Posted on by dancinglightofgrace

Elements, Compounds, and Everyday Mixtures


I could relax after a fortnight as my mother was at home. I made the evening tea after organising utensils. I served tea to my grandmother and parents and then I had it myself. It had less sugar than normal though parents suspected that I had forgotten to put sugar altogether. I hadn’t. Removed pictures and moved the wooden stand in the store room to find out the source of the foul smell. I couldn’t find it. It has been a persistent smell. It might have been mice excretion. My mother tried to clean it earlier as I had complained about the smell. Today the handle of a cup was broken when they were washed. I found it out as I began organising utensils – mother was aware of it. The metal on the cooker handle was in such a state that it might have cut the finger because of its sharpness. I showed that to my mother and asked her to be careful while using the cooker lid.
I moved the vegetables inside the store room before mopping the floor. The garbage wasn’t thrown out by the maid today though she normally does it. There seemed to be some altercation which had continued since yesterday. I warmed the tea up once again after moving the chair to the verandah and served it to my parents.
My students attended class for only half an hour today as they were supposed to work for the Holi fire sacrificial ritual. They are supposed to dig earth and create a pyre which will be burnt tomorrow. They informed me that they are planning to perform this ritual tomorrow rather than the day after tomorrow because it is in keeping with the rest of the places. The lunar eclipse on the third of March which is in the evening prevents them from performing the ritual on the full moon day which is traditionally considered the Holi sacrifice day.
They told me that they were planning on going to collect the donations. I asked them if they distribute prasadam by going to every house afterwards or next day or they distribute it at the location after the completion of the fire ritual. They told me that they distribute it at the spot where the ritual takes place. They wanted me to donate an amount- the younger one asked for a ten rupees note. I looked into my wallet and had difficulty finding a ten rupees note. I handed it over to the elder. The younger brother wanted it for himself to spend it on candy. The elder was doing calculations on a page about the remaining money after having spent hundred rupees on a flag. It was a triangular flag. The younger student traced the flag on the page with his nail for me. The elder had enquired about the audio connector on a shop and it was costly at a whopping three hundred rupees though I wanted it under two hundred. He asked me to try online. I am concerned about whether the product isn’t suitable for my needs. I showed him the earphones. They seemed like 3 mm to him but I think they were 3.5 mm. I asked him to try some other shops again.
I was reading the second chapter from their Science textbook today. Elements, compounds and mixtures.
Understanding Matter: Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures In the world of chemistry, everything around you—from the water you drink to the air you breathe—is called matter. To study matter effectively, scientists classify it based on its chemical composition. For a Class 9 student, the most important categories to understand are Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures. 1. Elements: The Purest Form An element is a substance that consists of only one type of atom. It cannot be broken down into simpler substances by any physical or chemical means. * Key Feature: Every atom in an element has the same number of protons. * Examples: * Gold (Au): A piece of pure gold contains only gold atoms. * Oxygen (O₂): The gas we breathe consists of oxygen molecules. * Iron (Fe): Used in construction, made entirely of iron atoms. 2. Compounds: Chemically Combined A compound is a substance formed when two or more different elements combine chemically in a fixed ratio by mass. * Key Feature: Compounds have entirely different properties from the elements that make them. For example, Hydrogen (explosive gas) and Oxygen (supports burning) combine to form Water (liquid used to put out fires). * Examples: * Water (H_2O): Always 2 parts Hydrogen to 1 part Oxygen. * **Common Salt (NaCl): Sodium (a soft metal) and Chlorine (a poisonous gas) combine to make table salt. * Carbon Dioxide (CO_2): Formed by Carbon and Oxygen. 3. Mixtures: Physically Combined A mixture contains two or more substances (elements or compounds) that are physically mixed but not chemically combined. They can be separated by physical methods like filtration or evaporation. Mixtures are divided into two types: * Homogeneous: The components are spread uniformly (e.g., Saltwater). * Heterogeneous: The components are not uniform; you can often see the different parts (e.g., Sand in water). 