Old is Gold

For everyone old is gold. Their thoughts, their childhood activities the schools they studied in, their friends, the places they visited, the towns they lived in, of course their hometown or home village howsoever small it is.
I am right now 62 years old I lived in many important towns of Tamil Nadu a southern State in India. Of many towns I lived in I most cherish my memories in Nagerkovil, Kanyakumari District Head Quarters. My father was Government Medical Officer and the Government transfers every two or three years to different places within Tamil Nadu. And every time my father gets transferred we six brothers would be very happy to visit a new town in Tamil Nadu. At the same time we used to feel unhappy to leave behind our friends. Happy things are always associated with some unhappy things it is usual. Government officers were given First Class Bogey in the Railways. The complete bogey would be ours to enjoy and play till we reach our new destination normally some 500 to 1000 kilometers away from the previous place.

This time we were going to Nagercoil from Arani near Vellore. My father had bought a car in Nagercoil a Ford Prefect 1950 model. Our imagination goes very wild how big the car would be, how fast it would go, new or old. When we came to Thirunelveli Railway Junction which was the nearest railway station to Nagercoil in 1961, I was little disappointed to see a small car where I had a huge car in my imagination. Later when I learned that Ford Prefect is a legendary car, I was happy and very much compromised.

Nagercoil near the border of Kerala state had a landscape similar to the landscape of Kerala, hilly thickly forested rainy area with water everywhere round the year. It is a new landscape and a new weather which was a very attractive destination for a group of six brothers to escapade, explore and venture. The three years that followed were the most enjoyed years in the whole of my life time. If I write about Nagercoil It would run into pages so I would do it separately on a different occasion.

Three years completed in Nagercoil my father was transferred to Madras General Hospital as Assistant Resident Medical Officer with Quarters inside the hospital which even today used and preserved in the British built building. We came to the GH quarters first and our household effects came the next day by a hired lorry from Nagercoil. The hospital sub staff helped arrange everything in place. My father joined duty the day we came. The next day we started exploring the whole hospital without any inhibition nor anyone to stop as we let them know in advance that we are sons of ARMO and no one question nor anyone stop because we just out of curiosity explore the hospital and we did not disturb anyone. Next day we ventured out of the hospital compound through the just opposite to the Mint street. Everyone knows Mint Street is a very long one starting from GH on one end and ending at Vallalar Nagar Bus stand on the other end. We stood on the platform and started counting different models of cars. One brother would count how many Fiat Millicent’s are going another one would count how many Standard cars and vans were going and I used to count all old cars Plymouths, Buicks, Chevrolets, Ford Mercurys, Ford v8s, Hillmans, Morris 8s, Morris minors, Morris mini minors, Hindustans, Landmasters, Vanguards, Austins, Chryslers, Oldsmobiles, Bug Fiats, Dodges, and many American and British cars. Car counting was untiring to us. But we were unable to stand in the platform as legs would start aching in an hour. So, the next day we brought steel chairs from the quarters and sat in line behind the platform and would start counting cars and also included Jutkas and hand pulled rickshaws in the list. Coming back home, we would analyze the data of how many different types of cars were going on that road and found Indian cars were fast taking over the cars left by the British which included American cars also. We concluded that ambassadors, fiats and standards were taking over British and American cars. We could not see much people during those older days. Population was very minimum in this area because it was not a residential area moreover it is a hospital people who need treatment only did come. I was admitted to Sir Mct.Muthiah Chettiar High School in Purasawakkam in my ninth standard and brother also was admitted in the 9th standard another brother was admitted in the 6thstandard. Many famous men’s sons studied in my class Anand theater owners Umapathi's son karunakaran, kumudam jawahar, and durable chrome parthasarathy a cricket player. Mr. Narasimhan was headmaster then, KT Govindarajan, social studies, Mr. Mohd.Yaqoob, Mathematics. It was Mr. Yaqoob and KTG who instilled my interest in the respective subjects for which I remember them till today. Mr. Narasimman a good English teacher sometimes would come to our class to take’ Treasure Island’ “Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum, Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest” he would enact the scene where Long John Silver comes in search of a treasure. Till date at the age of 62 I remember these.

