HAPPY CHILDREN'S DAY

, posted over a year ago

One of my favorite childhood memories is spending the summers at our Commune in Bihar (India). We had mango and papaya orchards, and lichies and hibiscus and bananas and all the tropical splendor. Add to that dust and mud and thirty ragamuffin children.. and you con imagine the fun. We would go out and 'borrow' fruits from the trees, put up swings in the branches, try out picnics by the pond and then burn up our stores of firecrackers. In the evening there would be races and game, and we would be jumping, and putting up plays and songs and just having the time of our lives. Once a week, my grandfather would put up the old projector and we would all watch classics. I remember watching the Roman Holiday and Apu films, and the Jungle Book.. and many more.

Also, since I had read Huckleberry Finn, I convinced my family to get me a flat to float around the pond... Thank heavens there were too many kids, because I still cannot swim...

That were the most cherished moments of my life. Ah... the days of childhood!

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 6:50 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

And, for those who have a picture of a deprived Bihar... and would be quick to jump to conclusions, let me explain... you see, there was a good school and children there received education.. and we played with all classes, regardless of their economic/religion/ethnic backgrounds. For those that are still cynics, let me tell you that there were quite a few of us that were studying in convent schools and were very well versed with English as well as Sanskrit, Hindi and other languages and sciences. And those that still have doubts, well, we could approach the elders with the questions on things we did not understand.

For those that are still a bit cynical... well, it was a happy childhood and money had nothing or at least very little to do with it.

those were happy days!

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 7:36 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

Mango and Papaya orchards! sounds bliss to me.

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 11:14 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

So does rolling in the grass and coming home dirty, grimy and bathing in the tin bath...

Pure Bliss! Ah, I am so glad that we are born as a child, and have many years of childhood to enjoy.. before growing up!

Imagine, being born a grown up! (yuck)

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 13:37 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

oh, and Mal, we also used to hold our skirt up, when we gathered flowers in them (roses, and jasmine and yellow ones, they are tuplip shaped and I don't know the English names, and also the kind Hawaiian women wear in their ear)... we would weave garlands and wreaths and present it to friends we liked. Also, the village market every Wednesday was a great place to look for authentic indigenous craft (a habit I have till today) and then there was the making and floating of the paper boats and planes and kites.

Also, I had a bow and arrow to shoo away the crows that would try to eat the fruits, and then the coconut harvest was fun because we would get the coils to make stuff with. And then there was spying on people... we kids knew everything going on... (it was fun)... Every man hired someone to look after the Mangoes so we don't eat them up... and we remember all the schemes to get to the unripe mangoes... diversion, trickery, threats we tried all. And we also dreamed of what we could achieve if we had superpowers or we were James Bond!!!!

There were at least twelve summers spent this way!

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 16:42 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

I had a wonderful childhood in the rolling country side of Oklahoma, USA. As a child we lived on a hundred acres which had a million

(at least haha) pecan and oak trees, canyons to explore, a couple of ponds and a creek flowing through it. (and in Oklahoma the are called PEECAHN trees.) :) i am the oldest child in my family and have a sister and a brother that were my exploring parteners. they are 2 1/2, and 5 years younger than I....i loved to wade in the creek with my skirt held by one hand so as to not get the skirttail wet...but of curse i always did anyway. There were frogs and minnows in the creek and every once in a while we would find a crawdad. Crawdads are small critters that look something like a lobster or a crawfish only smaller...about an inch long or so and they are shy fellows. Whenever we would find one and try to pick it up without it's little pinchers connecting with out little fingers, they would scoot backward underneath a rock.(an occasional black snake or grass snake could send shrieks of terror to the high heavens... and still can to this day)we spent many dirty, happy, sunkissed summer hours on and in that creek. It was at most 12 inches deep at its deepest and mostly on an average of 2-3inches deep. We went barefooted and the brown oklahoma clay would squish up between our toes... we races our leaf "boats" and crooked sticks...we jumped from bank to bank with the occaisional fall into the creek because one misjudged the distance... That is one of my favorite memories....anyone else???

Posted on 14 November 2009 @ 17:58 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

THANK YOU MAL.

I am on the way to talking with Sex Workers and their children, to listen to their stories and make sure that these little children too get their rightful opportunity of settling into the mainstream society. These kids need education and they need confidence, love and acceptance.

I don't know how much of their innocence and laughter I will be able to salvage, but, I have full faith in the spirit and courage of the undaunted team of women...

So, thank You Ma, and Uncle Phil and Gina and all of you guys.

This innocence is what I will have to remember!!!

Wish us luck. *wink*

Posted on 15 November 2009 @ 6:3 (London time) - permalink
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, posted over a year ago

I meant Mal, sorry for that typo!

Posted on 15 November 2009 @ 6:4 (London time) - permalink
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