This is the second part of a novella “The Confession”.
Read the rest of the novella here – [Chapter 1 – Memories].
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It had been a couple of days since David had regained consciousness, and in these two days, the doctor had suggested some tests to be run on him. Based on the results of these tests and the way he interacted with Ram, it was quite clear that David had suffered from some form of temporary memory loss.
While he was able to remember basic facts about himself, his childhood, his parents, his schooling, his college, his memories started getting fuzzier from around 4-5 yrs ago after his graduation. David had done his graduation in journalism and had joined one of the leading newspapers as part of their campus placement program. While he remembered this part, the rest of the events after this were more than a little fuzzy for him.
Ram, being a good friend and a colleague of his who worked for the same newspaper, decided to help him out. Ram didn’t know of any family that David had given that his parents had died in a car accident around 15 yrs ago, and in the three years that they had been room-mates and friends, David had never even mentioned any other relative even in passing. He therefore took it upon himself to take David home, and gently ease him into his normal life.
The doctor had clearly instructed Ram to go easy as far as trying to bring David back to normal was concerned. Anybody who experienced such temporary memory losses would find it hard to live normally especially when events related to the timeframe or people that they had forgotten about would be involved. While the rest of the world would move on based on these events and people, the person who had forgotten about these would need to re-learn and if possible re-experience these events which would cause a great deal of anxiety in them.
Ram therefore approached Senior Management at office and requested them to give David a six month sabbatical during which time he would hopefully recover his memory and be back to work. Given that David was a star performer and a valuable asset to the newspaper, the management acceded to the request.
Four days after the accident, the doctor declared David fit to be discharged from the hospital, but he once again reminded Ram to handle David with kid-gloves especially given the fact that none of them knew the extent of memory loss that he had suffered. The doctor also advised Ram to try out a few things which might help David get back his memories. He instructed Ram to take David to all the places that they frequently hung out together, do things that they normally did, and try to lead a normal everyday life so that David could gradually get back to his old routine, which would hopefully ease the memories back into his mind.
Ram therefore took David straight to the MTR Restaurant on Lalbagh Road which was on the way back home from the NIMHANS hospital from where he was being discharged. MTR had been the duo’s favorite haunt for breakfast on most days and invariably they would head there at least 4 days a week.
Walking into the restaurant David did feel a little nostalgic inside. And when the rava idlies that Ram ordered arrived on the table, he did feel a rush of euphoria inside him. The piping hot idlies served with the lovely vegetable sagoo whose smell wafted up him did kindle something massively familiar within David. And when David immediately pushed the coconut chutney aside and asked the waiter for an additional bowl of the sagoo, Ram knew that his initial experiment had proved to be a success.
In the last three years that they had been coming to MTR, not once had David eaten the coconut chutney that was served with these idlies, he would always return it and ask for an additional bowl of sagoo. Ram smiled quietly, happy with the knowledge that the foodie inside David was alive and kicking and this would prove to be helpful in the journey of rediscovering his memories.
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This post has been written for the Write Tribe Festival of Words 2 where today’s prompt had to be about food.
This is the second post in a novella “The Confession” that I am writing trying to correlate the same to the Write Tribe Festival of Words 2.
Read the rest of the novella here – [Chapter 1 – Memories]
We all love rava idlis and I prepare them on Thursdays. My husband asks the waiter to take the sambhar bowl back and asks for a coconut chutney bowl in the Udipi hotel. Hope the foodie streak in David is ignited. very nice story waiting to hear more from you.
@Kalpana, glad to know that we have similar tastes, will surely visit your place on Thursdays for breakfast if you promise to serve me some of those lovely rava idlis that you are talking about here 🙂
Welcome to my house on any of the days and I will prepare rava idlis and sevai payasam.
@Kalpana, wow, that is a double bonanza given that both are among my favorite dishes 🙂
I tasted these rava idlis once at a restaurant in Udupi. I haven’t been able to ever get that taste again in any shop yet! Smell always triggers memories. This is one sense I hope I didn’t have. It brings back memories and also makes me crave for the food! I hope David gets back his memories soon. 🙂
@Jyothi, Udupi is the heaven of all tiffin and breakfast items. In fact all these small time eateries in Bangalore owe their existence to the Udupi style of cooking small eats and breakfast items. So I don’t blame you for that lovely memory of the Udupi rava idlis troubling you so much. As for David, these idlis are just one step in the journey of recollecting his memories 😀
Wow… loved it. Food goes beyond just gulping them inside! Loved the way your story ended; after all, everybody loves happy endings 🙂
@Shalini, no, the story is not over yet, there are at least 5 more posts coming up in the same story 🙂
wow… that is definitely interesting!!!!
@Shalini, thank you, glad you found it interesting 🙂
Oh yes, rava idlis with steaming hot sagoo is foodie heaven. Nice way of weaving food into your story. Off to read the first part of David’s story!
@Rachna, please do read the first part and the subsequent parts as well. And rava idlis with sagoo truly is foodie heaven, no arguments or second thoughts on that point at all 😀
Loved how you weaved today’s prompt into your story! And as usual brilliant narrative!
