This is the 10th September! ‘Grandparents
Day!’ This day (first Sunday after Labors Day (First Monday) in
September) is celebrated by Americans as the National Grandparents
Day in U.S.A. I am a proud Indian but we all the people have or had
grandparents. So I wish to write a blog post and dedicate it to my
grandparents.
“A
grandparent is someone with silver in their hair and gold in their heart”
I am born in underprivileged middle class family at
my native village Barbaspura (near Kachewani Railway St.)
in Tirora tehsil in Bhandara (now in Gondia) district in
Maharashtra, India. While growing as a child; I was closed to my both grandparents.
I could not spend such a long period with my paternal grandparents. But I
remember those cherished memories whenever we have spent the time together. So,
let me recall some memories with my grandparents on the National Grandparents Day.
Before going ahead I would like to mention that this particular blog post is my
little effort to tribute and express my love for my both (paternal &
maternal) grandparents.
My Paternal Grandmother (Aaji):-
I don’t remember even face of my grandmother (Aaji) whose
name was Anjana aka Maina. As my relatives told me that I was
playing a tambourine when she was died. No! I wasn’t playing the instrument for
fun or enjoyment; I was just a little kid when she passed away. But I can
describe a lot about my paternal grandfather.
My Paternal Grandfather (Aajoba):-
My paternal grandfather’s name was Raghoba who lived
his last life as a paralytic for the long seventeen years! He was able to
speak very few words due to paralysis. I remember those words- Raju (my
nickname) which was easy for him to call me, Janabai (my
aunty), Soonbai (his daughter-in-law means my mother), Dasrath (corrupt
form of my father’s name Dasharath) and few more names of our neighbors in
native village. I remember that how he was flapping a string of toowal’s cradle
tied to a bed for my little brother’s sleep. My grandfather was smoking beedis in
that period. I remember, once he had asked me to bring lightened beedi;
and I too had breathed a smoke in my childhood. That was my first attempt of smoking!
hahaha!!Lol!! My father (Babuji) remembers several times that how
my grandpa was careful about his son (my father). He says, one day
his father had told him that his right body part was paining and on the very
same day right part of my grandfather’s body became paralytic. Though I do not
have so much cherished memories with him; my father shares so many interesting memories
he has in his mind and heart.
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My Family Photo captured at our Home in Barbaspura.
My Aunt, I am on my Father’s waist and my younger brother Vivek on my Mother’s waist from Left to right.
My paternal grandfather in center.
I wrote in my so many older blog posts that I took my
primary education at my maternal grandparents’ village in Z.P. Purva Madhyamik
Shala Indora Khurd (Nimgaon). I remember that I was doing something inventing (?) with our bicycle and a hammer in my childhood. I think that I was studying
in std. II at that time when a native neighbor on 5 minutes distance from our
paternal house named Pramod Lichade came by bicycle and told me to pack a bag
immediately. I packed my bag and sat behind him on career of his bicycle and
reached at our home. My grandfather was on the death’s door in serious
condition when I met and saw him the last time and later he passed away on the very
same day in 1998. In that era, there were no telephones and mobile phones
unlike today; everyone has to communicate or to send a message. A message of my
grandfather’s demise could not deliver to his only son (my father) even after
so many efforts. My father is a government servant, who was serving as a
primary teacher in Jalna district at that time. He could not
join us for funeral rites of his father; so I fulfilled all obsequies on my grandfather’s
extinct body on behalf of my Babuji.
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According to genetics, grandparents’ 25 percent
hereditary characteristics and virtues transfer to grandchildren by heredity. Today
I am just 26 running, but toes of my right foot pain several times as paralytic
body does! May God mercy on me but I am very scared of paralysis as my
grandfather had the decease!
My Maternal Grandfather (Babaji / Bahaji):-
As I have mentioned above I learnt my pre-primary (Balwadi
/ Anganwadi), and primary education (Std. I-II½ and
III½-VI) at my maternal grandparents’ village. My
grandfather Dr. Sukhdeo A. Rewatkar was a popular
doctor in his village Indora Khurd (Nimgaon) and villages
nearby. I was calling my maternal grandfather ‘Bahaji’ (corrupt
form of Babaji’.) He had big interest and good knowledge of
politics. I remember, how I was often going to his clinic or in market square (‘Bazaar
Chauk’) in my school’s recess for coin of rupee or two rupees.