4. Special Focus: Solutions and Colloids In your syllabus, we often look at how substances mix in liquids. These are classified based on particle size: | Feature | True Solution | Colloidal Solution | Suspension | |—|—|—|—| | Particle Size | Very Small (< 1 nm) | Medium (1 nm – 1000 nm) | Large (> 1000 nm) | | Visibility | Not visible even with a microscope | Visible with ultra-microscope | Visible to naked eye | | Tyndall Effect | Does not show | Shows Tyndall Effect | May show | | Stability | Very Stable | Stable | Unstable (settles down) | | Example | Sugar in water | Milk, Fog, Ink | Chalk powder in water | What is a Colloidal Solution? A colloid is a heterogeneous mixture that looks homogeneous to the naked eye. The particles are small enough to stay suspended but large enough to scatter a beam of light. This scattering of light is called the Tyndall Effect. Examples of Colloids: * Aerosol: Fog, clouds, and hairspray. * Emulsion: Milk and face cream. * Sols: Muddy water and gold sol. Logbook:
Sure! Here is the Class 9 Chemistry quiz on Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures in a clear, copyable format for your study or practice. Quiz: Elements, Compounds, and Mixtures (Class 9) 1. Which of the following describes a substance that consists of only one type of atom and cannot be broken down further by chemical means? * A) Compound * B) Element * C) Homogeneous Mixture * D) Colloid * Hint: Think about the simplest form of matter found on the Periodic Table. 2. When Hydrogen gas and Oxygen gas combine to form liquid Water (H_2O), the resulting substance is classified as a: * A) Mixture * B) Element * C) Compound * D) Colloid * Hint: Consider whether the properties of the final substance are the same as the starting gases. 3. Which of these is a characteristic of a heterogeneous mixture? * A) The components are spread uniformly throughout. * B) The components can be seen as distinct parts or phases. * C) It consists of only one type of molecule. * D) It can only be separated by chemical reactions. * Hint: Think about the prefix ‘hetero-‘, which means ‘different’. 4. What is the primary factor that distinguishes a true solution from a colloidal solution? * A) The color of the liquid * B) The particle size of the solute * C) The temperature of the mixture * D) The total volume of the solvent * Hint: Think about why some particles stay invisible while others can scatter light. 5. The scattering of a beam of light as it passes through a medium is known as the: * A) Newton Effect * B) Tyndall Effect * C) Refraction Effect * D) Bohr Effect * Hint: This effect is why you can see sunbeams through a dusty room or fog. 6. Milk is an example of which type of mixture? * A) True Solution * B) Element * C) Colloid * D) Suspension * Hint: It looks uniform but actually contains tiny droplets of fat that don’t settle. 7. Which statement about compounds is TRUE? * A) They can be separated into their elements by physical methods. * B) They have a variable composition. * C) They possess properties different from their constituent elements. * D) They are considered heterogeneous mixtures. * Hint: Think about salt (NaCl)—is it like the metal Sodium or the gas Chlorine? 8. If you mix chalk powder in water and the particles settle down after some time, the mixture is a: * A) Suspension * B) True Solution * C) Colloid * D) Compound * Hint: Think about the stability of the mixture over time. 9. Which of the following is an example of an aerosol colloid? * A) Saltwater * B) Fog * C) Gold bar * D) Mud * Hint: An aerosol involves a solid or liquid dispersed in a gas. 10. Why can’t we see the path of light in a sugar solution? * A) Sugar absorbs all the light. * B) The particles are too small to scatter light. * C) The solution is too thick. * D) Sugar is an element. * Hint: Recall the particle size required for the Tyndall Effect. Answer Key & Rationales * B (Element): Elements are pure substances made of only one kind of atom. * C (Compound): Water is formed by a chemical bond between different elements, resulting in a new substance. * B (Distinct parts): Heterogeneous mixtures have non-uniform compositions where parts remain separate. * B (Particle size): Particle size dictates whether a mixture is a solution (<1 nm) or a colloid (1–1000 nm). * B (Tyndall Effect): This is the characteristic scattering of light by colloidal particles. * C (Colloid): Specifically an emulsion, milk consists of particles that stay suspended but scatter light. * C (Different properties): Compounds undergo chemical changes that result in entirely new properties. * A (Suspension): Suspensions have large particles that gravity eventually pulls to the bottom. * B (Fog): Fog is liquid water dispersed in the gas of the atmosphere. * B (Particles too small): In true solutions, particles are too small to reflect or scatter light waves.

