Papa’s Umbrella

Ruelha, 
My papa had this huge umbrella.
He made me feel like Cinderella.
Unlike many other languages in India,
Catholics here refer to their grandpas as 'papa'.
It really confuses everyone.
About that, nothing can be done.
Papa here, mostly means 'father'.
But, I've been speaking this way since I was a toddler.
So anyway, back to Papa's umbrella.
He was a tall and strong fella.
Everyone around me,
especially my mommy,
was using trendy three-fold parasols.
They never looked like they could assault.
But, my Papa was quite something.
That umbrella could have housed a weapon for hunting.
It was tall and huge.
Great for me to take refuge.
Just a single fold.
You know it was so damn old.
With immaculate craftsmanship.
A wooden handle at the tip.
It was a simple black one.
And to me, it weighed like a tonne.
My Papa expired a few months short for ninety.
But, you know, that old man really loved me.
I was a bag of mischief.
I guess his logic was just twisted.
Because for some reason, I brought him joy.
When all of his things, I'd only destroy.
For some reason, I'm remembering that big old umbrella.
Maybe I'm just longing to feel like Cinderella.
You know... when she got upgraded to princess.
Not at her previous post, scrubbing floors to detest.
I don't know if I'm reminiscing about Papa or his umbrella.
My grand-daddy, his name was Zephrine Pereira.
I think I'm filled with sweet bubbles of nostalgia.
Here's a hug from your grand-daughter - Ruelha.

-RUELHA
www.ruelha.com
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63 Comments

    1. I meant to say your grandpa, I remember mine so well and I do miss him, he was always there for me especially after my mom (his daughter) died from cancer when I was a teenager and he would come to hear me sing ( I was in different choirs) and he was also Catholic as well my parents change when we were growing up

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      1. So many memories interwoven….some good, some bitter. But memories form a huge part of who we are and become so I cherish them indeed. Thanks for sharing bits of your life Eileen. May their souls rest in peace. Love and hugs….

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  2. I always called grandpa, grandpa and dad, dad. In Spain Papa is the Pope, so the Spaniards call potatoes patatas as opposed to here in the new world where potatoes are “papas” in Spanish.

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    1. Oh my, my Papa is a potato. 🙂 😉
      Many of the north Indian languages….well, they refer to dad as ‘Papa’. And maternal grandfather would be ‘nana’ while paternal grandfather is ‘dada’. But, northern Catholics refer to their dads as ‘Dada’ and grandfather from either side as ‘Papa’. Since, the entire Christian population in India is just 2%, this is very confusing to most folks here itself. 😉 But, it is what it is lol.

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      1. Language can be so confusing. Of course, you know Dada was an art movement in the early 20th century. Babies say “dada” before “mama” because Ds are so much easier to say than Ms. Here Daddy is more common than Dada for fathers. I’m not sure if mommy is more common than mama or mamma, but I think it may be.

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        1. Hmm, those are some interesting fact Tim. thanks for enlightening me. I know for sure …the letter ‘R’ is extremely difficult for children to pronounce. Children can never say my name.
          Well, for that matter – adults never get my name right. LOL. My name is very unique so 95% of the people I know pronounce it wrongly. And I don’t bother correcting them either. 😉

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          1. I can see how your name might be hard to get right. I probably get it wrong as I pronounce your name “Ru-el-a”, with a silent “h”. But many English speakers might pronounce it “Rule-a”, again with a silent “h”. If you aspirate the “h” i.e. “Ru-el-ha” or “Rule-ha” or if the “l” is silent, “Ru-e-ha or “Rue-ha” then I would think most English speakers would get it wrong.

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            1. Tim, my friend… you are one of few who gets it right. 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 My name is pronounced as Rue-Elle-Aah. The ‘h’ is silent. It’s not a typical Indian name. It has an Anglicized sound to it, like most Christian names here. And Christians form 2% of the nation’s population, so most uncommon western names are unusual anyway. And to top it all, mine isn’t really a name. My dad coined few letters together and created it. And the cherry on the icing is, he decided to put a silent ‘h’ in there when he could have just added another ‘l’. But, he wanted my name to be absolutely unique. So, 🙂 🙂 🙂 Out here most people choose names with meanings and I’ve always been asked what my name means and when I reply saying – it has no meaning, people start feeling bad for me. Some people go out of their way to try to attach some meaning to it. It doesn’t bother me. But, it just baffles people that my name has no origin or meaning. 😉

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                1. I think the best thing people {mostly passengers who seen my name badge} came up with is ….
                  Ruh – pathway
                  Allah – to God
                  Rue in French too would attest this
                  Ruh in Hindi would mean ‘spirit’
                  So, ‘path/spirit that leads to God’ is the most frequent one. And I like that interpretation, although it was never intended by my parents when they chose that name. 😉

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                  1. Path to God is good. God’s name is unpronounceable, so he is called Lord. You could tell people simply call you Lord. I’m not serious.

