Onam is a festival celebrated by all Malayalees no matter what his caste, creed or religion is or no matter which part of the globe he is from. Athapookalam is a kind of multi coloured design made on the ground with the flower petals. 
It is a really funny sight to see men dressed in their gym outfits(Tight Tees and tracks) sit down on ground and pick the flower petals to do a Pookalam. It happens in our gym and I am quite sure it never happens in any other.
Kerala Police started this gym in the name ‘Kerala Sri’ to increase the interaction and cooperation between the common man and police. It is really cheap but has all the multi specialty equipments and so is worth it.
The man who really needs to be mentioned is our Nixon sir. He is a simple man coming from a simple background. He went on to win the Mr.Kerala in ’85 and is still passionate about body building and does heavy workouts even in the age of 40s.
I have heard people making fun of him behind his back for his simplicity (they will never do it in front of him). Today if you are not able to stand up and claim your achievements and some of other people’s you end up nowhere. Nixon never goes around boasting but he is one guy responsible for people’s participation and thus achieve the purpose of ‘Kerala Sri’. But we are reluctant to realize the achievements of a common man and so whatever he does is taken for granted.
Nixon organizes programmes on festive occasions like Onam, Christmas and anniversaries. This Onam was one with a difference.
We do need a lot of money for the celebration and Kerala Police is never able to contribute anything. So we members have to pool in the money. But Nixon makes sure that one member is only disturbed once awhile and members mostly never complains. This year I did my part in buying the flowers for the decoration.
On the morning of 20th August we gathered in our gym in the early hours and started picking the petals of flowers. We don’t have much budget so we ended up buying flowers of the basic colours. A guy from the forest department draws the design using chalk on the floor and we arrange the flowers over it. This time there were some flowers left over and we managed to make the extra petals into another design.
As a chief guest we had a Dr.Kusumam from Regional Cancer Institute. There are really few doctors who does what their duty demands them to nevertheless anything out of duty. Dr.Kusumam is one among those. In a country like India the healthcare facilities are really limited and Cancer is something that needs lots of attention and care and not the least- money. The sad part is majority of the people who falls prey to this disease has no means to get any of the three.
Children with cancer have got more chance to survive. But somebody has to boost their morale to stand up and fight the side effects of chemo, the hair fall, the weight loss. The parents of these children will be in a worse mental shape than them. Most of them would have taken leave from their job, and if it is daily wage labor they would have lost any means to support their family. The worst part is asking for help and donations from people around. You will need large amount daily and so you would have gone around searching and begging at any door you come across. The last thing a man would want to lose is his honour.
That is what she said while receiving the amount members had collected for the cause of the children suffering from cancer.
There is a famous song in Malayalam regarding Onam.
‘During the days of Mahabali all men were one.’
Does it mean that there was no rich and poor, fool an wise, healthy and sick. No that is not what the song means. All had the feeling of oneness. Those who had the resources shared with the people who needed that. It is not just the money. It can be your time, talents, love.
This Onam take some time to spend your time and love with some less privileged around you. Not necessarily someone poor. It can be some one among your circle who needs your love and care.
Happy Onam!!!!!!!!!!!
It is a really funny sight to see men dressed in their gym outfits(Tight Tees and tracks) sit down on ground and pick the flower petals to do a Pookalam. It happens in our gym and I am quite sure it never happens in any other.
Kerala Police started this gym in the name ‘Kerala Sri’ to increase the interaction and cooperation between the common man and police. It is really cheap but has all the multi specialty equipments and so is worth it.
The man who really needs to be mentioned is our Nixon sir. He is a simple man coming from a simple background. He went on to win the Mr.Kerala in ’85 and is still passionate about body building and does heavy workouts even in the age of 40s.
I have heard people making fun of him behind his back for his simplicity (they will never do it in front of him). Today if you are not able to stand up and claim your achievements and some of other people’s you end up nowhere. Nixon never goes around boasting but he is one guy responsible for people’s participation and thus achieve the purpose of ‘Kerala Sri’. But we are reluctant to realize the achievements of a common man and so whatever he does is taken for granted.
Nixon organizes programmes on festive occasions like Onam, Christmas and anniversaries. This Onam was one with a difference.
We do need a lot of money for the celebration and Kerala Police is never able to contribute anything. So we members have to pool in the money. But Nixon makes sure that one member is only disturbed once awhile and members mostly never complains. This year I did my part in buying the flowers for the decoration.
On the morning of 20th August we gathered in our gym in the early hours and started picking the petals of flowers. We don’t have much budget so we ended up buying flowers of the basic colours. A guy from the forest department draws the design using chalk on the floor and we arrange the flowers over it. This time there were some flowers left over and we managed to make the extra petals into another design.As a chief guest we had a Dr.Kusumam from Regional Cancer Institute. There are really few doctors who does what their duty demands them to nevertheless anything out of duty. Dr.Kusumam is one among those. In a country like India the healthcare facilities are really limited and Cancer is something that needs lots of attention and care and not the least- money. The sad part is majority of the people who falls prey to this disease has no means to get any of the three.
Children with cancer have got more chance to survive. But somebody has to boost their morale to stand up and fight the side effects of chemo, the hair fall, the weight loss. The parents of these children will be in a worse mental shape than them. Most of them would have taken leave from their job, and if it is daily wage labor they would have lost any means to support their family. The worst part is asking for help and donations from people around. You will need large amount daily and so you would have gone around searching and begging at any door you come across. The last thing a man would want to lose is his honour.
That is what she said while receiving the amount members had collected for the cause of the children suffering from cancer.
There is a famous song in Malayalam regarding Onam.
‘During the days of Mahabali all men were one.’
Does it mean that there was no rich and poor, fool an wise, healthy and sick. No that is not what the song means. All had the feeling of oneness. Those who had the resources shared with the people who needed that. It is not just the money. It can be your time, talents, love.
This Onam take some time to spend your time and love with some less privileged around you. Not necessarily someone poor. It can be some one among your circle who needs your love and care.
Happy Onam!!!!!!!!!!!
1 comment:
someone here has understood the purpose of such fests...and its wonderfully conveyed..
btw, tipping my hat to Nixon sir!
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