Maha's musings

It was the first ever evening all alone without my parents to pamper; without my silly sister to boss around; with a pair of random strangers. It felt terribly suffocating to be inside those four dimly painted walls with some scribblings here and there. I didn't feel like talking to anyone. All I could do was to unpack my briefcase and verify the belongings for the nth time— wallet with some fifties; pouch full of jingling coins ( to put into the coinbox Phone) accompanied with a brand new pocket diary, in which all my parents, relatives and friends' contact numbers had been written (As if I were to be allowed to talk leisurely)  I just sat on the bed, contemplating my house which would have become ominously silent without me having trivial brawls with my sister to make it a messy mansion.  Never in my life I had felt that much lonely as I felt on that evening. It was 6:30pm; it started to dim, I turned on the light which stuttered a bit and came to life. Then I wen

The other day I was talking to my college junior. She was talking about the perils of being a hostel student. My memories drifted to my hostel days and I thought of the pleasures of being a hostel student. What a life —  mixture of pain and pleasure, cries and laughs, this and that. I still remember the first day at hostel.  "Thendral" — the majestic name board read. I was this side and my dad was that side of the hostel gate. That was the very first day, I ever saw my father shedding tears. Oh my gosh!!! That too for me! With a heavy heart I waved my hands at him and left to the warden mam's room.  Megala miss!!! 😍 she was there with her usual skeptical eyes. Verifying my data, she mumbled 122! "What miss?", I asked em-puzzled.  " Room no.122 ,miss. There... There upstairs– on the first floor – your room", She snorted out impatiently. That's more than enough for a girl who has gone to hostel for the very first time, to be offended. On

Children are the most amazing creatures in the world.They can be impish and angelic at the same time.  They are as unique as our thumbprints. They come in adorably variable forms.  They smile, they giggle, they laugh, they blabber, they imitate, they irritate, they question, they explain, they pinch us even punch us on our noses, they drive us nuts by exhausting us!!! But by the end of the day, they are our stress-bursters. They are amazing in their own ways.  They are unrelenting ; there is no child in the world which can give up on what it wants; they never stop questioning until they get a convincing answer. They are curious ; curious about anything and everything. They are the purest of the pure ; their anger and wailings fade away in no time; they know nothing about grudges and vengeance; a friendly smile, a hearty hug, a chocolate or a toy can light up a kid's face. They are avid observers ; they don't need to be visibly listening but they replicate verbatim.

You are the panacea of Indian subcontinent; the quick fix that every mother knows.  I've been seeing you since my childhood. It's strange to notice when and how exactly I started loving you. Whenever you were offered to me, I remember.... I threw tantrum; my eyes drooped in displeasure; lips were pursed; tongue lurched in disgust and my nerves turned numb.  But these days it's entirely different.  Cold? You!  Throat pain? You! Fever?You! Indigestion? You! Sourness? You! How can you be a solution to these many problems? The very thought of having you relieves me of all my discomforts. The refreshing, soothing aroma... the delicious sweet sip with a perfect tinge of peppery-spice... That's divinely delicious!!!  Turmeric milk -the single drink; a perfect home remedy for almost all the ailments, prescribed and concocted by the mothers of India. Take just a glass of lukewarm milk, sprinkle a few pinches of  ground pepper, add in two teaspoons of palm sugar. Tadaaa... the sp