The Forgotten Games

Today my wife forwarded me a mail, which talked about the things that gave happiness in immense measures during our childhood days. And those never cost anything. The children of today do have many things which couldnt be imagined while we were young. But still i feel they are a deprived lot. These kids face the toughest challenges in their small age itself. They have become more serious, and the innocence gets killed quite soon in their lives.

Last time i went to calicut in Kerala (In Nov 09), it was for sharing grief for the loss of an elderly family member. But the kids were not affected much, and they were always playing. Their stock of games are many times more than the city kids. But when compared to our times, its a far cry. I did introduce them to a new game, and indulged myself as a playmate. They all had so much fun and enjoyment in my company. I got 2 other adults also to participate partly, and they too forgot their pains for a while.

Next time i visit those kids, i want to introduce them to a whole lot of games which they havent heard of. No money was required to play games during my childhood. Tamarind seeds could give hours of enjoyment. One only needed to make a few few depressions on the ground. With just 6 pieces of stones we could play a game using our hands. A piece of long elastic gave a couple of hours of hard entertainment. A simple rubber band got us started using the fingers on both our hands in making exquisite and spellbinding shapes. A handful of mud with spittle on it and a stick dug in the centre of the spittle opened up another altogether new game. I can go on and on and on.

Ofcourse we did play cricket and soccer too. If you didnt have a bat, a wooden plank cut in a bat's shape did the trick. The maize's discard, thoughhard, could be used as a ball for a couple of games. I once almost blinded by sister using a bow and arrow made of broom sticks. I made kites on my own using newspaper, 2 broom sticks, a few grains of cooked rice for pasting purpose and presto! my kite was ready to fly. Earth dug for laying foundation for government quarters was used to play hide and seek. We hurt ourselves many a times, but never complained. After all the running around without slippers when we used to return home, there were flowery thorns in the dozen waiting to be picked from our bare heels. They pained, but we were always immersed in the game.

Past was so pleasant. I think everyone agrees.