P a r t 9
By now, I was used to the Singapore atmosphere; the damp, warm air, the tembusu trees everywhere, the incredible dynamics of the architecture. I had already created a routine for myself in the mornings, which consisted of; waking up, groggy and irritated as per usual, walking over the the heap of suitcases to grab some fresh clothes, my toothbrush, and other toiletries. (technically speaking, doing that while trying to manage not to trip and fall and end up in an ambulance.) I shower and try my best not to end up trapped inside the glass shower that was dangerously close to oxidating terribly. But other than that irritating minority, I loved the compact apartment and what it gave.
I sluggishly got up from the bed, my bare feet brushing against the biting cold of the tile on the floor brushed my soles.
Anyway, my dad and Jagan Mama probably would have already gone out to grab breakfast for us. Breakfast would usually consist of lots of delicious, steaming dosas(if you don’t know what dosa is, it’s like a savory crépe made of rice and lentils). They also most likely would’ve brought a surplus of chutneys and sambar; and me+chutney= me probably chugging two bottles of water the size of my sister and than ending up with the hiccups for ten minutes. And probably cramping up in the posh bathroom and regretting all my life choices.
My dad, Jagan Mama, and my brother came back around nine or ten with breakfast. I sat down on the cool tile near the bed and waited for my mom to lay out all the floor. I grabbed my little sister and tickled her sides. Her face broke out into a huge smile an laughed uncontrollably as she squirmed around in my lap. My dad scolded me but at that moment I didn’t care with the adorable little munchkin giggling in my lap. Her hair bounced about with each of her movements, the coils each perfectly encircling their predecessors. It reminded me about how all of it was going to be shaved of in a few weeks. I ran my left hand through her soft curls as I ate with my other, thinking over these mandatory cultural actions.
Anyway, that day we were heading back to Mustufa to pick up the watches my dad had set an order for the day before. A couple really nice Casio watches, and a golden Citizen watch for one of my uncles on my dad’s side. We walked down to the forever bustling streets of Singapore, when it had started to rain. Now, the weather seemed reasonable since we had landed in Singapore, calm, and kind of unnerving. Unpredictable in the terms where it didn’t feel like I was being roasted alive. Which was peculiar considering the fact that Singapore is almost directly on the equator. And big ol’ Mr. Sun just loves burning me to a crisp. Jagan Mama went into a nearby shop to purchase an umbrella or two before it started to pour. While we were outside, through my peripheral vision, I saw from the corner of my eye a large vending machine that glowed orange. I walked over, my eyes raking the various buttons and the contents behind the glass.
I expected to see the usual stereotypical selection of soft drinks or chilled bottled waters of different brands; but instead I found round, glistening, stemmed,
oranges.
Freakin’.
oRaNgEs.
I waved my family over as Jagan Mama payed for two umbrellas. I looked over the machine again and read the directions. All you had to do was push a button, and a claw would hand pick one or two oranges to make fresh squeezed oranges, right in the machine. I actually loved this idea so much. Not only is it easier, but its much better for the environment. I read the labeling and it even said the little packaging that holds the orange juice is biodegrade. I think this should be introduced all around the globe because it’s way better than having a bunch of soda cans and plastic bottles littering everywhere and everything.
Plus this is a waaaay better alternative to drinks that are high with sugars and other ingredients you probably don’t even know. Like sodium benzoate or calcium disodium EDTA. What the actual heck even are they!? And some of them just sound straight up terrifying; like Phosphoric Acid. With fresh, raw ingredients; you not only are healthier and cleaner on the inside, but you know what you’re consuming.
I babbled nonstop about my recently acquired knowledge from a vending machine as my poor mother just continued walking along with me. Jagan Mama had bought two umbrellas, one was small and compact enough to stow into a tote or a bag, the other one was Mary Poppins style. No it didn’t have a head of a bird at the end but I think you get the idea. With or without the umbrellas we got wet either way, but I personally enjoyed it.
Ever since I was little I have loved rain.
I hate how rain is always the epitome of sadness or despair in films. The protagonist just hitting an obstacle they think they can’t bare, or hit with news that shadow them in a lurid overcast. A rainy scene that captures gloom and keeps it as captive until the scene switches on.
