New Friends

An earthworm struggled on the gravelly road near my children's school. Once upon a time, I couldn't put enough distance between us. But that day, I picked up a twig, let it curl around it and dropped it on the mud patch nearby. My children and I watched as it burrowed quickly in.

After the rains, yesterday, I had walk to reach somewhere. I had to put my foot into slush covered by water. Once upon a time, I would have been mortally scared of insects catching my foot and whittling it to bone in no time. But yesterday, I confidently put my foot in, worried only about the water dirtying my feet rather than of being 'footnapped' and killed.

My balcony, with its plants and compost, has become home to several kinds of insects. Rains bring out the earthworms from the pots, and I am glad to see my daughter diligently trying to put them back in the pots.

This rain, black leeches started crawling around. Rather than being disgusted, I was curious to read up about them. Apparently there are many varieties of leeches, and one of them feeds on larvae and other insects. Reassured that they had come for the larvae in the compost, and were not going to stealthily attack my family, I had them collected in the scoop and put out in the garden downstairs.

Oh, I used to place water in the balcony for the birds and was horrified when a raven started using that small bowl to soak its meat in. I stopped keeping water, also because it has been raining on and off for the last few months. I now fully appreciate the wisdom of our forefathers in keeping only food, and fell into that practice. A young raven is as demanding as my little one, cawing every morning by 6.45 for its breakfast. It got addicted to bread since that is the easiest to give at that hour, but am slowly weaning it away by giving rice, chapathi, dosa etc. when I can.

The raven, which had got so used to me that it would only move a few fingers away when I brought food, now stays put, making just a token move! For the past two days, it has been bringing a friend, girlfriend?, who is yet to get used to me and flies away if there is any movement in the attached kitchen.

Oh, and my neighbour's dog, with whom I barely kept eye contact, felt confident enough to rub itself against me yesterday.

Years ago, a cat laid kittens in a room I had to live in for a couple of days. We had an understanding. If she wanted to come in or go out, I would go to the door and she would slip in through the window. The rest of the day, she was confident enough about me to leave them under my care!

I can't say I was just as thrilled when a mouse built a nest in my balcony... It felt very bad to be destroying that home, but it had to be done.

All this makes me wonder how we have the heart to kill and destroy animal habitat. When will we learn the implications of our actions and give the animals the space they need, while making a home and hearth for ourselves?

  

A Night with the Reptiles

A relaxed evening by the beach

Stars on earth

 My children had been to the night camp at crocodile bank in Chennai through school on two different years. I didn't know adults could visit too. When a friend asked if we should, I said yes, not quite knowing what it involved. It involved many things, novelty, excitement, relaxation, amazement, fulfillment and introspection.

Can you guess what these lights are? Headlights reflected in the dark?

You are right. On the night walk, when we flashed the lights in the pen that held magar crocodiles, it was like looking at red stars on earth! Amazement personified!

I hoped to catch sight of some snakes roaming free in the camp during the night walk. That didn't happen. We entered a bat-infested cave-like enclosure reluctantly and was rewarded with the sight of a normally sleepy python emerging from a water body in her cage and rub against the metal cage. That is the process of molting - when the skin gets loosened by soaking and then the snake rubs against the hard surface so that the skin can peel. What a beautiful sight.

Getting into action

Oh, that's me, scrubbing the pond in the tortoise pen! Soon after we cleaned it, the biggest male pooed in the pond - as good as tell us to go to hell! That was a hilarious sight!

This brave young man works closely with crocodiles and is feeding the American alligator, which followed him around like a puppy. That was to make it get some exercises, since otherwise the crocs and their brethren do not get enough place to stretch their muscles.

The guide who took us around showing us his work and his creatures had me thinking. He was into many things before he drifted into the crocodile bank. And his choice of profession definitely did not make his family celebrate. Yet, he seemed content. His basic needs taken care of, and maybe a little more to keep his body and soul together, he had chosen a profession that I had not even known existed.

Another girl said she used to just take care of accounts and keep away from the animals. But the way she treated them and moved about, I envied her her fearlessness and confidence.

Awestruck seeing man and Ally the alligator

There was a volunteer who is a lawyer by profession but comes to work with the crocs whenever she can. She said, "I love animals," by way of explanation.

Mere love for animals cannot make one do this! It is something more, some passion, some deep care to take care of the ugliest and creepiest of the animal kingdom.

Most of the crocodile varieties here are facing extinction either due to hunting or their habitats being destroyed. I was reminded of a horrible video about the kind of torture snakes are subjected to for their skins. And I thought of these people, nurturing their wards like their own children, keeping them safe from the greatest of predators - man.

