The survival among the land mines!

Mother faced the ordeal of giving birth to a child!  She was supported by a village house-wife and I was there.  Father and all the elder brothers and sisters chipped in to help the mother and child.  Among the natural settings of Kerala I started my life's journey as a toddler and grew up with the other little brother and little sisters playing games and eating the niceties of the cashew nuts and cashew nut fruits and jack fruits and many other fruits which were available around in those days!

Father helped in refurbishing us with the daily needs and I went to school out of curiosity!  Then in quick succession I changed schools as there were compelling reasons for a child coming from difficult circumstances!  But father, brothers and sisters closed in to see that I go to school.   I found many of my fellow students falling out of schools as they many a time did not have our kind of closed rank brothers and sisters or lacked a loving father or mother at home.  That was the first land mine in life's cycle, I saw.

Then came the Government schools where there was no close watch on the children or their education.  Let alone, their family circumstances or their understanding of the subjects.  Those who could grasp something survived.  Second mine!  Those who could not, fell on the way side and went out of the schools to face the world!  So often children had doubts and there were no body to turn to.  I had my elders to clear my doubts and give me support in my studies! Then father was there, rock solid to support me in other matters.  Those who did not have, fell out of school.   If someone did not come back to school, no body checked on them.

Many children understood the meaning of the words and lessons wrongly and the number of children in the class was too high for the teachers to correct them.  The teachers were generally not interested in the students.  The children had a lot of problems at home from among which they used to come to school.  If they felt uneasy at a point, that was the end of their education!..No body ever checked on them, thereafter.

Then for those who completed the Secondary School Leaving there were two options. To leave school to try for work.  Those who opted to study further go to college to do their Pre-Degree where they faced formal Teachers called Lecturers who lectured to at lease 60 students and at the most 85.  If the students could understand, good for them.  Half understood!  The other half come and go.  Then there are side shows to spend time in the form of various programmes which the unsuspecting students fall into out of being too very straight and wanting to putting in their bit.  But, they did not know that these cut into their very valuable study time.   Most of the students who came from villages had to spend quite some time in travel.

If all these did not prevent the students from continuing their studies, then is the real test of getting into professional colleges!  Get an admission if you have first class marks in those days!  If you don't have 60% or more you register and wait your luck in the college notice board!  If that did not work go through an intermediary which is generally called recommendation route!  After all that you are in the class but the college Lecturers have no special or personal attention to the students!  Students may or may not learn.  This becomes a problem with the students coming from the village homes and poor families!  Some students will have political leanings and they may organize strikes and all the poor students become spectators and return home without studies.   Portions do not get completed many times and this affects them in examinations.  Those who are from well to do families and those who have educated parents see other means like special tuitions and helps to cover all the portions and face the Board examinations and come out with colours!  Others fall on the way side, unless they are prodigies!

Story of a Stomach Pain!

Sarojini Nagar is a city in Delhi.  We used to live there.  It was a hard time!  I used to work in an office and the office had provided me a living quarters.   My wife worked in a school in Faridabad side as Teacher.  I used to take her in the morning shiver, on my two wheeler scooter (a two wheeler scooter was a big thing in those days, for the simple folks it was more than a car) to a bus stop in front of  'Medical'  (the people in Delhi did not say All India Institute of Medical Sciences for AIIMS, they only said Medical).

A bus used to come from Punjabi Bagh which she caught.   That day, when I was dropping her, I was feeling the stomach pain.  On the return journey I told my wife that I will, perhaps, drop in to the Safdarjang Hospital and see if they could be of any help.   My wife left in the bus and I returned on my scooter, but the stomach pain was increasing..When I reached the gate of Safdarjang, a thought occurred to me.   I just can't stand and if I get down from the scooter I may fall down or may even crawl into the casualty of the hospital.   But there would be a number of other employees whom I would have to bypass to reach a doctor.  I may not be stand as much and may finish before a doctor saw me.

I decided against entering the hospital.  I know the hospital.   It is a good hospital.  But in an emergency, the other staff whom I will have to bypass frightened me....No.  it is better to continue on my scooter in this extreme cold morning and if possible reach home.  I changed gear and moved on..    At the Kamal cross which is a furlong up I had to turn right.  If I get a red light there, I am gone!   I was just lucky.  The light was green, and I took advantage and turned right straight on..  And that was the end of it.  Now I have to lie down. The pain has become imbearable.

I remembered my friend Gopalakrishnan living in the third row of houses among the Government quarters.   I automatically turned left to the quarters row.  I thought I can just lie down on the verandah of the flat next to me.   I was able to put the scooter on the stand and lock it in a jiffy and turned to the verandah.   As I said it was early morning and cold.   When I was trying to lie down I found the lady of the house was washing the verandah as her morning ablution.   I just lied down on the wet floor which surprised the woman washing the place!

