“Mother, I need more soup!” Kesu demanded as he lapped up the last drop of soup from his bowl. Kalyani felt desolate staring into the pot, there was barely five spoonsful left and she needed to save something for Kanchi, his sister. She herself had nothing to eat so far but the kids needed to be fed first. It wasn’t going to be long before they too realised what hunger for days on end felt like, initially as the constant grumbling in the stomach, then the gut-wrenching cramps, and as days progressed the burning taste of the reflux from their empty bellies, and eventually the inability to eat even a morsel that has been gathered after much difficulty, without feeling completely nauseous. Yes, the hunger oxymoron. The famine had hit them hard this year, leaving her with the option to feed just the kids while she chewed upon the few dried coconut kernels saved up from the previous year. Her husband Pachan was off in search of work in the next village and would
From the embers shall rise the new order......