FLOODED KERALA - OUR HOUSE IN THALAVADY- KUTTANAD - FOUR FEET - WATER LEVEL

Not a flotilla.
This is our house Cholakathu Deepthi at Anaprampal Ambalam Bus Stop  on the Tiruvalla - Edathua Road surrounded by the risen flood waters that has submerged the entire property.

The house is located between the famous Bhagavathy temple at Chakulathkavu  and the celebrated
St George Forane Church Edathua,  two places of pilgrimage where lacs and lacs of believers converge
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We are in Thalavady, Upper Kuttanad,   the Rice Bowl of Kerala in Alapuzha District, Kerala State, India.

The house had been built by our Pappa and Mummy after Pappa's retirement from KDHP Co Munnar in January 1975. Though begun in 1974 the house could be completed only in 1976 due to a lack of finance.  While Pappa had been a B Covenented official at the KDHP Co it was a real struggle as he had to send all the three children to hostels far away for  education. We had only upto the SSLC at Munnar at that time. When the house, 1500 sq ft, was finally completed we had to climb three steps from road level to enter it. Later on the road was raised several times with the result we had to go down more than three steps to step into it.

Water has merrily crept inside too. It is over one foot in the front room. The level is a little  low in the other rooms.It is several weeks since the floods. Flood waters enter the house at will. We have no idea when the inundation would finally recede. It is a tough call for the people of Kuttanad. Except for houses very recently built flood waters have entered  all the other houses in the area. A few of the houses are under six feet of water.

What I admire most is the unrelenting spirit of the people of Kuttanad. They never give up.They fight the elements that are against them all the time and not surprisingly they are the winners at the end.

After Pappa had passed away in 2008 the house belongs to Laji, my younger brother. He is at present staying at Kottayam. He maintains the house well and visits it once in a fortnight. We  visit the place bimonthly and spend a day or two there. A cousin's husband looks after the upkeep in our absence.
The house is kept just as Pappa had left it in 2008. It has all the facilities for our comfortable stay.
Mummy had passed away in 1978. Shorn of his companion of 29 years Papa had carried on gamely till nemesis had caught up with him. Losing both the parents was tough and it had left us stranded. The pain was unbearable. It still is.

Our visit takes us back to the good times we had in it. It is a journey back in a time machine. It keeps us  away from the hustle and bustle of our busy life for a while. It provides us some quiet moments to reflect. It lets  us connect with our relatives and with people who had held our parents in high esteem. It is an opportunity to remain incognito for a while. It is an occasion to think of  our parents and remember the love and affection they had showered upon us. The sacrifices they had made for us were phenomenal. We reap the benefits accruing  to us as a result of  their prayers. They had faith to sustain them. It was blind, absolute and strong. It was effective. We are nowhere near them on that score.

The deluge came after I had posted the earlier paragraphs. Water level  in the house went up to four feet. We can't reach the place as the whole area remain inundated. We had all the facilities there like Fridge,TV, Gas connection, Mixie, Vessels, costly Furniture, Pump set, beds, modern toilets,  and whatever one would need for a comfortable stay. All gone in a wink.