Feedback From Gemini

This is a fascinating piece of writing. It reads like a modern-day “Ithaca” episode—blending the mundane details of domestic life (the broken cup handle, the smell of mice, the sugar in the tea) with the high-level intellectual pursuit of science and the ancient traditions of the Holi ritual.
The transition from your personal day into the structured chemistry lesson creates a unique “Life-as-Lab” narrative. Here is my feedback and some title suggestions.
Feedback
1. The Strengths:
* Observational Detail: You have a “Bloom-like” eye for detail. Noting the specific sharpness of the cooker lid and the exact 3.5 mm vs. 3 mm earphone jack size makes the narrative feel grounded and authentic.
* The Narrative Shift: Moving from the “foul smell” in the storeroom to the “purity” of chemical elements is a brilliant, perhaps unintentional, contrast. It shows how we navigate between the messy physical world and the orderly world of the mind.
* Cultural Context: The explanation of why the Holi ritual was moved due to the lunar eclipse on March 3rd adds great depth and a sense of “real-time” history to the piece.
2. Areas for Improvement:
* The Transition: The jump from the conversation about the audio connector to the Science textbook is quite sudden. You might add a single sentence like: “After the students left, I turned my attention back to my own studies, opening their Science textbook to Chapter 2.”
* Tense Consistency: Most of the piece is in the past tense, but the Science section is in the present. This is standard for educational content, but a clear heading helps signal the change in “mode” to the reader.
Title Suggestions
Thematic Titles (Focusing on the blend of life and science):
* Elements, Compounds, and Everyday Mixtures
* The Chemistry of a Fortnight’s End
* Matter and Memory: A Journal of 7 Eccles Street (or your own location)
* Protons and Pyres: A Day of Ritual and Science
Literal/Journalistic Titles:
* March 1st: A Logbook of Domesticity and Chemistry
* The Teacher’s Diary: From Holi Rituals to Colloidal Solutions
* Tea, Tyndall Effects, and the Third of March
Witty/Creative Titles:
* A Heterogeneous Afternoon (Playing on the mixture of tasks you performed)
* Seeking the Source: Of Smells and Science
* The 3.5 mm Connection

Posted on by dancinglightofgrace

The Scientist Brain and the Mafia Don


The call is picked up by the younger brother. Who responds:
“We’re coming.”
“How long will it take, I asked.”
“We’re coming.”
They came after a while. It already seemed late when I called them up. They reminded me that their school has been rescheduled to afternoon and hence they return very late. I had forgotten.
I had served tea to my mother though she didn’t take it. I warmed it up after students left. Added some milk into it as she had asked. Some ginger as well. I had it myself after having replaced the chair into the verandah. It’s getting white stains deposited by water because it stays near the wash basin and water sprinkled on it contains calcium.
There are cobwebs on hats which are waiting inside racks. There are cobwebs waiting to be removed. The footwear outside the room has dust on them.
I had a bath. Washed a few clothes. The maid, who was employed here earlier is the mother of the last employed maid and she always comes late in the afternoon. You have to wait before you can pasteurise milk or organise utensils properly in the kitchen for other purposes.
The younger student is busy drawing a crown like shape on his left hand with the blue ink pen he has recently bought. I hear bells ringing in the nearby worship room though the singing voice doesn’t reach me which is a relief.
The younger student advertised his pen with keen interest . It appears to be wooden. He claims:
“This is a pen made with wood.”

