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‘Amma, amma, kozhakkattaikki kannum undodi ? ‘ ‘Amma, amma, kozhakkattaikki kannum undodi ? ‘‘Kannum illai, mookkum illai, poi paduthukko.’‘Amma, amma, kaozhakkattaikku vayum undodi ?’‘Vayum illai keeyum illai, poi paduthukko’————————————–The dialogue between the kid and mother continues till the mom, fed up with the small one’s nagging comes out of the kitchen and to her surprise, finds that there was a small frog hiding in the vessel which prompted the kid to throw queries at her mother, who had asked the child to pick up the kozhakkatai from the vessel. Apparently the elder one had taken away the sweet-ball and in its place, a frog had found a temporary shelter.This is one of the childhood stories still remain afresh in my mind. Whenever my children or any one for that matter, question my wisdom, I never ask them , ‘po paduthukko’ -leave me alone. I verify. and believe my words, in most of the cases I have found the sweet- ball missing from the vessel! The kid in the story knew that what was in the vessel was not ‘kozhakkattai; but it was too young to understand what it really was. The present generation know that. So, thank God, if they ask your permission, instead of taking the sweet away from the kitchen on their own.
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natarajan raghupathy
Dear Sir,
Your write-up on an anecdote of a curious child is indeed not only humorous but also thought provoking.
As a child I knew that the sweet dumpling (Vella Kozhukkattai) made in the Tanjore part of the Tamilnadu used to have a MOOKKU or a beak like kudumi as that of a coconut unlike the ones prepared in some other parts of South India where it used to be just a ball shaped small globe. Similarly, the Ulundu or uppu Kozhakkattai used to look like an Oyster shell in our part as against the globular ones made elsewhere in order to differentiate the salt ones from the sweet ones perhaps.
In your story, I appreciate the inquisitiveness or the curiosity of the child who is trying to clear her lurking doubts repeatedly unmindful of the tired mother. It is this curiosity that generates knowledge and even discoveries later in life!!!
Regards,
N Raghupathy, D6/14, Kendriya Vihar, Yelahanka, Bangalore 560064; Tel: 22930014 / (M) 9844172976
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CN Kumar commented on your post in Kanfusion.
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Thanks. Brought back memories from several decades ago when my Pati used to tell me this.
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Comment History
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i used to tell this story to my students….and they really enjoy(ukg kids)
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Tuesday, 20 September 2011, 17:50
Message BodyYou just touched my feelings. I want to be a kid again. |
No doubt, the young ones are curious at all times as of now. The difference being, in our times we used to accept whatever our elders say without a murmur of doubt or denial, but times have changed, and the present generation is like the leaping frog never contented with just answers for the moment. They insist on more analytical or rational info and hence become ever more curious to ask questions.
Perhaps if we had also asked our elders questions like the present generation do, we may have preserved the scientific truths contained in our scriptures which sound mysterious and hence unreliable when curiosity props our younger generation to ask for verifiable data.
kalivaradhan
good one. I remember my mother used to tell us this story to keep us engaged when we pester her.