Unit 10 Home Life and Family Relationship

 

 

When he arrived unexpectedly at his home in the countryside in his office jeep and

got down at the gate, his mother,

who was lying in an armchair on the

veranda, made a futile attempt to get

up.

‘Kamalam, there is somebody at the

gate,’ she said, ‘somebody in a car.’

Kamalam, her eldest daughter, a

widow, who was sitting huddled up

on the thinna on the veranda, her

head and ears covered with a thin

English: Grade 11 89

bath towel, got up reluctantly, walked slowly to the gate and screwing up her eyes

peered into the darkness.

She saw a bald, fat, middle-aged man walking in through the gate.

‘Oh, Gopi!’ She said in her grating voice. ‘Why this sudden unexpected visit?’

‘Kamalam, who is it?’ Her mother asked loudly from the veranda.

‘Gopi,’ the man said. 'There was a meeting in Thiruvananthapuram. I just dropped in

on my way back.’

‘Who? Kamalam, who is it?' There was a note of alarm in Amma’s voice.

‘Amma, why are you so scared?’ Kamalam, Gopi’s eldest sister, asked her a little

awkwardly. ‘As if you are seeing Gopi for the first time!’

‘Amma, it’s me, Gopi,’ he said again.

He bent down and brought his face close to her wrinkled cheeks. ‘Amma, it’s me.’

'Gopi? Kamalam, I can’t believe it! Has his school closed for the vacation?’

‘Amma is often like this these days. She doesn’t recognise anybody.’ Gopi’s sister

explained. ‘But sometimes her memory is quite sharp. Then she asks me if you have

sent any letter. I tell her everything is fine with you, Vimala and the kids. What is the

point of telling her that you haven’t written for a year? Poor thing! I wouldn’t dream

of making her unhappy.’

‘I got a promotion last year. After that, I am always on my toes. And there are tours

quite often. I don’t get any time to write letters.’

‘Why don’t you ask Vimala to write, or doesn't she get any time, either?'

‘What are you mumbling over there?’ Amma said loudly. ‘I heard somebody coming

in a car. Who is it?’

‘I told you, it’s Gopi.’

‘But Gopi is in Delhi, isn’t he?’

‘Yes, Amma, it’s me. I’ve come from Delhi.’

‘Who did Gopi marry?’ Amma said, suddenly lowering her voice. ‘I mean, what’s his

wife’s name?’

‘Don’t say you’ve forgotten her name too. Don’t you remember, Vimala, District

90 English: Grade 11

Collector Nambiar’s eldest daughter?’ Gopi’s sister said.

‘Oh, I forgot the name. Was there a letter from Gopi today?’

‘There was. He writes every day.’

‘I’m terribly upset if I don’t get a letter from him every day.’

‘He knows it. That’s why he writes every day.’

‘Look at the way she talks.’ Gopi’s sister turned to him. ‘Just as I told you. You know

nothing about what’s going on here, do you?’

‘Who is that?’ Amma said again. ‘Who is that in a car?’

‘It’s me,’ Gopi said. ‘I had to come to Thiruvananthapuram. I thought I should drop in

to see you, Amma.’

‘Who is your Amma? What is her name? Where does she live? Is it far from here?’

‘No, it is quite near.’

‘I don’t know how I can bring back her memory,’ Gopi’s sister said to him exasperatedly.

Gopi placed his briefcase on the thinna. He opened it and pulled out the contents.

Clothes, files, a shaving set …

‘Do you know my son, Gopi?’ Amma asked him. ‘He is in Delhi... a Government

Officer. He has well-settled .... He draws a salary of two thousand five hundred rupees.

Do you know him?’

‘Yes, I know him.’

‘Tell him to send me a blanket. There is a cold mist in the mornings. If I catch a cold,

it doesn’t leave me for a long time. Tell him to send a blanket, won’t you? A red one.

I had a blanket, the one he bought for me when he was studying in Madras. It is all

tattered now, just a ball of knotted yarn. Tell him to send me a red blanket, will you?’

‘I’ll tell him,’ he nodded.

‘Please don’t forget to tell him. The mist is not good for me. I think I’ll stretch myself

out for a bit. I have been sitting too long in the armchair. I have a pain in the neck.’

Gopi’s sister put Amma to bed and came back to the veranda.