Her eyes bulged out seeing somebody just lying on the floor but she understood I was in pain.  She enquired if I wanted some water!  I said, she can call Gopalakrishnan of upstair flat who is my friend.   My friend who was getting ready for the morning walk came running down and took me upstairs to his house where it was very warm.   His old father and mother was there and they insisted that I lie down in their bed.   The room was warm and cosy which made me relax and I fell into a short sleep.  In a while I got up and when I awoke, my friends old mother was sitting near me watching me.   His father very lovingly told me :  "Please you only slowly get up.   And have some break fast with these warm dosas."  I slowly got up and washed my face and came back.   I sat down as if I am a small child and my friends on either side was watching me slowly eating the dosas which  they had so lovingly served.  Again, I was asked to relax in bed after the dosas and I did so.   I would have slept for half an hour.   When I got up the stomach pain was gone!

I profusely thanked them...remembered my father and mother.   I wondered if my father and mother, who were reappearing as his father and mother to help me in this occasion of stress and pain and make me whole.  I thanked my friend and took my scooter and rode home.   Even years after, I remember all of them with great gratitude and still wonder at the course of events that unfurled that morning.   I still see my friend at times, but the saintly father and mother of my friend has moved to their heavenly abode in later years!  Very loving blessed people, indeed!  

******    ******

Lessons in Driving!

The green coconut palm leaf fan was a marvel.  Mother made it with finesse.  That was the second toy which I got in a cold December morning when the special east wind was blowing.  The east wind brought the benefit of a great feeling, especially in the morning.  It howled and whistled, but provided a head wind for the palm leaf fan on which it turned with speed.   When the speed was low, I had to run with it which unknowingly made the daily exercise complete.  Even otherwise, we ran for many things during the day.

The first present was a spinning top from father.  It was difficult to hold it in little hands with the thread around the top before throwing or putting it according to the ground or house floor.  With the fan we also learned to make blow horns with palm leaves.

The running improved into longer runs with the small steel wheel which was to be driven with a small wooden  handle with a curved wire at the bottom.   The curved wire guided the little steel wheel.  Of course the player ran with the stuff to enjoy the wheel drive.  The wheel drive improved into the rubber wheel made for playing.  This was the inner side of the truck and car tyres.  All things had one thing in common, Speed.  The wish was to drive, drive, drive.   On the way to school was the bullock carts.  Horses were only in pictures or movies, which were rare. 

The driving school was old and so was the learner car.  A little money was  needed  to be allowed in for the training class.  Mother suggested I learn when I earn.  And that is what was done.  Since, I could earn I walked around the old fiat car to inspect the same.  It was a good car but dirty.  The place being wet half the year, it needed a wash after training which it rarely got.  A conversation with the old manager friend saw me in the driving seat. Training in those days were all practicals.  In between little little pieces of advices will fly.  You catch it if you are good enough.   Or you get it from the trainer either by invectives or a slap or a push or an elbow hit.  I warded off these by making a contract with the manager friend.  I was a bit boorish in that.  I told him:  "I should not be manhandled during the lessons.  If any fault occurs during the lesson and your car goes broke, I shall pay for the car and make it mine!"  The manager friend froze in his standing posture near the little blue fiat car and looked at me for a long while.   I can see all the wheels in his brain working fast to make the calculations.  After a long while a deep breath he said:  "OK.  then, I will not come for the classes, I shall tell the paid Trainer and he will take the classes!"
I agreed.  I never could imagine the cost of the car or repairs at that time.  But these little shovings in the small cute little car, I despised or say, hated to the core.  Somebody should tell them, so I thought, why not I, since I am standing in the eye of the storm now.   It worked!

To me, driving was only one of the movings like the little wheel I used to run with the steel hook.   I did not understand why somebody should be attacked to teach him driving.  Of course some of them miss a few clicks of the levers while learning.  This is because they are not explained the activity of the wheels and pinions inside the mouth of the car.   If they knew, they will make far less mistakes when they learn as well as when they use the drill themselves ! In any case, now, I had to ward off the unnecessary hits which I did not agree to!   But I was keen to listen to the Trainer.  I was all ears and eyes towards the trainer and also the colleagues who were student drivers!The student drivers also got into the car usually when we went for the trip.  This gave an experience from the goings on between the driving student and the Driving Trainer.

When one student completes his twenty minutes of training driving, the next student will change seats with the earlier student.  The Trainer sat in the left seat with this clutch and brake pedals, which never came to the notice of the student drivers out of extreme anxiety and elation!  Most of the student drivers came to learn it to find an employment which many youngsters liked.  In my case, it was only for learning the trick, as I was already working, as suggested by mother, you earn and learn.  This gave me a leverage over the other students, even though the basics were the same for all.

All the same I have surmounted the first difficulty.   Now I have to keep the Trainer in good humour! I thought of way....nothing was coming to mind.   I was very much excited of the fact that the next day, I shall be in the driving seat of this little contraption of a car, which was really cute!  There was a little while board in the front and back showing the letter "L"  This said the car is being used to train students to drive and other vehicles may take precautions while approaching the learners' car!

