Blog Archive

Friday, January 27, 2017

The Memoirs of an Eighty year Old- Episode VIII

Episode VIII- Grandpa’s Love for Mathematics

Hello readers I am back again with this month's episode and the title itself says it all. Grandpa totally loves math, calculations and conversions. Being an Engineer who worked in the Indian Railways most of his life was spent outdoors, on the tracks; getting those re-laid, repaired, trying new procedures to strengthen the rail tracks all in the given tight schedule. 

I remember the day he was walking in the parking area of our building because it was cold outside and grandma denied him the permission to go walking outside. Grandpa told me how he counted the steps from one side of the compound wall to another and calculated how many rounds he needed to walk to complete the two kilometers of his daily walking target. 

He said calculating distances was one of the first thing he mastered when he joined the Railways as a young man of 22 years. He can convert centimeters to feet to kilometers in seconds. We have to really concentrate to understand it completely. He goes that fast in calculations. In another situation grandpa was doing his daily walking in the house and when I asked he again explained another set of calculations! 

I am sure good at math and always got good marks but I still hate the subject. Grandma gets so irritated sometimes with all this stuff that she forbids grandpa for explaining any kind of numerical to her. That of course doesn't stop our grandpa. If he wants to explain or tell grandma something, he will, until she finally listens to him if only to stop him from interrupting her work.

I was told or rather messaged by one of their grandsons to ask grandpa about 17th table story. The story is that this grandson lived with them for three years while studying in school. So each time he was either watching the telly or was reading some book other than his subjects or just sitting idle grandpa would ask him to recite a Mathematics table. The most he asked was the 17th table which apparently the grandson either failed to answer correctly or took too much time to reply. Grandpa must have asked him about this table at least a hundred times, maybe even more! When we were talking about this the grandson called and our dear grandpa told him that he had to recite the table the next time he came to their house. 


One has to actually listen to grandpa go on calculating even the decimals in his mind to understand what I have written about. If any of you, readers are math crazy, well I am not going to say anything more about it.
J Meet you in the next episode. Be happy, be positive and be human. 

Monday, January 16, 2017

The Door

The wooden door faded by sun,
rotten by worms, covered by moss,
held strong by the hinges and locked by the bolt.

The growing ivy hides,
the arranged pots distract,
but the worn out stones reveal.

No one dared to open it.
No one walked the path.
No one knows where the door leads..





I
The door opens
into an archway,
overgrown with flowers,
leading me to a fountain,
to quench my thirst for knowledge.






II
The door opens
into a secluded park,
with a worn out bench,
for me to sit and think about life.







III
The door opens
onto an empty beach,
where I stand staring into the infinity,
as the waves touch my feet.









IV
The door opens
leading to a brook,
urging me to follow it,
and reach a new world.




Paintings by Mrs Ratna Pochiraju



Saturday, January 7, 2017

The Memoirs of an Eighty year Old- Episode VII

Episode VII: The Anniversary Month

Happy New Year, readers! I am going to start this year with not just New Year celebrations, but also with the Anniversary celebrations. It is our dear Grandpa and Grandma’s sixty first wedding anniversary month. Yeah! 61 years of marriage, acceptance, friendship, love, laughter, arguments, adjustments, companionship, comfortable silences and understanding.

The cute couple got married when they were too young to understand completely what marriage actually meant, but that did not hinder their relationship. They learnt many things in their journey together, the proof of which is seen in the atmosphere in their home. The place they live is not just a house, it is a home.

No relationship is perfect, but the determination to keep the relation healthy and strong needs both the individuals involved to equally contribute and care for each other. There has to be a balance to sustain the hardships life throws at them. I have seen this balance in their marriage. I agree that I know very little about their personal life, but what I know for sure is the unspoken love for each other. The very love that weaved together their children, grandchildren and even outsiders like me.

Their banter is my absolute favorite. Grandpa’s funny statements and grandma’s practical yet cheeky replies make you feel like this is the best stress buster ever. Are you sad, stressed or angry? The best solution is to spend some time with this lively couple. I promise you will definitely feel better.

The other day grandpa was telling me. “I told your granny that she is looking good in this saree today.” I asked why such sudden compliment. “Well they keep sending messages in Whatsapp about complimenting and taking care of wife, so I thought to try it.” Okay, that’s nice I thought. “But do you know what she said? I was expecting her to say ‘thank you’ but she told me it has been long time and I need to get my eyes checked.” He said chuckling. Now what do I say to that! I only hope that their love for each other continues to be the same forever and ever.

See you again in the next episode, readers. I have decided to post two episodes each month from now. So there will be double dose of interesting stuff to read. Happy reading.