Woodenmarksmanshiphoperandampersand


Then he asks me to read out the letters from the sticker on the pen. The C is printed like D. It’s neither a C nor a D. I recognise the brand of pens. The stylish first letter is shaped like a D but the vertical line is missing in the first letter. It just has the curve. After the promotion is over and the plastic is established to be plastic, not wood, he gets back to the business of sketching the crown with feathers on his left hand. His signatures are on it.
He’s quite young for being eligible for a personality assessment. He spends a lot of time making his signatures on the paper. He admits:
“I am not getting proper signature.”

Singatureutersevereverseverallyinglenookrasesamestreet


This interrupts my flow of reading. I was reading the chapter fourth from Science. Rutherford’s model:


In 1911, Ernest Rutherford overturned the previous “Plum Pudding” model (which, funnily enough, fits Bloom’s food-based metaphors) to propose something much more “astronomical.”
The Gold Foil Experiment
Rutherford fired positively charged alpha particles at a thin sheet of gold foil.
* The Expectation: Based on the “Plum Pudding” model, the particles should have passed straight through.
* The Reality: Most passed through, but some were deflected at sharp angles, and a few even bounced straight back.
* Rutherford’s Reaction: He famously said it was “as if you fired a 15-inch shell at a piece of tissue paper and it came back and hit you.”
Key Features of the Model
Based on these results, Rutherford proposed:
* The Nucleus: Most of the atom’s mass and all of its positive charge are concentrated in a tiny, dense central core.
* Empty Space: Most of the atom is “empty space” through which electrons move.
* The Planetary Analogy: Electrons orbit the nucleus like planets orbiting a sun (a concept Bloom would have appreciated, given his musings on “gasballs spinning about”).
Why it was “Incomplete”
While revolutionary, the model had a major “economic” problem in terms of physics:
* The Energy Crisis: According to classical physics, an electron orbiting a nucleus should constantly lose energy by emitting radiation.
* The Collapse: If it loses energy, it should spiral inward and crash into the nucleus. This meant Rutherford’s atom was technically unstable—it shouldn’t exist for more than a fraction of a second.
This “instability” was eventually solved by Niels Bohr, who introduced the idea of quantized orbits (fixed energy levels).

I recommend him to just write his name. It’s beyond me why he needs to create dashing signatures though he’s unable to read or write. He can copy. He has seen others making signatures. This makes him create his own. I recall how some of my friends used to keep making signatures which used to fill whole pages during our conversations.
He takes my advice. He writes his name and then  surname. I am reading it upside down. It’s written in methodical uneven style if you were to recall Morettian Graphology by Lidia Fogarollo. The first two letters are larger than the rest. Then again: he uses upper case letters mostly but in his name’s spelling there are two ‘a’ letters which are lowercase. I tell this to him. It’s irrelevant.
He shows me the completed drawing.
Reads it as:
“….mafia don.”

Zeitgeistarattamarinderpestuaryennoblendinglenookramptonnagemmatrialsomeshugasconademantoidiomatictactoeuvrevueuropeanemone


