Hot Tea and Warm Rugs

Authors: Mala Kumar, Manisha Chaudhry

Illustrator: Priya Kuriyan

We have just taken out our winter uniforms for school. It is not so cold yet. Winter is called Shishira Ritu in Sanskrit. I love to eat hot things in this season.

Amma took us to the Groundnut Fair yesterday. There were big hills of groundnuts on both sides of the road near the Bull Temple in Bengaluru. Dry nuts, boiled and salted nuts, roasted nuts!

Amma says people in Gujarat have a Ponkh festival in winter. Farmers roast bundles of millet on coal stoves. Everyone eats the fresh, green, plump and tender beads of millet grains called ponkh.

I wore a bright blue sweater to the fair. There were many stalls all along the road. Manu wanted to go on the merry-go-round. I wanted to buy grandma a warm, soft shawl.

It is so cold now. I rub my hands together as I walk to school. My new red bangles make a pretty sound! Oh, how nice, I say aloud and I can see a frosty cloud in front of my mouth as I talk!

My friend Rajni lives in Shimla. In her grandfather’s village, they pack snow into bamboo baskets to make cone shaped snow heaps on roof tops. Then the children go to take the blessings of all the elders. Rajni also told me about the Snowman Competition.

In Srinagar, they say “Nausheen Mubaraq!” when the first snow falls. They wrap some snowflakes in a sheet of paper and send it to a friend. The friend has to throw a feast for you after that!

I would love to play in the snow and have a feast of naan and rogan josh too. Rajni says that the trees look lovely when they are covered with snow.

Everybody likes to drink hot tea and she likes to drink milk with jaggery. They can't go out without their jackets, caps, gloves and mufflers, but it is fun to throw snowballs at each other, she says!

During the next winter holidays I hope I can go to Shimla or to Jaisalmer. In Jaisalmer, there is no snow, only sand.

I would like to go to the Desert Fair and ride on camels, watch folk dances and puppet shows, and take part in the turban tying contest!

Soon we will be celebrating Sankranti. Janu says her family makes tilgud. Rohan says his family makes yellu. Narsi says he has chigdi during the Sankranti season.

Do you know, all these are made with sesame seeds and jaggery! They must be good for our health in the winter.

I like winter. I like it when my friends hug me. I like to snuggle in the chair next to Granny and read a book.

My tree will never be covered with snow.

But I want it to be full of birds and mangoes and squirrels and parrots very soon.

This book was made possible by Pratham Books' StoryWeaver platform. Content under Creative Commons licenses can be downloaded, translated and can even be used to create new stories provided you give appropriate credit, and indicate if changes were made. To know more about this, and the full terms of use and attribution, please visit the following link .

Story Attribution:

This story: Hot Tea and Warm Rugs is written by Mala Kumar , Manisha Chaudhry . © Pratham Books , 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license.

Other Credits:

This book has been published on StoryWeaver by Pratham Books. Pratham Books is a not-for-profit organization that publishes books in multiple Indian languages to promote reading among children. www.prathambooks.org

Illustration Attributions:

Cover page: Girl sitting on bed with winter clothes around her and lady bringing mugs , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 2: Girl sitting on bed with winter clothes and lady bringing mugs , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 3: Family in a groundnut fair , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 4: Family in a groundnut fair , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 5: Girl looking at shawls , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 6: Girl going to school in winter , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 7: Girl building snowmen , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 8: Girl building snowmen , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 9: Girls laughing and playing in the snow , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 10: Girls laughing and playing in the snow , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 11: Girl and man riding on the back of a camel in a desert , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Disclaimer: https://www.storyweaver.org.in/terms_and_conditions

Some rights reserved. This book is CC-BY-4.0 licensed. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. For full terms of use and attribution, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This book was made possible by Pratham Books' StoryWeaver platform. Content under Creative Commons licenses can be downloaded, translated and can even be used to create new stories provided you give appropriate credit, and indicate if changes were made. To know more about this, and the full terms of use and attribution, please visit the following link .

Illustration Attributions:

Page 12: Two girls and a boy holding sweets during a festival , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 13: Girl sitting on grandmother's lap and reading while a black cat sleeps , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 14: Girl looking at a tree with a bird and its eggs in the nest , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Page 15: Girl swinging on a tree with fruits, leaves and birds. , by Priya Kuriyan © Pratham Books, 2012. Some rights reserved. Released under CC BY 4.0 license. Disclaimer: https://www.storyweaver.org.in/terms_and_conditions

Some rights reserved. This book is CC-BY-4.0 licensed. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. For full terms of use and attribution, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Hot Tea and Warm Rugs (English)

Meenu's smart winter uniforms are out and the air is filled with the aroma of roasted nuts. Not to forget a cloud of mist in front of her mouth while she speaks! Let us find out what is happening this winter.

This is a Level 2 book for children who recognize familiar words and can read new words with help.

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