Kitchen Garden

 

I recently started watching Tastefully Yours, a series whose lead character is passionate about growing and gathering naturally cultivated ingredients (still on episode 1 though). I've always loved cooking shows, and honestly, who doesn't?

Watching her scenes with her kitchen garden, took me back to my college days, when my father was posted in Rohtak. It was a small, peaceful town then. I still remember the giant glasses of fresh juices we used to get and you could get those for a mere seventy rupees. Different times, indeed.

More than anything, the show reminded me of the house we lived in. There was a lawn in the front and a no so sprawling but a big enough for a family of 4 kinda kitchen garden at the back. In that locality, home gardens were common, not really sure about other localities of the city. Some families even kept a cow or two in their backyards. Looking back now, it feels like a life from another era.

My mother has always loved gardening. Perhaps it's in my parents genes, considering both my grandfathers were farmers. I was priviledged enough to spend my childhood summer vacations running through farms and orchards with my cousins. At the time, it felt completely ordinary. It wasn't until I became a parent  raising kids in Mumbai, that I realized what a privilege it truly was.

Today, living in a city like Mumbai, where space itself is a luxury and open spaces for children are just rare, those memories feel even more precious. The freedom to run barefoot, climb trees, and lose track of time outdoors was something I took for granted. Infact, I never appreciated it. Oh Yes, I climbed trees too.

Totally digressing from the initial train of thoughts here..Back to Rohtak.

Because my mother loved gardening, we always had seasonal vegetables growing in our backyard. I vividly remember being asked to pull out a fresh radish because I wanted to have mooli parathas for breakfast. Hot, delicious parathas made with vegetables that had been growing just a few feet away. Farm-to-table in its truest, purest form. Even now, writing about it makes my mouth water.

It's funny how our dreams evolve as we grow older. The goals we once chased often make room for an appreciation of life's simplest pleasures, the very things we once overlooked because they seemed so ordinary.

Nostalgia can be a dangerous place. It has a way of pulling us back, making the past appear softer and more beautiful. Sometimes it even robs us of the ability to fully embrace the present. But maybe it also keeps us connected to our roots, reminding us of our core.