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If any body around could be personification of naturalness it was Vanaja Akka. She talked more from her heart and less from the lips.
Vanaja Akka, I remember, right from when I was 10 to 12 years old girl. I used to accompany my mother for all the functions at Vedhachala Garden. I have always seen her smiling and never seen her crib about what she had undergone in life. She has always had a nice way of remembering little and big things. She had a nice word for everyone. She used to tell,' Viji, I am so proud of you, you’ve got a proficiency prize.’ and to my mother, ‘Manni it is so nice of you to have visited chithi who was not well’ reacting to the news/good news of me winning a prize which she would have heard from Gopu Uncle or Lakshmi Aunty who would have visited us.
The pride with which she used to recall and tell us the milestones she had achieved in education and teacher’s career. I think she did M.Ed after a gap of time and she was happy about it. For whatever reasons she had come to the teaching profession, by accident or by necessity but she made that into her passion.
She used to narrate lots of anecdotes about her class which we used to enjoy. She was a very interesting person.. She came out with flying colours in all the roles she played, As a relative-she was very hospitable. With love she used to offer anything that had been made at home, even if it was upma. She would have a small story about that upma also. She was a very good hostess. What I liked most about her was she had a self-deprecating sense of humour. She used to be frank about how people used to rag her and never was mindful of whether people laughed with her or at her. Secondly, the most wonderful thing which both my mother and I appreciated was the way she would talk with her Sambandhi (Lakshmi mami).
Her story about the comedy of errors that happened when she had gone to Pune for helping her daughter Urmila’s first delivery was perhaps the most hilarious. I'll narrate it here in her own words. ‘I was walking up and down the corridor anxiously as they had taken Urmila inside the operation theatre. How would I know that that corridor is meant for ‘about to deliver mothers to walk at the last moment. One nurse seeing my big tummy thought I was about to deliver and pulled me into the ‘check room’. She asked while pulling me inside ‘pain nahi atha?’ in Hindi. I was shocked. With anger I asked back ‘kiss ka pain? kaun ka pain?’ “Mera Pathi long back margaya.mera uterus be gaya’in broken Hindi as I do not know much Hindi.(what pain?whose pain?i have lost my husband long back and also had uterus removal operation) ‘ manni, I also had a huge protruding stomach due to some defect and the mother-to-be also had a big stomach but for entirely different reason. Only our outside appearance was the same, inside story was very different. That’s why that nurse was misled. But manni, wont she look at my face. I am so old and there is no such chance’. We burst out laughing and tears rolled down our eyes.
She had the courage to go through her ailments and accept all the pains, aches and illness with much strength and humour. What I felt was that, one way in which she coped with her aches and pains was by sharing and telling to people. Another way in which she coped was through her spiritual devotion –meditation and prayer in Ramakrishna Math Prayer Hall. She was never helpless even when her own child was going though pain and agony. She did not give up nor did she curse anybody. She never even cursed God. She had a core inner strength though she appeared to be very child like, impulsive and spontaneous and emotional to some extent.
I admire her optimism, her positive attitude and the dignity with which she lived throughout her life. Her sense of gratitude was very very high. Gratitude for not for things done for herself but always for others.
In short VANAJA was
V- Very Victorious
A- Appreciative word for every one
N –Naturalness Personified
A-Achiever
J –Jovial Person
A- Admirable and Affectionate Person
She brought up two children in an admirable way and she looked after her parents till the end, as long as she could, with lots of affection.
Vijayanthi Jagannathan., paternal cousin's daughter
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