So, field practicum placement over, report submitted, even grade received.
Back in the campus and in the city that never pauses, Gadchandur seems a far far distance away, another world almost. A world that feels almost like a dream one woke up from...with the edges of detail blurred and smudged a bit.
And why not, the love and warmth, the endless cups of tea offered and consumed, the innocent, soul-baring smiles and laughter of Gadchandur cannot be in the same age and time as the constant push and pull of life, the mutual distrust of people, and the dirty looks from co-passengers in the local trains of this great metropolis.
An eye-opener and a turning point, the time spent in and around Gadchandur, is by far, one of the most cherished and most exciting memories of my 28 years on the planet.
Never once falling short of love or goodwill, cooperation or trust, emotion or friendliness; I was in Gadchandur, happier than I was as a rent-paying vermin in Mumbai, and that changed me forever. I think it messed with my head in ways I don't understand fully now, but that have Gadchandur-ed me in to something better, happier, and more thankful for life and all its myriad and colorful gifts that make my life unbelievably amazing!!
A supari (betelnut) trader and tobacco products supplier who would hide his 'kharra' (chewing tobacco) packets when he saw me, for a landlord; a Maharashtrian woman, who would cook and relish rajma (kidney beans) for the Punjabi in me, for a landlady; endless kids with runny noses and ready homework questions for the 'doctor didi' for neighbours; enthusiastic men and women who would drop off food, snacks, and sometimes even me from the bus stand, for colleagues; what a blessed time!!
Some of the pictures (as uploaded above) manage to just take me back to some place in time that I left a part of me at.....It is difficult to say which one is more difficult..to take away Gadchandur from me or me from Gadchandur but one thing's for sure...some 'jodis' (couples) truly are made in the heavens above :)
6 comments:
hmm. We look forward to some posts about the wheel under your feet that makes you travel endlessly. :)
he he he....I would love to be original in answering but Mark Twain has already said what I wanted to say in,
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."
:) Travel is to the obsessive traveler as cocaine is to the addict, albeit in a more positive way :)
Don...lady don :p
P.S-
and nice picture taken,,awesome mother nature.
Mam can i keep the last pic ! "sun rays through the clouds"
thanks for uploading such a nice pics doctor....... i have spend my 21 years in gadchandur from my childhood and even today also when I am in a city like pune, I always feel to go back to my Gadchandur...... I expect to from you that u will continue posting many more good things about Gadchandur...... Thanks for the same.....All the best......
Thanks TM :) Mother Nature belongs to everybody and photographs can only make an attempt at capturing its beauty so you can keep all the photographs!!!
Dear Ankesh, thank you so much for the kind words. Gadchandur has a special place in my heart and I have countless photographs of the place :) I will continue to write about it and share my experiences and I want to thank people such as yourself for encouraging me to do so! Thanks again :)
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