Innocence_splintered

The strong aroma of ghee rice spread around the apartment and the little one (not so little anymore, he turned 16 today) dashed into the pantry “mom, its ghee rice for lunch? Thank you mom, I love you”. The sloppy cook that I am, I play my trump card when I have unexpected guests or on special occasions and it’s Ghee rice and Beef curry. Friendship! What has ghee rice to do with friendship?! Speaking about friendship, we hear different kinds of friends, friends from childhood, school, college, workplace, etc. etc. A special day for friendship! We wake up to a lot of friendship quotes each day. My friend Shiny, that’s my connection with ghee rice and friendship! Some 16-17 years back, we visited our friends in Sharjah, my husband’s friend and his wife, the newly wedded couple. We could relate easily, no inhibitions, no uneasiness, an innocent young girl and a silly me. We went into the kitchen and with no apprehensions she started out with lunch preparations, ghee ri...

Was having this casual discussion with the boys on climate change and environment and how man is destroying mother earth for his selfish pleasures... as the discussions turned emotional it altogether had a different twist….Sharing my childhood memories did indeed make them feel horribly disappointed on the growing up fun they missed. I remember while a kid, at the back yard of my house where I lived, there was this large open land, filled with lots of trees and shrubs….a small pond that was part of a free flowing lake surrounded by mangroves……where did all that go!!! I can still recollect this plant called ‘konthamani chedi’ from which we get hard shelled seeds and I believed that rosary was made out of it….or was it really out of it, until plastic took over….hmmm well…you can only ponder, there’s no one exactly to give explanations to that past…the loved ones of the era have slowly taken place behind the curtains of memory. I love to reminisce on those childhood days, where yo...