sound of rain drops by sannapureddy &swatee sripada (books for new readers .TXT) 📖

started going to the field with Shiva. She was pleased to see the change from the reddish mud bed slowly to spilling green colour. When walking on the edge the frogs jumping into the pools, leaving out the old burrows, when they were filled with mud, making new holes and constructing new forts, the crabs slithering suddenly in to their holes as soon as they watch human beings leaving foot prints, all the field scenes were very nice to watch ………..
Now and then they both jump into the water secretly, dusky evenings they come out from the water completely intoxicated.
People still went on teasing Shiva. He didn’t even stop to provide material for their mocking. Gowri didn’t turn old to Shiva still.
Even his actions were not old to the villagers.
Evening after bringing the buffalo home tethering it in the shed laksmamma went into the house. She moved on to the backyard, washed the dung that stuck to her hands scrubbing. Wiping the wetness to her palloo came in, bent down to see behind the vessels, fumbling she took out an egg and kept it in the grains vessel.
Gowri felt surprised to know the presence of an egg there. Whole day she was at home. When did the hen come inside and when did it leave the egg?
Taking grains in full hands lakshmamma walked out. As she Made sounds with lips “bho bho ph” and called, all the hen gathered around her jostling and walking over each other. After finding a clean place in the premises she scattered the grains.
Gowri couldn’t understand what chanting was there in her calling.

The sounds ‘tak tak’ made by the hen kicking their beaks on the floor were amusing to her ears.
Listening to it when she was in thoughts Gowri heard the old woman’s voice
“See! Someone’s hen is in. shove it out”
Hurriedly she came out.
“Ish, isho” she tried with her hand to send them out.
All the hens were scared. But she couldn’t recognize the outside hen. All were the same, how to find it out?
“See that flowery hen, shove it out”
She shouted from the shed. Flowery hens are four, which one…………….?
Lifting her hand she shoved all.
Meanwhile as Shiva came there the problem was solved.
As soon as he entered when he shouted “shhoo” the alien hen has got scared and left the place. Home hens went on eating the grains without any fear.
She had seen a kind of authority in his voice in shouting. Official warning. Only his own hens were familiar with it.
“Your wife still couldn’t even identify the hen and the cattle” lakshmamma said. Shiva smiled.
Gowri felt ashamed.
She couldn’t understand how to recognize them.
Evening Sarojamma arrived from Kadapa.
Again she brought some snacks and sweets, other requisites to Gowri, clothes and a big suitcase.
The attack of VeeraReddy it seems didn’t stop and wouldn’t in near future. He went on scolding after having a drink, and weeping. If he could find Gowri he said cutting her mangalasutra he would marry her again- he says as a drunkard.
“Could he see Gowri in Kadapa? Let him come here. Give the address aunty, let him come and take her” a sort of gruffness sounded in Siva’s voice. “no, no! let me face my problems my dear son, if not today, tomorrow …. If we have patience he would adjust…. But I have only one grief
After the marriage I couldn’t even keep daughter and son in law at least a day at my home. Not even once I could have a feast for you” she wiped her eyes.
But when she went out she went on singing the old song. She said very strongly that she would take her daughter and son in law to the town definitely. Though she was there only for a day she went and saw the fields. Sitting with the oldies she estimated the value of the property, if the field is given on rent or lease what would be the result –she calculated.
She called her daughter close to her and told her very strongly-“when it rains for four days their faces and fields glisten green. Let the sun shine for seven days, look at their faces! let the famine come and see their lives! Let others do whatever they want but you are not going to work in this muddy life. You should look after the shop in Kadapa”
She washed her daughter’s hair with shikakai, and gave a bath to her. When she washed her hair, Gowri recalled Shiva.
Smearing oil all over her body how long he massaged moving the muscles is not known to her. First in the beginning she felt shy but soon detaching from all other feelings a kind of listlessness and enrapture filled her mind and made her forget the world.
She couldn’t even remember that her body was there, where the pains of muscles ran away is not known but the whole body started with a kind of numbness slowly experiencing as if nobody existed …experiencing as if her whole body evaporated into the air ……when hot watered touched her descended onto the land …what an excellent experience was that !
Yesterday when Munemma came in she stared at Gowri head to toe, and singing a song like a mad girl she went out. Gowri felt her behavior odd.
Old Govindamma too behaved the same way. Sitting beside her stroked her hands and thighs; as if touched by chance she even felt her breast too. As she looked at her strangely she got up and went out.
In the night Shiva went for hunting rabbits. Lying by her daughter’s side Sarojamma had a chance to talk the whole night.
They talked about Kadapa matters once again, and many more things they discussed. Huddling her sleeping daughter close to her lap made her mother’s soul happy. After the talk she closed her eyes.
Somewhere in the middle of the night when something moved on her body the sleep layers went off she could understand it as her daughters touch. Keeping a hand on her daughter hugged her and slept.
Her mother’s heart felt ecstatic. By the next time she even kept her leg on her mother; she thought still Gowrie had the child’s nature. After a while she felt heaviness on her chest and fumbling with hands. Keeping her head on the chest her daughter was sleeping deeply.
This is a new pose.
When she was an infant while breastfeeding her, she used to sleep the same way. After that this pose is not known to her. Now again…….
Sarojamma understood and had a thin smile.
Her chest couldn’t bear the weight of her head.
Breathing is difficult. Slowly she moved her daughter’s head down.
Already most of the night has moved on…
After a while her daughter woke up, looked at the watch, took a bed sheet and blanket, opened the door and walked out. This surprised her.

