Fortune Fair

Fortune Fair Parts one and two

PART ONE

It was a beautiful early morning in summer. The sun was shining at its peak. A ray of beautiful golden light adorned the puja room from a small window on the very top of the opposite wall. Swathi sat to perform the morning puja along with her family: her little sister Nandini, her father, and her mother. Although this was a regular morning routine, today was very special for Swathi, as it was her birthday. What a beautiful gift that could be, she thought, on a birthday to wake up extra early, perform extra time in the puja, chant a few extra slokas, and take a long visit to the temple. It felt like an opportunity to burn out some extra calories on her twentieth birthday. It indeed felt special with all the extras in her life on that day each year. This year was remarkable because she had entered her twenties, and the 'teen' at the end of her age disappeared.

With very little concentration, she sought those extra blessings from the God that morning. Father sat by her as always. He believed in two things in his life; Gayatri Mantra and Swathi. Swathi felt both proud and tensed with the kind of faith that her father always kept in her.

After the puja, Swathi stood up and touched her father's feet for his blessings. He blissfully blessed her by putting the turmeric-coated rice grains on her head, saying, "Find a good groom." She was not surprised with his blessings. Each additional year in her life meant learning a new science from her father. He was the one that gave the dos and don'ts for the girls; and when her little sister questioned; father would say that there was a science to each thing he did. But Swathi did not bother. She did not care, she just liked to put blind faith on her father. That day felt strange to her, with the myriad namaskarams(prayers) she did to the God and felt that it was a gift package for a girl born in a Hindu Brahmin family.

The house was filled with the smell of incense sticks, the melodious rhythmic sound of the prayer bell, and the fragrance of fresh flowers.

A few minutes later, she got dressed in a red salwar with a golden scarf, which was her new birthday dress and present. She wore matching long earrings and a red bindi. The jiggles of the bangles and her anklets made a tune in her heart. She looked gorgeous with her long, black, silky hair that she wore down and her medium-brown skin glowed more with her bright red dress. With her straight nose, Kajal eyes, long dark eyelashes, and a smile on her pink lips, she looked like a woman of perfection.

Before the breakfast, Mother brought a small bowl full of kheer (Indian sweet), and fed one spoon carefully to Swathi. And then Father repeated. He explained feeding something sweet meant wishing them long life and many more birthdays to celebrate and is a custom to do so for their kids from the parents first thing in the morning of their birthday.This is the thirty eighth time, counted Swathi including Nandini's. She heard it every birthday. The significance of doing a puja and eating something sweet the first thing in the morning.

Later they all sat for breakfast and while Swathi was still thinking about the rules and the logic behind Father's science, two round white, fluffy idlis arrived on her plate that had thick heavy edges. "Akka(sister), eat," said Nandini, sitting next to her. She slowly cut off the tiniest piece of idli, dipped it in the coconut chutney, and put it in her mouth. After her first bite, the doorbell rang.

"Right at the wrong time, the devil appears," Nandini whispered in Swathi's ear.

"Shhh...Stop.Please, don't scare me," Swathi whispered back to Nandini as Aunty Manju walked through the door. "Typical sisters, the nosy fishy ones," Nandini was bold in her expression, she was just the opposite of her big sister; bold and outspoken. Swathi had always meticulously chosen her words. She would rather talk with care than get into trouble, especially when talking about Father's only sister. Her father took utmost care and made sure his little sister was happy. That was why she lived right next door, because father had built exactly the same house as theirs for his sister's family and gifted to her. None of the houses were fancy or contemporary in look and feel, but they had everything for a good living. Since she lived right next door, it was very convenient for her to make odd and frequent visits.