Early morning when my Chitappa broke the news of my grandma’s demise, a sense of shock overtook me. Even though, we all knew it was going to happen sometime in future, the real news perhaps delivered a sucker punch to my normal life.
My earliest memories of my paati were about twenty-five years back when I first went to my native place. She would smile on seeing me, invite me into our ancestral home and give me some sweets to eat. She was ever-smiling and so resilient in life. I have never seen her say that she is hungry or thirsty on any of our long temple trips. She could walk faster and longer than any of us.
She was always beautiful and ever youthful. The last six months were quite cruel to her as she suffered second degree burns when her sari pallu caught fire in the karthigai deepam. Perhaps now, she was at peace with herself. I don’t know how or what I would feel while entering our ancestral home the next time I visit Inida without my paati being there to welcome me. As I begin to choke with emotion on finishing this post, I hope that my Paati’s soul would rest in peace!!