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  6. Sweet the Nostalgia of Our Elders

    Mischief Is Surely An Endearing

    Quality of Grand Children that Keeps Grand Parents on their

    Toes And my Paternal Grandfather Died at 49 From Cancer
    An Accountant By Trade and An Eventual Fiddle Playing Hobo

    The Black Sheep of the Family Not a Picture of Him Left to See..

    The Other Grandfather Lasted Until 55 Cancer for Him too Yet on the
    Other End of Societal Success Dining With Einstein in the Social Circles
    Of New York New York a Noted Author And Magazine Editor even with
    His Own Wiki Bio Page and a Book of his that sits at my Night Stand that
    i’ll get around to reading one day if i ever stop Writing Hehe His Books Still

    Available By PDF Online

    And Being A Counsel to the

    Vatican And the Pope A Blessed

    Bible by the Pope Sits on my Piano

    Inheritance from Him Our Cat Yellow

    Boy Sat Atop it one Day and Katrina Said
    Oh No And i Said Yes it’s Okay i’m Sure the

    Special Bound Blessed Cover is Sweet Enough for

    A Cat to Sit on in Ease of Simply Being One With Nature God the Same…

    True Dear Rue i Probably wouldn’t Have Agreed with Much He Believed in

    And i Probably Would Have given him my Opinion haha if only i met Him and
    Could Even talk Way Back then.. i suppose i might have inherited the Poetry from
    The Other Grandfather No Doubt some of the Bi-Polar Creativity i’m Sure as there

    Are Days i kinda wanna do ‘Blue Grass’ Hehe even though i don’t really Like the Music…

    SMiLes Your Grandfather

    Sounds Sweet and

    i’m Sure You

    Were a Little Princess to him…

    Hehe Just like all my Surrogate Grand Daughters

    too Hehe And Yes Dear Rue is a Daughter Princess to me too…

    Hmm.. Or Maybe Sister Princess on the Days i Feel like i’m 16 instead of 60
    While i’m Public Dancing i did Live A Couple of Houses Down Town on the River
    Away from my Great Grandfather Who Took the Bar Exam on his Own Study to
    Get His Law Degree He Lived to 94 so Perhaps i am Not Overdue After all Hehe
    My Father Always Thought he was gonna die early like his Father Yet the 80’s came for
    Him and He Enjoyed a Longer Retirement Fund Indeed i plan on Breaking the Government

    Bank

    Hehe

    With Mine..;)

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  9. Yes–a LITTLE confusing! The woman who runs the orphanage I support—on behalf of the children—“papa”, Originally, Jane said they were designated my “grandchildren”—my wife and I have none of our own. By the way…MY maternal grandfather, it was said, had a special bond with me. He passed away before I really had a chance to appreciate him.An excellent ramble in the memory trunk, Ruelha!

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    1. Memories are all we have left at times and memories keep revisiting. They’re beautiful indeed. Such a special bond. I’m sure your maternal grandfather loved you dearly Jon Daddy.

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      1. There are many storys behind my “Grosspapi” I could dedicate a whole blog for him ^^. Gross means grand and papi means father so there’s nothing special about this word. The only thing that’s special about it, is that it triggers positive memories and emotions 😊

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        1. Aah, I see. Now I understand because of the translation. Positive memories and emotions are all we need to sway us through the days…..well mostly. I’m sure he would have been very proud of you, Kukuananay.

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    1. Thank you brother Matt….i like the sound of that… Princess Ruelha 😉
      Typical street slang in North India {mostly road rage incidents} “Tu jaanta nahin mera baap kaun hain kya?” That translates to – Don’t you know who my father is? It’s usually a threat 😉
      Jesus loves you tooooooo Prince Matt 🙂 🙂

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  17. Pingback: Papa’s Umbrella – rating alhssady

    2. Oh, wait….I understand what you meant now. Since you’re learning Hindi….. Yes, you’re right there Dawn. In Hindi,
      Maternal grandfather, grandmother – Nana, Nani
      Paternal grandfather, grandmother – Dada, Dadi
      Impressive, Dawn….that too Devanagari script….you’re very talented. xoxoxo

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      1. I was just about to reply to the other question and I saw this, so – phew! Glad I wasn’t totally wrong about the Hindi! I called my grand-parents Nana and Granddad, but now I have grandchildren, we are called Nana and Grandpa. I miss my Nana even from nearly 40 years ago. I imagine your Papa being delighted with you! 😀

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