While not wandering across the length and breadth of the country visiting temples and places of interest, I get some free time. In Chennai apart from swimming every day to keep fit and, of course, visiting temples, there is not much activity. I am foodie with a passion for cooking and try out interesting dishes from Youtube varying from the Sweet Malpoa to Amla (Nellikai) pickles to Aloo Jeera. Since I have been cooking, not frequently of course, for more than 40 years, I have had a fair amount of success.
There are rare occasions when I do drive with my wife, son and daughter either to Kancheepuram, Pondicherry or some other nearby place. But long drives are becoming more and more of a rarity. Hence, I resort to writing poems for children. One such poem is reproduced below:
THE HUNTER
The lithe body, the tawny mane
The noble forehead and mien
The golden skin tinged with black
In every inch a noble beast
The jungle echoes to his roars
The timid animals run hither and thither
By nightfall it’s certain
That one would be its prey
He lords the dense jungle
Knows every sight and sound
The waterhole nearby
Providing meat and water
He fears not any denizen
Of the jungle or the city
The mighty jaws and talons
Make short work of every being
He loved his mate and cubs
She of equal pride and fierce
Fearing none in the jungle
But her Lord and Master
Their cubs pretty and small
The pride of their parents
She guards them fiercely with courage
Which only a mother can muster
The lion and the lioness
Were a formidable foe together
Making a visit to their den
Fraught with risk and danger
The pride lived happily
In their dark and dense cave
Providing warmth and shelter
Which no other home could equal
© V. Balasubramanian
There are rare occasions when I do drive with my wife, son and daughter either to Kancheepuram, Pondicherry or some other nearby place. But long drives are becoming more and more of a rarity. Hence, I resort to writing poems for children. One such poem is reproduced below:
THE HUNTER
The lithe body, the tawny mane
The noble forehead and mien
The golden skin tinged with black
In every inch a noble beast
The jungle echoes to his roars
The timid animals run hither and thither
By nightfall it’s certain
That one would be its prey
He lords the dense jungle
Knows every sight and sound
The waterhole nearby
Providing meat and water
He fears not any denizen
Of the jungle or the city
The mighty jaws and talons
Make short work of every being
He loved his mate and cubs
She of equal pride and fierce
Fearing none in the jungle
But her Lord and Master
Their cubs pretty and small
The pride of their parents
She guards them fiercely with courage
Which only a mother can muster
The lion and the lioness
Were a formidable foe together
Making a visit to their den
Fraught with risk and danger
The pride lived happily
In their dark and dense cave
Providing warmth and shelter
Which no other home could equal
© V. Balasubramanian