#oldtimes

I first heard about this when I was at my friend's house. She and her mother were talking about it.

The sound of anklets…

The traveling of an unknown being while everyone is asleep.

They said that when two Devi temples exist close to each other, the Devi of one temple travels to the other during the night.

I heard a similar story from one of our natives.

When he was young, he was returning home after a second-show movie. It was around 2:00 a.m. The roads in our place are filled with curves, and visibility was poor. He said he saw a lady in a red saree. She had long hair adorned with thick jasmine flowers.

As he got closer… she suddenly disappeared.

Then he saw her again—just a few feet away.

The moment he realized something was wrong, he ran.

There is an old saying here: if someone gets in front of it, destruction follows—not only for them, but gradually for their entire family.

When I searched more about this, I came across stories of a family in my native place. They say one member accidentally got in front of such an apparition… and now none of them, including him, are alive.

Coincidence? Curse? Who knows.

Recently, another story spread through our area.

One drunken native had fallen asleep beneath a palm tree near a temple. The place was forested and extremely dark. He was only half-conscious when he claimed to see a lady in a red saree approaching him. According to him, she kicked him, throwing him a few feet away from where he had been lying.

The next morning, his wife told everyone.

When the story reached me, I laughed and said:

"Probably his wife herself did that because he was drunk."

But to everyone's surprise… a few days later, he died.

Fate, I should say.

Anyway—

Among the natives, this phenomenon is called "Thervazhcha."

Some say you can see a huge fireball passing through the night. Others believe it is the Devi herself traveling through the paths between temples. Older generations speak of witnessing these fireballs gliding across fields and deserted roads.

Funny enough, some of the local youth have their own explanation—

That these mysterious lights were probably feudal lords sneaking off to visit maidens' houses for… hehe… ifykyk.

It is also known as Varuthupokku, though in some places the phenomenon differs from Thervazhcha. Instead of the traveling of the (Devi), it is believed to signify the arrival of the dead. Some describe it as being accompanied by a rotten smell and a dry wind.

Well the beliefs will vary according to native places..

Who knows....

And honestly?

One night, I too heard the sound of anklets.

I remember thinking:

"Okay… I did not sign up for this."

And then I slept like nothing happened.

I swear, it scared the hell out of me.

The next morning, when I told my mother, she simply said:

"Probably some bird."

Who knows?

वो दिन इसलिए याद आते हैं क्योंकि तब हम खुद को साबित नहीं कर रहे थे

ना comparison ना pressure ना “मुझे क्या बनना है” का बोझ

हम बस… जी रहे थे

अब सब कुछ है पर वो हल्कापन नहीं है

Lately, I’ve been feeling super nostalgic. I found this old hard drive with golden videos that hit me like a time machine. And let me tell you—being a child? Peak life. Zero career stress, no peer pressure, no assignment deadlines. Kya pata tha yaar ki adulthood sirf thodi responsibility aur kaafi struggle ka dusra naam hai? Nobody tells you as a kid that adulthood isn’t just about “freedom”—it’s about figuring out your taxes, crying over Excel sheets, and pretending you’re okay when you’re not. If I had even an inkling back then that growing up meant juggling responsibilities and feeling ‘tired’ as a personality trait, I would’ve sat my 6-year-old self down and said, “Beta, soch le. Bade nahi hona.” Had I known, I would’ve voted to stay smol forever.

We used to live life aaj mein, getting pampered without guilt. No one judged you, society wasn’t on your back, and your existence wasn’t a topic of someone’s tea-time gossip. The biggest question of the day was, “Aaj kiske ghar khelne jaayein?” The fun was real, yaar—no pressure of being cool, looking perfect, or having an “aesthetic” life for Instagram. No one cared what you looked like, what you owned, or if your life was “cool enough” for social media.

And childhood birthday parties? Oh my god, what a vibe. Forget five-star venues and Instagrammable decorations—our parties were elite in the most basic way. Menu? Pastry, chips, burger, and a bottle of Fanta. That’s it. No talk of themes or aesthetics, no stress about cake designs that “align with the mood board.” Cake has to be a whole masterpiece—it’s all about Taylor Swift-themed fondant figures, Pinterest themes, and hashtags like #BirthdayVibes. But back then? Our parents showed up with their favorite cake (not yours), usually topped with some random cartoon—Mickey Mouse, Shinchan, or even a slightly questionable, squished animal. And you know what? No one cared. As long as it was tasty, we were living our best lives. Kids these days are unwrapping iPhones or driving home in Mini Coopers on their birthdays. MINI COOPERS, bhai! Back then, if someone even gave us a Barbie doll or a Hot Wheels car? Peak happiness.

Your four closest friends would show up in their most mismatched outfits (no one cared about ‘fits back then), a birthday cap would crown you as king/queen for the day, and together, you’d create absolute chaos. The photos? Legendary. Unhinged poses with missing teeth and blurry smiles—zero effort, pure joy. And the games! Musical chairs? Top-tier entertainment. You’d push your bestie off a chair and call it strategy. Dance Statue? Standing frozen in the weirdest positions, trying not to giggle. Sounds cliché now? Maybe. But back then? We were LIVING. Today, people might roll their eyes and say, “Boring parties,” but those were real vibes. You didn’t need fancy decorations or iPhones as return gifts to prove your birthday was lit. Happiness didn’t need validation back then.

