Post-it notes along the memory lane

Usha recently talked about "Childhood Amnesia" and asked the readers to jog their rusty memories and bring out gems from the nostalgia closet to share. It was an interesting ride, down the memory lane, going back to some very early years. Almost seems like a different world altogether, from the one we all now exist in. Like Billy Joel's its probably that "The good ole days weren't always good, and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems". But nostalgia is that way, you know. Romantic, dreamy...a bit like paradise...of which we dream of for our future. So if our past was perfect, the future should be utopia shouldnt it? Hm, maybe not!

Nostalgia is like a grammar lesson: you find the present tense, but the past perfect! ~Owens Lee Pomeroy

Perfect, what say?

Ok, so these are some of the gems I collected whilst on my nostalgia ride. Let me clarify the characters that feature in the trip
- A great grand mom, paternal(ggmom, for short)
- Grandparents(maternal and paternal)
- A multitude of grand uncles and aunts- mostly siblings of ggmom and their spouses.
- Uncles and aunts- siblings of parents

Note 1 :
Very early on, life consisted of being spoilt by ggmom, grandparents, ggmom's siblings and their spouses. A palatial ancestral home. Servants. Half-day school. Force-fed lunches. Small game with ggmom. Afternoon nap, sharing her bed. Milk and then playtime! And how.

Playtime consisted of inviting neighbourhood kids(upon pre-approval by ggmom. Yes, she would scan them, find out their ancestry, their habits- in short- their case history...and then deem them fit to play with the "brat"). So they would come. Games also would need prior approval from ggmom. And she had a walking stick. If it appeared to her that her "brat" was losing, she would poke one or all the kids with the stick and tell them to be fair and "let the brat win!". If any child persisted in winning and disobeying her orders, the next day the said child would be banished from the play group.

Note 2 :
There would be new clothes for every festival for the "brat". You know how in India, you dont need a reason for a festival. Well my grandmother found festivals where there werent any, just so she could indulge the brat with the latest fashions.

I have talked earlier about the torture I went through in the name of music lessons. Enough said, we will not dwell on those painful memories.

My Scrabble skills are all thanks to my grandmother. She was more keen on learning to play the new game than I was. And I was challenged to do better, just so I could beat Paati. And in a few years, we got so good at it, our scores would soar and we'd make our own rules, making it harder and harder that no one else would kindly oblige to play against us, cos they'd shudder at the iron rules we had made up!

Note 3 :
Every couple of days, ggmom's brother would visit his older sister. Without fail. He would be driven and he would get an "Illustrated Weekly" to read for the road. He didnt live too far away, mind you. Matter of minutes. Then as soon as he'd enter the house, he'd hand the magazine to me. And thus I was introduced to reading comic strips..like Dennis the Menace.

Note 4 :
Thatha(paternal) was a bathroom singer. He'd love to hum. And he always had a song to sing to me, whenever he set his eyes on me.

Note 5 :
We'd visit ggmom's sister, who also lived in the same city. Her husband was great at sketching. And thus I was introduced to drawing and painting. Very early on, he used to keep a notebook where I'd learn to draw basic figures and hone my skills.

Note 6 :
Summer vacation was always about going to Hyderabad to spend with the other set of grandparents. Early lunches coupled with a second round of lunch consisting of curd rice, ending with juicy mangoes. Hot summer afternoons spent reading Enid Blytons to the creaking noise of the rickety ceiling fan.

Thatha(maternal) was big on devotion and elaborate morning pujas.

Right in those days, he had a home office. A very posh place , with a high drawing desk to painstakingly draft electrical layouts- an eternal place of intrigue and interest to all of us. We were always curious what goes on in offices and for many years later I used to believe all offices would have draftsmen, a stenographer taking notes in shorthand, the relentless tick-ticking of the typewriter.....
"Thatha, your drawer is here" I'd announce, emerging from his office, where I'd love to hang out all day. And oh yes, I meant to say draftsman :). Everyone, needless to say, had a good laugh at my expense!

Note 7 :
Trips to British Council and IIWC with Amma. Wonderful times feeling the gilt edged treasures, the crisp pages of new Enid Blytons, Richmal Crompton, comic books...the pleasure of getting lost in the world of fantasy and launch into eternal word space.

Note 8 :
Endless bars of Double Decker and Five Star chocolate, thanks to two doting chitappas(chikappa). Unlimited motorcycle thrill rides on Rajdoot and Yezdi- the pride of the youth at that time. Its strange, that now I really detest chocolate. Having been spoilt at such an early age, I should have turned out to be chocolate's biggest fan. Real irony, that!

Note 9 :
And to this day, I dont remember why. I am sure the victim definitely remembers, after all these years ;). I recall getting angry over a classmate(this must've been kindergarten, mind you!!) and biting her :O. I know, I know, terrible thing- I say. And then she howled her way home and complained to her mom. Of course, I had to go to her house and apologize, Amma made me !

Note 10 :
Again, for some inexplicable reason, I loved to play house inside an umbrella. Like remember that huge monstrosity of a black umbrella one used to get in those days? Yes, my favorite spot to play house was to open one up, prop it on the floor and crawl into it.

10 gems! Pretty good stuff, huh?

So thanks Usha for sending me on this little trip. Alright, I got to unpack and get ready for a busy week ahead.

Enjoy y'all!