‘You didn’t come to see Amma, did you?’

‘Delhi is too expensive. You know I have four children to look after now. I can’t make

English: Grade 11 91

ends meet with my salary. And one has to keep up one’s status. It will be a great help

if I can raise some money by selling my share of the family property. I came to talk it

over with you.’

‘You’ll sell your land and go away with the money. I know you won’t come here

anymore after that.’

‘Don’t say that. I’ll come when I get time.’

‘Your time!’

He saw the irritation on his sister’s face.

‘It took you more than five years to find time to come here. Amma is eighty-three now.

I don’t think she will pull on much longer. It took you so long to visit her after the last

time.’

‘But Amma can’t remember who I am,’ he said smiling feebly.

‘But do you remember your Amma?’

Kamala Das (Translated from Malayalam by K. M. Sherrif)

Ways with words

A. Fill in the blanks with an appropriate word from the box.

irritation huddled up awkwardly futile grating mumbling feebly

a. All my efforts to convince her for the tour were futile

b. The lost traveller huddled up under a shelter made of branches and leaves.

c. Her rude behaviour was the main cause of irritation for him.

d. She moved awkwardly in the room, thinking that I was watching.

e. She is mumbling something, but I can’t hear her.

f. When I met my sister after a long time, she talked to me in a feeble voice.

B. Tick (√) the correct words that are similar in meaning to the underlined

words.

a. Rupa studied Science reluctantly due to her father’s pressure.

i. eagerly ii. unwillingly iii. willingly iv. enthusiastically

b. She moved her fingers exasperatedly through her hair.

i. pleasingly ii. calmingly iii. patiently iv. annoyingly

c. My grandmother is over eighty. She lifted her hands feebly.

i. strongly ii. robustly iii. weakly iv. firmly

d. She is wearing a tattered shawl.

i. old ii. torn ii. dirty iv. branded

e. I have to work at two jobs to make ends meet in this expensive city.

i. earn much money ii. spend much money

iii. live on money iv. earn just enough money

C. Spell the following words correctly, adding the suffixes given against

each root.

write + ing arrive + al army + es monkey + es fancy + ful

stop + ed worry + ed recur + ing argue + ment create + ive

D. Syllable

a. The following words have only one sound-unit called a syllable.

Pronounce them.

dawn board straight spring prompt twelfths strong small

text learn

b. The following words have two syllables. Underline their syllables and

pronounce them:

beauty sleepy survive current woman hotel

c. Consult an English dictionary and find the number of syllables in the

following words. Underline and pronounce them.

bury development syllabic vowel education discipline

examination children separately pronunciation

Comprehension

Answer the following questions.

a. Why didn’t the mother recognise her son Gopi?

The mother didn’t recognize her son Gopi because she was eighty and lost her memory.

b. Why is the sister living with her mother?

The sister is living with her mother because she is a widow and there is nobody to take care of her mother.

c. What is the sister’s attitude towards her brother?

She is critical of her brother’s behavior.

d. Does the son love his mother very much? How do you know that?

Yes, he does. He shows his love bending down and bringing his face close to her wrinkled cheeks.

e. What does the mother actually need: a blanket or the warmth of her son’s love?

The mother actually needs the warmth of her son’s love. The blanket symbolizes love and care.

f. What does the phrase the ‘tattered blanket’ mean? Is it only the blanket that is tattered?

The phrase 'the tattered blanket’ means hurt the feelings of the mother/the weakened family relation.

g. The son says, ‘Amma can't remember who I am’. Do you think that he remembered

his mother? Why didn’t he answer when his sister asked, ‘Do you remember

your Amma?’

No, I don’t. He didn’t answer her question because it had been a year since he wrote to his mother and more than five years since he saw her.

 

Critical thinking

a. What can be the expectations of the parents from their offspring at the old age?

People become weak both physically and mentally in old age. It’s true that the most ageing parents are unhappy with their children and complain for the lack of understanding. The children don’t even know what their parents actually want from them. There must be some expectations the parents have from their children and our work is to understand and fulfill them.

 

 

The parents basically expect love, affection and care from their children. Healthy food, suitable clothes, comfortable bed and regular health check-ups are the basic things they long for. Besides these, they want their children to listen to and talk to them. They are not as strong or quick as they once were. The children should meet their pace with them and support emotionally in need.

