A sad day!

Today is a sad day. Two people, with whom I've had the privilege to interact very closely, left for their heavenly abode one after the other.

Adieu Sugathakumari teacher!

The Covid-stricken Sugathakumari teacher passed away this morning, around a half past 5, at the Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram. She was 86. A poetess, environmentalist and a social activist, she was active despite her advancing age. Much has been written about and much more will be written about her in the days to come. I shall, therefore, restrict myself to a small anecdote that I was a party to.

She was an ardent admirer of my grandfather and I remember her clinging on to me and weeping like a child, during his funeral. Her genuine grief was touching and she used to make it a point to attend every Social Workers' day (His birthday celebrations on 01 Mar) and the Reading Day (His remembrance Day on 19 Jun) as an integral part of the family. She even chided us once for presenting a guest with an expensive shawl, saying that PN Panicker would have resorted to presenting a simple khadi shawl! She genuinely felt that she had the right to take care of us by encouraging us in the Foundation's activities.

RIP teacher! My salute, tears and prayers to a gritty and loving lady. May God give the strength to her immediate family to pass through these stressful times.

Adieu Sathiamma!

Sathiamma, all of 66, had a peculiar illness of reducing platelet count and her doctors had insisted that it was not cancer. She passed away around a half past 6 in the morning, at her home with her only daughter, Archanakingini and her husband, Suraj looking on. She had been ill for the past few months, moving from one hospital to the other.

Sathiamma was our first maid when we had fetched up at Guruvayur in Nov '13. She was so full of life and had taken it as her responsibility to look after Lekha. At that point of time, her husband was in the final stages of prostate cancer. We'd insisted upon his last Diwali celebrations of 2014 to be played with us. I still remember the look of gratitude on his face when he said that he knew that his wife and daughter were safe with us. He had passed away in Jan 2015 after giving away his daughter's hand to Suraj.

Sathiamma had left us soon after, to be with her daughter and son-in-law. Her ailment used to bother her as the expenses, for her treatment, were quite high. She was one person who always had a smile on her face despite the difficulties that she was going through.

RIP Sathiamme! My salute, tears and prayers to a valiant lady, full of love and affection. May your daughter have the strength to tide over this irreplaceable loss. 

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by 10.

Earlier, Seena had come by to take care of Lekha's requirements. I'd driven our Chevy to renew the 'Pollution Under Control' certificate, for which I'd to drive beyond Chovvallurpadi. On return, the car was fuelled and tyre pressure was checked.

We are off to Muhamma - about 10 kms beyond Kochi - tomorrow as we have an appointment with Dr Srikant Mallan, the dentist. Abhilash will be the chauffeur and we shall return by late afternoon.