The Story of Water

This story began with a material, that was colorless, tasteless and life giving, was derived from a few lonely random substances which had energy and nothing else. It was an ion, that was a lonesome electron or a positively charged hydroxide particle, looking for one electronic ion since it was not possible to exist all alone, sought a Hydrogen ion, actively looking for a mate and the single electron irresistibly bonded with an agitated postive particle seeking an electron, finally found a home in its orbit… millions of years ago.”

Sara stopped telling the story to grandma. ‘Listening’, said grandma. Long story short, this water you are using to create rotis, is not formed now.. it is older than matter!

Team Work

Sara was busy creating a surprise for Chanda for her wedding. It is a surprise Sara said

Oh ok. Is that what you are offering her? Asked Sumitra.

‘No Aunt Polly, it is so not.

Raja wanted to surprise her with all the pictures as a collage. I am helping out.’

‘Sara! Is it ok to let Raja sleep away while you are working it all by yourself?’

‘I don’t see anything wrong. He takes forever,’ said Sara.

‘Would you rather want Raja to create it or you compile it with your ideas?’

‘Raja's.’

‘Sara, how could he do it? you are doing his work. Would that do any help in bringing out the best of his friendship?’

‘Aunt Polly, I did not see it coming. I was only helping.’

‘Now you do! I am not saying you cannot help, but it should be a team effort! Right?’ said Sumitra.

Deadly Aunt 'Polly' From Mahajanapath

‘Memorized the poem 3 today?’ Aunt Sumitra asked

Raja read the poem aloud. 

He tore up the next poem to avoid reciting.

Is that why your Aunt'Polly’ asked you to paint the fence? Sara asked

Rain Rain Go Away

Once upon a time, long ago, in a faraway fictitious land, in a village called Mahajanapath, there lived a young boy with his grandmother. She was a kind-hearted woman who cared for everyone in her village, offering advice on raising crops, cattle, chickens, and children. All the children affectionately called her "Ajji," meaning grandma.

The little boy grew into a handsome young man. He was called ‘Raja’ for his noble thoughts, generous nature, and willingness to help others, especially those in need of protection from exploitation.

Sara, from a neighboring village, was preparing to move to the city where her friends were studying while residing in a hostel. On her journey to Mahanagar city, Sara stayed with Grandma along with other students, as they had been good friends before moving into Grandma’s homeschooling.

Many years passed, and Grandma was nearing retirement. Other grandma homes were opening up, but typically, a grandma home only ran for two months at a time for each resident. Visitors stayed anywhere from a weekend to three weekends, and at most, up to 12 weekends. They had to return after four or five months at the earliest. If they were facing exams or assignment deadlines and their mothers were unavailable, they could extend their stay by two more months, but no longer.

Most of the time, Grandma was healthy, but occasionally, she fell unwell. During those times, other grandmas stepped in to help. Just as the children spent time at different grandma homes, grandmas also took on roles for short- or long-term stays depending on their interest. There were entire blocks of grandma quarters, each home blessed with a resident grandma.

Children who had passed through different grandma homes at various times would, by chance, meet others who had also stayed there. Some even found friendships that eventually helped them find their soulmates. Raja, in particular, was a permanent resident of the grandma homes since no one knew when his parents would return. They had gone on an assignment with the Maharaja to advise on projects related to welfare, research, and development.

Fortunately, while Raja was primarily cared for by his own grandmother, he had the opportunity to attend classes from different grandmas, learning about ethics, aesthetics, science, art, and even cryptocurrency. He reconnected with old friends and made new ones during these times, but he knew he would soon have to return to Maharaja’s staff quarters as an employee.

One day, while horseback riding, he suddenly heard the terrified screams of a young girl. To his shock, he saw Sara riding a wild, untamed horse from the stables. The horse was behaving erratically, clearly disturbed by something. Raja called out, “Attaboy!” in an attempt to calm it. Slowly, the horse began to relax, stopping as Raja helped Sara climb onto his own horse instead.

Their eyes met, and for a moment, they felt a deep connection. Just then, the horse jerked again—or so Raja thought.

