Nostalgia !

Nostalgia

An old bungalow with an adjoining unconstructed land
A place to grow the most healthy and grande
Trees of guavas, papayas and mulberry panned
The landscape of the place not so planned
There were creepers, bushes and sand
All reeked of a childhood well spanned.                              

In the heart of my grandparents land !

I dream of the old house that stood
At the edge of the marshy land
Where the fireflies in the night danced
A bright and lively dance
Where I would try and catch
As many on to my hand
That I could latch!
The house built without a constraint
Not even a boundary to restrain
Freedom was the only plan
In that untamed borderland

The house was warm
The bushes were a charm
Full of roses red
A shed outside with a bed
To doze off
Or just to spend
An afternoon as lazy or dead
Cushion supporting your head
Flies hovering above the bend
In the roof top at the edge

The living room was big and cool
A respite from the sunny afternoon
Noisy it was with our lively tunes
As we chattered till our heads would swoon

Grandma would always cook us a hearty meal
And we would all eat in merry glee
Then try a hand at rummy
Which my mum would always win sonny !
Sulking I would leave the game
And stomping I would march away
To look for a better play

In the corner of the woods
I would climb
Up the tree I loved so much
A can in one hand
With the other I would scan
A cozy place where with stealth I sit and plan
And pluck as many mulberries as I possibly can
Syrupy and sweet with a purplish black tan
The biggest would go first into my can
Restraining myself from tasting till I can
Get down and wash them with my hand
I would then be in fantasy land
As I  would share my prized collection with my clan

At dusk we would enjoy tea and cake
Then rush to set up our beds before we could our dinner take
For these we would protect
With some mosquito nets
An adventure that I much adored
The planning and executing simple and pure !
A lot of laughter it would take
To set up a net and then to tape
In and out I would roll
Swinging from the netted pole

Dinner was a noisy affair
Under the night sky so clear
With no barrier
We could stare
Right outside without despair
Kindling our imaginations
Igniting those poetic passions
Eat we would and then dare
To venture out without a care
Chasing those fireflies
Admiring the brinjal vines
That crept up places we could not dare
To reach within the marshy expanse !

There was time to read some books
From grandma’s collection that stood
In an open cabinet in a room
Enjoying a story in peace within our netted dens
And drifting into a world of our own
We would finally fall asleep
Creating beautiful memories !

Morning we would be awake
Before the crack of the dawn
Cock crowing from the neighbour’s barn
We would suppress a big yawn
And race out to the fair lawn
To fill water from the hand pump
That stood on a common ground Jumping up and down
We would welcome the dawn
Show our brawn
On timid squirrels tan and brown !
We would run down
To chase some butterflies from the buttercup ground
Decide to visit the town
Joking and laughing as we went down
To the swings and shops never slowing down.

Our annual vacation to my grandparents house
Is a celebration I seek even now
Nostalgic I become
When I think of some rainy days spent on those grounds
With turtles and snails crawling about

Now many a summer and winter break
I remember fondly - a keepsake
A memory of a wonderland
My own precious fair land !

24-3-19
Dr. Guncha Gupta