Mostly we go by car to school but when the driver did not come we take bus 20 Broadway -Villivakkam. I take 5 rupees with me. I would finish all my money eating magnolia ice cream and go walking back to GH quarters from school. A few of my friends in the Mannadi area and my bothers would come with me. There were no people in madras that time. Only we would be walking on the platform which would be empty till we reach our homes. You might see one or two people walking behind you or before you. Crimes were very much less; practically unheard.

On holidays Moore market is our heaven, zoo and my ladies garden. We drink and eat everything from ice more for kaalana and kamala orange for arayanana and we cannot forget kamarcuts you will not get any disease eating kamarcuts. Evenings we buy samoosa from Buhari Hotel or the tasty big bonda and chutni from the Madras Medical College canteen. There were no people in Madras that time. There were not many diseases. Can you now drink ice more and go without any problem creeping in or without a fear of it; not possible. I can go on writing. It is very brief but I can go on writing. One thing I forgot. A musical programme arranged by MMC for its 150th anniversary I visited. We complete family visited to watch the programs given by Ravishankar sitar, Alla Rakha Tabla, Zakir Hussain’s father. It was amazing. Spell bound everyone. Old is always gold. No second opinion. But unfortunately nowadays old people are not Gold.

Who will believe if you say white crow flies?

Who will believe if you say white crow flies? Crow mean black everyone knows and it is implied. When I was studying in the American college Madurai in 1966-1969 B.sc., degree with chemistry as Main subject and Botany and Physics as ancillary subjects, we normally go beyond our subjects to read something not relevant to the examination point of view. I and my regular walking friend a mathematics degree student one year senior to me regularly walk to Madurai university library. It was in Chokkikulam then. On the way we don’t just keep mum I will think myself as Albert Einstein and he might think himself as some other scientist of his choice. We analyze my scientific themes and try to solve them. I remember when we were discussing about how to create a 100 percent vacuum through some mechanical means. We devise many instruments to create that vacuum with having any vital date at hand. Any way we spend our time usefully. We practiced scientific thinking even without any motivation from outside. We motivate ourselves. Another commerce student a brilliant man used to discuss very hot topics like foreign exchange with professors and lecturers.

I remember one thing even today. He was asking the lecturers why we couldn’t buy US dollars by giving our money. The lecturers simply said yes we could buy. I was really astonished to hear them say like that. College lecturers had only bookish knowledge. Though I was not a commerce student I know Indian rupees cannot directly buy US dollar at that time I think not even now.

One day after my botany classes are over our lecturer said there was a white crow caught in our campus and it was put in a cage for all students to see. It was some 46 years ago that I saw a white crow in my college. The next day it was stuffed and kept in the specimen lab. We could not let it free because it cannot live amidst black crows.

Examinations becoming a burden

Whenever school examinations come and whenever university examinations starts we can see news papers dotted with news of death by jumping from the college 2 floor 3rd floor and some boy or girl consuming poison or sleeping tablets. Why all this? Buddies! After all we have come to live in the world. Education besides being enlightening must give us moral strength to live in the world. If education weakens a person it simply means that they did not look at education in the right perspective. Education should only be a tool in the hands of the person to improve livelihood and his status in society.

Students view education as a competition between them and others. When they happen to find the subject difficult or when they fail in a subject they feel very much ashamed and dejected. Students must learn to view education as a way of enlightening them and there is no competition between them and others. None should be obsessed with anything including education. Try to get best out of your efforts but never think you are running a race. If you think so a fear will naturally grip you which will weaken you and distract you from your efforts. The result is that you won’t be able to concentrate on your subjects. Village students normally study in their mother tongue at school level. When they come to college especially professional college they find it very difficult to study the subjects in English and the fear stuns them that sometimes they funk and shun away their subjects and fail ultimately. They must think that English is just another language and any one can learn a language if they show some interest and put some extra effort in learning the language.

They become obsessed with the fear of losing the examinations and hence the future and they got carried away by their fears and forget to think about the world around them and their thought process comes to halt and they unconsciously succumb to their fears taking drastic decisions to end their lives to escape the stress and agony. Had they thought a little that the world around them has ample opportunities to make a living after all life is to live it is not a competition with others? We eat our food and we live our lives. Belief in the creator gets you out of any stress.

Education authorities have something to alleviate difficulties these students encounter in professional colleges. Educationists must think of various ways to eliminate this situation. Village students must be provided with suitable environment to make them familiar with English so that when they come for higher studies they do not feel dumb and deaf. All schools in the state may at least have one subject taught in English medium.

