Summer

I prefer hot weather to winter. These days summer has become too dry and scorching. But the memories with summer are so beautiful that I will always choose it.

The summer heat hides far away behind the Himalayas named Grandma-Grandpa and what is felt instead is the endless snowfall of love and affection. Once school starts regularly, the most beloved thing about it is the vacation. Usually, after the last exam paper, we used to spend most of the time preparing to go to Grandma’s place—buying tickets, packing bags, and reassuring parents with statements like, “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

Informing Grandma about the exam schedule was more about letting her know when I would be arriving. Once the annual exams ended, it was a fixed tradition to leave for Grandma’s place the very next day. Back then, parents didn’t need to ask for permission from Grandma about it.

On the contrary, my mother would probably be relieved, knowing that for at least a month, she wouldn’t have to hear, “Mom, what should I do now? I’m bored, and I’m hungry.” Upon reaching Grandma’s house, I would enter calling out loudly, “Grandma!” and then the month-long celebration of joy would begin. After seeing her grandchild after so long, Grandma would be overjoyed, and seeing her smiling face was everything! She was the one who could solve all problems in an instant—she was nothing less than a god. Who else could be?

Days at Grandma’s place were filled with fun. Playing in the mud, making soap bubbles—she would join in all these activities. She would pamper us with delicious treats—mangoes, raw mango drinks, pickles, and preserves were always ready. At precisely three in the afternoon, there would be a special snack, which she called a “mid-break.” During this time, there would be homemade delights—sometimes ice cream, sometimes pudding, sometimes kulfi, and sometimes flavored butter.

After that, we engaged in activities like reading, writing, solving puzzles, and competitions. She loved riddles. One of her favorite types was a verbal word puzzle. She would think of a surname, and we had to guess it. For example, “There’s a seven-letter surname. If you take the first three letters, it’s the name of a planet. If you take the fourth and fifth, it means ’rounds’ or ‘circles.’ And if you take the last three letters, it forms a natural sound.” She would give such tricky clues only once, and we had to remember them and figure out the answer. Sometimes, the whole day would pass without solving the riddle. And if we ever dared to give her a puzzle, she would answer before we could even provide a second clue!

Losing meant no escape—immediately, she would start a general knowledge quiz. “Name five leaders… five saints… five poets… five writers,” and eventually, it would reach “Name five revolutionaries.” But we secretly looked forward to it because she would always tell us a fascinating story about them afterward. Since it was vacation, she never allowed us to wake up late and waste time watching TV all day. Instead, she had endless ideas for how we could use the time productively.

If she told us to wake up early, we obediently did so—something that was a huge struggle for our mother otherwise. Every morning, before placing her feet on the ground, she would chant two shlokas:

“Karagre Vasate Lakshmi,

Karmadhye Saraswati,

Karmule Tu Govindam,

Prabhate Karadarshanam!”*

She had unwavering faith in God and equal respect for the human body given by God. She would explain how each human body part was like an advanced machine—fingers working like a crane, teeth grinding like a grinder, and eyes functioning like a camera.

She always emphasized being grateful for this body. If anything was as supreme as God in this world, it was the motherland. Without her blessings, our day could not begin. “Samudravasane Devi,

Parvatastanamandale,

Vishnupatni Namastubhyam,

Padasparsham Kshamasvame!”

Even today, whenever I think about the Earth, the land, or the motherland, I always remember how she sincerely expressed gratitude to Mother Earth every single day… Grandma’s memories are enough to make any weather favorable 🙂