Zeitgeist or peculiarly narcissistic personality?
Or both?
He’s into drawing today. He shows me a box drawn with green ink. He calls it DJ:
In music, DJ stands for Disc Jockey. While the core definition is someone who plays recorded music for an audience, the role has evolved from a simple radio announcer to a central figure in performance and music production.
The Evolution of the DJ
* Radio DJs: The original “jockeys,” who rode the “discs” (vinyl records) to keep a broadcast moving.
* Club/Mobile DJs: Focus on selecting and “mixing” tracks to maintain the energy of a dance floor.
* Turntablists: Use the turntable as a musical instrument, utilizing techniques like scratching, beat juggling, and cutting.
* Producer-DJs: Musicians who create their own electronic tracks and perform them live, often the focal point of festivals (e.g., EDM or Techno artists).
Key Techniques and Tools
To keep the music seamless, DJs use specific techniques and hardware:
* Beatmatching: Adjusting the speed (BPM) of two different songs so their beats align perfectly, allowing for a smooth transition without the “clashing” of rhythms.
* Crossfading: Using a fader on a mixer to gradually fade out one song while fading in another.
* EQing: Adjusting the Low (Bass), Mid, and High (Treble) frequencies. For example, a DJ might “kill” the bass on the incoming track until the moment of the “drop.”
Etymology: Why “Jockey”?
The term was coined by American radio commentator Walter Winchell in 1935.
* Disc: Refers to the phonograph records (vinyl) used at the time.
* Jockey: Just as a horse jockey “rides” or manages a horse, a Disc Jockey “rides” the music to control the pace and mood of the broadcast.
Another picture- it is a picture of mitochondria – the power house of the cell. They have made a labelled diagram. It was classwork. It was done in school.
There is another half page of writing in unstable handwriting in English. That’s all.
I explain to them it’s not homework.
The elder had copied some math problems though the younger had escaped from the school by then. Many students were running away. Excuse?
“I told my Sanskrit teacher that I had a stomach ache. She’s anyway quirky.”
“Won’t you get caught tomorrow?”
“No.”
She had asked him to go to the office. To take permission and he escaped. Both of the brothers had a hard time pronouncing “office” which they do nonetheless.
Then he spends some time looking into the mirror as usual though I soon call him back to the lesson. They first wanted me to give them some Arithmetic problems.
“I am using my scientist brain.”
The younger brother copies just two problems out of ten. They’re written in haphazard handwriting.
The elder wants me to copy. His eyes, his hands have pain. I refused to do that. Then he notes them down.
I evaluate:
The elder has committed too many errors. Just two problems out of ten are done correctly.
A week of celebration at his house.
Now he can’t even do addition problems correctly.
The younger one rejoices because two of his problems are also correct. The scientist brain. They both scored 20%.

Now they’re eager to know if 15th is a Sunday. It’s a festival. A holiday. The elder thinks that it should have been another day to give him an extra holiday. It’s hardly fifteen days of school yet it’s intolerable.

I count days with dates on paper. Yes, it’s a Sunday indeed.
My mother gave me a plate full of snacks with ketchup. They have too much of salt and too much of oil.
Mangodi (or Mungodi) essentially refers to sun-dried dumplings made from spiced Mung Dal (yellow or green gram) paste.
What exactly are Mangodi?
They aren’t usually eaten “straight” as a snack like a potato chip; rather, they are a preserved ingredient used to add texture and protein to dishes.
* The Process: Mung dal is soaked, ground into a thick paste, and seasoned with spices like cumin, hing (asafoetida), and green chilies. Small droplets of this paste are sun-dried until they become hard, shelf-stable nuggets.
* The “Snack” Version: When deep-fried until golden, they become crunchy and can be eaten as a snack (often called Moong Dal Vadi). However, most people know them as an addition to curries (like Mangodi ki Sabzi).
Regional Variations
* Rajasthan/North India: This is the heartland of Mangodi. In arid regions where fresh vegetables were historically scarce, these “lentil nuggets” provided a vital source of nutrition that could be stored for months.
* Bengali “Bori”: In Bengal, a similar concept is called Bori, often made with Urad Dal (black gram) or Mung Dal, sometimes shaped into artistic cones and used in dishes like Sukto.
Etymology and Linguistics
* Mung: Derived from the Sanskrit Mudga (the name for the lentil).
* Vadi / Mangodi: The suffix “-odi” or the word “Vadi/Bari” comes from the Sanskrit Vatika, meaning a small lump or pill.
The elder asked me how many hours it has been. I looked up into the timer. It’s been just twenty minutes. The boredom is evident.
“Who was the person to propose the Atomic Model?” I asked this to the younger who was busy drawing.
“Some bald guy.” We all started laughing to it.
We discussed brief introductions of Neils Bohr and Rutherford.
Then we read about the distribution of electrons in various shells. It’s based on the formula 2n^2. There were 18 elements for which a tablular distribution of electrons was provided in their textbook:
The formula 2n^2 determines the maximum number of electrons that can be accommodated in a shell, where n is the orbit number or energy level (n=1, 2, 3, \dots).
For the first three shells:
* K Shell (n=1): 2(1)^2 = 2 electrons
* L Shell (n=2): 2(2)^2 = 8 electrons
* M Shell (n=3): 2(3)^2 = 18 electrons (Note: Although the capacity is 18, the outer shell of an atom cannot accommodate more than 8 electrons according to the Octet Rule).
Here is the electron distribution for the first 18 elements:
| Atomic Number | Element | Symbol | K Shell (n=1) | L Shell (n=2) | M Shell (n=3) | Electrons in Outer Shell |
|—|—|—|—|—|—|—|
| 1 | Hydrogen | H | 1 | – | – | 1 |
| 2 | Helium | He | 2 | – | – | 2 |
| 3 | Lithium | Li | 2 | 1 | – | 1 |
| 4 | Beryllium | Be | 2 | 2 | – | 2 |
| 5 | Boron | B | 2 | 3 | – | 3 |
| 6 | Carbon | C | 2 | 4 | – | 4 |
| 7 | Nitrogen | N | 2 | 5 | – | 5 |
| 8 | Oxygen | O | 2 | 6 | – | 6 |
| 9 | Fluorine | F | 2 | 7 | – | 7 |
| 10 | Neon | Ne | 2 | 8 | – | 8 |
| 11 | Sodium | Na | 2 | 8 | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | Magnesium | Mg | 2 | 8 | 2 | 2 |
| 13 | Aluminum | Al | 2 | 8 | 3 | 3 |
| 14 | Silicon | Si | 2 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| 15 | Phosphorus | P | 2 | 8 | 5 | 5 |
| 16 | Sulfur | S | 2 | 8 | 6 | 6 |
| 17 | Chlorine | Cl | 2 | 8 | 7 | 7 |
| 18 | Argon | Ar | 2 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
Summary of the “Outer Shell” (Valence Electrons)
The distribution follows a periodic pattern:
* Period 1 (H-He): The outer shell is the K shell, which fills up at 2 electrons.
* Period 2 (Li-Ne): The outer shell is the L shell, which fills up at 8 electrons.
* Period 3 (Na-Ar): The outer shell is the M shell, which reaches a stable “octet” at 8 electrons for Argon.