On the road in those days it was a joy to be in a car! Roads were empty during the mornings and we went two to three kilometres to a large ground in front of a temple where we were made to practice reversing, turning etc.   On the road, once the student is in the seat the Trainer just made minimum  touches on the steering wheel to steer the vehicle  straight from possible veerings to one side or the other which usually occurred initially.   In a matter of one or two days, the steering control stabilized and then is the reversing and turning!  One thing the students, especially whose IQ is low, was in trouble was about the change of gears.   The training is by directly telling the student to put the gear from one to two, two to three and three to four!  The students were not given a proper class of the modalities before the class.   This led to a lot of confusion to many.  The students invariably miss proper change of gear with the result the tooth wheels in the gear box hitting each other or the lock pin touching somewhere which made the grinding sound which made the Trainer red with anger and at times into physical attacking of the students if they gave in!

All the same, the Trainer was a wizard as he said some of the principles in his simple ways which I caught straight and I did not have any problem on that count.   He said:  "The gear arrangement is like an 'H' . On the four hands  of the 'H' is the four gears.  From the central cross bar you push down a little more and down is the reverse.   The gear is fitted just below the steering wheel".    There was a small handle, a beautiful handle with a colourful knob, was the gear.  This in tandem with the clutch pedal worked for the shifting of the gears.
We did it in turns and whenever I got a free time I practised it in the car and when I was away at home or in office, I practised it in my mind.  This was a great way of practicing so that we were ready for the next lesson with the full mental picture of the earlier lessons. Moreover, many a time we travelled in other cars or buses.   I made it a point to sit near the driver in these occasions and watch the movement of the driver which gave us the actual happenings on when we really drove.

The Trainer said: "You do not think and drive.   Thinking and driving is only when you learn,  in the large compound place where you are along with your vehicle.  When you drive on the road, you should be driving bye-heart, and the body should be doing the work of driving by reflexes.  That much it should be ingrained in you, so that no accident occur on the road".  That was great advice.!  "You have no time to look at the meters and switches!  They should be bye-heart!"I really marvelled him for that advice, coming from a boy who did not have any formal education and learned driving by moving other people's cars for washing and putting them into the sheds! Great guy, indeed!

He continued to help every one who came for training.   He said the steering wheel turns three rounds.  The wheels turns a maximum of 45 degrees.  There is not much turning of the steering wheel on the road.  Just a little to this side or a little to that side.  A sharp turn comes only in a strictly 45 degree angle road joining  the road you are travelling or a hair pin curve. Mind you, at such places, you bring down the speed substantially so as to be able to manipulate it and once done increase the speed.  No fast driving and turning at curves.   According to the intensity of the curve, the speed should be slower and slower!

On the way was a Tea shop in a four cross.   I made it a point to get everybody including the little Trainer, Masterji some good tea and snacks (such nice arrangements were there in those days at very low rates) which enlivened us all.  As the advertisement goes there was a surge of adrenalin whenever I landed in the driving seat to move the car.  The purr of the car, that little blue fiat, was fantastic!  Slowly it will move and take speed.  The horn in the centre of the steering wheel was a marvel.   The gear lever positioned just under the steering wheel is superb and still I pine for it.  Oh...what a drive.. What a car!

In the temple compound ground, we tried a reversing training called 'go through the 'H"  As the "H" has two hands and a cross connection, the effort is to enter the bottom of the left side of the H go up to the top, come on the reverse and turn the back first to the right and then to the left to come down the bottom of the right hand.  Then go up to the top of the right hand of the H and then vice versa.  One has to have some control of the clutch and brake and steering wheel for this and has to turn well in the seat to look back and see to the back of the car through the driver's window.   One sat like a screw in the car and did it without much effort if one is young and agile.   As age goes by one has to put in a little more effort, especially the looking back to the back of the car stuff!

The point to point driving in making an "H" was considered to be the great finale to the driving lessons.  A number of light iron rods are planted in the form of the H and we are asked to perform the "H".   If any of the iron rods fall, for each rod a point is deducted from the marks and the candidate is considered 'failed' in the test.   In the same way if one clears both the handles of the "H"  one makes a pass in that category and then proceed to the road drive.   In the road drive only the Vehicle Inspector, a Government Officer only sits with the candidate on the front seat and all others in the back seat.  One or two simple tricky points the officers  watch in this as asking the driver to stop when he is in good movement.  A person wanting to fail will apply the brake straight away.  Actually, he is supposed to show a sign that he is moving to the left, move to the left, go slow, brake and then stop.

Another one is to stop on a climb.  After the stop, here the trick is, when the student driver is asked to move again many of the unsuspecting student drivers will falter in that the car will move backwards where by he can be declar4ed failed.  If the vehicle moves backwards he is a 'fail'.  If well trained, he will not do that, he will, rather keep the brake and clutch down and with the same right foot apply a bit of the gas pedal and when the raving is enough slowly release the brake and clutch and continue to press down the accelerator which carries the body mass of the car forward!  This is achieved with some good practice.

