Aahaa Chennai

The moon drifts afar. White roses mourn; the sun sends  emissaries.

The journey has taken several weeks, interspersed with ups and downs... A sense of wonder coupled with keen interest, some hiccups... the intense heat driving away the butterflies, delay due to tumultuous natural elements, plus a few 'hands on' lessons on the way . A 'one-of-a-kind' journey, with a handful of fragrant fennel seeds.

The deafening sound broke the silence. Something rolled down and landed at my feet. The piece was the work of a very busy artist, holding sway over a pristine blue sky, using  heat-tipped arrows to etch ridges and swirls and singeing rays to affix shades of brown, sending across a message, look upwards... I hold the upper hand. The sun has its say.

They've been looking forward to their release, for days, weeks, months... There's much to be done, large areas to cover... to joyously bounce and roll. Down below... impatience, panic and anger have grown. Up above, imprisoned raindrops are trying hard, to pull away from a force refusing to let  go.

The singer arrived, gazed around at the audience and began a solo performance. The  trilling overhead made the Bougainvilleas flutter wildly. In a faraway high perch, some winged visitors added their contrasting, background notes. The music stopped when the harsh noise of canines on a stroll, struck a jarring note. --------------------- Black Drongo singing - My small, happy world...

Attack! Attack! The target field was vast. It included... roofs and floors, walls and  windows, the soil, the roots, the stem, trunk, branches, leaves, buds, flowers, fruits. Birds turned restless. Water disappeared. The wind joined the attack. A pair of eyes looked down and spotted the very-visible enemy. Heat! A 50-word tale.

The waiting continues... They look heavenward for some signs. Grey clouds appear, vanish... and appear again. A cool wind arrives tickling the leaves, rocking the flowers. Birds screech... the eagerly-awaited event could happen anytime. The buds shout a welcome to bouncy raindrops but the sun above breaks the spell. A 50-word tale.

The blossoms were ready and so too was the colour palette. The colours waited anxiously. The purple and blue were sure of being chosen. The black had faith in its uniqueness. The red had no doubts at all. The pink, white, green and yellow, remained silent and then...went missing. A 50-word tale.

After being cosseted by  tufts of green, the tender rays of the morning sun, brushed by cool air from the water sprayer, turned this way and that by curious birds, tickled by rows of marching ants, pressed against the noses of hungry squirrels, I've finally decided to take a break. A 50-word tale.

White roses grumble. Ugly wrinkles and brown patches. Sun sends 'New-look' kit.

Deep into the dark hours, when thunder holds its impromptu concert, a bounteous coconut tree takes a hit... a cruel dart of lightning. The fronds are drying fast and the forecast seems bleak. After waiting many months for the revival of this stolid giant in the backyard, hope falls as the termites arrive and even wet sacks draped over, offer no succour. After a long gap... during which, the empty space where the tree once stood, begins to prey on my mind, a bright flowering plant, making its mark elsewhere is transplanted to the spot but to my luck, it has a mind of its own, bettering even the lightning-struck coconut tree at the pace at which it began to dry  up and after many futile months of keeping my fingers crossed, just when I concluded that the fateful spot, had better be left empty, Nature stepped in, with its rejuvenation brigade, armed with green sootheners, to lift my spirits.

                   Searing  winds of May.            Velvety lawn  shows off its                    new sunlit border.                Hot wind passes by.        Yellow blossoms, russet leaves,                 party on green dais.

Gifts bearing that 'special' tag, cosily resting, tucked away,  neatly, in hay-filled boxes, are biding their time. After periodic cosseting, of being turned this way and that, plus the unleashing of many sensorial tales, involving those 'ooh and aahh!' filled eyes and twitching noses, one sunny morning, when the glittering wall outside,  painted by the sun, matches their golden sheen, they are ready for a send off. Some have already been  filched, by cunning birds and ever hungry squirrels but the quintessential flavour of this season's soft, chemical free, mesmerizing golden chunks, (sliding their way through, a beckoning tongue, which rolls in merriment, coating the queueing tastebuds  which demand more and more), brings out an irrepressible urge in many a mind to sing paeans in praise of... the King of fruits, the all pervasive fragrance and memorable flavour, inching its way past ...

     Soft green and tough brown                          spar, as the fiery sun cuts            across blue expanse.              Young green coconut      dreams of an Earthy brown tan.                The sun obliges.

