straight battle of non-reticence and rectitude, recurrence and recrudescence will be the result which in one mighty sweep can wash away all that is achieved with valiant efforts.
Let us view tomorrow in its proper perspective and discharge all possible functions of the fabled tomorrow today itself. This is the lesson that we have inherited from the past and should be bequeathed to the succeeding generations.  

Spring is here.

"If winter comes ,can Spring be far behind".These are the  words of a famous poet Shelly.. Today is Basant Panchmi , the harbinger of spring . Spring is  welcomed by everybody. After the dull and dreary Winter when spring comes ,it brings with it  a message of  brightness and gaiety.  The nature is at its best. Decked with blooming  flowers and greenery all around , its apparel , the nature like a new bride  is all dressed up in finery.

 

 Spring has come  with nature's  beauty  in the fore.
  Every bower and  bloom  welcomes  it
more.

 

The rivulets  and the  greenery welcome the 
 the  king of seasons.

 

The leaves,   in  all  their   glory shine
    in the blue firmament












 Vibrant yellow, the  colour of   Basant 
     blooming    and     dancing .
   







      In Punjab yellow colour has special significance on Basant Panchmi.. The mustard fields  are full of yellow blooming flowers,which can be seen  shining  for miles and miles. People wear yellow dresses.  Yellow pilau and yellow halwa are  cooked, symbolising the  the advent of spring on this festival.
                On  Basant Panchmi  festival  Saraswati Puja  is  held. Ma Saraswati the Goddess of learning  is  worshipped on this day. In Schools and Colleges, which are the seats of learning,  big idols of  Ma Saraswati  are made  and the students  offer their  tributes  to the goddess.The goddess is depicted in a white Sari,which is a symbol of purity. Saraswati is shown as sitting on a swan with a Veena in her hands.
 I  am reminded of  the well known  lines of the poet, Robert Browning,which I quote  below:-  
                      The year's at the spring
                       And day's at the morn;
                      Morning's at seven;
                     The hillside's dew-pearled;
                     The lark's on the wing;
                    The snail's on the thorn;
                   God's in His heaven -
                   All's right with the world!






Pics: courtesy Google

Kerala cusine

Last week we had five  guests from Kerala. All of them were very friendly and  adjusting. All the five are  senior citizens and not very familiar with North Indian cooking.During their stay with us we prepared only Kerala food. Some of the preparations were new for me too, but were very delicious. I will like to share them with friends. In Kerala food coconut, coriander seeds and red  chillies are used profusely. They emit a  flavour which is the essence of Kerala cuisine. The first recipe on my  list is Raddish Dal Fry.

Ingredients:-

1. Raddish  long ones 2 with leaves.

2.Green gram Dal       1 cup

3.Coconut  Grated      1 cup 

4.Green chillies          2.

5. Coriander leaves     1cup

6. Salt                          as per taste 

7. Cooking oil    2 teaspoons

8.Mustard seeds 1/4 teaspoon

9.Curry leaves    1 sprig

Method:-

a.Grate the raddish and chop the leaves finely.

b.Grind the coconut and chillies coarsely.

c.Boil the green gram dal. It  should be dry, when cooked. If there is extra water, discard the water.

d. Boil the raddish and its leaves. This  too should be dry.

e.In a wok add a teaspoon of oil, the boiled dal and raddish and stir for a couple of minutes.

f. Add the coconut  and green  chili paste and mix well. 

g.In a small vessel,  heat  one teaspoon oil. add mustard seeds and curry leaves  

h.Garnish with coriander leaves. 
 Serve hot.

Koorka  Curry.

