But please, forgive my rambling.... i had the sun on my face, the blues in my eyes, and we were slowly trudging from Margao to Porvorim ...to some obscure lawyer's place...as a favour to a relative...
oh ....did i mention the two relatives in the car who looked like theyr straight out of some mug shot ?
As i was always looking out of the window...contemplating the red and green hues ...Goa is so beautiful... we reached the place. It was in Alto , Porvorim, and i think the hotel mgmt. insititute was just across the road.
We parked, and dad n mum left my brother and me to broil in the car while they went over to the lawyers place, and i tell you if ur ever in a horrible Maruti 800 with an irritable n irritating brother on a hot summers day...LORD help u. I was nearly ready to weep tears of sheer vexation that i was beign outdone by brute force, whne suddenly Brian ( the pain) said, ' hey ! theres a man calling us '
Now any 'man' calling two unknown children in a car sounds highly suspicious n against evrything mama ever taught me. so naturally, i opened the window n turned to look ! :D
He said ' Please come see my crib, iv made it myself.Lots of people come from everwhere to look at it.' Now he looked like he was sane, and i was bored, so i ventured out of the car and into the gate to look at the crib. It looked liek just any ordinary crib when suddenly, Brian says ' Onu ! Look, and lo ! the whole crib is animated. The figures were moving. theold man came out frm some where behind the crib, and told me that hed been making cribs for the past 25 years n more, and that the whole thing is amde of recycled materials, and he showed me the mechanical process n how he connected the cribs figures to an electric motor.
It was amazing ! He used old umbrella parts, and coconut shells, n cloth n paper and god knws wht else. oh n the best part was he made moving images of angels out of some part of a water cooler...
it was ingenious, and so lovingly made !As usual i can never keep my mouth shut for more than 5 minutes, and people genuinely interest me, so i got tlaking to the uncle about himself. we exchanged details , he told me that he worked for the Govt. Printing press for a long time, but now hes retired, and i told him i was a student in Bombay... and i heard about his son being an engineer, and how hes still out of work, and his daughter is a doctor whos married to another doctor having a clinic in salcette, and how he misses her.
He also spoke about how Goa has changed over the years, and how he was a traveeling musician long ago, and he had a tour once to the south african countries, and to some countries in the Gulf.
I was really interested, and totally in my element talking to him, for he was just so much more interesting than Most peers of mine.
Then my parents came, and after showing them the crib with just as much enthusiasm as if i had made it myself, we said bye to him...and got ready to leave.
I smiled a lot, said bye, Compliments of the season...hope u meet ur daughter soon...and he wished me luck with my studies. I was contented...and thinking abt that wonderful crib n sweet man, and how nice it is that i randomly meet such lovely people in Goa, when suddenly halfway on our way home ... a good half n hour later maybe....i groaned aloud. Mum said...'whats wrong ?'
I had forgotten to ask the uncle his name !!!! I really feel like an idiot, coz he did ask mine :(
So please, just to assuage my curiousity, if anyone can please tell me what that uncles name is..and say a hello to him from me.... i'd b really grateful !
Luv, Marjorie
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather, to skid in sideways, greasy fries in one hand, beer in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOOHOO....... what a ride!"
sOnu......
