Village Bound.. Halliya Kadege

Spoorthi came home from school and she saw a toffee by the side of the showcase, immediately she knew Thaatha had come to visit them. It was still two days for the exams to end and the vacation was to start and yet customary of her granddaddy to come to take her to the village. This was an exciting and fun time for Spoorthi for her favorite Thaatha will pamper her until the schools start again. Thaatha would wait patiently for the son-in-law to come home and get his consent to take his little Darling with him.

Spoorthi's dad arrived in the evening after a tiring day, Spoorthi skipped her hopscotch with the friends and was eager to know if he would send her along. After some greetings both Thaatha and her father sat down with coffee and the Chakkuli snack which Thaatha got from the village. "You know this time for the Jatra, the village annual fair who's coming" asked Thaatha with a hint of pride. The newly elected local MLA was now minister of culture and he planned to participate in the pooja at the village temple for the Jatra and was a proud moment for all. It's going to be special this year, you should visit us insisted Thaatha. Spoorthi's father had other duties so he excused himself and told him to take his little granddaughter, exactly what both Spoorthi and Thaatha wanted.

Two days passed in a jiffy., Spoorthi was all excited. She woke up very early in the morning, Krishna her pet cat was already up and purring around her. She gave him some rice from last night and hurried to the room where Thaatha was sleeping. She climbed on the bed slipped into the blanket and started poking him so that he wakes up. "Are we not going Thaatha ?? please get up and get ready" she prompted. Slowly he got up and gave her a big hug. "Yes, dear go get ready or else we will miss the bus". There was only one bus which left from Market to a town near his village.

Spoorthi and Thaatha both got ready, as she came out of the room, she could smell the tangy tamarind and spices in the air. Amma had prepared her favorite Puliyogare for breakfast. She also packed two lunch boxes for the journey, it would be late in the evening by the time they reach home. As Thaatha held the boxes and green suitcase, Spoorthi came out with a small bag and something moved and made a strange noise. What's that he asked and Spoorthi very hesitantly opened the bag, out popped the naughty Krishna. Oh no we cannot take him along, said Thaatha. She pleaded but finally gave up. Amma promised to take good care of him and would let her friends play with him.

They came to the Market bus stand which was a few hundred meters away by walk. In an instant, she could recognize the bus. Manjunatha travels never changed, they have the same colorful bus with lots of green, blue stripes around, a huge painting for Shiva linga in the middle. They climbed into the bus it was still more or less empty as they came pretty early. This was her chance to get the best seat, right next to the driver and besides the engine, she had the best view as she sat in the corner by the front window. Raghu, the bus cleaner was cleaning the windshields, he knew her since she was a baby and he reached out to her and gave her a lollipop.

The bus engine was running and would occasionally make sounds which Spoorthi loved to imitate. Driver uncle came down and sat in his seat, he sounded the horn "to DU todu to DU todu" and suddenly the bus was full. It was the sign that the bus was ready to leave. The conductor cried out loud for the last minute hoppers to get on as the bus slowly made a start. Spoorthi pushed open the side window, a cool breeze went through her face, she just loved it, she was on the way for a fun-filled holiday.

The bus went past her colony and she peeped to see if she could get a glance of Krishna but she could not, the bus was already in its full speed. She turned to the front window and laid her head on the dashboard. She could see all the daddies were hurrying to the office while she got to scoot off to the village. Soon the bus left the city limits, a line of banyan trees was ahead, Spoorthi started counting the trees, there seemed to be no end, she counted till hundred and got tired.

She turned back to Thaatha and asked how many trees were there. Thaatha didn't know as well, they were too many and anyway who counted them so instead he diverted her attention to the Bullock carts, which were carrying a huge pile of grass. The green fields by the side of the road were beautiful, she saw the farmers worked in the fields, birds flying and kids playing around. In some time she started to feel sleepy leaned to her Thaatha's lap.

"Wake up my Doll" called the Thaatha, they had reached the town bus stand already. They both got down and walked a little. They reached the market from here they took the Bullock cart. As she stepped on she saw Murali, he also had come to visit the village. She was glad to have her friend along. As they moved Thaatha gave her the puliyogare Amma had packed, she shared it with Murali and both chatted along. After an hour, the sky was painted red by the sun setting, they passed over the bridge, there was a river which now looked a mix of orange and green as the sun and the nearby fields reflected from the river.

Finally, they reached the village panchayat circle. She could see the big house in the middle of the village which belonged to Thaatha. He was the head Brahman in the village. The villagers greeted the old man, bowed in respect as they walked home. Spoorthi pulled and let go of her Thaatha as she screamed and ran towards the home. Ajji dressed in her traditional Green sari with Red border came out at once all eager to receive the little brat. She ran and hugged her, Ajji landed kisses to her favorite granddaughter and welcomed her with a laadu.

The village house was spacious, they had a cattle shed, huge verandah, a couple of rooms and the kitchen with the firewood stove. Outside the home was the jagulli, a bench where the elderly in the village would come and meet Thaatha for his suggestions.

She went around the house, patted Ganga, the cow and announced her arrival. It was dark now and Ajji called out for dinner. After dinner, the chaape, mats were laid out in the verandah. Spoorthi laid down and looked up to the stars in the sky. She wondered what Krishna would be doing without her. Slowly she dozed off and eagerly looked forward to the Jatra next week....