Scents of the Past

When Annu regales me

with tales and anecdotes

of her childhood in Mysore of the

                            1950s and 60s

I recall instantly the Telugu idiom,

“Maa thaathalu nethulu thaagaru

maa moothulu vaasana choodandi”

(Our great grandfathers had tasted ghee, you smell our mouths now).

But when I deeply reflect

I feel even more strongly

that there are also quite some

who talk of their illustrious

                ancestors

when they don’t want

                  to draw attention

to their own accomplishments.

***

Even empty crystal bottles

                                        of scent

continue to emanate their

                                        fragrance,

Don’t they?

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