Last night I dreamt I was watching a tulsi plant guarded by a slavering wolf, and i had to stay outside the chalk ring to be safe. Though I probably have more whacky dreams than the average person, and can trace this particular mixed up association back to a bad choice of a late night movie and old photo album browsing, :) it did set me thinking. As a 10 year old, I could spend hours playing around the tulsi katte with my 'children' (a battered rabbit, a friendly devil, anoushka and a friendly dragon) and my cousins, and nothing gave me greater joy than to distribute (carefully rationed) cheese spread and sauce and chutney sandwiches to everyone! The memory made me wonder, How many of my childhood ideas of happiness do i still have? How many do I no longer want, or have 'grown out' of? This line of thought led me to an interesting discovery..all the main things that gave me pleasure are fundamentally the same now! :) Maybe children have a clearer view of what makes them happy and less to distract them from it! Or of course maybe its just me :) anyhow whatever the reasons, I thought i'd list some things that always made me happy, and look at how true that is now..
1) The Cauliflower experience! : This aesthetic experience starts with the smell of cauliflower cooking, goes on to looking at the delicious florets as they go chatpat and to the grand finale, the glorious taste, when cooked in haldi and the rest! :) To add that chef's special touch, it had to be accompanied while eating, with either good company or a famous five (nobody beats enid blyton at food descriptions!)...I'd change the enid blyton to an agatha christie now, but the rest is identical :)
2) Looking forward to a return!: Nothing could beat this anticipation, not even the actual coming! It would be usually a parent coming back from somewhere (mostly my father) or cousins visiting from abroad :) Much of it was just their presence, but some part was DEFinitely those dark hocs and the cheeses :)..intact
3) Lazy morning: A late and totallu unguilty sunday get up knowing there was nOTHing one had to do..with hot chai-breakfast and a constant background from my mother (thats not the sugar spoon!..ginger is good for you stop fussing..i dont know how you'll ever run your own house..:)..intact
4) Having a friends day/Meeting interesting people and hearing all about them : Intact and more :)..though this also includes successful avoidance of someone you don't want to meet!
5) Putting up plays :BIg thrill and creative fun :)- not any more :( but watching plays is some substittute
6) To watch a scary serial or hear a scary story at night, then find there's nobody under the bed or bureau PLUS the torch has batteries PLUS I sacrifice dignity to confess and dont sleep alone! :)- not as strong..but still a feel good, the first two definitely!!
7) Sangeetha class- Much more than just a musical experience, and an invariable mood lifter..no more :(..but more on that independently
8) Long aimless walks and sky gazing- first yes, second, no..no terrace :(
9) My room- an instantly relaxing place! fullof familiar things and posters and colours and books :)- not anymore..the hosetl one is cluttered and anyway spend hardly any time there
These are things I used to do, here is a shorter list of things I wanted to do!
1) have an older sister
2) To write a book that'll smash all records and then retire for life :)
3) To travel and interview people along the way, and of course smoothen their troubles and leave with lots of gratitude graciously accepted :)..particularly in afghanistan
4) Go to Mohenjadaro, be an archaeologist, and crack the Indus script!
5) Explore parts of the amazon, specifically where an anaconda might be..
6) To make a brave sacrifice and help someone I love elope with someone else! I have no clue where this came from,but certainly remember being melancholily thrilled by the idea for years..always gave me a nice glow :))
6) To have a story teller permanently at hand ! :)
there must be more..but these offhand atleast! Some day I hope to realise the less impossible ones..or maybe all even, who knows :)
3 comments:
Haha, sounds like fun having these ambitions. I guess there is a slight difference between things you enjoyed and thing you would have enjoyed. I think, since happiness (or what constitutes happiness) is somewhat a learned experience, it is natural that you still like the things you enjoyed. As to things you would have enjoyed, I guess it depends on our perception of capability and possibility.
Nice post. Made me think of the things I liked as a kid. Mostly involved fighting the bad guys and being a hero. (which is probably why mega budget superhero movies are still top grossers)
thats a good point, ananth, thanks! yes definitely a learned experience :)oh the 'would have ejoyed' was blissfully outside the bounds of whats possible, which is what added that dash of thrill :) oh man!! that must be a guy specific thing!! I'd prob have wanted to stay far away from the bad guys, or at best maybe call the police :)
A very beautiful one Laas! I can completely relate to many of them. For example, my ambition in life used to be to become a shopkeeper so that I could eat the sweets in my own shop! :D I used to really enjoy the tree climbing excursions where we used to pluck mangoes, tamarinds and jaamuns! I guess, given an opportunity, I would still do it and I’m sure, enjoy it as much as I did when I was 5! VERY nice post Laas. Made me smile and add some more things in my to-do-before-I-die list! :D
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