A12.01 About me, my family & friends

Regrets

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With Dr. Vidhya, my Ambikuttan Athan’s grand daughter, who was with us in Baltimore for a short holiday. When she called me for eating, once, twice, thrice, my thoughts flew back beyond oceans, beyond several decades to our Olavakkode house, when as a kid, I was fed by her grand pa, pleading, begging, ‘muthanna, chappiduda—-‘,  … Read more

And above all

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Hh   I’m in a totally worry-free,  relaxed mood while with my children in USA , for many reasons: 1. The first and foremost is the feeling that I’m in the correct place, where Parents of my age should be.  2. I see their mother in my children and recall  their childhood days in my … Read more

My NIN

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Visit to NIN, is like visiting a place of worship for me.  The long gap of a quarter of a century appears to be as little as a week-end that I was away from there. It was in its premises, in the B21 quarters that my wife entered  as a newly wedded girl, my first … Read more

Consoling a relative who lost her husband

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My attempt to temporarily cheer a parched soul :

 I entered the prayer hall at Chennai to pay condolences and allowed Jeyajothi Mami to pour out her  sorrow in words. Then I tried to pacify her :

“Krish mama, who had rich men at his hand’s  reach didn’t damage his kidneys or liver, heart or lungs, by drinking or smoking. More important- he didn’t do injustice to your faith deposited on him. I need not tell you how he could have done it…….

Didn’t i make you smile?

No chance. I did not give up.

I continued, ‘ok. You won’t smile. Look, for fifty long years, you were his loving jokey making that race horse to run mad and instead of kicking you back to Thoothukudi, he preferred to take his last shelter on your lap. Which woman would not love to have a husband like him? Will you smile now, please?’

She was still gloomy. I didn’t leave her. I continued :

‘My dead lady, all your people will go their way in a day or two and are you going to live the remain 2/3 decades of your life, keeping your face swollen like a pooshinikkai, in your language or mathan in mine, in English pumpkin. You are a charming woman, though a bit old. Smile, please!’

The simple lady of good heart, laughed heartily. 

While coming out of the meeting hall, I warned her, ‘be prepared to live alone but never allow you to be lonely. With whomever you live, your daughters or grand daughters or brothers or sisters, you will be alone but never succumb to the temptation of your mind to become lonely. It is my experience that gives you this advice ‘

Her face shrunk . It will never come back to the old blooming stage . Her loss is permanent . 

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A podiarisi story

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Some friends complain that they are not receiving adequate attention from their children living abroad. Some go to the extend of saying that their children were ‘good’ before their wedding, implying that they had become ‘bad’ after wedding! I got vexed with one of them and asked, ‘pray, what is your complain against your sons? … Read more

My memorable Rameswaram trip

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    We drove from Madurai to Rameswaram in the morning of March 23, 2017 and returned the same evening, through the Pampan bridge. That one day experience will ever remain with me, especially the pitrukarmas on the sea bed. ‘Iyer Mani onkalai gavanitchuparu- will take care of you,’ said the influential businessman at Rameswaram, … Read more