He had six grandsons (we two brothers and my four cousins) at that time (now I have six cousins); but I was an ‘apple of his eyes’ as I was his daughter’s
son and eldest among all grandsons, so he loved me a lot. My father proudly tells
others about my stage daring and oratory skill. Yeah! I have a good stage
daring and oratory skill; but I look it as an influence of my maternal
grandfather’s speeches. He too was a good orator which skills transferred to me
by my observation and his influence. Really there is so much influence of my
maternal grandfather on my oratory skill.
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| My Maternal grandfather Dr. S. A. Rewatkar |
When I decided to leave Indora after VI
std. and go with my family in Jalna district for VII std.
education. My grandfather had personally dropped me to bus-stop in Indora. At
that time anyone could notice tears brimmed in his eyes in thought of my
separation. I remember very well, I was in my room at Ramtek preparing
for assembly of my DTEd college on 05th March,
2010. That was a black day for me. My phone rang on that morning, when I
picked up the phone and received a call; I was SHOCKED after hearing voice from second end. My
grandfather was no more! He passed away suddenly! Tears gathered once
again in my eyes now while writing this paragraph. I can’t scribble much more
about him now. If you read this paragraph with emotions and feel, I think it’s enough to
reach you what I want to convey.
At the end of this paragraph I would like to share a Marathi
poem written by myself and dedicated to him on fourteenth day (Chaudawi) after
his premature death.
श्रद्धांजली वाहतो, सुखदेवा
श्रद्धांजली वाहतो, सुखदेवा
होता गरीबांचा, तूची मसीहा
रुग्णांशी नेहमी तू, बाळगली प्रिती
धन्द्यासोबत कायम, ठेवली राजनीती
मनोभावे रुग्णांची, केली रे सेवा
तुझ्या दवाखान्यात, श्रीमंत येती
गरीब रोगी हासत, घराशी जाती
रुग्णांना तुझे, एकच म्हणणे
आज नाही तर, उदयाला देवा
वाटले नव्हते, लवकर जाईल
तुला काळ इतक्या, लवकर नेईल
आठवण राहील, काळ्या दिवसाची
पाच मार्च दोन, हजार दहा
My Maternal Grandmother(Mothi Aai):-
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| My Maternal Grandmother |
My maternal grandmother’s name was Nausalya / Nausala. She protected me every time whenever I gone through obstacles in my childhood. I will remember my maternal grandmother (Mothi Aai) for her riddles and puzzles she asked me to solve in my childhood. I wish if I could collect and write those riddles in a diary. My grandmother too left all of us alone and passed away prematurely on dated 12th January, 2015.
Both my paternal as well as maternal
grandparents are not alive today to
read/hear my words which I scribbled in their memory in this blog post today. I
wish they had to be alive to listen/read this post! Anyway who can change the
God’s destiny? I hope they are reading my each word from the heaven and are
blessing us from there. Both my maternal grandparents had an intense desire to
see my (at least their elder grandson’s) marriage, wife and children (their
great-grandchildren) but their desires could not be fulfilled as they passed
away very early as no one expected. I hope they would see all those scenes they
desired from heaven and will shower blessings on us from there at the right
time.
Anyway these were my cherished memories with my
grandparents.
Today, I wish if I could spend the time with them and
take selfies on the occasion of Grandparents day. I wish if I could bring them back
but I can’t. I wish if I could express my love (#LoveJatao) to my grandparents.
Today I really miss my grandparents. Because Grandparents
are epitome of unconditional appetite for love and unending tolerance for
mischief! They bring joy to our life with their beaming smiles and
hugs. Unfortunately, the busy life that we live today, makes it difficult
to spend as much time with our grandparents as we would have liked.
Fortunately, we have Grandparents day today on September 10,
2017 so let’s #LoveJatao and make
this day a special one.
Thank you very much for reading this blog post!!
I look forward to hear from you how would you celebrate Grandparents Day or how did you celebrate?. Do share a selfie with your grandparents on Sept. 10, 2017 on Twitter or Facebook with #LoveJatao & tag @blogadda to
win a goodie from Parachute Advansed.
- Note:- This blog post has been written
for #LoveJatao Activity on BlogAdda in association with Marico.
- This blog post is dedicated to my grandparents on
the occasion of Grandparents Day on 10th September 2017.
- © This blog post and mentioned poems’ copyrights are
reserved with author/blogger/poet Rajesh D. Hajare ©RDH Sir.
Author: Rajesh D. Hajare (RDH)
Mo. +91-7588887401, 7744018492
