#SoCS Aug. 8/2020

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “spot.” Write whatever image the word “spot” invokes. Have fun!

The first thought that came to mind when I read this prompt were all those ‘spot the differences’ we used to enjoy in comic books long back. It has been ages since I have read any. Childhood was filled with Phantom and Mandrake comics, Archies, all those superhero and heroine ones and of course Asterix and Tintin, Amar Chitra Katha  and Tinkle. In those days, most comic books had something extra like ‘spot the differences’ and some interesting information.

We used to go to my father’s elder brother’s home in Bombay for short vacations. The summer vacations were reserved for our visit to my maternal grandparents’ home in a small town in Karnataka. My cousins in Bombay had a huge collection of comics. I don’t know how many times I must have read each one of them and I don’t think I ever got bored of them. My doddappa’s house was on a hill and there were three or four houses in that building. There were lawns all around. It was doddappa’s s official quarters and was a beautiful place . We spent wonderful moments there. I still remember each and every room in that house. Quite some time ago, I learnt the building was razed to the ground. I don’t know what is there on that spot. The building is gone but those memories will always be with me.

And memories reminds me of an incident that happened in this building which my Amma and Doddamma loved to recollect. It happened in 1962 and I was in the crawling stage and busy exploring the new world. At that time my father had to be in the hospital for a long time due to some problem with his spine. So my mother with my brother and myself stayed with my doddappa and doddamma till my father recovered. We were with them for a year. One morning my grandfather came to my amma and doddamma asking the whereabouts of the baby. They searched the house but I was not found. Then, to their horror they saw the front door ajar. They were in a tight spot !! Doddamma rushed down the stairs, heart in her mouth, fearing that I must have tumbled down the stairs. My mother rushed up and she found me crawling up the stairs with great concentration. With a sigh of relief she carried me back home. Actually, both ladies never told me what my grandfather told them after I was found safe and sound 😊.  

(Doddappa and Doddamma- my father’s elder brother and sister-in-law)

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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Aug. 8/2020