Life Delicacies

  Keh Dete    (Could have told)   Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.   Christian Lous Lange   Spent my teens living with my eldest brother, then settled at Patiala and working with Chief Architect Punjab: married in a traditional family there: was a frequent visitor to his in-laws so   was I to his in-laws. The family-head of my father’s Sambandhi brother’s father-in-law was a highly learned freelance Purohit, a very serious and a sincere person who spoke much less: who would normally return home in the evening after day’s hard work. At that time sharp, anyone at home would come out, carry away the load from the carrier of his bicycle, park appropriately his bike cycle, bring a glass of water, some will prepare tea, coffee was not the order of the day, then some rest and change, if it were time of lunch/ evening tea or dinner would be served, everybody would talk in low tone no question of quarrel or fight, his presence wa...

  Dirty Dadu   Gloom had enveloped the Home; my youngest sister-in-law had left for her heavenly abode surrendering to His wishes fighting manly battle long enough, her presence was in every nook and corner, silence prevailed like Dark at night; no topics to discuss, no talk, no laughter, everything had converted itself to silence: suddenly shrill loud enough broke that emptiness; some thought it was burst of sorrowful feelings by someone others felt it was a pain with the child: a young couple came running recognizing it the weeping voice of their child; everybody was astonished that nothing harsh had happened.   They analyzed the situation, a few minutes before the child had gone to another room after pausing a program on TV, by the time came back someone had changed the channel, it was blind guess what she had paused; many efforts made with no success to resume the paused one. Shrill did not stop rather it became louder, many faces had gone pale, eyebrows up an...