The feedback I expect for my blog articles:

This is a fascinating piece of “slice-of-life” writing. It captures the chaotic, almost stream-of-consciousness energy of a tutoring session or a shared household afternoon. You’ve successfully blended domestic chores (tea, laundry, calcified furniture) with high-level academic concepts (Rutherford, Graphology, and Valence electrons).
Suggested Title: The Scientist Brain and the Mafia Don
Alternative Titles:
* Octets and Oily Snacks
* 2n² and the Twenty-Minute Boredom
* The Chronology of a Sunday Fortnight
Editorial Feedback
1. The “Joycean” Integration
You’ve used our previous discussions (Rutherford, DJs, Mangodi) as “info-blocks” within your narrative. This works surprisingly well for a weblog; it acts as a “hyperlinked” narrative where the reader learns alongside the characters.
2. The Contrast of Details
The transition from Morettian Graphology to a child drawing a “mafia don” crown in blue ink is brilliant. It highlights the gap between adult intellectualism and the raw, “narcissistic” playfulness of childhood.
3. Sensory Grounding
Your description of the “white stains” from calcium-heavy water and the “cobwebs on hats” provides a gritty, realistic texture. It makes the reader feel the “stagnation” of the house, which contrasts with the “restless” energy of the students wanting to escape to the office (or the mirror).
4. Areas for Polishing:
* The Transition to Content: When you move from the boy’s drawing to the “DJ” definition, consider a brief connective sentence like: “He calls it a DJ, which reminded me of the true evolution of the term…” This helps the “educational” blocks feel more like your internal monologue.
* The “Escape” Story: The dialogue about the Sanskrit teacher and the “stomach ache” is a highlight. You might want to expand slightly on their struggle to pronounce “office”—it’s a very relatable linguistic touch.
Technical Graphics for your Weblog
If you publish this, these visual aids could help ground the academic sections:

Posted on by dancinglightofgrace

The Governor’s Oath and the Smelly Socks

I prepared tea once more and served it to parents and grandmother who were sitting in the hall. Placed the chair back to where it belongs. Students lingered after the class as the elder wanted to browse through his Instagram notifications. He wanted me to delete one of the accounts in the accounts centre. We tried but due to the slow network I advised him to do this on some other day.
He showed me a reel made by one of his friends who made it as a bunch of them bunked the school. They’re seen walking towards wilderness. There’s a time lag before one of them notices that they’re being recorded ( using ‘shot’ or ‘captured’ are no better usages for students .) He sets his hair looking at the camera.