To some other people I know, rain can be, a burden. A downpour getting into every crevice, dampening anything waiting below. Pooling into holes our dents. Nuisances in every day life. Keep in mind; I am open to all opinions, even if I’m a, as my parents would say, a hothead. But mind you everyone is entitled to their opinions. But rain is probably one of my favorite things in the entire world. To me it’s the waters above serenading everything awaiting below. The drum of the rain on the roof a melody to the rest of the world. Mingling with soils until dampening there rough surface. It is
By the time we had reached Mustufa, the shopping center was already a bit busy. Okay, “busy” is putting it out lightly.
Catastrophically multitudinal is probably the best way to put it.
We managed to finish purchasing a few more things before we headed out again. We went back to the apartment to relax for a bit before heading out for lunch. My parents said that we were going to be meeting up with Rajendren thatha; one of my mom’s uncles who also lives in Singapore.
(Quick little memorandum, thatha means grandfather)
We walked to a nearby restaurant that served south Indian foods as we were supposed to meet Rajendren thatha there. As we were waiting, I- as I would in multiple situations in a place that I can deem foreign in it’s presence; it was safe to say that I was used to seeing the tropical environment. Including the Rain Trees and the gorgeous Sea Almond trees. Okay those are peculiar names to don on trees but it’s still fascinating.
I looked around and saw a diversity that was different from the aura at home in California. Different faces of different backgrounds, I saw more faces I probably would’ve seen in India, or other Asian countries. I know this sounds confusing, but I kind of have this thing in my mind. Ever since looking into the history of the human race anyway.
Curiouser and curiouser.
There are approximately 7.7 billion people on the planet; seven continents and 195 countries. In 1798 the Federalist Congress passed the Alien and Sedition act which deemed that “willfully utter, print, write, or publish any disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language about the form of the Government of the United States” or to “willfully urge, incite, or advocate any curtailment of the production” This law also made it harder for immigrants to vote; and gave new powers to deport foreigners.
But then, this law was abolished; the Republican Minority claiming that it violated the First Amendment. And may I remind you that the First Amendment includes the freedom of speech and the press. Sure, America and a number of other countries had their own struggles regarding freedoms; all because of religion, ethnicity, race, gender, civil status. But at the same time, if you think about it-all this is what also brings people together.
Our differences build friendships, relationships, brother and sisterhoods that last longer than life itself. Because of the diversity t of the various areas of the world.
Now, I’ve been doing a bit of digging in the library(when in doubt go to the library; quoting Hermione Granger here)A lot of browsing up and down the aisles; (and embarrassing myself by being unable to reach the books on the higher shelves.) Thus ending up with me sitting at a massive table with various stacks of books in risk of toppling over. And a couple curious looks from passerby or other teens my age or from my school. I’ve had the ability to go to the library more often now so I don’t mean it lightly when I saw I will I take advantage. Most of the time I stay in the the second floor of the library, sitting on two stacked cushions so I could reach the aged wooden table. My feet barely brushing the ground.
There’s a various amount of incredible books that circulate around the topic of the scientific analysis of diversity like
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Diversity: The Invention of a Concept
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The Diversity Delusion
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The Diversity of a New Life: A Preface
From what I’ve read from a number of books and other reading interfaces online; there are three to four types of diversities. All or most applying to both human and animal.
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S p e c i e s Diversity
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G e n e t i c Diversity
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E c o s y s t e m Diversity
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F u n c t i o n a l Diversity
Species Diversity is basically an ecosystem with a number of different species that thrive together; including common interaction with each other. No species outnumbers the rest, just as no species is scarce. With this common balance this can help regain what was lost in the situation of an ecological threat. Even is some species eventually cease to exist.
According to scienceing.com Genetic Diversity;
“describes how closely related the members of one species are in a given ecosystem. In simple terms, if all members have many similar genes, the species has low genetic diversity. Because of their small populations, endangered species may have low genetic diversity due to inbreeding.”
Ecosystem Diversity is the variety of different areas or regions. Such as desserts or rain forests in one ecosystem as a whole. For example a mountain region with dry plains and heavily wooded areas. Thus helping multiple native species to survive at a day to day basis. Usually the case when one portion is threatened or already subdued with damage.
Functional Diversity is the way in which a living organism or species will behave or function, behavior wise. Functional diversity is also the processes or numerous ways in which-said species-will go through to obtain food, and use their own adaptive ways to use the resources provided in their ecosystem.