In the classes, the Teacher cum Guru, even though he was too young, gave me some beautiful tips! One was, do not get upset, if something did not work.  Simply do it again, and it will work!  Second is, when you attend the test, you have to first start the car when the Inspector will be sitting in a chair outside and watching you.  You make a mistake, and he may fail you.   But you do not know what he considers a mistake.   So do not put marks yourself.   One common stuff which happens is the car may go off immediately after you start it.  Do not panic.  Simply push down the clutch and brake and turn the key again, it will come on.  If you do it with confidence, the Inspector may not mind it.   If you get upset, and not start the car again, and look at the Inspector, then the story will change.  And it exactly happened like that when my turn came for the Test.  His advice worked for me.  I passed the test!

When I was asked to start, the car was in front of the right leg of the "H" made by a number of steel poles which were just fixed in the loose earth and can fall at the simple touch of the car without hurting the car!  I have to go up and come backwards turn left, then right and reach the bottom of the left leg of the "H" then do vice versa!  I took a deep breath, sat in the driving seat, said a little prayer and turned the key.....The car raved up and then died!  Gosh...!   Without losing a moment, I turned the key again and held it and the engine came up !! Yes..I had got it right!  The next going up and coming down was easy as I was having a very pliable body at the age of 23 where I could almost turn like a screw!  When I stopped the car after the exercise, the Inspector smiled at me, took out my form and ticked in one column and said "Come for the road test once I finish with the other students!"

We went on the road and drove on keeping to the left of the road.  On the way, I was asked to stop.  I can either fail or pass.  If I stop straight on, I fail.  If I slow down, move to the extreme left of the tarred portion of the  road, show my right hand up, to say that I am going to stop and then stop, I pass!  I did that and passed.  Then I continued with another stop on the up hill area from where I had to use both the brake and accelerator together supported with the clutch!  I moved on without difficulty.  Next was the final stopping and parking.  I was asked to park on the left cut road after just crossing it over.  Here I had to reverse and slowly manoeuvre and drive backward to the left cut road where there was a pool of muddy water.   I slowly started backwards sitting like a screw and looking back at the cut road and brought the little fiat car just covering the muddy pool and behind the pool I parked the car and that was the final PASS..!   That was a driving licence for me..!

The Inspector told me before entering back into the car to test the next student: "Come to the office after the test, I shall give you the Pass Receipt".  Later, when all the students were tested and we were back in the Road Transport Office, the officer was there and with a smile he said: "Here is your Pass Receipt" and handed over a printed receipt with my name filled up saying. . . . . . . . . .passed in the Driving Test.  Issue Driving Licence.  As soon as I was out of the Inspector's office my Guru who was waiting for me outside, all happy and with a wide smile on his face, suddenly took the receipt from me and said:  "You can collect it from the Manager later when the accounts are settled".  This was a crude way of doing it in Kerala, as many times, the student drivers defaulted in their payments to the driving school.

I was somehow unconcerned as I had settled every thing with the Owner Manager of the School and since I was also working in another Government Office, he can't think of anything against me.  Moreover, he was a friend and well wisher!  After three days or so, I was issued a licence!  I was really elated to get the licence and showed it off to every one at home!  Father and Mother were exceptionally happy!  While parting with the Driving School Manager and the Trainer Teacher, both were very happy for me and said;  "When ever you want to use the car for personal driving, you can come to us. Only petrol will be charged for you and if the Trainer is free and if you so need, he can also come with you"  This was a bonus, I knew. 

I took it once, just to impress mother and sister.  But initial driving was not as easy as the driving test.  Every time a bus or car came from the opposite side, I was in great panic.  When a vehicle going in the opposite direction honked, I thought there is a vehicle behind me.  I was damn afraid to look at the mirror, for fear of losing the road.  After I completed once side to Trichur, I thought, I had done all the driving in the world!  Basically I had gone to help my brother in law to carry his personal effects in the car as he was vacating his room in the lodging house where he was staying.  The place was just near the Kerala Transport Corporation Bus Stand.  Near that place, you will be swarmed by the red and yellow coloured Kerala Transport Corporation buses from all sides.  Actually, there were only the simple usual buses, but for a new driver like me, I saw buses on all sides plus other vehicles. 

While returning I told the Driver Trainer friend (He had become a friend by now) to take the vehicle.  I was in a lot of perspiration.  As I was driving, I had mother in the back seat.   I was always feeling that how mother will react to my first driving!  So the easy way was to tell the Trainer to take the vehicle on the return trip.  Then mother interfeared:  "Why are you feeling uneasy?  Just drive on.  Nothing will happen!"   I was taken aback!  What a force in her words! How confident she is! I agreed:  I knew mother is very strong even other wise.  This was a great support to me at that point of time.  Yes. I sat along and drove back.  The worlds of mother was going in my mind again and again. "Why are you feeling uneasy?  Just drive on.  Nothing will happen!"  We completed the trip nicely.  Till date,  mother's words reverberate in my mind whenever I am in the driving seat!  And I drive on...

THE MORNING MASS!

