Our Ganeshas

The Family Scribes

The guys in the garden had submerged themselves the evening before.

Family Scribes

The next night, the others, the tall guys and the little guys from around the home, agreed to assemble on the green Chinese table. Umbrella Ganesh leading, tall skinny Ganesh taking up the rear, and the little ones carrying the large apple-scented candle. A clear moonlit night and there’d been no mention of rain.

They marched with much intensity. Went along the right bank of the village stream, strewn and tangled with plastic bags and MacDonald’s cutlery, discarded polystyrene lunch boxes and rusty old fridges, doors flung open. When they got to the pebbled beach they dropped off their paraphernalia and took a leisurely dip. After the swim they sat for a bit chatting about this and that. Sea calmly reflecting the clouded moon.

On their return, single-file and humming, they followed the left bank of underfoot mulch. They were amazed to find the nearby swamp filled in for construction. Trucks and cranes abounded. Gone the perfumed ginger lilies and the croaking giant frogs. From a chempak tree on the hillslope, a diminutive wide-eyed owl hooted a hello. Not far below the owl, two wild boars snuggled and snorted in sleep.

High overhead, landing lights flashing, a jet droned, arriving in Hong Kong in the early hours, leaving cities our Ganeshas knew too well — Mumbai, Trivandrum, Chennai, Kolkata.

Ganeshas arrived back, dawn dewy, before birds awakened. They got home just as Spooks walked in from his prowl, complaining of the lack of animals to hunt and kill. The party asked him a favour. Drag out the Canon PowerShot and take a photo of us they said. Spooks obliged before he went to sleep on the forbidden best sofa in the house.
Ganeshas scattered about the home and settled before Don and I awoke.

PS
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Lord Ganesha symbolises wisdom and intelligence and is a friend of writers.

Ganesh Chaturthi is an annual festival honouring him. It falls within August/September of the lunar month of Bhadrapada of the Hindu Calendar. The auspicies festival is observed by Hindus all over the world, and in India celebrated over eleven days. Spectacular statues and images of Lord Ganesha are honoured and on the final day paraded along streets to the accompaniment of music, dancing and singing before being submerged in the sea or waterways.