You must be wondering  what is Koorka. It is a vegetable grown underground like potato.  I read somewhere that it is called Chinese potato.  It is available in  stores which sell South Indian stuff.  However, if you don't get it, you can substitute  it by potatoes or arbi(colcasia).
Ingredients:-
1.   Koorka   500 gms.
2.   Tur dal   1 cup.
3.   Coconut 1/2 
4.   Green chillies  4
5.   Jeera          1 teaspoon
6.   Salt   as per taste.
7.   Turmeric powder  1/4 teaspoon
8.   Cooking oil  3 teaspoons.
9.   Mustard seeds 1/4 teaspoon
10. Curry leaves   1 sprig.  
11. Onion     1 finely chopped.
  Method:-
 a. Boil  the koorka and remove its skin. 
 b. Boil the tur dal.
 c. Grate the coconut and roast it in a karhai
 d.Grind together grated coconut, green chillies and jeera.
 e. In a karhai pour two teaspoons oil and add the onions, and      saute for two minutes. 
 f.Now add the boiled dal, add salt and turmeric  powder.
 g. Add the boiled koorka and stir.
 h. Add the  coconut paste and stir.
 i. Heat one teaspoon oil and add mustard seeds and curry leaves and mix it in the curry.
 Note: if you use  arbi instead of koorka then saute it before boiling. 





 

 

I Love you

So Valentines Day is here again! It  has brought with it the memories of the the days when I first met my love! Loving some one whom you have met umpteen times  is a feeling, an emotion,a sensation which you alone can experience.It is  something  which is difficult to explain in words but all the same you are sure that you are in love and realise that you are being tenderly hooked to a rapturous  sensation  of ecstasy.
                         LOVE  just over  powered 
                           without my knowing!
                       It crept into my whole  being
                           my soul, without  knowing!!
                       It came  aroused, rendered 
                    me helpless,without my knowing!!! 
 It  all happened more than fifty years  ago, but  the memory  of those days is still as fresh as the morning dew. Even today, the thought of those special days  brings a smile on my face. How it started,when it blossomed and when it mesmerised me is immaterial.  The essence is that it engulfed two hearts in  eternal bliss  and togetherness.   I knew what his feelings were,how deep was  his love  for me. The purity of his heart, the tender touch and  radiance of his eyes was  so obvious that  they conveyed what  were his  innermost feelings. His  actions,his deep  rooted feelings,and  the broad smile on his face, when he saw me even from a distance  were  surely indicative  that he was deeply drenched in love for me.  I sometimes wondered why he was hesitant to utter those three words, which I was yearning to hear from him.  Every day I  expected to hear from him ,but the expectation was futile. Why, but why  he was  dumb  in uttering what I was sure of !!  Then as sudden as lightning  I knew the truth!! The  reality dawned on me.All my fears and all my doubts vanished.I knew why he was tight lipped. Why was he silent? It was nothing but his inherent shy nature, which  prevented him to lay open his  heart!! At last my  mind was at rest.
 I was  knitting a pullover  for him. I completed  it  in two days. The same day I met him and gave him a surprise. I presented the pullover  to him. He was elated and questioned,"What is this?" Without  any hesitation, without a second thought  the words, "I LOVE YOU" flowed. Instantly , to my surprise  and  in a dramatic manner he  said,  "Will you MARRY  me?"  The rest is History.
 

Happy  Valentines
        Day




 This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda

---

                                   



  

Down Memory Lane Pt.2 and 3

 Journey to Palakkad  from Chennai

When we reached Olavakode It was midnight.  At  that hour no conveyence was available. Taxi service too was not  possible because it had to be booked in advance. A shuttle train to Puddunagaram was likely to reach at 2 am. There was no option but to wait for that train. We spent the time in the retiring room  of Olavakode  station. At 2 am the train arrived.It was an apology for a train. There were  no window panes, the wooden seats were shaky and a stinking smell pervaded in the train. It reached Pudunagaram station at 5 am.A distance of about 20 kilometres was covered in three hours. From Pudunagaram, Tattamangalam is only five kilometres away. At Pudunagaram a  bullock cart was waiting for us. I was very excited  that we would complete the rest of our journey in the Bullock cart. We were carrying  a lot of luggage.The luggage and and both of us with the baby  managed to sit with some difficulty in the    Kala Vandi(Malyalam for Bullock cart)  As the Kala Vandi moved the driver uttered the word 'Moorhi, Moorhi' every five minutes . I was puzzled. I asked my husband what does it mean. He told me  that it means the bull. The morning sun was rising in the eastern horizon. Cool breeze was blowing  which not only refreshed us but but the ordeal of such a long travelling was forgotten. As we proceeded  the sun rays gleaming in the paddy fields  brightened them like gold. As we were nearing the house I was apprehensive in which language I would  converse with my Mother-in-law.My Hubby ,sensing my discomfiture,  consoled me that my fears were completly unfounded. From  a  distance he showed me the Madassery house.It looked like a fort.  I was awe striken. Soon we reached there. A big gate,with the name of the house,S.S.Greenfields,carved on one side and flowers and twines in the forecourt looked very impressive. My M.I.L. and all the other members  of the family  were waiting for us.  I noticed that there were no words  like Namaste or Welcome used by any one but a broad smile on each face was indicative of the warmth  and affection on all faces. Muthassi(grand mother) took us to the family diety Muniappan,to seek His blessings.     

