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My three magic genie wishes

If I had three wishes from a magic genie, here’s what I’d ask for: Why? Because these are the forces that keep us locked in conflict. Don’t believe me? Just glance at today’s headlines. With these influences gone, we’d have a clean slate for a few decades before humanity inevitably comes up with a new breed of politics, religions, and weapons. But until then, we’d have a golden window of time to tackle the real issues: disease, poverty, unemployment, and social inequality.

Two months in our village

I must have been seven. We spent two months in our village when school would be closed. Vacation time was a time for fun. We spent the time in our hometown in Kerala. Kerala back in the seventies was green with a capital G. Coconut trees were everywhere. Gently flowing rivers crisscrossed the land. Grandfather had a big family. He built a big house to accommodate his entire brood. Uncles, aunties, cousins, babies, and old balding relations lived in the house, and there was still room to spare. Once, I counted the rooms, and there were eleven on each floor. There was enough room to run around and play without getting in the way of the elders. Three of my cousins were my age, and our idea of fun was to run all around the house, making a racket. During one of our races around the house, we saw a… Two months in our village

Weekly grocery shopping day

It is Saturday. Weekly grocery shopping day. This is a long-standing tradition in our family of three members. Every Saturday, without fail, my wife and I go to the market and do our weekly shopping.  It is not a planned activity. Which might seem strange. Considering that it is a family tradition. The workflow starts something like this.  Saturday morning, starting at around 9 AM, I start asking,“What time are we leaving?”  I repeat this every five minutes until we leave. The answer could be one of the following. ‘In five minutes.’ ‘After I hang the clothes out to dry.’ ‘After I finish boiling the milk.’  I switch off my laptop and get ready.  It takes me 5 minutes. I position myself on the chair near the door.  At 9.30 her mother calls. That is a call she has to take. They discuss topics ranging from death, disease, religion, recent… Weekly grocery shopping day