Sunday, December 23, 2007

winters.

Winters do something to you...whether it’s those five extra minutes you crave to stay under the quilt or the run you want to run to feel a tad bit warmer, winters bring in times which are not lived otherwise.

Winter, for me, has always marked its arrival with the smell of naphthalene balls mingling with the smell of woolens locked up over a year. Like the countless mufflers and stoles, memories come flooding out-memories long forgotten, memories recently lived and memories that will never be lived again...

I don’t know whether it’s just me, but I find colours growing brighter during the winters-the proofs to which are the vegetable markets. The violet of the brinjals, the green of the cabbage-they all grow brighter. Don’t they?

Winters got me my first blazer, my first puff of cigarettes, my first sip of alcohol, my first baking experience and my first gift from Santa! The waft of freshly fried Koraishutir Kochuri, the candy floss in the zoo which melted in my mouth, the man who sells Joynogorer Mowa and the Kashmiri shawlwallahs...tiles which make up the mosaic of my winter memories.

The Nahoum’s Plum Cake with all its glory, the Park Street Santa who never runs out of Éclairs, the streamers on the Flury’s glass walls...I can’t really tell when my winter memories mingle with my Christmas memories and make up the two inseparable faces of the coin which I call “Winter Memories”. The fake Christmas tree at home which is decked up in trinkets every year, the happy Santa whose sack overflows with bright boxes...pieces of childhood which refuse to be put under the spell of Oblivion. Our house doesn’t have a fireplace, but Santa did come visiting every year. No, I never caught a glimpse of red and white hurrying past my bed, but I always found a brightly packaged gift (which always had a note addressed to me, in a handwriting resembling my mother’s)-next to my tree which shined in all its glory-complete with fake cotton wool snow.

In this book of memories, I added a chapter this year-unimaginatively titled “Delhi” .the two degree nights, the four degree mornings; the thick blanket of fog over my college froze my bones which thawed with a sip of the college café noodle soup. The new winter clothes from Sarojini, the draught that slapped my face in the auto, the striped socks, my college sweatshirt-they all added to a major part of my “growing up”.

But no matter how old I grow, I know that some Santa is always looking at me from his igloo with Rudolf by his side, and there’s no way I’m going to believe the “truth” behind the myth. And I shudder to think of the day when the walk down New Market in its Christmas look will stop creating the magic it’s always played on me...

Some places are meant to be Neverlands forever and it’s up to them to bring out the Peter Pan in all of us...for all the winters to come.

P.S: Merry Christmas to all of you, have a great year ahead...

20 comments:

Neel said...

Sheer brilliance! One of the best pieces you've written.it's brilliant! keep it up. merry christmas to you to baby.

Magically Bored said...

Lovely post. Me like very much.
Merry Christmas to you!

... said...

Awesome post!

I like winter too..it brings a magic with it!

:)

Merry Christmas!

What's In A Name ? said...

A really good post on what Winter means to us, Bengalis in Kolkata. Flury's, New Market and the Mass at St Paul's. If you are in Delhi, I am sure you must be missing certain things.

Happy X-mas.

Lucid Darkness said...

Merry Christmas. It's good know that the festive season is improving your mood.

Rajarshi said...

now you're making me all nostalgic about kolkata winters. i'm spending this winter battling snowstorms and slipping over ice!

little boxes said...

@what's...:missed them too much so in cal now :)
LD:the mood swings get a tad bit sober with the winters
@rajarshi:i know how that feels!

weevil girl said...

aw beautiful post yes :D
winter=<3 yesyes
marry chreestmaas belated! hope you had the phuns :P

onnesha said...

merry christmas to you too!
and yes,things do grow more colourful during winter.go to maidan some day.you couldnt get a brighter evidence!

~Moo-lah Buz!nezzz~ said...

"Winters got me my first blazer, my first puff of cigarettes, my first sip of alcohol, my first baking experience and my first gift from Santa!"
hehe,Winter nostalgia strikes again,eh??...
Loved the post.
Merry Christmas.
And a Happy new year too.

Phoenix said...

hey merry Christmas to you too!!

i love koraishutir kochuri and alur dom and joynagarer moya...umm..without them..bangali der sheeter khawa is so incomplete.you so beauitifully wrote your memories that i didnt know whether i was reading your or reading my mind being expressed.beautiful

i was in delhi recently,actually gurgoan.did whole lot of shopping from sarojini...man!u do get good stuff there,now i can proudly say i do have a winter collection.

i have visitied ur blog before,somehow i lost all my links while formatting my blog,some i have been able to retrieve and some not,so i hope you dont mind if i link you again??????

little boxes said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Phoenix said...

oye if u have a chat im ym orgtalk lemme know...maybe we can chat up sometime...

darkling said...

hmmm am already smelling the kochuri again thru this post...:)

Doubletake, Doublethink. said...

my favourite season, it's magical. loved the post.

CheshireCat said...

Winter....plum cakes,christmas trinkets and half-forgotten memories.

lovely post.
Merry Christmas!

Ephemera said...

Fabulous!!!
The flow of words is really incredible
All the best for the coming year!!!

sujaan said...

wow! i know my comment wud get lost in the sea of comments u have here...but i really loved the imageries evoking the sense of smell and vision...i loved the naphthalene balls part...i can identify with it too..

Anonymous said...

lovely reading the feel of this season...Here's wishing u also a wonderful year ahead!

Phoenix said...

wishing you a very happy new year!