Creating, Preserving Culture…

Wedding dessert buried deep inside the freezer

for five decades. During a deep cleaning session, lady

observed: ‘Do not open until 2018!’ A chunk of wedding cake

preserved, to be shared on their fiftieth anniversary…the

sharing of vows ne’er happened- her better half gone!

Son encouraged Mom to unwrap the aluminum foil,

and let it thaw; pushing aside skeptical views:

‘No concerns, the oldest one is about 161 years old!’

‘Gharchola sarees are cherished family heirlooms

passed down through generations…’ Isha Ambani’s

wedding outfit – a 16-panelled ghagra worth hundreds

of crores. Noteworthy, the drape on her shoulder –

Mom Nita’s 35-year-old wedding sari!

Connecting with people and places, not just from

the present but also from the past, reveals a world anew.

Sepia-tone photographs, hand-written letters,

crumpled diaries, the scent of old books

bring along infinite sensory pleasures,

greater awareness to rediscover talents,

traditions, customs, and practices; such narratives

help to establish identities, core to our very being,

to recognize we’re leaves of one gigantic tree –

“Humaniqueness!”

Hema Ravi

Writer by passion, She has had a brief stint in the Central Government, as a teacher of English and Hindi; is currently a freelancer for IELTS and Communicative English. She is a poet, author, reviewer, editor (Efflorescence), event organizer, independent researcher, and resource person for language development courses.