This is now 2 days in a row that I had to get up really early in the morning. Today being Karthik Poornima (full moon in the month of Karthik), I had to accompany mom to the temple to light the diyas and offer obeisance. Thankfully the temple is close-by to my place so we reached there in a jiffy. Inside the entire place was full of those little diyas strewn all over the place with the fruits placed beside them as "naivedyam (offerings)". Per se, its not a problem. But when you see those beggars just outside the temple waiting eagerly for the people to come out and offer them alms, it struck me as to how much food was being wasted there... Why can't the people pick up the coconuts, fruits and other food items after the puja and give them to the beggars waiting outside? They just leave them lying there in the temple premises !!!

Anyways, my mom as usual picked up the banana, coconut pieces while we came out and gave them to the beggars outside. I was touched when the beggars prostrated in front of my mom with gratitude... some of them infact now know her by the face... we are such a bundle of contradictions !!!