Trekking

We went for a small trekking last week. The place was my maternal Grandpa’s, but now it belongs to my Grandma, my mom and her siblings, inherited by them after his death. My Grandpa was a great man, who walked ahead of time. He was an orphan and so it was with his hard work that he made all the wealth (land, as in olden days) that he owned. Even though he went to school only up to the second or third grade, he read a lot. He educated my mother and her sisters (educating girls was forbidden among Muslims during that period). One of the several reasons for my present day situation is my Grandpa. May Allah, the Almighty, forgive him his mistakes and gift him with Jannah. Ameen.

Coming back to trekking story, no one lives at the place now. The place is filled with undergrowth and fallen leaves. Aisha found it a bit difficult to walk, as she has got no experience in walking through rocky and thorny places, where we have to make new paths. But I think she enjoyed the place. It was a trip to the heart of wild nature.

The home my Grandpa built.

Now decayed and crumbled, housing squirrels and crows, this was the place where my Mom was born, and we were born. The remaining part is the kitchen of the house. This place is an important part of my childhood.  There was a time when this home was filled with so many people - my grandparents, mom, uncles, aunties, nieces, nephews and a lot of servants. The day started even before the sun rose, for there were cows, buffaloes, hens, chicks, rabbits and dogs to tend to - besides humans. Servants went to the paddy fields and orchards, Grandpa went to his small tea shop and Grandma had to manage her sons, daughters, daughter-in-laws, grandchildren, servants and the pets. That was a time of glory. Sometimes I wonder, will Aisha ever understand a life like this? Even I have started to feel it like another world. With all the academic knowledge I have obtained, I still believe my second grade drop out Grandma had more managerial skills than myself - and yes, more knowledge too.
Well, I explained to Aisha this is were we lived when we were kids and she had a thousand questions. Were is the a/c, fridge, TV, laptop, oven etc here, didn't you have a bathroom with showers and taps, were did you bath etc etc. I tried to explain some, saying we didn't had these gadgets in the olden days. Actually we did not need any of these items. The air was always cool. We plucked the fresh fruits and veggies from the plants and so we never needed refrigerators. No one had time for TVs and laptops. When there were acres of land to explore, who would want to be a couch potato? For bathing, we went to a pool near by and she was fascinated at the idea of bathing in a pool everyday. Modern life has got its disadvantages too.

Time for a break.

We left the place early, as it started getting dark even before the sun descended. Hungry and tired after the jaunting, the kids were happy to get some food and go to bed.