The Movement Saga | Missing bits

I have a huge backlog of events to be documented to reach till the current happenings. I want to clear all the arrears as soon as possible to get back to blogging impromptu as in capturing adhoc thoughts or momentary feelings which are livelier than recollecting the memory and jotting down. I feel the essence of the moment is lost when I delay it. But during our initial months here, we were too gloomy, depressed, lost for direction in life that there was no way I could write anything then. While I think I must move on to the part where we left for Kolkata but still there are a lot of things I seem to have missed, which needs to logged for posterity’s sake. This would be a post with pointers in random order:

• When the movers & packers were packing Kaalu (Our TV) I provided them with the stand that we had kept aside to pack along. And we were just watching how they were packing it. Just before the last tape was going to be sealed, Mannu comes promptly with the remote control and gives a what-would-you-all-have-done-without-me look!

• All through the different phases of packing Mannu was my Girl Friday. She knew all the packing categories and would help me, suggest me, also guide me when I would be lost. Seriously, with her around, I didn’t feel the lack of an adult helping hand. Like I always tell, she is an ADULT trapped in a child’s body.

• Ever since we had decided the move, we celebrated every festival with renewed fervour and tried to make the most of every opportunity we got to soak in everything Indian. On Diwali last year we went to Hosur to buy a gigantic loot of crackers. It had more crackers than I had burst collectively so far in my life.

• We shopped for a lot of warm clothes and shoes that Mantam were so excited about going to Australia. Everytime we bought something new, we would tell them that Baba Mumma wouldn’t have jobs and wouldn’t be able to buy them anything for atleast another six months.

• Mantam were said that they had to let go of their toys, cycles etc. We asked them if there was anything specific that they wanted to take with them to Australia. The only answer they gave was Bulu  It was hard for us to make them understand that we had to let go of him. Tammu would shed tears everytime we spoke about Bulu. She would say “You all go to Australia. I will stay back in India.” When we would make her understand that we all had to be together, she would say “Can we all go to Australia, stay there for 10 days and then come back to Bulu?” What about Mannu, you might ask. She was also among the adults (I told ya) to convince Tammu 😀

• Among the dolls Johnny was the chosen one who got to travel with us on air. Sunny and the rest of the soft toys are at Kolkata for the time being under Ma’s care. Sunny would be brought along on our next visit.

• Mantam asked Abbas and I to keep the money accumulated in their piggy banks as they knew that Baba Mumma were going to need a lot of money till they get jobs to survive.

• Mantam cried the most for R aunty when we left the Blore home and she too was equally inconsolable.

• Among the three cities that we called a home, leaving Bangalore was the most difficult of all. Not just for me, for Abbas as well! Not because we were leaving India, but Bangalore has its own charm.

• To say that we were on fire during the last few days is to put it lightly. It was mayhem all around till the moment we left home to board the Duronto. Only the hours during the train journey is when we were sitting in peace. Because the stay in Kolkata was more stressful than we anticipated 