All 4th generation cousins of Vihari family would converge on Geeta Bhuvan, and Kusum Ba as soon as schools closed for the summer. Not that Gondal was any cooler than each one's home town, but it was the place for "fun". Ba took charge of the kids as they arrived, and while mothers and aunts abounded, the kids were always with Ba!
Anju - as the eldest visitor - was the leader of the brood, although mischief was the domain of Paresh and Minu. Bimal and Kamal were the tail enders, with Mehul in the middle. Dipak, Raju Nikhil, Sonal and Dina filled out the gang. Parul was the resident big sister, and beyond childish play. Ba served up all meals, but food discipline was tight. None of the "I don't like, or I will not eat or leaving food on the plate" under Ba's all seeing eyes. Reprimand was simple, "you should have been born in the house across the road!", Which was the Gondal Regent's palace! When the kitchen had been wound-up, Ba would call up the hand crafted ice-cream vendor, and all kids got that treat.
The "gola cart" would arrive at the gate with a strident bell, and Anju would be pushed towards Ba to acquire the money for the crushed ice ball drenched in colourful syrups of different flavours. But money was always against labours performed, and Ba would make sure that the kids earned their "gola" with sweeping the porch, clearing the twigs from under the trees, or similar such chores.
Geeta Bhuvan's garden was loaded with fruit trees, be it mango, rayan, or tamarind, and Ba would let the kids pluck the fruits when they were ripe.
Next were the flowering trees. Kadamb and Borsali! We had to pluck
the Kadamb flowers, and arrange them on Bapuji’s “pagala” (Bapuji’s footprints embossed in marble) after thoroughly scrubbing the “pagala” first! B
orsali flowers are too tiny to be picked, and they fall on their own, when the wind sways the branches at night. So, we had to sprinkle the ground under the Borsali tree at night with water, so that when the flowers came to earth, the dust would not soil them. Collect the Borsali in the mornings and give them to Ba, for use in her puja.
