As the thoughts flow -08

Well, loss of a friend has to be taken in its strides - I keep on telling myself. After all I did not stop eating or performing other daily chorus despite loss of someone close. So why refrain from writing a few things which may ease the contrite feelings.

Another childhood memory is travelling by steam engine train from Madras Central station to Ponneri.

Unlike these days, window seats were available, especially for children. Trains were moving tortoises when compared to the speeds today.

I would wait impatiently for the train to cross Ennore station so that I would be able to see the sea.

There used to be a lot of salt pans (உப்பளம்) around Ennore. Used to think the street vendor pushing a hand cart with a sack of salt would be picking the stock only from this place.

The sea I remember in its full glory was at Rameswaram. I naively folded my legs from its dangling positition as I saw the sea beneth the Pamban bridge. I was four then.

How the emerald green water changes into a dark blue colour near horizon-I wonder even now.

In those days, present day Rameshwaram Express used to be called as "Boat mail".

People whose destination was Colombo used to board this train. They were allowed on board a waiting boat at Dhanushkoti. They would enter Ceylon( now Srilanka) and continue their journey to Colombo by another train. A single ticket was issued for the entire journey.

But 1964 cyclone changed things for ever. On the night of 22nd dec waves of over twenty feet high destroyed the entire Dhanushloti including a passenger train. Watery grave for all with no exception. One never know how the end comes. Since then Rameshwaram is the terminus.

Now, are we crying for those who lost their lives NO. Why ?

A tamil proverb says it succinctly.

கண்ணில் பட்டால் கரிக்குமா புருவத்தில் பட்டால் கரிக்குமா ?

For the benefit of non Tamils, meaning of this Tamil analogy is : is there not difference between a drop of salt water touching the eye brow and the eye ball ? Only near and dear effectively affect us.

C U later. bye.

As the thoughts flow -07

என்ன சொல்வது. A royal friend is no more. Existence has given me shocks in different measures. A few of them were greater than others. But this one..... so severe, has not sunk yet.

I can boast myself of one thing about my life. I have quite a few of them - friends. Each one unique in his/her own way but all are equal in one respect - showering unrestraint love and affection upon me.

I cannot meet him in his physical body anymore. So what ? He will never slip from my memories. I can always hear him within me, calling "thalaivare " Adieu Royal. நெஞ்சம் மறப்பதில்லை.

As the thoughts flow -06

So what to write after yesterday's bungle in letting a guess work be made on my present age?

But ageing is compulsorily for the body and optional for the mind. Whatever be your present age, you have the capacity to think like an adolescent as also like an all renounced sage. So what is lost if someone knows since how long your physical body is in existence. Mine is since 114 days prior to Independence. Well I believe in telling truth, definitely here !

Be then as it may.

I want to write something about my present stay.

By the time we cleared customs and came out of the Heathrow airport where my son was waiting for us with a car, it was around 8 pm and the sun was shining brightly. We were not surprised as we had the experience of this phenomena in USA several years back.

We reached Ipswich in about two and half hours time.

We climbed up the three flight of stairs and panted more than usual as we saw our grandson greeting us.

I do not have the words to describe the joy emanating from a physical touch of the baby even though we were virtually seeing him through Skype.

The day of arrival was 14th June. In the past month and a half we had two outings and I shall try to recapture them for you soon. Bye for now.

As the thoughts flow -05

01 08 10.

A new day, a new month; so better to write something about old - rather about past.

It lay dormant behind a small button. You in your conceived wisdom you thought it fit to probe it with the small arrow. (this word wisdom is seldom used: usually conjoined amongst all things, with tooth, even dentists have forgotten it ! )

Within fraction of a second, pushing every thing aside on your screen, a map spreads in all its grandeur. There are curving lines, patches of colors mostly brown & green and of course words in different fonts and sizes.

Unexpectedly a word Amazon catch your eyes. Faster than the fastest computer your brain rings an alarm saying you knew this word. But when where how ? - as the back office work proceeds to search the dark crevices of stored memories you continue.

Wonder of wonders, by now the prodding arrow has become an helping hand and you started understanding the screen with a bit more clarity. Now, you wanted to navigate and see how INDIA looked !!

As you navigate, seemingly familiar but not exactly known words surface.

Suddenly you hear "eureka" and your back office announces you came across the word amazon in your eight standard geography.

As always, it also throws along a few extras too ! Memories of how you all nick named that geography teacher as oranguttan and your personal low score in the monthly exam in geography and the consequent dress down received from your father.

As the arrow of desire prodded me to write about the past, I find myself in an akin situation

Past is panoramic but blurred. Zeroing in is getting harder as many hands from the memory stand raise to get picked up. Anyway let me try to give a push start and see.

Here I go.

As I toddle into my past, the first relative etched in my memory is my aunt (mother's elder sister). A fat lady in white saree with an always unkempt hair. My mother used to say but for her sister GNANA {did not have an happy married life and subsequently became a widow too}, I would have been dead and gone as only a toddler. The phrase "Hale and Hearty" did not fit me well in my childhood. In those days.......

Stop! stop! The reader is guessing your age with these three words sequence. They are a lot cleverer than you think they are. Just because they devote some time to read your bragging, do not try to under estimate them.

Now, say a bye-bye and try hard to cover the slip up. May be already a gone case !

Best of luck !!!