Sprinkles of raindrops touched his face. He opened his eyes.

Grandma stood before him, smiling. "Today, you need to pick up Sara from the train station. Have you forgotten?" she reminded him.

Looking around, Raja saw that the house was decorated. Wedding decorators from Chennai were working in front of the home.

"Sara is arriving to attend her friend’s wedding. Go and pick her up," Grandma said again.

Raja smiled. ‘Oh my, problems are nothing more than bubbles—now you see them, now you don't! Thank God Sara is safe and far away from trouble!’  Good God grandma stop pouring water over me! Cried Raja as the dream bubble is popped away!

Pranksters-Spanksters

The Maruthi theater group was buzzing with enthusiasm that evening, especially with their focus on the Ramayan. A particular highlight was the scene where Hanuman crosses the ocean in a single leap to find where Seetha was hidden by Ravana. With the summer holidays approaching, the troupe was busy preparing for the sequence where Hanuman destroys Ashokvan, the garden where Seetha was held captive by Ravana.

The young actress portraying Seetha performed admirably. In one key moment, she held a grass blade between herself and Ravana, symbolizing how the mighty ten-headed demon was no more significant than a blade of grass in her eyes. This subtle gesture, full of symbolic power, was meant to humble Ravana’s ego.

The director, concerned with the next few scenes involving the burning of Lanka, reminded the cast, “Lighting the Lanka buildings is only digital. We won’t show real fire—just make sure the curtain waves with the fan and project the image of fire on the buildings.”

After a scene with Ravana shouting and giving ultimatum to Seetha, who was desperately calling for Ram’s rescue, the actor playing Anjaneya, Ashok, reentered after a tea break. The director caught him loitering outside the studio and questioned, “Ashok, why are you here? Shouldn’t you be talking to Seetha, telling her you are capable of rescuing her?” Ashok responded, “Actually, Shamshad bhai, I’m on break because the baby Hanuman will be chanting Ram’s name, and when Seetha asks, I’ll be ready to go.” The director, irritated, complained to the writer, “Joseph! Look at this one’s cheek! He’s designing the scenes by himself.”

Joseph, who was referred to as Johnny, defended Ashok, saying, “Leave him alone, we had agreed to give some liberty with the dialogue delivery, considering the accent differences between southern and northern speakers.” Johnny said., “jaanee,” also meaning “dear one” in Hindustani, reflected their shared spirit in the play.

The call for the scene change was texted, accompanied by the sound of drums signaling the shift. Ashok soon returned to the stage as Hanuman. He reassured Seetha, telling her that he was the mighty monkey warrior Hanuman and that Ram would soon rescue her. To prove his words, Hanuman gave her a ring from Ram, saying, “O mother Seetha, here is the ring Ram gave, to show that He will rescue you soon. In fact, I could carry you on my shoulders right at this moment.”

Seetha, with a tone of concern, replied, “O mighty Hanuman, I understand you meant to give me hope, but I cannot be rescued without Ravana knowing. Tell Ram that if He cannot rescue me within two months, Ravana will kill me and feed me to the demonesses guarding me.” Hanuman took permission from Seetha as she gave him her chudaamani, a jewelry piece like a barrette, and returned to Ram with this message, urging him to act quickly.

During the Ashokvan scene, where Hanuman destroys the beautiful fruit-bearing trees followed by the burning of Lanka, the visuals were preserved with no damage due to the use of photo effects. However, the plot to ignite the curtain by some pranksters was foiled before it could be executed, rendering their attempt to create menace and chaos futile.

Confidence Can Bring Miracles

“Kannan da, my villagers think I cannot achieve what I started. I feel terrible” said Priyank.

Kannan da stopped writing for a minute and asked, “Oh. What would you think?”

“I think it is not right and I can prove that I am capable of being a winner. “ said Priyank who was hardly eighteen.

“Well, there you go!” smiled Kannan da and looked apprehensively. Kannan da is a mentor for young and old by giving pointers subtly through his writings and directions.