Mathematics may be taught in English so that students will find it easier because English along with numbers will not intimidate the village students. Some numbers and some English will be more palatable than continuous English. Schools may implement this scheme from 6th standard onwards even on trial basis in one or two sections of each standard from 6th to 12th. This will be both welcome by teachers and students as well. this scheme will in course of time say when the boy completes his 12 he would be more comfortable with English and he will not afraid of it when he goes to professional colleges.

Pollution

Air pollution is high in the cities due to several factors like petrol, diesel vehicles, sea port where bulk chemicals and coal are perennial imports. Chennai has become a typical city rampant with all types of pollutions. The nano and micro particles float in the air throughout the year until they get washed away during rains. A month after rains usually have the clearest sky in the city may be it extend into another 2 months then will it start refilling the air with dust and other pollutants until it gets washed away the next monsoon, if at all there a sufficient. This is purification cycle of the Chennai sky.

High humidity of seashore areas combined with dust affects lung and new born children have lung diseases. Allergy is prevalent in Chennai due to this air pollution combined with humidity. People must come forward to shift to satellite towns and suburbs to save their younger generations. It is a difficult thing but still the need of the hour. Most of the new diseases are due to low oxygen assimilation into the body. Oxygen assimilation is most vital thing for health to thrive. The percentage of oxygen assimilation is much than needed. This due to lesser capacity to assimilate oxygen and inability of blood to absorb more oxygen which in turn is due to imperfect breathing and general anemia and specifically anemia due to low iron in the Red blood cells.

So, to make up for other short coming we have to tune up our body to assimilate more oxygen. The one important way is to increase the iron content of the Red cells because iron absorbs oxygen and supplies it to the rest of the body. Natural way of putting iron into blood is to take regular dose of pasalikkeerai and murungakkeerai and of course nellikka which helps putting the iron into red cells. Friends do remember this is important for your health and your children’s health especially girl children because they bring in the healthy generation. No one will love a sick generation. BEWARE

Man and the Sparrows

From time immemorial sparrows cohabit with people, building nests on the roofs of man's dwellings be it a palace or a hut. They feed on grains spread under the sun for drying and they feed on small insects. Living alongside man food has never been a problem for these chirpy little avian friends.

Nowadays very rarely can anyone see a sparrow in urban houses. Most of the urban houses are neither sparrow friendly nor any bird friendly. Man wants to cage birds and not to cohabit with them. Let them enjoy their own freedom and let man enjoy his own freedom and cohabit keeping the natural distance. I am a resident of Chennai city in Tamil nadu India where old houses are slowly being replaced by concrete jungles which have no place for the friendly sparrows. There are no fields around where the sparrows can have some grains. They have to go to grain markets to eat grains for free. And that is not an easy job. And another thing is water which is not visible for sparrows and other birds easily in cityscapes. You cannot see people drying wheat or paddy or any other cereal on the terraces. All cereals are available in neatly ground form. Buy from the shop and cook. Man alone eats and flourish let the sparrows fly into forests for food. Where will the sparrow or any other bird go? Man is moving away from the natural world. He is trying to become alone on this planet keeping him in a different lifestyle from that of the rest of the creatures across the world.

Mans older generation had been attached with sentiments with birds and animals that cohabited with them like sparrows, mynahs, parrots and squirrels. Now there is no sentiment of such kind in the high speed world. Until last year I was living in an old house with wooden roof and large windows and natural air gushing through the windows even in midsummer. I cannot say it was cool but was in equilibrium with the environment. While artificial cooling kept in a non equilibrium state with outer environment. In equilibrium with nature is living in nature. I that old house when every season starts squirrels chase each other they don’ care for sitting or sleeping they fall on me, jump on me and always busy until the procreating season is over. They build nests and beget their precious children. Some of them fall from the roof and die and some of them I help to climb their nests again. And the same story with sparrows. Now I am able to see squirrels but not sparrows. I don’t know why. But people say that high frequency communication networks affect their brains and nerves that they want to flee from the man created menace. Communication is not a menace of course. What is a menace no one knows it is relative phenomena. We are all related to one another. Tree is related to the earth, birds and animals and man and earth are all related to each other. Knowingly or unknowingly if we exterminate other forms of life we ourselves get exterminated one day. Man is growing more and more hypocritical day by day in every way. Earth is slowly driven towards where it started “the bang” but the second bang that will come would end everything.