I’ve never ever received a telegram in my life. No, not one. Oh well, if you don’t count that I sort of came in with a telegram, even if not a bang. Into the world, I mean. My mum says dad sent a telegram as soon as his first was born, “WElCOME, RAMYA.”
But technically that was addressed to mum. It was like my personal star of wonder heading westward towards Coimbatore, summoning whatever Magi that cared to come to see the new born. She says she kept that blue strip of paper for years, but I have never seen it. However, it’s so etched in her sepia that I don’t doubt it at all.
On the way home today I asked her if she had ever received telegrams, and she was quite amused because she indeed had (post natal me occupies pride of place, of course), and had even sent out many, not counting several that were sent out on her behalf.
As for me, I really haven’t even seen a telegram, except the ones that brought melodrama into our films. “Thantheee” – a word to set people shrieking and wringing their hands with despair even before the strip of paper was unfolded. And thus rendering a telegram completely in the land of ridicule for me. It’s no way to send the dots and dashes technology into the grave. Quite disgraceful, in fact, I’ve been thinking, given the sort of nostalgic raptures everyone on my time line has been exhibiting.
Perhaps I should give the telegram a decent send off, solemnly lower the valley into the earth, and send a fistfull of roses chasing down. After all it was the way several generations in a hurry communicated with each other. Technology that has served its purpose well, and without serious punctuation, without grammar or connects, just the screaming upper case. Maybe, a hint of what was to come: sans grammar, sans punctuation, sans vowels and sometimes, even sans consonants today. For being so prescient about language, I owe the telegram something: perhaps I’ll go out and send myself a telegram soon. Maybe I’ll say like dad did, briefly, but with joy, all those years ago; I’ll say it however with no joy, just a twang wistfully like my time line does, “GOODBYE, TELEGRAM”Posted from WordPress for Android
Advertisements
The name is Gram, Telegram
June 14, 2013 by ramya75
I have seen a few. But for some strange reason, the only one I remember clearly is Dad telling us that my cousin who had asked him to check the CA final results had sadly failed and he sent a ‘better luck next time’ telegram!
Ha ha
Super ma
The Telegram is about tech centralization. And tech centralization can never survive! http://karnnverma.wordpress.com/2013/07/15/the-telegram-is-about-technology-centralization/