Priyank was for some reason not happy with people around him and went to his grandmother's town for a change in scenario. She was well known chef among her circles, having demand for their pickles, spices and snacks.

That summer she called some helpers and prepared pickles with selected green mangoes. Mangoes need to be green and hard and not sweet or soft for the south Indian or Telugu style pickles the region is so popular, grandma would say.

He enjoyed the freshly made rice with the new pickles and had sweet mangoes to go with it. Grandma would prepare yogurt at home with buffalo’s milk and make thick Lassi with it so he can enjoy his meals.

Returning from the town, Priyank bought some green mangoes of good variety and also bought spices. He started preparing the pickles and posted in YouTube with stories he heard from grandma as he was packing them.

He enjoyed watching other’s shows too. Among those, very influential were from Pasha bhayya’s, an expert teacher in training and teaching tailoring. What impressed him most was the ease with which Pasha brother would address the problems one would face in starting sewing and tailoring business. He would even encourage people not use a measuring tape to draw a pattern, by just using a model saree blouse or waist size.

Meanwhile, despite what villagers would say, Priyank would picturize his shows outdoors, during early hours and also insert the beauty of village life as he would wish the several onlookers a happy day .

Some would even participate in tasting after the end of the cooking shows. That was getting so popular that people from different places would arrive early morning and not only watch him run his show, but buy tickets to be in line to taste the items prepared. Added attraction was when Priyank would come and ask them how it tasted or if his cooking reminded of any regional cooking.

Priyank introduced different items from different places including the regional recipes, stories of folklore and even sometimes showcase the dressing style people would practice, including any writers or artists of that region too.

Priyank’s show was becoming a positive influence on entrepreneurs and artists alike as well as fashionistas. The same villagers that criticized Priyank found him motivating.

Showcasing regional cuisine and introducing about local artists of Hyderabad and near by places, he enjoyed showing artwork of others that has ignited his showmanship to a higher level, proving villager’s discouragement a futile effort. “It is self confidence. Self reliance and blessings from his loving grandma!” said Priyank accepting the recognition for YouTube’s popular entrepreneurs award and was thrilled with excitement! Kannan da could not hold his happiness!

Grandma is In Charge

 Grandma Roshni was very kind and raised some birds and animals. One day it was raining heavily and grandma was feeling very cold and feverish. She took some Tylenol and had warm coco milk and was resting on her couch watching the cartoons and other shows. Grandma's favorite was either roadshow or Sesame Street.

She liked the big bird most of all.

On that Friday morning Grandma was feeling rather tired and was taking an afternoon nap. The neighbors were moving that day and they had some cats. One of them was peach colored and the other was a dark brown one. Both were adorable. Every time grandma would sit in the backyard, Peach would come purring to feel her human touch.

On moving day the family left early. Grandma was reading a book, and she did not notice how much time she spent in reading the book. Suddenly from some where she heard a sound. A very feeble sound.

She heard that sound again. She called her neighbors but they already moved. Peach was calling out from the empty home.

Grandma Roshni kept water and some cookies outside, just in case peach may want to come in.

Grandma remembered the story of a young boy who later became a saint after watching something about a neighbor’s cat. Once there was this young boy who was youngest among the children in a place near Kanchipuram. At that time he was fondly called as Gini which means a young beautiful  bird. Gini was seven when everyone in the neighbors left to visit some place. There were huge sounds coming out of the empty home all through the dark star-studded night. The sounds were so loud, the entire neighborhood flocked around to see if it was a thief. All kinds of sounds as if their were some metallic round thing was rolling around in the air and flying like a big football. All the time making rumbling noises. The people were thinking it may be an alien flying around in the home, until the neighbors returned. As soon as they opened the door, they went in and saw what caused the noise. It was a cat, that stuck it’s head in a container with small opening. Looked like the neighbors prepared some sweet rice product and left in a rush without cleaning the utensils. The cat liked the taste of the food and got into so much deep that it just could not pull itself out of the small opening at all.

