“Where time stood still: Life in Munnar”
Times change as years pass by. From carefree childhood to full on responsible parenthood, life has just changed so much. I still remember the days in Munnar where I was born and brought up. Life was just so beautiful. There was no Internet, mobiles and some times there wasn’t even electricity, but life felt like a dream and I was content. I used to treasure every season of Munnar. Right from the bright sunny summer mornings with the aroma of fresh lush green tea around to the crazy rainy days freezing and dripping with water every where, I loved every inch of it.
Memories cascade through my heart, a flood too powerful to contain. Life used to be hard in the mountains but the joy and warmth it brought would overweigh the hardships and cold we faced. Days usually began early for us, we wake up early and get ready to school. By 7 we would be picked up by the school bus. The mornings were always cool, with the scent of fresh tea leaves blending with the earth after a misty night. We had to travel almost 30kms to go to our school back then. I loved the bus ride with the cool fresh misty air splashing my face.
The nature around was just a vision, the rivers, the orderly plantations, the tall trees was just perfect. We were lucky few days to have seen elephants on the way to school too. I had few personal favorite spots which I wouldn’t miss for the world, like the humongous tree with tons of bee hives, a small patch of grass land adjoining a river and the eucalyptus trees near our school.
Going on picnics, trekking and evening strolls by the rolling hills of tea bushes were so common which has become a distant dream that I crave now. In Munnar, there were no strangers-only neighbors and friends who shared each other’s joys and sorrows. That was the place where I learnt to respect, love and even talk to Nature ( Ah..Might sound crazy though, I did talk to the trees and plants there.)
Sometimes I ponder the fact that I was blessed to have been born and brought up in the mountains, but my kids will never get to experience the life in the mountains. We do go on trips to such place’s but our kids can’t savor the serenity of the mountains like I did as a child. Am grateful for the city life am in right now, but the scent of fresh tea , misty mornings, rains always takes me back to those carefree days ,where every sunshine felt like a new adventure waiting to unfold.
"As always, let your scribbles become stories"
Nancy Kavin



Awesome write up. Its bringing the good old memories and definitely our kids our missing the wonderful environment we grew up.
ReplyDeleteWow awesome work anni. As I read, I went back to our good old days. I miss Munnar and our childhood days.
ReplyDeleteKeep writing anni❤️ way to go...
I would love to experience that myself!💕
ReplyDelete