@Aditi, thank you, am glad you enjoyed today’s foodie post and how it fit into the broader narrative of the novella 🙂
dosas and idlis have always been a favorite of mine….
@Pratikshya, maybe you were South Indian in another life 🙂
Aha…rava idlis with coconut chutney is what I prefer. Hubby loves ‘garam garam sambhar mein doobi idlis’. 😀 He can have sambhar just like soup any day anytime. And we do have idli-sambhar at least once every week. I hope the idli-sagoo combo does bring out David’s memory. 🙂
@Rekha, the idli sagoo combo does help him remember just that little bit 🙂
Ends on a positive note. Wondering if the choice of names – Ram and David – is intentional. A communal message on friendship, perhaps? Just a thought. 🙂 Let’s see what unfolds.
@Sakshi, well the names are just that, names. I honestly didn’t quite intend to pass on any message of communal friendship and all that, but if it gives readers that impression, so be it 😀
Make him go regularly to MTR and possibly in rush hours. Standing in queue he is sure to get all his memory back 😛
Good going
@Bhagyashree, Ram has other plans for David as the rest of the series will show 🙂 nonetheless your idea is good too 😉
The story is moving at a nice pace. Those idlis look heavenly and that reminds me that it’s been ages since we had South Indian food :O
@Shilpa, please make it a point to go and have some lovely South Indian food sometime this week or the weekend 😀
All these food pics are making me hungry!
But loved the way story is going along with the prompts. Food always stirs the soul. 🙂
@Sheethal, yes, good food and food that we love does stir the soul, doesn’t it 🙂
A good take on the food prompt jam. The foodie in him revived a bit of lost memory. Waiting for how books might do their job.
@Paddy, wait and watch 🙂
I know someone who has suffered from a memory loss, and going to same places indeed did some magic. I love the way you weaving the prompts into a novella.
@Sugandha, wow, no kidding, I was just guessing based on some books I have read and movies I have seen, that’s all, but it seems logical that these things would help in rekindling old memories, right?
I can see a master story-teller at work here 🙂 Loving it! And ofcourse the smell of those rava idli’s and sagoo ….MTR, here I come!
@Sid, I don’t know about master story-teller and all, but I also smell those rava idlis through the post 😀
Tastes and smells do have a way of triggering memories even for those who have their memories intact. It’s is intelligent of ram to start off with food and their favourite haunt to rekindle his Lost memory. Love the way the story is moving 🙂
@preethiprasan, so they do 🙂
This is absolutely beautiful and touching how uve linked memories and food in the triumph of friendship:)
@Vishal, there is more to the story 🙂
Food can sure play an important role in our life 🙂 would love to read how this unfolds
@Seeta, just a few more posts to go 🙂
what a coincidence!! I wrote about vegetable saagu too!! 😛 and mentioned that folks eat it with idlis!! 😀
@pixie, great minds think alike I guess 😀
Wow 🙂 Rava idli therapy for memory loss! A delicious cure, and the friendship between Ram and David is so strong! Well narrated.
@Leo, thank you, glad you liked it 🙂
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I loved how you wove the prompt into this story and used food as a trigger for her memory. Brilliant! ♥
@Kathy, thank you so much, glad you liked this chapter of the novella 🙂
I know food would do it for me too, Jairam! Especially rava idlis. Now you’ve got me thinking of MTR and Kamat Lokaruchi early in the morning!
@Corinne, 😀
Food glorious food. I love idlis and dosas too. Glad David is regaining his memory. Look forward to the next part.
@Suzy, you just have to wait for approximately 15 hrs more, that’s all 😉
aah! South Indian’s delight..the ever scrumptious idlis 😛
@Sunita, so true 🙂
Missed part two yesterday so here i am. If I ever lose my memory I think idlis and dosas would be the best way to get it back since they are complete favourites. Off to part 3 now.
@obsessivemom, and no chutney or sambar to go with them 😉
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
It is getting better. I am finding the connections damn interesting. So he remembers his food choices?hmmm
Richa
@Richa, well, at least he remembers his favorite food items for sure 🙂
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
David’s taste buds seem to follow a correct direction …
looking forward for the rest of the story….
@shellymona, Parts 3,4 and 5 have already been put up on the blog 🙂
i’m craving for that rava idly sagoo now!! what an interesting way to connect to the story!!
@the little princess, yes, even my mouth was watering when I was writing this post 🙂
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
I cae upon your site from Write Tribe only today. Gladly catching up on the story !
@iihahs, glad you enjoyed the story so far 🙂
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
I just found this series and I’m jumping from one chapter’s link to another.
Your pics are awesome. Now I want some rava idli too and it’s your fault 😀
@Ashwini, yes, my own craving for rava idli is yet to be met 🙂
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
Why do you keep calling it memory loss…I am waiting for the word Amnesia….
@Ayush, 😀
[…] [Chapter 2 – Food] […]
I was thinking how you would incorporate the ‘food’ theme in this story. But you have done it seamlessly… and perfectly! Nice one 🙂