Of children and grandmothers...

The curtains flapped listlessly in the warm afternoon breeze.The smell of freshly fried jalebis wafted from the sooty kitchen. The boy twiddled his toes. An exquisitely lazy afternoon.

He had always wanted to see the insides of a camera. It wouldn't take more than 10 minutes, he told himself. He could open it and fix it back. Nobody would know. The absolute confidence of a 5 year old.

All it required was a screw driver. A few minutes of excited prying and poking later, the lens popped out and lay staring at him, accusingly, on the cold black and white mosaic floor.

A chill crept up his little heart.

As he bend down, he could hear the wrought iron gates creak open and the Herald coupe braking on the gravel. Acha* was home.

His eyes darted about...and caught sight of a safe haven...the folds of ammumma's** creamy white settum mundum.***

He sprinted and quickly hid amidst the warm folds of the soft cotton. He was wrapped by the smell of syrupy jalebis and of wood smoke from the kitchen fires. He peered out.

Acha was walking towards them, the broken camera in his hands, a storm starting to brew between his brows.

He took a step back, ready to fly. Ammumma's squishingly soft arms draped around him, pulling him close.

The folds of her cottons cocooned him. Her caress composed him.
He knew he was safe. Nobody could touch him. Not even acha.
The absolute confidence of a 5 year old.
He hugged her tight. She hugged him back.

Blessed are kids who grow up with grandmothers....

*Acha: father (in Malayalam)
**Ammumma: grandmother (in Malayalam)
***Settum mundum: a traditional 2 piece cotton outfit worn by women in Kerala, India

Comments

  1. Absolutely well said Ganga, grandparents are fabulous! I can say this from my own childhood days and till this date that bonding remains special...

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  2. So true Ganga.
    It made me wistful for a moment, and a little nostalgic too..

    :)

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  3. Wow! How beautifully penned. Was this prose? Was this poetry? Or a subtle mix of both? Either way, I loved it.

    And you're right, kids are blessed to be pampered by grandmas. Btw, can I have some low-cal jalebis too? Please! Please!

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  4. I loved your post so much that I forgot to compliment you on the new look of your blog. In the snapshot it looked like a lovely strawberry, but on opening your site it was a beautiful flower. Either way, looks very refreshing.

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  5. Vanitha, yes that bonding lasts for a lifetime and beyond...

    Rekz, grandma tales never fail to make one nostalgic, for most of us will have a heart warming moment to share

    Thanks Pals, for your shower of kind words! I don't think my ammumma ever made jalebis, but jalebis are my all-time fave, so couldn't resist throwing them in:) Forget low cal...when u eat them you should savour the most sinfully sugary syrupy ones!

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  6. Junjun has got my share of wonderful grandmas too i think!!! :)

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  7. ...that should have been :( and not :).....sigh! ;)

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  8. Blessed are kids with a grandma around, but doubly blessed that grandma with kids around, especially so these days when children specialise in globe-trotting!

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  9. Archie, the circle of life sometimes doesn't come quite full circle, i suppose :)

    Amma, that was so beautifully put!

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  10. I don't know about grandmoms, but your post absolutely rocks. Your narration is terrific!

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  11. Thanks, Shail! Talk about generalizations :)

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  12. Good one, Ganga. And well narrated too.
    Somebody once said, "The simplest toy, one which even the youngest child can operate, is called a grandparent.”
    Keep them coming.
    Cheers,
    Sal

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  13. Yes. Grandparents are great.
    The reason why grandparents and grandchildren get along so well is because they have a common enemy :)

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  14. Thanks Sal...you said it :)

    I liked that comment, Dash...that was funny, and true, probably :)

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  15. Grandmothers are real blessing in our lives, most of the kids are lucky to have one like that. But some grandmothers are nuisance,they create only problems in others others life, blessed are kids who don’t grow up with such grandmothers.

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