.....Pitter Patter Rain drops....!!!

....a steady drizzle is spraying the city currently nd with occasional lashes of a downpour nd gail ,characteristic to the place....luckily the morn walk was consummated wel enough in time by both of us with the children fast asleep.....snug in their blankets, enjoying the mid term short brk frm school.....the Sea definitely rough now....not a v gud time for tourism, as the under water visibility wil be poor nd the suntanned beaches wil be out of bounds in rain....yet for the rain lovers like me its a thrill....changing into the rainy gear at GIS: the school,.....enroute clinic, was funny .....wish Arnav & Doel wud hv seen my plight..... as I was caught unawares..... the drizzle suddenly torrential.....the soggy entry to the clinic....nd bemused waiting pt.clientele...a full quarter of an hr late....as the pitter patter continues, the redressal begins....sharp at 12 pm the peace & tranquil is shattered by Mushhamid's call....a boat has arrived braving the weather, loaded with fresh vegetables frm the adjoining Agro.Island, nd whether I need anything ....or whether he wud meet me with anything....if at al I am unable to come....dissuading him gently ,tht , for the moment 'no'.....cudn't but help, admiring the affable nature of the simple vendor nd his sense of responsibility in the face of a grim weather.....!!!!

.....The Arunachal miss...!!!

The recently concluded North East trip of India fresh in memory...a plan for visiting the Tawang Monastery was high on agenda ...via Bomdilla...in Arunachal Pradesh....via Sella Pass...had to scuttle the idea du2 paucity of time...nd truthfully du2 the terrain a risky proposition with kids...as Haflong got scuttled du2 a difft reason of a disturbed Dima Hasao distt. of Assam.....on the hindsight feel, cud hv visited Ledo & the Myanmar border....the town of Ledo...& may be a glimpse of the "The Burma Road"...now as I delve deep post clinic hrs the Epic story of  "The Burma Road".....having watched "The Bridge on the River Kwai"....practically transporting me to the tropical jungle & plateau....the imp.WWII war theatre....changing the course of India's history.....as plans r afoot for a road linkage to SE Asia frm India via Myanmar(Burma)....the current read is all the more interesting....Netaji's raising of Azad Hind Fauj in Singapore....his march to liberate the country aided by the

Japanese, all in the same theatre....post "Pearl Harbour" nd culminating in Hiroshima & Nagasaki bombing.....changing the course of World History.....though a restricted area still, Arunachal ,yet Indians can collect such a permit for touring purposes in Arunachal Pradesh.....it wud be thrilling to retrace the steps of an action of an imp. chapter in India's Quest for freedm......the Current generation must value freedm as it was hard fought nd not easy to get.....we owe our lavish life of a freed Nation owing to the sacrifices of many.....!!!!

....The Tea Time Balcony.....!!!!

....the Tea time balcony wore a deserted look....the hitherto majestic Deep Blu opposing it ,now dull.....the waves elicit no response.....the flickering lites of distant islands not either.....the chairs though diligently placed as ever....a fatigued look & a wait....the 7am & 5.30pm Tea with parents, till as recently as the 15th, still fresh in memory, with Archana, Doel & Arnav popping in & out...with us chatting & savouring the Tea & biscuits.....as they departed on 16th, reaching Mumbai safely via Cochin....must thank the Spicejet staffs@ Cochin for implementing the "Meet & Assist" programme in letter & spirit, for helping our parents frm International terminal to the Domestic....I was worried abt immigration ,customs, baggage claim etc. which was wel managed by the ground staff & ensured their smooth dep to Mumbai....received well by Neeraj & Sweetie....Arnav skipped school to see off Nana & Nani....crestfallen at times....Doel...a fleeting melancholia aft school....the apartment all of a sudden feeling huge & desolate....lots of space hitherto so very fulfilling & occupied.....a beginners game of Chess with Arnav & Draughts with Doel ,somehow distracted thm before my impending flight of refuge to the Hospice for the Evening Clinic, discarding the Car, thru lite rain ,taking the most circuitous route by the sea, on foot, tried negotiating with the altered scenario at home....a "Departure" not easy to forget....!!!!

...Where the mind is Without Fear....!!!!

...pleasure to reconnect  on this Auspicious Day of  India's 69th Independence day...!!!..A Lungful of Jai Hind  frm all of us here for our dear Motherland....Homeland...!!!...as we march  towards a fruitful existence of a truly speaking Independence ....our Head held high.... as World's largest Democracy....69 yrs is too young....yet the strides made is phenomenal.........as we move ahead ....with new found energy & vigor of a thriving land of the  planet .....Tru freedom   representative of India's Freedom...A mystic land...so very blessed....the rich Legacy of an Ancient Civilization with  its highly evolved people....so truly the poet said & I Quote....".....
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake

Rabindranath Tagore......"....Long Live ...Jai Hind....!!!!

.....the Departure...

