The Aftermath

It has been three months since I have been away from my blog. During these times I have had very less access to my comp. A quick check of the mails, a stealthy visit to the face book or a hurried glance of the stories …..this has been my routine. The change has been caused by the onslaught of the hurricane which I forecast a couple of months back.  I have been busy with my grand children, all of 6 years between them. With the rains keeping them indoors most of the time, it has been the responsibility of the grand parents to keep the brats adequately engaged. Not an easy task, as they can be hands full if they so decide. 

 Television is out of bounds …restricted to just one hour between 9 and 10 Pm to get them adequately subdued for the night’s sleep. Mostly, Hindi reality shows, which would not seek to expand their knowledge of curse words.  The X Factor or Kaun Banega Crorepati. They also love to watch the cookery shows.  No surfing the channels, as they love to watch the ads also, much to my discomfiture.  

The outdoors are mostly temples which they seem to like. So much so, that the general refrain on a bright day is…Which temple are we going today?  They seem to be generally outdoor creatures, especially the Hotel lobbies or restaurants which they appropriate to themselves. They make friends with the bearers and charm their way to quick and speedy service. When visiting relatives they expertly make their way to the kitchen and ask……… What can we have to eat?

Between them they fight but would not allow third party mediation. Very often they gang up to extract a story or a play act from their grand parents. The grandfather is made to act as ‘the enormous turnip’, the giant from ‘Jack and the beanstalk’ or the ‘sly fox’             as the story demands. He sees ‘mean looking fellows’ with ‘unruly hair’ all around. Straight from Enid Blyton story he overheard being read out to his sister.

Nik is very reasonable while making demands. The other day I heard his grand mother tell him …    “Nik ! If you start fussing I’m not making Gulab Jamun at all. Stop now and I promise to make it tomorrow.”  No issues for him. Not for him ‘my way or the high way’. He promptly agreed but with a small twist:  “Ok Ammama, I stop fussing, but I want tomorrow, Now”  What do you say to this?

They are at their extreme boisterous behavior towards the night when the whole colony has gone to sleep.   Nothing can stop them from their shouts and shrieks except the fear of the bogeyman, now with diminishing returns. My daughter says, their behavior, at times, comes in handy too when they have an unwelcome late night guest. Not for us, used to the tranquil nights in Manisseri!

  

A week almost now, I have the comp all to myself. The remote is safe in my hands but not the excitement in surfing channels. We have the tranquil nights back but that’s not what we look forward to these days. The silence is deafening.