Will you walk with me? Far behind? Where time stops??
Ya, I know the world is going much far ahead – ahead monetarily, glamorously, egoist, puffed with pride, belittling all and with a blind eye even to the closest. No- No I don’t blame them it’s the way of life and the world that it demands all this.
The journey with me wont be boring, I promise – nor will it be monotonous, it wont be anything of the above as it doesn’t fit in my world - provided you see it through my eyes – It will be a simple journey, a road less traveled.
After a long stressful and demanding few months both at office and personal front I decided to take a hiatus. A hiatus to detoxify my mind and body, so a runaway holiday that could be unplugged from the world somewhere far yet close to my heart.
A good 450 kms drive to my simple ancestral home nestled deep in the valley, where the tip of the coconut trees could be seen below eye level from the road. It’s the age old rustic home situated much in the interiors called ‘Taal Kokan’ in Marathi.
The roads are cuts curvaceously through the reddish brown soil on both the sides and bekons. It looks so beautiful that one feels this road should never end.
See there’s our house…can you?? Ya the same one with the dark brown rooftop in the valley, lets take a closer look at it.
House in The Valley
That’s our house
The house has a big courtyard lined with aboli flowers looks so inviting and protective at the same time. A big clean drinking water well covered lightly with the net to protect the water from the felling leaves of the jamun tree beside it. A peep in the well and we can spot a tortoise and two fish who work 24x7 to keep the water clean.
Come sit with me on this waistline wall of the well and see the jamun tree. Five to six squirrels nibbling on the jamuns’, watch out for the parakeets too…see how the squirrels and the parakeets swing and relish on the same branch on the small fruits – mutual understanding and win – win situation for both – Life so simple!!!
Lets go a bit further and cross the neighbors courtyard…. Watch there are some at work…busy as ever, probably they are building their home, come lets see them closely...
Men at work
Ant nest
Awesome!!!!
Watch somebody is plucking some small fruits from this tall tree. What are they???
Careful it might burst on your head, he just plucks and throws…but where is he???
Can you see the plucker???
Oh it’s the Mangos teen – Kokum fruit.
Come lets collect it…
Oh look how much we collected….
Is'nt the color amazing???
Now lets climb this small cliff which leads to the field. Hey, see what’s here.
Wild black berries - Ya it’s the Kali Maina
Here some more – wow its laden with it…Pluck it folks but just be careful with its thorns
Wash it and eat it??? Did you say that??? Forget it just simply pop it, isn't it yum…Simple Pleasures of Life!!!!
Now here we reach our field and….Lo!!! Look at this. Jackfruit, any takers??
And see here Alphonsos’….and nobody grabs it. It’s hanging so low
Its lunch time and back home its simple food cooked on the Chula. It tastes the best and I can bet it’s the best in the world. Lets take a seista for some time...or say a power nap to continue our walk a little further.
Can you hear the hustle bustle of the winds ??…Give an ear.....give a ear more it sounds rhythmic...
Untamed Winds and Unleashed
Can you hear something more??? It’s the rambling of the Arabian Sea and we now stand here on the west coast, and here the land ends.
Ah!!! Here it is…the sea…i easily get connected…. its like meeting a long lost friend as if it says, 'now no going any further' ..here it is.........nothing beyond this.......the waves speak endlessly with me…as if they were waiting to meet me......so many stories they have.....stories that never end……every wave sounds different…every wave looks different…every wave with a different mood…desperate, and
More desperate....
It’s just so restless… for what??? Guess…
It just wants to hug the shore. See the width of the shore is so small compared to the expanse of the sea yet the shore holds the capacity to mellow it....
See it’s mellowed…
How come??? Touche' ah?? or is it Love???? Ya should be both…. Let them always meet
Many thoughts pass by, the sand, the shells, the conches, the waves; I wonder how far they might have traveled?? And what stories are hidden in them…. Someday I’ll surely unwrap them.
It’s a nice feeling to be in this serenity – a feeling of peace – far and away from the crowd
It’s late evening and am back home, after dinner when I lie in the courtyard I can see a mango tree which glitters…are they stars?? But the moon looks quite far…. How can the stars be so close??? Have a look once again – Oh My God they are glow worms all over…Dazzling…How beautiful.
My camera couldn’t capture this I tried hard but it just did’nt. Probably a higher resolution camera can help.
Felt a bit bad, but sometimes the mind captures better images than the camera and they last for a life time. So they are with me. So at times i feel best to call myself a techNO atleast dont have to fidget with these gizmos.
I close my eyes and visualize the day spent…
It was living in the basics. The birds, tortoise, fish in the well, squirrels, glow worms, the ants, the fauna and flora all dwell together.
I feel blessed that my roots belong to this part of the world where nature has showered everything in abundance, where the size of the peoples heart is as big as the sea…and their smile is simple but truly beautiful.
I get back memories…only promising myself to come back soon here.
