The mercury has dipped a bit and the moody “Rain God” does oblige us now and then … Life is more or less pretty cool (yes little humid too) these days – except that i have a 17 mm stone in my gall bladder which has to be removed by operation (minor one). It doesn’t hurt or creates any sort of disturbance but i am told by the doctor (my regular homeopathy doctor – and many other doctors which my maa thought consulting might help) that it may not be causing any pain but i should get it removed as soon as possible …. so i have decided – beginning of November will be the best time – not hot not cold – pleasant weather …. hopefully !!

My mother was worried that i won’t be able to eat all those “yummy” and “great food” – as people say- “After gall bladder is removed – you can’t eat oily and spicy food”. I comforted her by saying (which is the truth too) that i do not like fries and hot stuff – i like …. actually love …. sweet and cool food – rice pudding – rasmalai – misti dahi – ice cream and so on (actually the list is endless) – so she should not worry about life after gall bladder has been removed. It will still be pretty cool.

Actually – if i think of it – life would be two cool. Coolness no. 1 – i will be eating less and more sensible. Coolness no.2 – might loss few kgs due to sensible eating.

What God does to you is always best for you …. this might be a fool’s theory for many people out there – but for me this is the best formula in life. Yes of course i am a believer and not any stupid believer – i have every reason to be a believer of Him/Her. Actually i believe in Her more – not that Him does not exists but like what implies in mortal life – also implies in non-mortal life …. i.e in mortal life – if we want something we generally ask our mother for it – she further discuss that matter with father (depending) how serious the demand is – he approves it and mother gets it for us or sees to it that we get the stuff we want. Similarly – we pray to Her and she sees to it that our prayer are being heard and fulfilled.

Most Bengalis are Shakti worshipers – who believe in “Kali” or “Durga” – so it’s always Maa for us! Maa – the nature – who is always surrounding us – protecting us and providing us strength to fight … to fight with all the odds and evens in life …. Getting to philosophical? Well that’s part of life – deep thinking about what is the purpose of our existence. Everything we do – think – say or even write has a purpose – nothing happens for nothing. It does not make sense? To Understand this philosophy – one seriously has to do some deep thinking … and off course early mornings are the best time – in other words – meditation is the key mantra for good heath and great source for peace of mind. For me – meditation doesn’t always mean – sitting in Padma asana and concentrating at one particular thing … (this type of meditation gives you strength to face every day stress with ease and improves your ability to focus on your work). But for me – doing anything that gives you inner peace and relax my mind similar to meditation. Example – when i am in my garden – seeing and feeling my plants or planting new ones or simply watering them – is like meditation for me … the whole thing calms me and give me immense peace !!

Let me write about the beautiful Rain lilies that are now growing in my garden

 Yellow Rain lily … don’t know it generic name … planted it this year !

 They’re called Rain lilies as they boom in rainy season …. in Delhi it’s late summer and early fall – ie. September – October. At my uncle’s home in Karimganj – they also boom in February – March …. in fact any time of the year – as the weather there isn’t very hot  and they get rain now and then throughout the year. So whenever it rains for a couple of days – rain lilies start to boom and so they get this nickname – otherwise its generic name is Zephyranthes.  As far as i have seen – they exist in three different color – white – pink – yellow. i have seen two different variety of pink rain lilies : big flower – Zephyranthes minuta and small flower – Zephyranthes rosa … which i have.

They’re very easy to grow and do not require any extra care – plant the bulb and forget about it … they’ll grow – boom – die out – and regrow again and the cycle goes on. Yes – in Delhi – they boom once a year but so does any other bulb plant …. actually their needle like foliage add texture and greenary to my rooftop garden.

So basically what do we need to grow rain lilies … They need full sun – so do not keep them in shade. Soil must be well drained – soil should dry out by the end of the day. Regular watering … that’s it ! Off course in a year or two re-potting is a must – too many bulb in one pot is not good ….. that’s to say if you have planted them in pots. I have planted my rain lilies in pots – but i have seen them grow beautifully in ground as well.

Prepare pot soil …1/4 loomy soil – 1/4 ground soil – 2/4 cow dug manure. Take a pot and close the water drainage hole with pebbles and fill the pot with poting soil till 3/4.  Make little holes in the soil – about 2″ deep – can use your finger – place the bulb in the hole and cover it with pot soil …. it’s perfectly fine if the tip of the bulb is visible above the pot soil. When planted is done – water them gently and thoroughly – let the soil soak the water properly and drains out of the pot.

In a few weeks – leaves will appear – but if you’re planting bulbs which already have foliage – then you will see those needle like foliage will stand straight in few days and in few weeks new foliage will start to grow. They’ll boom whenever it rains heavily for a couple of days. Mostly in winter – the leaves turn yellow and dies …. few still remains …. but in spring they start to re grow again and make our garden lively !!

Zephyranthes Candida – these are the one i planted first !

Zephyranthes rosa … smaller flower but deep color. These are the one i planted second !!