Onam

In Onam finery, waiting for guests to arrive.

Our guests included the chaiwallah (a young debonair chap from Kerala who had to give up his studies when his father passed away to take care of his mother and sister) at V's office, our building watchman and the kids' favorite Saji uncle and family. So the Onam sadya went on from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. since our main guests came late. Thanks to the maid, we had a great sadya complete with payar payasam. The kids and me had the day off but V, whose birthday fell on Thiruvonam day this year, had to attend office.

Double celebrations anyway.

Two Sundays

Last Sunday at an amusement park called Queensland, and this Sunday at
an orphanage visit arranged by the church. (Me and the kids didnt
attend the latter as we are down with fever.)

Miracle

Mira at the Parepally church...

Miracles do happen in our otherwise mundane existence. I cant exactly call this a miracle, maybe just a blessing. And for most people in Changancheri, the church of St. Mary on the mount/rock, better known as the Parelpally, is a very holy shrine and irrespective of their religion, people come there to pray to the Mother of God. And this is a custom I have imbibed from V, who doesnt conclude any vacation in Chry without lighting candles and praying there.

This time, we had just 4 days in Kerala and we found time to go the church only as we were departing for Chennai. The overcast sky betrayed our moods too since we had no clue what to do with the kids when we returned to our workplaces. Only the night before, we got information that Lydia wouldnt return, and m-i-l and V thought of all possible persons we could ask to take care of the kids. The local agency had told us the day before that they would send us a nanny in a week's time but what were we to do in that one week.

We left without any clue about how we were going to manage. But just after we came out of the church, V asked me to try calling Nanny L who had left last Christmas without notice. Which was surprising since V had forbidden me from calling her as he was angry with her for leaving us in the lurch then. I hadnt thought of that option, but call I did immediately. And she was equally surprised and glad to hear my voice. She seemed more than willing to come as she was free and in need of some extra money. Though we tried coaxing her to come with us in the car, she said she needed a week to see to certain things at home. And she came after a week just as she promised.

Life has become pretty comfortable for me with her around, she takes good care of everything and all of us. I still think it is a miracle that Mother Mary made V take that decision.

Paradise regained

Life is beginning to look great once again. Our old nanny L is back, and we are already feeling the change. Food is ready in a jiffy and that too very tasty fare. The children get the best attention they need, what even I am not able to provide. The house which had been in a mess for the past one week is beginning to look tidy. And the care-worn parents got a night out - though only up to the fish and veg shops (and the juice shop) - while she took care of the kids at home.

I now find time for my morning walks, and to skim the newspaper. I hope this lasts a while!

p.s. Mira is down with the viral.

The events

The reunion gave us an occasion to get to know each other better (at least those of us who have married into the family), a platform for our lil ones to express their talents and a chance for the yesteryears' champions to behave like kids once again (or relive the way they lived and played together in the family house once upon a time). Camera shutters worked non-stop to capture the moments, and here are some from ours (beginning from No. 8 in the centre):

8. Ash sings a song he learnt in school Saturday afternoon.

7. Our guest of honour, a priest, speaks about family and family values. A highly motivating sermon for many of us over the hill (in age as well as marital life). He quotes widely from English literature but right now I can remember only Ibsen's The Doll's House.

6. Tug of war, men's round - Vimal in action.

5. Seven stones, the first game.

4. The youngest member of the family (2 months) felicitates the oldest.

3. Hair decoration with straw. V wins a prize for planting the maximum number of straws in my hair.

2. Getting ready for the group photo session Sunday morning, after church.

1. Sisters Mira and Minu explore the premises of the family house.

p.s. I happened to be the judge for the storywriting competition for youngsters and for the loveletter writing competition for adults!

Family moods

The weekend event on July 31-Aug 1 saw the family having a lot of fun.
Capturing some of their moods - the baptised baby smiling happily, the matriarch of the family looking benevolently at the younger generations, a prize winner sharing her excitement, and a tired family member on the last day.

Food fest

If any of you take the road from Kumily to Kottayam you could try the Farm Fest restaurant at Mundakayam. It has a nice homely ambience, and food that is as good as home-made. Stopping for tea on our way to Kerala, we realised this was the same place we had had some refreshment 3 years back en route to Wagamon.

We had banana fritters (ethakka appam) and beef cutlets with our tea - they were so good we kept asking for more. The two elderly gentlemen running the place told us apologetically that we would have to wait 10 minutes for each order as it had to be prepared afresh. The waiters were mostly migrants from Jharkhand, so they had trouble understanding our demands at times.
Among the illustrious visitors were cricketer Anil Kumble and an Afghan minister, whose autographed feedback has been framed for all to see.
After the lousy breakfast and lunch in some Tamil Nadu hotels, it was good to be in a small neat place with a tidy loo.

***
On the return route too we found a great place to dine - Hotel Ambadi on the Thekkady route near Kumily, which served excellent meals. The Laurie Baker-designed resort has a very soothing ambience, and we have vowed to stay there next time we took the road to Kerala.

Family meet

We got back from Kerala yesterday night. I am back at work today, and the kids to school. We had a lovely trip altogether though by the end of it, we wished we had an extra day at least. Vinod's brother and family as well as his sister in Oz had come down for the baptism and family reunion. The kids had a great time getting know their cousins and uncles and aunts at the 2-day event in Karthikapally. Luckily for us, the rains stayed away that weekend, so we could enjoy both functions.

Though I hadnt exactly looked forward to the family event, since socialising is not my forte, it turned out to be good fun. V comes from a close-knit family where there is much camaraderie and unity. I was amazed by the kind of love and affection the cousins shared, and the way everyone adjusted in that old family house. As someone said, what makes old family houses in Kerala seem so inconvenient these days is that every family unit wants privacy and individual rooms with attached bathrooms - unlike earlier, when all the children shared a room or women shared another etc. Some of us did just that - sleeping en masse on plastic mats on the floor in the drawing room. (Well, I didnt - I shared a tiny cot with Ash, while Mira shared one with her grandparents and aunt.)

The food, courtesy a local catering unit, was fantastic though it didnt do wonders for Ash's skin but we couldnt keep him away from the icecreams and ghee-flavored biriyanis and egg parottas. To the amazement of a few elders, Ash did refuse a few stuff - milk tea, puffs etc. - because "it would make him itch". And they also remembered to tell us that the eagerness and lack of stagefright Ash and Mira displayed was great. Both sang a few songs they had learnt in school for the doting audience.

The journey to and fro was perfect - we had a chauffeur, the sun played truant both days and the route was scenic especially the Cumbum to Mundakayam stretch. So much so that I mentally planned to build a farm house somewhere there some day!


We are going through another nanny crisis again - the latest maid we had hasnt returned and she is reportedly not interested in working. Fortunately one of the earlier nannies, the best we had, has promised to come from Kerala next week. Until then, we plan to leave Mira at the neighbourhood daycare, and Ash at V's cousin's house.