School wasn’t just a place where you “learned stuff.” It was a comedy show, therapy session, and adventure all rolled into one. Bus rides were mini concerts where window seats were prime property, and someone always screamed songs off-beat because “feel aayi toh aayi.” The classroom? Pure, unfiltered fun. We laughed at jokes that didn’t make sense, whispered gossip like it was breaking news, and passed notes with cringe-level secrets. No one cared about looking cool or being perfect. Competition? Barely existed. Sure, we announced big dreams with full confidence—“Doctor banunga!”, “Engineer toh pakka.” or "I'll be an astronaut!" We said it without knowing that today’s doctors would be prepping with ChatGPT, and engineers would be staring at error messages at 3 AM with tears in their eyes. Because let’s be real, hum bachpan mein chand-sitaro ke piche hi bhagte the. As kids, we wanted to fly, chase the moon and stars, and explore space. Little did we know that to become an astronaut, you gotta deal with Rosenmund reactions in 12th-grade Science and survive the never-ending physics equations—like, who signed up for that? Becoming a rocket scientist, a doctor or even an engineer felt dreamy back then—now, it feels like a marathon of study guides. Cheating? It’s evolved into a science now. Back then, we copied from our best friend’s paper and still had the audacity to fail together. Iconic teamwork. I did not knew that life apne haathon mein hai would literally mean staring at your phone to check your bank account balance or count your daily steps and let an app decide whether if you are healthy or not? Lol, we didn’t!

And reunions? LOL, kya reunion? A few days back, we tried planning one—group chat was buzzing, enthusiasm was sky-high. “Chal bro, ek baar toh milte hain!” The plan started with dates, places, excitement, and… it fizzled out. Why? Because everyone’s busy. Legit, no one’s ever free at the same time. It’s wild how we went from “Bro, aaj tu free hai kya?” to “Let me check my schedule and get back to you.” Life has us running around so much that we’ve forgotten how to pause.

Sometimes I wonder—time kitna jaldi nikal gaya, yaar. One moment, we were kids in messy uniforms, laughing uncontrollably, living life without filters. The next, we’re adults, scrolling through old photos and grainy videos, trying to feel those moments again. I swear, if someone handed me a time machine, I’d run back. Back to that classroom where I sat with my best friend, whispering nonsense and getting scolded. Back to awkward, blurry photos and “shh-ing” each other in the library because everything was suddenly hilarious. Back to those “small rebellions” that felt wild but were actually just innocent fun. Because now? Everything is a memory. Those carefree days are locked in badly shot videos and weird poses, frozen in time. I miss those days. I miss my friends—my ride-or-dies who didn’t care what I wore, or how I looked. I miss the simplicity of childhood when happiness was a pastry, a round of Musical Chairs, or an extra hour of playtime before sunset.

Growing up? Overrated. If I could trade adulting for even one day of childhood, I would do it in a heartbeat. No filters, no judging—just the raw, unfiltered joy of being me.

A veces en los dias me detengo un poco a pensar en todas las personas que he conocido a lo largo de mis 28 años, los eventos que me han formado, las circunstancias en donde he andado, pero me resaltan las personas, las viejas amistades...

Por las viejas costumbres tuve amistades en la primaria, pero ninguna se ha quedo en mi vida actual, pensar que siempre se hablaba en esos años infantes en ser siempre amigas, la realidad golpea la puerte en mi presente cuando no hay ninguna de esas niñas, ahora mujeres, que toquen en mi vida o que convivan conmigo. Recuerdo esos momentos con algunas fotos de esos años, la mayoria ya no creo que me recuerden... antes me afectaba mucho esto pero con el paso de estos ultimos dos años pude soltar lo que en ese entonces mi yo niña no comprendia las burlas, de los juegos infantiles que eran inocentes y no tanto, dolio ver que las que realmente les conte en esos ayeres un dolor, hoy se desvanecio ese secreto que en algun momento soñe que seria eterno. Asi mismo me relaje que esa etapa termino y aun que nadie se quedo de esos años, estoy segura que una que otro me recuerda por mi sonrisa con oyuelos.

Por las viejas costumbre tambien realice amistades en la secundaria, un poco mas grande, me encerre mas con mis sentimientos, no mostraba afecto a las personas que convivia, lo hacia mas en cartas y descubri una forma nueva de expresion. Tambien pense que esas niñas adolescentes estarian en mi presente, que me verian ser mas grande, adulta, saliendo de mi pensamientos y aterrizando en mi hoy, se desvanecieron poco a poco, cada año una se iba o simplemente dejaba de responder a los mensajes de: "¡Hola amiga, como estas!?"...

Pero quedo una que al final la deje ir...

Por las viejas costumbre hice amistades en la media superior, en esta epoca gracias a una personita muy especial para mi, me ayudo a deselvorverme mejor, que siempre fui muy callada y timida. Al deselvorverme un poco mas conoci muchas personas, hice muchas cosas locas que hoy guardo en mi memoria. Y ahi tambien me enamore inumerable veces y tambien me rompieron el corazon varias veces. De todas las personas que conoci quedaron solo poco que pude contar con una sola mano. La principal que apesar de haber tenido dificultades en nuestra amistad me demostro la lealtad, la empatia, la solidaridad, que con las adversidades demostro que no era necesario vernos tan seguido, porque sabiamos que contamos una con la otra. Las otras dos personas que llevo en mi corazón se que estan presentes cuando los requiera, su lealtad no la dudo.

Con el pasar de los años en el ambito laboral tambien conoci a muchas personas, unas que jamas voy a olvidar y aun siguen presente en mis dias porque nacio una amistad fiel, con las que tambien me apoyaron en mis momentos peores, con las que me alegraron los dias con una sonrisa, chistes o incluso el apoyo, alimentando asi la amistad.

Ellas y ellos que me han acompañado y han brindado su amor incondicional, mis queridos y queridas confidentes, con lo que con una mano cuento, me desmostraron, me enseñaron la realidad de lealtad a un sentimiento mutuo,las acciones fueron las que representaron amistad y asi me han dado varios sentimientos en mis momentos,en mis recuerdos y memorias.