....it's a pleasure to be amongst fmly on a Friday...the immediate thought dawned on me was the impending departure of Parents ,slated for 16th instant....tht they wr a part & parcel since 20th June the day of our arr. in Gurgaon....dawned on me....as I had taken for granted there presence...bound for Mumbai they wud spent some time with Neeraj & Sweetie before flying back to Sanjeev & Shweta @ Gurgaon....in Sept...Whn U raise a fmly in Youth ,seldom U think of parting frm the kids nd dividing ur precious time of retirement amongst thm ....a hop ...a step....thts the universal truth for the majority of sr parents....tht's the way the generation baton passes on frm Progeny to progeny....Hate too think of it...the first episode of a weeping mother bading farewell for the child to go to a hostel....the yrs of repetitive enactment, of a fledgling place under the sun, till the final settlement of a marriage....a career...as Ritesh(Sweetie's Brother) is US bound on a career call ,can imagine how Uncle & Aunty must be feeling...though Happy...yet the Airport posting tells it all....Ritesh wil come & go ,...ever strong in Life...Gud wishes to him....the Waxing & waning of emotions like the incessant breakers of the yonder Indian Ocean....!!!..
Whts the reminder?....The Children of the Sea .....Arnav & Doel growing up under the Island Sun & Breeze wil relocate to favorable pasture bidding adieu to us....raising their own units of sustenance....& our nxt journey wil begin as we had started before their arrival.....Unique as it is life in its Transient Glory of togetherness & Ultimate Truth of Parting....!!!....the Deep Blu Sky & the Sea...the Ever shining warm Sun Of a Day, al a mute  & smiling Testimony of our Footfall on its Sparkling white Sands deleted & Overshadowed in the infinite Time of a Memory, a thought , a Regret & a Satisfaction.....No matter how much U try U wil be drawn into the Vortex ,thick & thin....Ur parts to  play...Hide & seek with Time.... ever so precious, Beautifully short....!!!!

....Thr is something sprightly in the air.........

....the Qtr of an hr dash to Kangaroo Kids, against the steady Sea breeze to fetch Arnav in the aftnun , ejecting out of the Hospice....catapulting to the streets, albeit late , frm customary 14.00Hrs to a delayed 14.15Hrs , had, had an element of fleetfootedness congruent to the newly exposed vigor of a City quite changed now in the last couple of mnths as Maldives Isles Celebrates "Minivan 50",Golden Jubilee of Independence frm Britain.....the late Evening lighting is seen to be believed with the Dancing fountain & Sultan Park ,hogging the Limelite...thr is something sprightly in the air....something in abundance everywhr.....not to be left behind the Wrk place, which sees an unprecedented case rush, hence the late Ejection....the Wk long armstice between the Rain bearing Clouds & the Deep Blu sees a dry warm week spell , proportionate to hospital admission.....now tht the School re opens nd all holidays fulfilled nd exhausted, its time to dig in the heels , especially , for the children.....though a major date is in hand.....Little Arnav's B'Day of 5th August....a wrkin day....all geared up though....with a Spiderman Cake on the Anvil.....@ Fantasy Bakers.....Overt & Covert Gifts all wrapped up.....with GrandParents around......surely wil be a Spl Day for the Kid.....God bless.....!!!!

.....The Vagabond.....!!!!

....the news of the historic Land Swap Deal between 

India & Bangladesh, being effected, comes frm 

pathbreaking negotiations between the two countries...

unheard off in recent yrs worldwide....the nett result is 

tht humanity won today nd firm rootedness & Citizenship cherished....!!!...one can't feel the pain wht rootle

-ssness is ...its associated Disenfranchisement......

...a lesson all strife stricken parts of the world shud learn

..whn the Poet's Shonar Bangla got parted & so was

 RanjitSingh's Panjab"for some diabolic reasons, beneffi

-tting the Rulers nd Tsunami of Misery on the populace ,

mutiliation  of Humanity across the so called borders...

till persisting...a piquant situation of "Enclaves" arose 

much akin to Palestine & Zionist conflict.....drawing 

parallel.....untold & unheard Miseries..Can't Comprehend still the Divide , its necessity & Utility in a

land united by its Topography,Flora & Fauna...harbinger of a Thriving population United by the Poet's Poetry....for the Poet's Unbridled Soul.....thr is no Boundary.....thr is no Want....as he Chants...  

"......The Vagabond....R L Stevenson....."

"...Give to me the life I love,
  Let the lave go by me,
Give the jolly heaven above
  And the byway night me.
Bed in the bush with stars to see,
  Bread I dip in the river --
There's the life for a man like me,
  There's the life for ever.

Let the blow fall soon or late,
  Let what will be o'er me;
Give the face of earth around
  And the road before me.
Wealth I seek not, hope nor love,
  Nor a friend to know me;
All I seek, the heaven above
  And the road below me.

Or let autumn fall on me
  Where afield I linger,
Silencing the bird on tree,
  Biting the blue finger;
White as meal the frosty field --
  Warm the fireside haven --
Not to autumn will I yield,
  Not to winter even!

Let the blow fall soon or late,
  Let what will be o'er me;
Give the face of earth around,
  And the road before me.
Wealth I ask not, hope, nor love,
  Nor a friend to know me.
All I ask, the heaven above
  And the road below me...."