Memory is unpredictable . One never really knows what we will remember and what we will forget. Which is why nostalgia arrives in unpredictable waves, highlighting something and skimming over others. Recently, I have found myself thinking of how memory works, as I was assailed by nostalgia over a trip to Varanasi, a city I prefer to think of, as Kashi. The nostalgia hit right as we landed at Varanasi airport. The last time I was here, it was 1988, I was 13 years old, the airport was brand new… regular flights hadn’t started yet (I think) … flights landed about once a week, and for the rest of the time, everything was open to those of us who lived in the airport quarters nearby. There were fields everywhere, vast expanses of green… I have vague memories of corn and sugarcane… and being overwhelmed by the vastness of the fields (this was the first time I was in such close proximity to them), and the warm hospitality of complete strangers who lived and worked amidst these fields. I h...
Its always fun to get a book as a gift, and it becomes a lot more fun when you get a book from someone you don't know! When I signed up for the'Perfect Picture Books by Post' swap on Playing by the Book, both Samhith and I were excited about the whole process, and we sent off our book, waiting eagerly to see which book we would receive!
We got our book yesterday, and I waited eagerly for Samhith to return home from school before opening it. Here is what we received....
We both love reading Eric Carle, and have a couple of his books, but thankfully, this one we dont have! Samhith opened the book and went through them eagerly, seeing the pictures more closely than the numbers themselves. We both loved the mouse seen in every pic, but he was intrigued by the sketches of the train and its coaches, especially those on each page.
As to the book itself, he decided that counting from 1 to 10 was too tame for him, so he decided to first count all the animals, and then all the people, and then all the trees on the last, pullout page. He was thrilled that there were more than 100 in all!!
Thanks so much, Amber, for sending us such a wonderful book. We shall treasure this one!
Incidentally, coming to the books I had sent Amber, we started out wondering which book to send, and ultimately decided on sending one of his books on Ganesha, an all time favourite. As it happened, the book was available, but while his book had two stories in it, the two had now been published separately. He wanted to gift both, so we got the books and sent them off by post. Unfortunately, the books hadnt reached at the time of writing this post, which speaks volumes of the state of the postal system here. No one at the post office is able to give me a convincing answer about where it might be, either. I hope the parcel finds its way to Amber in good shape, and she and her kids can enjoy a bit of Indian mythology, with some cute little pics!
Since both of us read before sleeping Chhavi too picks up a book upside down most of the time before going to sleep!
ReplyDeleteSuch a nice thing to read.. isnt it!!?? I love that little train illustration.. Awesome!
ReplyDeleteA lovely post! I love how Samhith decided to count _everything_ :-) Thanks so much for taking part in the swap - I'm so glad you did.
ReplyDeleteHey! This swapping is a good idea! I wish it was on when we were kids. I did try the trick with a few friends and cousins. Sometimes the result was not so good, I sent the book and didn't get any in exchange. Glad Samhith got one :)
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