Water, Water Nowhere

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner lines come to me often (the only two lines I know):

Water, water, every where,

Nor any drop to drink.

From the time I shifted to Chennai a couple of decades ago, my refrain has been: 
Water, water, nowhere, 
Nor any drop to drink.

Though it has been raining almost every year, since Chennai receives rains only during northeastern monsoon, the summers are dry and water lorries rule the roads - water pouring generously from all directions though similar oil lorries seem to be able to seal the precious liquid more tightly. And I wonder for how long this can sustain. How long can water sources from nearby villages sustain the water needs of the growing city of Chennai?

Then I heard that despite the heavy rains that Mumbai experiences, there is still a water shortage in the city and water lorries feed the city. Cherrapunji, the place with heaviest rainfall, is facing water shortage because of deforestation and water running off the hills! 

Can this be a sustainable solution? Isn't there an alternative? We may have money for the water lorries, but soon, will we have enough water to buy? RO plants are criminal in the water that gets thrown out as waste. How then can we access safe water and improve our resources?

When the discussion for budget for water came up in my apartment complex, I remembered speaking to one Dr. Ragade a few years ago. I met him sometime in 2005 for an article in a magazine and knew he had done something for water management in his building. His logic was simple and his solution elegant. He reminded me of how water was recycled in each home and he had replicated that model in his apartment complex of roughly 32 flats. Could it work for us? 

Opportunity presented itself when I did another article on his solution for another magazine and realised how basic and yet sensible his solution was. 

Dig shallow wells, connect them to the rainwater system on the one hand and the borewell on the other. The shallow well can be kept closed, so it can even be in the parking area in small apartment complexes. All one needs to check is the quality of the soil - is it conducive to retain water without stagnating.

We also thought the quality of our ground water was bad since the bath water, which is what the groundwater was used for, was yellow and dirty. We got water tested in a lab but could find nothing wrong. It was embarrassing how he went straight to the root - the source of water - with just a long nylon rope knotted to indicate the feet and a lota. Worse was to know that the water was excellent and the yellow colour was due to the water from the latest borewell that had been dug which was yielding yellow water. Since it was being mixed with rest of the water in the tanks, even good water was turning yellow. I was thinking that in our dependence for modern technology, we do leave common sense behind!

Under his guidance, we just finished constructing a shallow well 6 feet wide and 23 feet deep in our complex. Apparently, we struck water at 10 feet from ground level, going up to 12-13 feet below. 

It is early days, but according to Dr. Ragade, who also works with the Rain Centre in Chennai,  and has authored the book 'Self Reliance in Water - A practical manual for city and Town dwellers', the rain that Chennai receives is enough to cater to the needs of the city-dwellers. In a couple of years, the well will be enough for us. If entire neighbourhoods dig shallow wells and divert rainwater to these wells, the water situation can improve.

Even if we do not completely eradicate the need to buy water in the short term, I am hoping that this system will at least reduce our dependence on water lorries. It is not just the direct cost incurred that will be saved, but we will be contributing less to the water loss that happens in transportation, and also decrease the demand for such water.

I am taking the liberty to post some links not just about Dr. Ragade but others who have tried various techniques to increase water sustainability and sufficiency. May we take a leaf out of their lives and do our bit. Even small apartment residents and independent house owners can implement these simple measures and motivate others to do so too. Surprisingly, it does not involve anything complex.

Links: 
http://cseindia.org/node/1637
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-propertyplus/canna-plant-solve-your-water-woes/article4933047.ece

Seeking Answers

I turned the car a/c knob to 2, turned the vents towards me and wondered at the change I had undergone.

There was a time when I hated the a/c in the car. But increasingly, even if my children want the windows down, I discourage them because of the heat and dust. But even if the a/c was on, I would turn the vents away because I hate the cold air blast directly on me. I would keep the knob turned at the minimum because I don't want to feel cold, only cool.

But now, even after turning it up from 1 to 2 (in my 13 year-old car, 1 is stage 1 of cooling, 2, higher and so on). Even at 2, and with the vents facing me, I felt no respite from the heat outside. Chennai is living up to its hot, hotter, hottest climatic pattern. But what is worrying is that at a time it should have come down to 'hotter', it is still at 'hottest'.