Even though no conversation was exchanged between me and Muthassi, our gestures and smiles  were enough to indicate that both sides liked each other. She was a very noble and pious lady. She was universely liked by the workers. She managed  the affairs of a huge estate single handedly.  Whatever Malyalam I acquired was only because of my desire to converse with her in  Malayalam. My elder Bro-in -law and his family were there.They all could converse in English .

  Tattamangalam Days

 Tattamangalam is a small  township or can even be called a big village. It is about 22 kilometres from Palakkad.It is on the North of Kerala,almost  near the Tamil Nad and Keraia  border

  Hence  the languages spoken here are Tamil and Malayalam.The landscape is beautiful with the Western Ghats  over looking the town. At night from a distant  temple a bright light could be  seen  ,which lent  an aura to the town.Those days there was no electricity in the town.The lamp posts on the main road were lit with kerosine.Inside the house too kerosine oil was used to lighten the house. There was no sewer, hence there were no toilets inside the house. The wash room was away from the main building.At night it was pitch dark.The sounds of several insects along with the breeze lent a supernatural  effect .First two nights  I was frightened by all the vague sounds and could not sleep.

 

 

Morning breakfast was Idli, which was as soft as cotton wool. The Sambaar, the ve

the neighbourhood  came to meet us. They addressed Muthassi as 'Thambratti' which means 'your Highness'.The women folk kept staring at me,It was for the first time they saw someone from a metropolis in their village. They were amused seeing me in sleeveless blouse and  lipstick and speaking English.

We went round the fields.It was my first experience.I  found every thing awesome.From  Tattanangalam we went to Palode, which was the Madasseri Taravad(ancestral house).  Inside the house were displayed the age old  guns and armours. Their  ancestors were warriors.  A family temple is aiso  situated close by. The ruling diety of the temple is Lord Karuppaswami. The whole area emits the flavour  of insense and holy dhup. 

After staying in Tattamagalam we moved to Calicut,Guruvayoor and other places. The visit to these places will figure in part 3.

Part3

 Visit to Kozhikode

Before I proceed with the  next part of our journey I offer my salutations to the family deity, Bhagwan  Sri  KaruppaSwamy.
 
This a very  ancient
temple. Successive generations of 
family members have been the beneficiaries
of God's grace.
Pujas have been regularly held for several decades. 


After staying  in Tattamangalam for about ten days we left for Calicut (now Kozhikode) by train. Muthassi also accompanied us. From the train we could have a  glimpse of  the  eye catching scenarios of the country side.  It  is not for nothing that Kerala is known as 'The God's own country'.  We could see the plush green paddy fields, with women working in them.

(Courtesy google)

  

In this photograph we see  women  transplanting rice seedlings in a paddy  field.

(courtesy google)

Here we  find fertilisation  of  rice. The natural greenery   looks like a plush green carpet. 




  
 Throughout  we could see such captivating  scenes.Another peculiar scene through out was a crowd of people.We cannot  find any deserted  piece of land.  After every few  minutes we find long lines of children  either going to school or coming back from school. It is not surprising that Kerala is the most literate state of the country. We find more  women than men in the fields as well as in the streets. This is the only State in  India  where the  ratio of women is more than men.
At Calicut station my Brother -in-law was present to  receive us. Their house was situated near the Beach. The burn of our son had not yet healed . A doctor had to be consulted. He was given injections.We  used to go the Beach every evening.

                                                   
  This is a picture of my husband  and  son at  the Calicut Beach.







