Endangered playgrounds | Clementine & Cardamom Poached Apricots

Growing in up in a planned township has such pleasures which is totally unheard-of in the age of skyscrapers. I live in a huge apartment in the suburbs today but not once does it exude the radiance of an old quarter. As usual we go into the past tense mode, of well laid roads criss crossing at equal intervals. So well planned that every house had at least two trees or more. Shrubs,herbs and creepers were the added bounty for any household so you can guess we had plenty of oxygen to breathe. Every backyard door opened into a huge field. The field as huge as the football ground was lined with back doors of all houses forming a full square. An Ariel view of our quarters layout would have mimicked a n by n-dimensional array. All squares of the array resembled the innumerable fields so you see I am bound to feel choked in the match box apartments which apart from parking space offer nothing to my childhood glory. The play area is fit to be my attic but definitely not my childhood field.

These fields witnessed so many innocent baby steps grow into agile football kicks.They had a different hue based on the season. The summers would show the lined trees laden with mangoes and its blossoms. These very trees helped many passer-by steal an afternoon siesta. While winters observed all the back doors open and the dwellers basking in the winter sun. The fields went from slush to puddles with the onset of the monsoons. I have written about our dear mango tree in this post do check out this fun post. Mangi Ferra

From the roads in the front we had narrow bylanes leading to these fields. These bylanes were silent observers to furtive romance, summer picnic, graffiti and unfortunately some pervert too. The girl next door would quickly steal a glance of the boy next door at these bylanes. The kids of the colonies would drape the two ends of the bylanes with bed linen and long garments to create a canopy for their summer pop-up parties. A by-lane was created in between two quarters sections. Hence the lining quarter walls were humiliated with graffiti of all sorts I love you, Fcuk you and Happy new year etc etc. I lived in a corner quarter and my poor wall was subjugated to these miscreants. I offer a moment of silence for the perverts my words are too expensive for them 🙂

I feel sad for all the future generations who will lose the value for open space. With the growing commercialisation’s I hardly see progressive thinking for more open spaces. The population is growing and people need shelter. Land has become the most expensive commodity today. Remember only 1/3 of the earth is land and the rest is water. I flew a kite today from my window with my four-year old DD we were literally hanging from the window. Not a safe option but I need to make the most of what life has to offer. Each time I cannot travel to the borough park for field games. A well planned colonisation could provide such lush environments for children.

The dynamism of adaptability baffles me too. We have smart televisions , Ipads and xboxes. The virtual field is brought to my living room. The urge for openness is overshadowed by joy stick and touchpad cladding fingers. Sigh……I doubt in future I will ever see a house in cosmopolitan with mango,guava, jackfruit and apricot trees etc etc.

I always look forward to the summers, longer warmer evenings. The thought of sitting outside and sipping a drink while the fresh food is getting barbecued…aahh.I today cover the sweet and juicy apricot with wonderful tart flavour, the colour itself is Orange just like the golden sunshine.Todays recipe is Clementine & Cardamom Poached Apricots.