THE MORNING MASS

Morning used to be six o' clock.  The sun will rise up at six and come through the cashew tree leaves, the dew drops at the dips of the slanting leaves sparkling with pearlish rainbows in them, the place being near the equator and central Kerala.  In the winter times, mornings will be late.  The rainy season also used to delay the morning, not by late sun rise but by the cloudiness or rain which is copious at times!  Among these mornings the holy mass in the local convent chapel, was a blessing as this gave a mooring to the morning and direction for the day.  Once I got this feel, I made it a point to get up in the early morning and go for the mass in the nearest Convent Chapel.

The Convent Chapel was a kilometre away from my house and was less in distance from our main church which happened two kilometres away!  Moreover, the Chapel was smaller and cleaner compared to the huge Church. As all the members of the family was in support of this pursuit of mine, I was happy and jubilant in the mornings in getting up and preparing for the morning attendance.

At that time, a course of training was on for little boys to make them fit to serve at the altar during the morning mass, which is almost like a puja in the temples, which take place in the mornings everyday in the Convent.  Naturally, I took part in the same and got fit to take part in the mass helping the old Father who used to be the Chaplain of the Convent who said the mass in the old style of 'Suriaani'. 

I used to get up around five o' clock as learned in my boarding school and after ablutions and a bath, I am ready for the mass.  I wore my little white dothi and white shirt and walked fast to the Convent.  As I walk up, I can see the various night birds and other beings returning to their nests and the morning sun walking up to the eastern skies throwing a hash of red and yellow in the firmament.

The convent will be open by six o' clock and the mass used to be at six thirty  morning.  The old father will be in the sacristy usually to which we the altar boys had admittance.  He will be standing facing the cross with his hands on the table cloth in a calm and serene look with his eyes fixed on the cross or eyes closed.  As soon as we are there we light up the candles and do up the thurible for the smoking of the frankincense and then return to the old father who will be now ready for his dress up.   We used to help him with his huge outer cassock and hold the double huge white ornamental rope from behind.  He will take it with his both hands and tie it up at his waist, as if he is going to war.  Over the huge outer cassock and stalk he thus tied up the rope and pushed in the ends of the rope to his left and right side of the tide up rope and over that he would put the red outer ornamental dress!  He looked like an angel after fully dressed up!

The mass was in 'Suriani' language in those days.   The father once on the alter, started with 'Puthanekon....'   this he said in a some what longish way to which we the altar boys replied 'Puthaneda Mishiha...' and the mass went on with its various turns and twists in which the old father turned and offered and wished 'Peace to the Congregation'.  In between we had small small areas to say our return prayers which included a lot of 'Barek Mores' and all.  At times we rang the small cute bell at important points of the mass and also at times we had to swing and show the thurible, which set up white perfumed smoke which made the place very pleasant to be in.  

It is a pleasant work to fix the thurible ready for the mass.  The simple coconut shell charcoal is filled in the thurible and a piece of cotton wick dipped in vax is lighted and put among the charcoal to light it up.  In a while by giving a little air either by blowing directly or by a small fan, it is brought into a little furnace on to it the frankincense is put brining up a decent whilte smoke.  At the time of the offering, when the old father stood with his hands crossed with the cup and the chalice in them, the white smoke filled the altar sending the whole area into a super natural glow.  The old father stood for long with the cup and chalice in his hands, which made us think that he is really speaking to Jesus!  The mornings became a clelebration with the mass every day.

There were plenty of people on the main hall of the Chapel where as one side hall was filled with the holy nuns who provided all the needs on the altar and also arranged the altar so beautifully every day with new decorations. The sweet St. Mary's statue on the top of the altar was a treat to the eyes.  Over the statue, there were two colour glass windows from which the morning sun sent in coloured light.

There was more than one altar in the chapel.  The main altar is the one on which the usual morning mass was offered.  The main altar had full sight to three wings converging to it.  The front wing ear marked for the people from outside attending the mass or say, the general public, the left wing solely for the sisters and the right wing for the aspirants and the assistants and the lady inmates who lived with the sisters.

The father with his ornamental vestments turned around to face the people only to bless them or offer them 'Peace' etc.  Otherwise he faced the altar and if he was not attending the cup and chalice on th altar table, he was looking up at the sepulchre or the cross with the statue of Jesus on it, in a deep reverie of prayer! The whole atmosphere was one of great holiness and purity!

What ever said, the mass and the prayers had its light moments too at times, even though rarely.  The old father was a stickler to the important principle of love, affection, charity, purity, holiness all turned into one.  He used to get us new playing cards whenever we visited him in his personal parsonage! We visited him rarely, though.  He had a huge garden tended by the workers of the Convent and over seen by the sisters. 

I was an expert in lighting up the candles, which was very tall and stood around 10 feet in height from the floor, including the heights of the altar, the candle stand (which itself was three to four feet tall), and the tall candle which was from fine quality yellow bee wax and three to four feet tall and with matching thickness.  There was  a long pole with an inverted funnel on the top and a wick on the side just below the inverted funnel.  The wick was to light up the candle and the funnel was to put off the same when the mass and prayers ended.  It was my joyful privilege to do this!  Next interesting stuff was to light up the thurible which could be laborious when there is not enough wick to light up or not enough time to blow the charcoal into a good fire. 

