The accidental time machine

Four-thirty at my home is still, to date, a happy time for me. It is the culmination of a lot of things- my work coming to an end (although, I'll admit that in the recent past, it is more like I've reached halfway at this point), the setting sun spilling its golden hues across the stack of books on the corner of my table, and the tea my mom makes. 

The tea is special for me. Like a billion other humans on the planet, the tea is how I begin my day. It is my choice of drink at the end of a tiring journey. It's the 11 am drink on that slow Wednesday that doubles as a quick fix for hunger. Now, when I say tea, I don't just mean the cup of beverage. It is almost always accompanied by a snack. Usually spicy and fried in coconut oil, but always without fail, delicious. 

What prompted me to write this isn't the consistent success this duo has been able to make when it comes to making my mouth water. It is about something that my mom added to my tea today that took me back years. 

And that ingredient is the secret of Sachin Tendulkar's energy.

Yup. I'm talking about Boost.

Every Indian kid would be familiar with this item. A spoon of this deliciousness in a cup of milk creates wonders. A whiff of this from my cup of tea sent me more than a decade back in time. I remember the time when my sister and I used to sneak into the kitchen and put scoops of this powder dessert into our mouths. I remember how my mom used to scold us, not because of the fact that we ate it, but because we did not close the lid properly. 

And these memories take me back to a time that seems unreal now- cycling to school, playing football with a cricket ball on the hockey court, and running in the school corridors. Those were the days. 

As Andy Bernard pointed out in The Office, I wish there was a way to know that you are in the good old times before you've actually left them.