 

The elderly people love to share their life experience with their children for their betterment. They have some excellent life and career related advice for the children. But most of the children seem to neglect the genuine experience of their parents have. The children should permit them to be a part of their life, respecting their suggestions.

 

Our elderly parents do not have high expectations which are impossible. They just want to be cared, respected and be with their children.

 

b. Some children who live in a distance tend to be indifferent to the feelings of their parents. Why do you think they are like that? Discuss.

Grown-up children leave their family and home for several reasons. Some of them do so to continue their study and others are in search of jobs or start business. For achieving their goal, they completely invest their time and efforts. They think that achieving success doesn’t happen overnight, but takes the time. Finally, there is created a gap or distance between parents and their children.

 

For the adult children, money and success are more important than the parents’ feelings. They do hard work for saving their prestige and social position, but not making the parents happy. They fully lose themselves in the materialistic world. Visiting parents, spending time with them and listening to their real experience become the disgusting idea for the children.

 

Some of the adults begin a new life with their family far from home. Their wife and children become the matter of priority more than the elderly parents. They think that their world is their new home. That is why they have no time to visit their parents, write to them or call them.

 

This indifference not only degrades the relationship between the parents and their children but also makes the parents live a lonely and miserable life.

 

c. A mother's love is everlasting and indispensable. Justify.

A mother is the symbol of love, tolerance, patience and forgiveness. No condition is applied to the love of a mother. Any age and status are priceless when they come to about mother's love. The word ‘love’ is used to describe the emotional feelings of someone with others in many ways. Mothers’ love is unconditional, everlasting and indispensable.

 

A child finds his mother as a best friend, mentor, teacher and caretaker. She plays with him along with extra care and nourishment, and is never tired of fulfilling all his demands without thinking of her. Mothers’ love is about both nourishing her child and teaching her child the moral and cultural values.

 

Mothers are the emotional foundation of the family. They support and respect everyone’s feeling in a family. A member in a family can share almost any secret with his/her mother. This is because mothers have a huge level of faith in their family. Additionally, mothers possess an exceptionally forgiving nature.

 

Mother’s love for her child undoubtedly cannot be compared with anything. She is the most imperative person in everyone’s life.

 

B. Complete the following sentences with however, although or in spite of.

 

In spite of the fact that he is an octogenarian; he still leads an active life.

 

I still enjoyed the week although the weather was bad.

 

He has passed MA. However, he hasn’t got a job.

 

Although I had a headache, I enjoyed the movie.

 

Ramila didn’t get the job, in spite of the fact that she had all the necessary qualifications.

 

In spite of the fact that he had no money, he bought the car anyway.

 

We can go to the park for lunch although the weather report says it's going to rain.

 

However I speak English well, my first language is actually Maithili.

 

C. Combine the following sentences using the words given in brackets.

a. He was annoyed. He didn’t say anything. (although)

Although he was annoyed, he didn’t say anything.

 

b. Playing the stock market is exciting. It can be risky. (however)

Playing the stock market is exciting, however, it can be risky.

 

c. He works slowly. He never makes a mistake. (even though)

Even though he works slowly, he never makes a mistake.

 

d. It was raining. We still went to the park. (in spite of)

In spite of rain, we still went to the park.

 

e. Hark bought the watch. It was expensive. (despite)

Despite being expensive, Hark bought the watch

 

f. He is very poor. He wears expensive clothes. (but)

He is very poor but wears expensive clothes.

 

D. Rewrite the following sentences using (a) although and (b) in spite of.

a. He had very little time, but he offered to help us.

a. Although he had very little time, he offered to help us.

b. In spite of having very little time, he offered to help us.

 

b. She is very poor, but she still wears expensive clothes.

a. Although she is very poor, she still wears expensive clothes.

b. In spite of being very poor, she still wears expensive clothes

 

c. He's a millionaire, but he lives in a very small flat.

 

a. Although he's a millionaire, he lives in a very small flat.

b. In spite of being a millionaire, he lives in a very small flat.

 

d. They have a lot of money, but they are still not happy.

a.Although they have a lot of money, they are still not happy.

b. In spite of having a lot of money, they are still not happy.

 

e. The traffic was heavy, but we got there in time.

a. Although the traffic was heavy, we got there in time.

b. In spite of the heavy traffic, we got there in time