Even son in law is not there, where did she go?
Sarojamma followed her. She went into the shed, laid the cot, spread the sheet, covering herself with the blanket when she slept there she felt surprised. Shiva has not yet come, then…
She too thought of sleeping by her side there… leaving that thought she came in and sat on the bed. . She couldn’t sleep. Once or twice she went out and looked at the shed, but couldn’t have the courage to peep in.
By the time the darkness tore off as if it was unavoidable she went and saw, the same pose ……keeping her head on her son in law’s chest she was sleeping.
She returned from there and called her “Gowri”
After two times’ calling she replied. When it was completely bright then only Gowri came out from the shed with a bundle of meat in her hands.
Sarojamma cooked rice and Charu, Gowri’s actions were moving in her thoughts. Recalling her experiences in her youth she tried to analyze Gowri’s attitude.
By the time of morning when her husband was about to return from the hunt she went into the shed and slept there keeping her body ready for his touch.
She couldn’t even see the traces of shyness in her face as before. She behaved as if everything is natural.
“How much did you grow up my daughter?” Sarojamma thought.
Estimating beforehand when he could come back home, waiting for him there at the planned place, knowing thoroughly if the work has not completed he may get delayed in coming waiting there from the decided time ………. can’t you bear one night’s separation when he won’t be at home my daughter? Even wife and husband have to meet secretly like lovers? You are the only wife whom I saw cheating the elders and awaits for a husband my dear excessive daughter, I can’t understand whether you both are wife and husband or lovers, my dear?
But how many days would this obsession will remain? Till you get a child only. If you are so enamored it won’t be too long to get a pregnancy..” she thought.
The rabbit meat was tasty. Morning with jowar roti, afternoon with hot hot Sangati lump the curry had given to the tongue a lunch pack of memorable remembrances.
Sarojamma left the village in the evening.
As the meat was so much lakshmamma sent some to her daughter’s home. Both the children had their food here itself. When it was dusk Govindamma came.
“Where did he go my girl?” she asked.
“Might be in the street Jeji” Gowri told. Sitting on the bed she said,
“What are all the things he learned after marriage, your husband? how many cunning things and tricks did he learn?”
Thinking that she might have brought some problem Gowri asked, “ why Jeji?”
“Everyone had a share of rabbit meat, but he brought two parts”
“Why do you people give?”
“Not given”
“Then…”

“ ‘At the wedding feast they had given sweet and mixture for me and my wife,
Mushrooms also you shared two parts, vegetables two parts ……..for you all to tease and laugh at, we myself and my wife are handy, all useless things you provide two parts and laugh at us’ he insisted that the rabbit meat also should be given two parts and brought it home” she said.
Gowri felt like laughing.
She had already heard it from him two three times. Asking again and again she laughed falling on him.
Sparrows tested the patience of women whole day. Even though they swept umpteen number of times the dirt went on falling.
Lakshmamma went on grumbling.
Gowri too felt tired of it. When the matter went to Shiva he brought a long stick saying that he would destroy the nest.
Lakshmamma stopped him.
“They might have laid eggs my son. This time let them hatch chicks. Next time we will not allow them to make a nest at all”
Gowri looked at her mother in law with surprise.
“Why do you grumble unnecessarily, then? Do we live alone in a house? They built a nest somewhere in the roof of a shed, can’t you live taking it easily that they are not an obstacle to you?” Shiva said.
Gowri stared at him still feeling odd.
Evening lakshmamma was sitting under the neem