And I wondered at the change. In me, in the climate outside. The road stretches with no respite, covered endlessly with gravel and tar, radiating heatr. Denuded of trees, there is no hint of shade of any kind. The famous sea breeze is missing and even after 6 in the evening, hot winds blow - like the loo of Delhi. Maybe it is a sign of the change of winds in Delhi blowing across the country, but if it is going to be this hot I may have preferred status quo!

I wondered at man and his evolution. Cars are a great luxury that allow us comfort while covering long distances. But they demand more space to enable those distances. And trees have to give way to create those roads and parking spaces. And because there are no trees, the temperature keeps climbing. So we need cars to cover those distances comfortably... And so we cut more trees... And the temperatures keep rising up.

Oh, did I say that already!

Does everyone know this already? Am I saying nothing new? And yet we continue to live this way?

Why?

Debut Compost

Can you imagine, this is my kitchen waste! And now, it is mud!!!!

Started with the process around Feb 23, with two small pots. Was worried about smell, worms and what not. Mercifully, there was no smell. But, suddenly, the second pot was filled with maggots because the garbage was too wet. My westside balcony with its more than kind sunlight to the rescue! Sunned the mush and wow, back on track!

The two pots were filling up quickly - I mean, the old one halved in sometime, and then I had to transfer from the second to the first as the second was overfilling. Finally, had to buy a third pot. But that was the right decision since for almost a month, I didn't have to touch the first two. In that one month, the garbage in both the pots decompositioned (is that right?). Yesterday, finally, decided to sieve them and separate the compost material from the other dry lumps that need further breaking down.

Today, planted fenugreek in a small pot using a small amount of the compost because I believe that is a good way to know if the compost is good. Meanwhile, the third pot is going to lie idle and the first one starts getting fresh garbage.

I feel sad that we have lost the surroundings needed to let organic waste compost naturally. We crib about things being thrown without a thought on the roads, of people urinating in public and spitting. Yes, I hate it too. But what I hate more is the absence of enough soil to absorb these natural wastes which were absorbed by the soil and broken down to components that fertilised the soil.

Instead, we have more tar and plastic which have created needs for artificial disposal of waste - a problem that is not going to be easy to solve. The least we can do is to recreate the natural cycle and put the organic waste back into nature so that our waste disposal problem comes down, we don't have stinky garbage bins on public roads and are able to put the waste to good use.

What kind of mother are you?

How can I miss the action elsewhere - 

mother langur rushes on. 

"Mommy, take me too!" the young one clings.

My father often teased me that of the two types of mothers referred to in our scriptures - cats and monkeys - I belong to the monkey category. When I saw these langurs one morning at close quarters in Kabini recently, I was reminded of this, especially when the baby langurs were casually left behind as mothers rushed to participate in a fray that seemed more exciting than being a responsible mother.

A net search revealed that in Bhakti Yoga, ancient Yogis used the wisdom of animals to help us understand the correct way to live our life better. In that context, they have referred to the differences between the way monkeys and cats transport their little ones from one place to another, to illustrate the difference between jnana and bhakti practices.

The baby monkey clings to the mother who moves around freely. It is the infant monkey that has to remain safe as if he lets go, he will fall and die. The cats, on the other hand, grasp their offspring by their neck and and in fact, the kitten must remain still to remain alive. 

According to my father, I belong to the monkey category. What type are you?

de Composter

I was stunned when editing a section in a book about how before weddings, a community in Rajasthan (maybe all communities in Rajasthan) worshipped the garbage can for taking away waste from their lives. I am amazed at the thoughtfulness of our forefathers who respected every aspect of our life!

Very appropriately, that day also happened to be the day I ventured into composting. A few years ago, I had started waste segregation but it fell by the wayside, or rather, all waste ended in the same bin. Recently, I started feeling guilty about not doing anything and the seed of thought - to source segregate - had not even taken route in my mind when two people casually mentioned their composting initiatives. Even then, it didn't seem like something I would do.

And then, finally, after receiving a link from a relative and talking briefly with him, I was inspired to try my hand at it in the pots that I have not used to raise plants. Why not give it a shot!

Of course, this is just the fourth day and I am not even sure how it will turn out. But, the moment I see organic waste, my eyes light up. I reverentially collect it separately. On the road, when I see dried leaves flying around uselessly, I want to grab them all and dump them in the compost pot. I can well understand now why our ancestors worshipped that waste - which was predominantly organic matter - as it would go back to the soil and fertilise their lands. It was not waste but another resource.

I am glad to have talked to several people for professional reasons on recycling, upcycling and what not. But it is an even greater feeling of contentment and elation to think I could also contribute positively to it.