One day, it so happened that the thurible charcoal for smoking the frankincense had no fire in it.  As soon as I saw this before the mass, I brought it to the notice of the sister who was assisting.  The sister was not keen on it and told me "You only show it!  Don't go too much into the other aspects, OK?"  The sisters had an upper hand in these things, as we are only called to help as a matter of piety to be practised as little children!  When a Sister asked us OK?, it is OK with us!   So, I returned with the dead thurible and at the appointed time when the Father turned to bless the frankincense, I swung it in the usual manner!

The thurible had four chains which we held in our two hands in such a way that the thurible vessel can be swung up and down by shortening the chain length by holding them together or from side to side by leaving the chain in full length.  Here, I was doing it on my knees, in the up and down fashion, and the father was facing me with raised hand to bless!  To my surprise, I found the thurible which I swung up did not come back and as I watched the father was standing with the hand raised to bless but not blessing!  He had fixed me and the thurible with his steel look and I was at a loss to know what was the reason!

I did not have to look long, as the Father, slowly turned around to face the sisters wing on the opposite side.  Fortunately the assisting sister was at the back so did not have to take the heat of the father's steel look!  He slowly asked:  "My children, why are you doing this penance?  If you do not want it, just tell, and I may not have to take the trouble!"  This was anyting but not a compliment in the morning and especially in between a mass!  Most of the sisters started going helter skelter and in a moment my thurible was on fire and smoking well and good and in a short while the altar and the chapel was full of the thick white smoke! 

As soon as the mass was over, we were free to go home and we did! There were people who practised more piety who stayed on to offer various other prayers and practices!  One old gentleman, who had his house near by was outstanding as he prayed on almost upto lunch time, which tea etc. being brought in for him from his near by house. Such prayers and piety needed a lot of affluence at home!  We never had that kind of privilege and we if at all we had to, and thought of, had to do them at home along with the night prayer or morning prayer!  Usually, as children we rarely remembered to pray during the day when we were busy with other aspects, and our knowledge of prayer was very limited.

Angaadi (The Market Place)

Angaadi is the village market place.  At the city of Ollur this was a four cross. a north south road was criss crossed by an east south-west road.  Coming from the east road was the old red bus called Sreeramachandra.   It came from a hilly terrain called Thrikkur far up in the east.  When we came out of our house from the bye-lane, it appeared with its face to the west and proceeded after taking passengers waiting for it under the Madras Eeantha tree.

It also stopped whenever some one showed a hand, generally a left hand as the entry was from the left and the road driving in Kerala was always keeping to the left.  It stopped at the Police station where the Conductor got down ran to the Police station, made a signature, gave a polite reply to the police man who threw a question or told him to keep the timings etc., ran in shouting "weiisss..."  This is the other form of saying 'Right' which was used to warn the Driver to start.   In fact the driver kept on looking at the direction of the Conductor and as soon as the Conductor made a hissing noise the bus shook, shivered and moved on spitting a lot of smoke at times.  Emission was not a problem in those days.

There was no need of any lane driving as the road was a small one and only one vehicle could pass through it at a time.  If any other vehicles came from the opposite side, they came straight at it and near the vehicle, Sreeramachandra moved a little to the left and the opposite oncoming bus moved a little to its left and both passed in their directions peacefully!  The bus moved at a sluggish pace and there was no problem of overspeeding !  The Driver spoke to as many poeople as he cared to, many in the bus spoke to him and so did the
Conductor.  There was a gentleman who was a 'Cleaner' of the bus (he was a mechanical cleaner cum general cleaner - such Cleaners later became Drivers in those days - they learn the ropes propitiating the Driver and the Conductor) who had a lot of people, of course, all passengers, to speak to!

It reached the four cross junction, the Driver looked to all sides with caution and went ahead at the central lamp post donated by a village elder and turned right.   The lamp post had a beautiful round and slanting base with a copper plate with the writing "Donated by Mookken.....Thoma....etc."  There the bust turned right to the north to proceed to the Trichur Town City the end point of the bus carrying all the passengers travelling for various works or attending offices.  The market had all kinds of shops from ware shops, grocery shops, barber shops, tea shops, vegetable shops, cloth shops, tailor shops, bakery, hotel etc. etc. and one particular village mall for meat and fish.   A mall in the village was never called a mall but a market only.   Some people called it the fish market.

The fish and meat market was followed by the Toddy shops and Curry shops which was the star attraction of the able bodied gentlemen who had the mind for it. Both the places were the dirtiest of the whole place.   But the place was frequented by all the families of the village for various items from vegetables, to fish to meat and other assorted items.  Since the market and the surroundings had a lot of unused land the waste and waste water were pushed into those places and hence, the dirt and filth was not so much of a trouble to the visitors.  Now such places always called 'puramboke' or village land which is not in any body's account, but only in village records, are all disappeared.

