Tale of a Himalayan Town, that just happened!
Often, most days, I am in awe of the Himalayas, the monstrous landmasses, the vivid flora, and the beautiful fauna. I have been taking a keen interest in little birds here, there are a lot of them, and every season another lot of them flock in.
We live in the outskirts of Gopeshwar, an ill-managed, hence homely mountain town, in district Chamoli of Uttarakhand. Ill-managed because we see the prospects of this pretty Himalayan town to turn into a hamlet, with houses facing the beautiful valley, all the sewage easily finding its route to the treatment plant, the waste being managed well and not just thrown down the hill into the innocent stream. If it’s appropriate to add more, the inhabitants of Gopeshwar could everyday wonder at their heavenly seat, around the majestic Gopinath Temple. They could be walking through lanes running parallel to the seasonally colored floral natives- pink and purple, red, yellow, and fresh greens. They could all have their little kitchen garden or large farms by their houses, and family in cows. Very few native families of Gopeshwar still live the earthy life, and this imagination is all inspired by them. ‘Sustainable’ is not a word in their dictionary but just their lifestyle.
We have borrowed a four-stepped land adjacent to the house we have rented here. We are trying, passionately, to plant seasonal veggies and a few Himalayan herbs like the Chamomile. The farm has given us a good routine, the daily toiling, removing weeds, getting manure, sowing seeds, and fantasizing about our reaps. It is also exercise enough for me!
Being one with nature, to the best I have ever been, has given a very different perspective towards life. We are more aware of our actions, consumption of food, resources, and other products. We are extra careful of the waste we generate. At home, we are segregating the wet kitchen waste and the dry plastic waste. The wet waste goes into our pit in the garden to form manure for the farm. We are also trying to cut down the solid waste, and miraculously every passing week, with mindfulness at work, the pile is getting smaller and smaller.
We are extra conscious of our meals, at least what we are eating, how much is subject to the mood! The dinner today is just gorgeous.