At Calicut  a grand reception was hosted by the editor of a popular Malyalam Newspaper in our honour. More than hundred  people were invited.News of our marriage had already appeared in some Malayam Newspapers. Where ever    we went we were faced with same questions,'where and how we met,''how did we adjust with  food''in which language did we converse' and so on. We were in Calicut  for ten days.The  next halt in our iternary was Guruvayoor.
                           Visiting Guruvayoor 
Guruvayoor is a famous

(courtesy google)

Sri Krishna temple. It is known as the Dwarka of South.The deity here is of Maha Vishnu.  A visit to Kerala is  incomplete without having a Darshan of  Guruvayoor Appan. We also visited the other temples in the vicinity of Guruvayoor.
                             Back to Tattamangalam
After  the pilgrimage we returned to Tattamangalam. The time had passed so fast that we did not even realise we had to go back  to Delhi.We took one last photograph of  the place  near the well. The day of departure came. Muthassi was very particular that nothing auspicious should start  at Rahu Kalam.Whether it was a superstition or not we had to respect her feelings. It so happened that  our time to leave for the Railway Station had to coincide with Rahu Kalam.To circumvent this problem she  got our luggage shifted to our neighbour's house thus signalling that  our return journey to Delhi had already commenced well before Rahu Kalam!! Departure was painful.We got so much love and affection in that period of one month which we always cherish.
                                                       
                                                        

Down Memory Lane.(part 1)

 (Part one)
Today I  am sharing  the memories of my first visit to Kerala. I and my husband got married in the year 1959.Even after a lapse of  fifty three years  I remember all the  events  vividly. Our first visit to Kerala was in May  1961,when my son,D was six months old.
The train journey up to Madras
 Those days air journey was  not as popular as it is now. We went by GT Express  which went only up to Madras (now Chennai) and used to take two nights to reach Madras.We were travelling  in a two berth  first class coupe. Those days first class passenger were treated as VI Ps. A huge slab of ice in a big container was specially kept in our compartment. The night  journey from Delhi to Madras was  comfortable.The train reached Nagpur Station  early morning,where we were given bed tea. The baby was in his Father's lap. My husband was looking for a newspaper when all of a sudden the little baby shrieked.He had pulled the tea tray; the kettle  rolled and boiling hot tea spilled on his legs. Even now when I think of that incident I shudder. The child  was crying uncontrollably. A crowd collected in front of our coupe. Perhaps somebody had informed the Station Master. Within a few minutes the Station Master appeared.He told my husband to carry the baby and follow him. After he got down he shouted  to a Railway employee "GT  ko rok do."The child  was taken to the Railway Hospital  where first aid was provided and the leg was bandaged. All this  while the train was waiting  for more than an hour. These days such good behaviour and concern is unheard of. This  was not all.  After Nagpur, when the train left, at every station  up to Madras  the train  was signalled to stop and a Railway Doctor was waiting to  enquire about the child. They administered  medicines and changed the dressing. Even when we reached Madras, a Doctor was making an  announcement  That we should meet him. We met  him  and    profusely  thanked   him. 
  Stay at Madras
As the train journey was too long, we had planned to halt at Madras for two days. Those two days were hectic. My husband's elder brother was settled in Madras. His Father-in-law, Vasu Menon, was a film producer. He had made his first Hindi Movie 'Jhoola', starring Sunil Dutt and Vyjayanti Mala, which was awaiting release . He arranged a special screening of the Movie for us. Since I was the only Hindi knowing person, he especially  asked for my comments. This was my first visit to  the house of a film personality. I was amazed.There were several people residing in that huge house (I can call it a palace)  From morning to night  the Idli grinder  was  moving.
Some one or the other was always at the dining table. There was no count of the number of cars. Some going to pick up guests, some going to leave the guests and some going to the studio and some returning from there.I felt a bit awkward that  my Bro-in-law was staying with his in-laws. My hubby told me about the Matriarchal system, according  to which  the husband  stays in the wife's house.( More about  this system  in another post. ) Two days were spent in sight seeing and shopping. The time to proceed for the next  part of the journey arrived. My Bro-in-law had  arranged  for reservation. We  boarded the the train for Ollvokode(Kerala) and reached the station at mid night.
          (to be continued)