31-05-2022
Yesterday we read in the newspaper that the Southwest Monsoon has entered Kerala and will reach our state by June 2nd. That is good news and something to smile about😊.
Fortunately, Nagesh came yesterday to pluck coconuts. We have ten trees. Once the rains start it is impossible to climb the tree. Nagesh climbs the trees and drops the coconuts and dry fronds down. He takes Rs100 per tree. His nephew collects the coconuts and keeps them wherever we want them to be kept. The fronds we keep outside our gate. We will keep about 75 for our use and sell the rest. Ashoka came today to remove the husks of the coconuts. The husks are good source of fuel. We don’t use them so we give them to whoever wants them.
Yesterday evening we did not feel like going for a walk. We went to the park opposite the temple and sat on the seats near the trees. It is a peaceful place. On the 28th evening we went to Endpoint. The sun was shining brightly on the sea in the distance. It looked like a silver lining.
There are so many people for whom life is very dark. It is difficult to imagine their lives. Whenever I see silver linings around clouds or on the sea, I think of them and wish there were silver linings in their lives.
There is a beautiful park in Endpoint. We sat there for some time watching a game played by a dog and two Mynas. The birds were flying low and calling the dog. The dog raced after them. It went back to its place. This happened four times. It was something to smile about 😊. Maybe they played this game every day. The world of violence seemed far away.
Two of our neighbours gave us mangoes from their trees. They are very tasty. I have kept the pulp of three in the freezer to make icecream after the season is over . Aamras is a very tasty dessert 😊.
Today we went to my husband’s cousin’s place in a village to attend a religious function. We were going there after four years. Their place is in a valley surrounded by hills with trees on all sides. The cousins have made a large open tank on a flat surface in the hill behind and their house. There is a large pond in their plantation. Water is pumped to the tank above and it is sent down in channels to different parts of the plantation. We were happy to meet our relatives. On our way back we visited another cousin. Their house is also in a small town. A river flows near their land. They have many fruit trees and they gave us cocums, guavas and custard apples ( Ramaphala). Our nephew climbed the tree to pluck them 😊. We were back home by 6.30.
It was a good day.
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/the-great-indian-monsoon-and-its-friends-49503
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myna
https://rachnacooks.com/easy-aamras-recipe/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annona_reticulata
Mukhamani 
Comments are welcome :)