Shh! There's an eerie stillness. My eyes try to pierce the dark blanket spread outside . The wind has disappeared. The stars are missing. I am reminded of a book that I had read. My eyes close and the first rays of the sun has me stepping outside. When I begin to think I know every nook and cranny in my small patch of green, a nocturnal scaly visitor, slithering by noiselessly, has left behind something, very different from the bright leaves and sparkly flowers, the soft buds and juicy fruits, something to remember, a piece of skin, giving  everyone goosebumps and an endless list of... how, when, why?

My Kindle ebook "Water sends SMSes: Have you got it?" available for  free download on Amazon from May 25-29. Link given below: https://www.amazon.in/Water-sends-SMSes-Have-you-ebook/dp/B07NHCWVGV/ref=mp_s_a_1_1qid=1554472747&refinements=p_27%3AVidya+Vasudevan&s=books&sr=1-1 Reviews most welcome.

                 Daily search begins.             Closed petals await the sun.               Green giant holds show.

Cool rain and fresh breeze. Sparkling leaf. Wet soil. Damp feet. Sun grins. Dream shatters.

                                                                                                                                                         Tiny                              blossoms                         enjoy summer                    camp with birdsong                playful wind, sunny grins,               falling leaves, b...

         First slivers of dawn. Wistful petals look around.        Crafty sun tiptoes.

A day to remember. Heat layers arrive. Hungry birds flutter up. Curious butterflies watch. Heat layers arrive. Soft petals droop. Curious butterflies watch. 'Shush,' says the hot wind. Soft petals droop. Baby squirrels scamper. 'Shush,' says the hot wind. A green gift beckons. Baby squirrels scamper. Fresh 'tender coconut' water. A green gift beckons. Clinking glasses. Fresh 'tender coconut' water. Hungry birds flutter up. Clinking glasses. A day to remember.

Tender buds arrive. The Jasmine plant works extra hard. One more day to go. The sun watches over. The Jasmine plant works extra hard. Creamy specks peek out. The sun watches over. Hot landscape holds breath. Creamy specks peek out. Dawn tiptoes in. Hot landscape holds breath. Fragrant white blooms smile.

              Gentle dawn offers         packs of golden stimulants.               Sample the outdoors.

One look outside says it all. The sun in a mellow mood has decided to take off to new areas. Grey clouds make merry but the clever sun saunters back, now and then, to keep them in check. Noticing a forlorn looking, once green pal below, smart grey clouds arrive at a quick decision. It's  time to step up their act... for the umbrella dance and paper boat races to begin but the 'waiting-in-the-fold' wind, wanting to draw attention to itself, has already made plans. Entering with gusto, it blows the errant clouds away and the sun, witnessing this, arrives with a sigh, a sigh, that signals 'no rest' and decides to finish its task... filling the sand with patterns. Far far away, kids at play, notice thunder clouds hovering ominously above and gaily stretch out their arms, in a bid to catch the cool raindrops, long awaited, while sceptical grandpa, shaking his head in disbelief, demands to know... are they are real? ...

A curious voice... "What happened?" "Why are these two inside?" Twin coconuts with heads shaved are taking a break... resting in homely environs. Outside, the hungry crows, noisy mynahs and hopping babblers, foraging with their sharp beaks, are ready to tunnel holes to take their fill of scoops of delicious coconut water. The familiar squirrel quartet, their tails swaying, peeping through the foliage overhead want their share too. Many many tailed vistors, roaming around the green patch, are left wondering... where is the mid-morning snack accompaniment they had spied yesterday? Inside... the twin coconuts used to the intermingled, chirruping and cawing notes, now listen to ring tones.

             The  sun sounds the gong. Green, orange and brown compete.             Painted wings triumph.

                Night pitches black tent.     Yellow blossoms share secrets.           Mischievous stars wink.

It seemed as if... the air had turned balmy. Darkened sky on one side, shiny blue and white expanse appearing extra bright on the other. Patches of sunlight sprinkled over the soil went missing. Looking up... I wondered, who would reign? It seemed as if... but bunches of sparkling, sun drenched yellow heads bowing merrily, to the ruler of the skies, revealed the truth.

The yellow speck was visible on the green grassy carpet from mid morning. Curious eyes watched from a distance. Was it hurt? Why was it lying still? Would another one arrive? The hours ticked away. It was time to investigate. An endless line of smiles kept darting out as eyes gazed downwards. Oh! A dainty yellow blossom lay in repose drawing watchful eyes into dreaming of butterflies that dropped by not long ago.