Sunday, March 29, 2009

Seasons in the Sun

As a child I used to eagerly wait for holidays. Summer holidays...Diwali holidays...Christmas holidays. Summer holidays were prefered because its longer plus the academic year ends so no studying till June.

I remember, every year, on the last day of my exams, after I came home from school, my mother or my grandmother used to take me to my cousins place. My bag was packed and ready, before I even got back from school and after quick lunch (so excited that vacations have begun) off to my cousins place.
Every vacation that I can remember, I have spent at my cousins place. I loved to go there. Firstly, since there were very few children in my building (maybe 3 including me)
and no girls around my age whereas at my cousins place there were so many kids (complex like building with many wings..and many many children) And I had my cousin. Being the only child, I liked being around my cousin and imitating her ways (yeah she is elder).

Playing games, from house house..teacher teacher to hide and seek, red letter and sakli (to name a few), the teams ..whos on whos side if any fight takes place..the "i'll tell my mother.. go tell im not scared", fighting on why it always has to be my dine and treatening not to play sensing someones cheating, fighting for whos chance it is to ride the cycle..who has taken how many rounds, discovering some weird shaped stone and spreading weird stories about it, running
around in rubber bata slippers and poking the strap into the hole each time the strap came off while running during a game.

After some years things changed...we were in secondary..the girls wouldn't play with boys, the boys wouldnt play with girls...the boys played football or cricket, the girls just hung around the building corners..talking (about boys..girls...fashion....anything).
Then, in college we were too busy meeting college friends and going for movies, shopping...the playground was taken by the kiddies.

Now everyones grown up..moved elsewhere...married..settled..lost touch with all the children I ran around with..now they are probably running after their children.

I think about that playground...I think about those times...I feel nostalgic.

We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun...but the wine and the song like the seasons have all gone.