Tuesday, August 15, 2006

For my Amoma

Sprinting through
rice fields
in hot pursuit
of appopam taadis*,
free falling
in the puzha*,
pretend-eating
mann appams*,
pinching mangoes
to add
to the feast;
undulating
on the
banyan tree
uunyaal*,
racing across
the bridge as
a vallum*
passed
underneath,
feeling
the wind
tug at your
paavada*
and the rain
wash away
the chandana kuri*…

With mouth
wide open,
I drank in
the quaint
village scene.
A coconut-oil
head massage,
and a handful
of my
grandma’s yarns
is all it took
for me to pine for
a Kerala
I never knew.


For the uninitiated:
Appopam taadi literally translates to 'Grandfather's Beard' and means dandelions.
Puzha: River.
Mann appams: Appams are rice pancakes that are soft and spongy in the middle. Mann appams are mud pancakes that kids roleplay with in Kerala.
Uunyaal: Swing.
Vallum: Boat.
Paavada: Petticoat
Chandana kuri: A sandalwood tikka.

(This post was written under duress... for my sis wanted to usurp the computer from me. HELLLLLLLPPPPPPPP!)

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

no i dint try 2 do anything like dat people!!!!!!n yeah m glad now dat i pushed her in2 d puzha n ate d appam rite outta her handz!! n guess wat?? she fell off d vallum coz she dint know how 2 get on2 it in d 1st place!!hahahahaha!!

7:20 pm  
Blogger n said...

heh. u and sis having aball i see..
May have been written under duress, but still very vivid. :)

7:03 pm  

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