If you think about, all of this can apply to us in a number of ways.
For example, with Species Diversity it’s a mix of all different cultures, backgrounds, races, genders. Every difference in appearance and motherland. And yet we will still be able to find a way to adjust and adapt. Some better than most but either way, its a connection to one another. Like an invisible string. Thin and frail, and yet lasting longer than anyone thought it would be able.
Genetic Diversity can be correlated to how sometimes specific genders or races will stay together like their own pack like a group of wolves. Or children in a playground, the little girls staying in the shade tying the factitious masses of hair rooted onto the hairs of their dolls. The boys on the other side hollering like premature banshees; each depicting the noises of the various mechanized sounds an automobile would make with there palm sized metal cars.
Ecosystem diversity is kind of hard to describe, in the case of 21st century at least. But it can best be described as the different cultural styles of multiple countries. Take the column, it was originally created by a man in ancient Greece, believed to be Athenian. Now you see columns in banks and other grand buildings or structures that have more architectural intricacy. Like banks or museums. Even the White House, the US Capitol. Both famous buildings of utmost importance in America, donning the architectural brilliance of a man from ancient Greece. Though that isn’t really a way to compare Ecosystem Diversity with ourselves, it’s just a thought.
Finally, functional diversity. This can be a controversial topic depending on who you talk to. A historian(or my history teacher)would say that this could be in relation to the discrimination of women, slaves, immigrants, etc. But humans have gone through evolution, revolution, and I feel, maybe, a kind of rebirth. In times of war, in the times of dynasties, everyone was at each other’s throats. Everyone was just scared. It was new, so many different faces, of different birthplaces, almost alien to the other. This was the time in our history where everyone felt the same. Scared, broken, confused, fighting for their lives in different ways. In wars, in birth, fighting, helping, healing; dying.
Looking at everything now, my group of friends; all different genders and ethnicity. I look at groups of firefighters and policemen, crowds of people taking up two pages of a magazine. Each a different color pallete, salt and pepper backgrounds shining through the smiles reaching their eyes. The human race has come a long way, in everything. I mean sure everything isn’t picture perfect. There are still conflicts and war. But we’ve come a long way since slavery and discrimination. And we still have a long way to go.
To finish off my pointless tyrannical rant, here’s a pie chart I found of the population percentages of the world. Cause’ if my info isn’t accurate, this chart might as well be.
We finally saw Rajendren Thatha brusquely striding towards us and waving. Embarrassingly enough, when we first encountered him and walked into the restaurant I smiled and greeted him just as he did with me and the rest of us. He had a corpulent mustache and bright eyes just like Bala Thatha. He had a rounded face that shined with each glance at us and immediately initiated conversation. I remember the last time we saw him he seemed more sonorous. But it seemed that he had lost a lot of the weight since that point in time. The conversation mostly hung between my parents and Jagan Mama as we ate. We all had some type of rice based food item like upma or pongal. Upma is basically like a really thick porridge like meal. Pongal is kinda similar except the rice is boiled with other ingredients. I had pongal, which was served in a large plate with some steaming sambar and coconut chutney. I
t was really good but my only problem was the portions they gave us were way to generous. As I continued spooning through my food, it was as if the thick porridge like meal would accumulate. By the time we were finished, I felt like my stomach would detonate and then rupture. At that point my stomach fluids felt almost nonexistent compared to the amount of food in my suffering stomach. We managed to make good time with Rajendren Thatha; I got to know him better and my memory of him from the last time we met him revealed itself with every second spent. We continued talking outside, just as a light sprinkles of rain would make its travel from the Cumulonimbus clouds above to make a drop hit onto our faces, hair, and clothing. We waved a goodbye to Rajendren Thatha as he clambered into his sleek black car, glistening with minuscule water droplets. We decided to make it back to our hotel and rest up for a bit, and walked quickly as not to get caught in the rain. My little sister clung onto Jagan Mama, careful to wrinkle up his shirt properly. I looked around and smiled, keeping it to myself as I watched my sister giggle, my parents chat with Jagan Mama, and my little brother goofing off just as if would anywhere else in the world.
Hey guys! It’s, it’s been a while hasn’t it? Well sorry this post was, peculiar. Sure I did talk about what we did that day but the whole diversity thing. I feel like it’s an important topic to discuss, specifically because of how fascinating it is to learn about human evolution.