This incident had so much impact on Gini that in his 90th year or so, when he told this for the first time,  he had to stop and stare constantly into space before speaking further. He felt that, a man with his desire to excel and conquer everything gets deeper into the web of cycle of life and death, and can never come out of it or perform or seek anything that is parabrahma. This incident finds itself as the reason, why a less than 13 year old turned into Kanchi Paramacharya, who is also called as Periyava. It became popular after the grains  got harvested, when people had more reason to celebrate and offered luxurious lifestyles and people were more into buying properties, or accumulating wealth and going away from the natural life that they were once so much into the nature of everything that was provided by nature, now even the sound of crickets they have to hear though electronic devices, and kids do not know how they even look like.

Sudden sound of soft purring brought her back into the reality and picked up Peach. She called the veterinarian and had Peach checked for microchips, Fortunately it had a phone number too. It was not possible to reach them immediately since it was a landlines. Most likely the landlines is not yet connected.

Day 1 after the cat was found : Grandma took Charge

Peach was very shy kitten. It did not venture out into the open or near the swimming pool. It had to stay indoors and a litter box and bowl for food and water needed to be bought. She ordered Friskies from Petco that delivered some cat food.

Peach was a little dehydrated but Grandma’s cookies and water kept it from getting too much starved.  Grandma’s home provided shelter and warmth as well as some nourishment, more so to the soul with Grandma’s soft talk.

Day 2: Grandma still in charge

That morning Grandma got up early, gave some milk and snacks to Peach and Grandma loved to make strawberry shortcakes. That afternoon, neighbors visited one at a time all day long to enquire Grandma if Peach’s family contacted them.

Alice said she could watch her until Grandma was free and she also said that she is missing Vivek, as they were good friends and played digital games regularly. They also played Chess over their computer and each of them want to beat the other. Everybody enjoyed the shortbread cakes as well as grandma’s very own soup with salad from the backyard. Grandma had grown a wide varieties of legumes and green onions and amaranth that her soup smell may have caused one to write the soup song. The flop song.. For the soup boyesss!!! Peach was tired by the end of the day playing with wool and other things and no kitty toys with Grandma.

Day 3: Grandma took Vivek’s number from Alice

The blue curtains in the kitchen area attracted Peach very much. Grandma with her love towards needle work made lovely borders on each side of the double doors curtains. She also attached small bells that only sounded if someone touched them or brushed past. Peach was excited to play with curtains and make sounds. She also enjoyed pulling the strings off the wool balls waiting to be made into crochet Afghans. Through the windows Peach was looking at the birds outside for sometime. Grandma Roshni wanted to let her out but Peach was an indoors cat. Indoors cats usually small kitten, hesitate to play alone oin the backyard.

Little later in the afternoon Vivek called back. That morning Vivek went to High School and was not available. Lilly, Alice’s sister picked up the phone. Alice texted Vivek, and told that their cat is now at Grandma’s home and in three days time it had to be shipped or will have to go to a shelter.

Day 4: Vivek’s mom gave Grandma their new landline number

Grandma was only getting to thank Lord more and more since she got not only the phone number from Vivek’s mom but also their home address and other contacts.

Grandma called the pet transport people and promptly they sent a car with a driver and caretaker, as well as a new shining crate for the kitty with softly cushioned bed and a rolling ball that sounds and other trinkets and snacks and  drinks as well as a warm cuddly blanket made of rabbit wool. They have volunteers who make packages for transport and every kitty gets their own goody bags. Although no bag is allowed with the passenger.

Finally kitty was sleeping when they took her in an four door sedan.

Day 5 Kitty reached home safe; Vivek mom took charge of Peach again.

After the restful day at their new home Peach’s mom or human called Grandma. She was very grateful that they recovered their precious one in good health.

Peach was all peachy and was in charge of her favorite activities with her favorite toys. Coco was too happy to see her mate. Grandpa Rom could not be more happy to see grandma sit back in her armchair reading Independence a novel by Chitra Divakaruni

*Soup Song link:

https://youtu.be/Cd77LenKLHg?si=f6UrHO2LqQ2DScVx