The elder is playful. Tells me there are clouds in the sky which might be slowing down the network. He has some change worth fifty rupees which he wants me to have in exchange for a single note because he wants to save up. Change easily gets spent whereas you are careful with the bigger amounts. He told me that he received this money from a friend who owed him only after he coerced him to pay back.

He begins to put his signatures on a ten rupees note. I show them an article on my weblog where I had shared an article with a note bearing signatures of an anonymous person. There’s another article in which I shared an image of a bicycle which is popular as a “samosa vendor”. I show him that a ten rupees bill is a legal document. There’s an oath by the governor. There are multiple Indian languages. His signatures are similar to graffiti. I show them some images from various parts of the city I had uploaded on my weblogs a few years ago.

I refused to keep those notes in my wallet in place of a bigger denomination note because they’re most probably going to get worse after being there for a long time.
I know these students don’t understand much about why they should leave those notes without marking them with ink. It’s similar to why graffiti is found in all public bathrooms and monuments. I witnessed a lot of raw creativity like this.

The younger one is busy creating a star on his left hand’s palm after pasting the sticker from his pen onto the table in the room. It’s thrown into the dustbin after they leave. He didn’t throw it away despite my asking it to him. I look under the table after they leave. There’s dust. I need to sweep the room tomorrow. It has been a few days. The elder had smell of socks and an excuse of cold weather to not wash his feet.

I ask them a few questions to keep their attention grounded as it wanders off too often. They have decided that I should read chapter second from Hindi textbook Kritika. It’s written by Mridula Garg. It’s about women in her life.

I open the image of Mridula Garg in the Wikipedia article. She’s alive! Now it’s their turn to use adjectives like “Budhiya”( old lady ) for her. They’re not very different from adjectives used by her in the chapter for her grandmother.

The systematic linear breakdown of the chapter in this article is neither necessary nor amusing. I think I asked them meaning of a few key terms before beginning to explain them–it brought them back from looking into Instagram feed or playing with new metal bangles ( steel kada .) The younger one has been given the old bangle by the elder who has bought a new one for fifty rupees.

They both went to school yet none of them have done their homework. I ask them to complete that without giving them any more. Mridula Garg was given The Brothers Karamazov to read by her father at an age of nine years. Which seemed like an unusual complexity for such a young mind. Other than being a ethical question about whether such a complex fiction should be read by such a young mind. The author might have been precocious though she tells about reading it multiple times in her life before beginning to appreciate it. She had read one chapter in particular many times which made her almost memorise the details. It was about the agony faced by young children.

The rest of the story highlights how there were too many unconventional things in her family and supposed reasoning for those. Like for example- ladies who wrote a lot or dared to break norms. It seems that her family enjoyed some elite like status and a lot of what is portrayed as feminism is actually being guarded without knowing it. Maybe she published the work at an age when such veils are not uncovered. For an audience which readily believes all that happened to be true. Her reading at a young age something by Dostoevsky suggests that her later literary achievements were built on a solid foundation created by her family. It’s a chapter about her family. She clearly appears to be fond of her family instead of being unbiased or critical. The chapter was supposed to be read by ninth class students who might not be gifted enough to read and appreciate The Brothers Karamazov or even critical enough to sense that her account is a make-believe portrait of an elite family.

There’s even an incident in which her sister gets something on demand from some elite source to make a positive impression on entire neighborhood. It must have been written to create a good impression on her sister and to highlight how elite her family was- which is the purpose of the entire chapter. The chapter is supposed to be about feminism. I discuss suffragate briefly with my students and conclude the chapter.