Any body reaching the angaadi stood around for a while watching the evening going-on for a while.  There would be special on the spot sales, at times, village doctors doing instant treatment, some doing a little magic show or acrobatics etc.  A gentleman offered to take ones painful tooth and offered some odd treatment.  Another one was making a clairvoyant speech and offering various forest herbs treatment in which he was elaborating on the 'vella pokku' of youngsters.  I also once joined the crowd who generally stood around such people to hear their local ,google, speeches of olden days. The 'vellapokku' was the normal change of puberty to youthhood and  many poor people were befooled by such simpletons of and on.  All kinds of vehicles from buses, cars, bullock carts and single bullock carts came and went from all sides to all sides.

Sometimes, a local police man controlled the traffic.  This appened only during peak hours.  Aroma of foods came from all the tea shops and hotels and filled the air.  Most of the village people visited the village centre for buying daily necessities and see the goings around.  There were star attraction shops, ordinary shops and little box shops.  The star shops were the grocery shops and the stationery shops.  The biggest grocery shops was in the centre of the angaadi.

The owner of the shop was a local gentleman who sat at his mahogany desk which was also his cash box.   He had quite a few employees who arranged or packed the different wares for his customers.   Customers only had to mention how much of each item they wanted to any one of the employee and they would neatly pack them in either teak leaves of old newspapers and give to the customers.   Before the items are handed over to the customer, the value of the items are added by a clerk next to theowner of the shop.the employees packing the items told the items in quick successionn with their measures which the accountant clerk quickly took down and priced according to measure and passed on the slip to the owner who collected the cash from the buyer and handed him over the account slip.   This was the old time manual computing in its finness!

Anybody of that period liked or hoped to run a shop like that one day!   None of the things were packed in polythene in those days as polythene were not there.  This was good for the surroundings as the problem of plastic and polytheene were not there!  Oils were measured with different 'thavis' (thavis are small laddle type vessels with an upright handle to dip into the oil tins which are generally deep) and poured into bottles which the buyers brought with themselves.  Since the lentils and pulses and other day to day needs were simply packed on the spot or measured out into the natural bags or bamboo kottas (kotta is another type of bamboo basket used to buy groceries and keep other carryables from the market) the packing charges were not there and hence the items were not very costly.

In the fish market one got live fish to all types of sea fish.  All assortments to be added to a fish curry was also sold in bits and pieces in the market.  There was a few ayurvedic medicine shops which was a busy shop in those days. People from all walks of life came with prescriptions for kashaayams and aasavams and also needing ready made medicines which the shop keeper always kept.   The shop keeper was an Anthgonychettan who memorized most of the kazhaayam ingredients and did the packing deftly which was a joy to see.  He had a wooden tray in which he put the different ingredients and once all the ingredients were put he would recheck the whole thing with the prescription.  Then he packed it in teak wood leaf or old news paper.All people were happy with the Ayurvedic medicine shop and thought that their health depended on the well being of the shop.

That was true to an extent.  Every body bought the children's requirement called the 'chembaratyadi velichenna' or kashaayams for over all health, the eye cleaner and eye treater called the famous 'elaneer kuzhambu' which I personally used to use.  There were many other medicines in his shop including the dashamoolarishtam and lohasavam and a number of other aasavams which were all dispensed to each according to ones requirements.

The ubiquitous tea shops and barber shops were always patronised by all those who could have the need and afford.  The rates were nominal but the money was less.  Still, when compared to these times, it was small or minuscule. When ever one wanted to have a hair cut, one strolled into one of the barber shops one liked and had a patient sitting at the bench reading a newspaper or magazine, which the shop keeper would care to put there, until one is called to the cutting chair.   Once there, the barber would jovially address the patron and do the cutting or shaving with a small dialogue going all through the cutting ceremony which is normally enjoyed by all patrons.  At times, some people went for a cutting to a particular shop just to enjoy the company of the barber speaker. 


The barber shops in the village city centre was slightly of a higher grade in that their rates were slightly higher than the ones a little far away from the centre. The one we went were near the police station which we always hated to go!  This place was one of the terrible difficulties we faced once in a while under the care and supervision of our father.  We suffered the barbers rough hands turning our little heads in this direction or that or he pushed our head down to the front to clear up the back of our heads.   For suffering this trouble, father always made it good by getting us to the nearest tea shop.  We got the customary white tea and 'parippu vadas' (this is a ground lentil recipe wetted and mixed with onions and fried in coconut oil) the fried smell of which always made our mouths to water!

The road from the east in which the Sreeramachandra bus came was not tarred, but a gravel road and from the village centre called the 'gramodhaarana kendram' it was tarred.  Then it joined the national high way at the village city centre with the lamp post and all the market shops called the angaadi.  The national high way passed the angaadi coming from the south and going to the north to the Shaktan Thampuran's Thrissur. 

The national high way is a small constriction at the Angaadi entry area when it enters from the south passing the 'Sathram' a place for all the poor on the right. The entry constriction is constricted by the buildings on both sides and the little box shops attached to them. The buses and hig vehicles have to be careful not to take away the tiles from the little box shop. The drivers were experts, so such incidents were rare and the vehicles were always careful in road crossings.

Once it passed the central lamp post, the buses stopped on the left to help passengers to alight and to enter. On the same side was a large grocery shop which had a huge verandah which allowed everybody to wait there while they awaited their buses. On one side was a cobbler who polished the foot wear and made leather chappals and shoes in his spare time. He also did assorted other works as mending old foot wear and ladies bags. Gents in those days never carried any bags. Only elderly, only some of them, carried a leather purse which was local made. He made that too with leather binding tag which was always very long.

The cobbler sat with his cobblers box full of instruments and his twine and pins, nails and top pins, leather and other attachments for various items he made or repaired. He sat near the dirty waste canal and suffered the stench. Luckily he was unaware of the stench or he had no other go. I never asked him. No body else, I knew, did. Every body thought it is his way of finding his livelihood and all liked him to be there as it was very convenient to find him just before getting into the bus or when one is in the angaadi.No body advised him on any thing nor did he take any advice either.  He was unaware of the goings around but for his custom.

Passing him to the north was other shops selling cloth, kanji, and bamboo wares and mats and mattresses of old.  On the right side, which was opposite to the cobbler was the cuppola of Angel, St. Raphael where many said a prayer.  The Angel is the protector and co-travellers for those who call upon him!  His statue was a beautiful one with a gold ring on his hand and his other hand is in the hand of a boy, Tobit who also holds a fish on one hand!   Behind the cuppola is the common market selling meat, fish and other assorted items connected with making the daily curry in houses which goes with the staple food of rice.


After the cuppola is a vacant land where all the rubbish is dumped and a part of it is a walk way to the Toddy Shop with is a wetting outlet for the men and oldies who had the mind for it.  The Toddy shop is also interspersed with many shops called the 'koottan shops'' which are shops which sold toddy liquid (this is a mild alcoholic drink extracted from the coconut palms) in retail and charged more.  Those shops attracted their customers by their captivating curries with great aroma which arrested anybody's attention if they passed by those shops.  Whenever I passed such shops, my mouth watered!  I never told anybody about it.   As a child one cannot do it.  The place is considered taboo and any body going there are considered a drunkard!

Then came the barber shop of the city town.  This was a part of a dilapidated building.  Slanting tile roof and a barred wooden crazy on one side.  The barber's chairs faced the wall and the on lookers in the chair always saw wall calendars with pictures of half naked film actresses on them.  Those who had to wait had news papers to read, which many read from back to back and at times discussions followed.  The shop keeper took part in most of the discussions always adding a bit of his own knowledge without joining sides!
In totality it went well for all and increased his custom.

After the barber shops is the bi-cycle shop and the great tile companies.   One tile company had a small St. Mary's Statue and this company central entry was lovingly remembered by all of us the school children for the small earthen drum with a tap which always held clean cold water to drink along with a few glasses kept ready near by.  The Company Manager could have been a very godly person as it was always cleaned by one of the employees and water filled again and again, especially in summer when we the children went there to have a drink on our way to school or off from school.   We never had an occasion when we did not get water there!  Of course, those days are gone now.

Then comes a few of the great houses of the rich of the city town where no one saw people generally, but cars going in and out at times.  In those days of yore, when the roads were quite free, the going  and coming of the cars were looked on by all of us with great surprise.

Now here came the School, the St. Mary Convent Girls' High School,  a Catholic Sister's Convent which imparted free education to almost every girl child of the place around and to little boys upto the class III  from quite far back in time. The school had a lot of roses in its gardens when rose gardens were unheard of in other places.   Sisters were always pleasant, jovial and a great support for the girl children of Kerala.  Little boys studied there upto the third class.

From the convent onwards a number of great houses a huge pond called the Chira which had special steps to get down inside for both, separately for men and women from far back in time.  These were done, perhaps, in the Kings time! Any body wanting to take a dip could do so without fear or avour and it was free.  The local panchayat looked after the place and cleaned it once in an year during summer!

The came the inter connected rivulet which carried the extra water from the pond during the rainy season!  Elephants being given a wash was a common sight in this rivulet!   Many famous elephants used to be brought here for a healthy dip in olden days when the water was very clean!  Hereafter comes the star attraction of the place the St. Antony's Forane Church!  St. Anotony is the main deity here.   But on a side altar is set up the consecrated statue of Arch Angel St. Raphael along with Little Tobit who is holding a fish in his hand.   eople all over the state and near by states come here to pay obeisance and receive blessings from the Angel, St. Raphael, who is the protector of travellers.  People in Ollur always thought it is a matter of great advantage to be a member of this place and this church!

The Church festival was the biggest event we all saw and witnessed every year!  There was celebrations all around the City and the Church and almost everywhere in the Ollur City!!  It was th festival of angel, St. Raphael who was the protector of travellers!