Chapter LIII: SNOW, STONE, and RAIN

It has been very cold for the last few days. The schools in Delhi have been given holidays. The roads in the North have become white carpets. They look like the shroud of dead bodies. To say the truth, I have been feeling very uneasy for some time. It is as though the smell and feel of DEATH is all around. I can say there has been an AVALANCHE along the mountainside of my mind scape. An AVALANCHE is a huge slide of snow, just as a LANDSLIDE is a huge slide of rocks. The path of the AVALANCHE is the MOUNTAINSIDE, just as the path of a FLOOD is the FLOODPLAIN. Hence, INUNDATION (flood): FLOODPLAIN AVALANCHE (snow slide): MOUNTAINSIDE The following are the SYNONYMS of FLOOD SPATE DELUGE INUNDATION To INUNDATE is to FLOOD or OVERFILL. Hence, INUNDATE x DRAIN (empty) FLOOD x DEPLETE (empty) DEPLETE can be taken as the ANTONYM of REPLENISH. To REPLENISH is to REFILL. REPLENISH x DEPLETE DEPLETED x REPLETE (full) When we are REPLETE with food, we have absorbed as much food as we can; jut as when a SPONGE is SATURATED, it has absorbed as much liquid as it can. Hence SPONGE: SATURATED DINER: REPLETE Let us get back to “DELUGE.” Flooding rain is also called DELUGE. A DROPLET is a tiny member of DELUGE, just as a PEBBLE is a tiny member of a LANDSLIDE, or an ICICLE is a tiny member of an AVALANCHE. So, AVALANCHE: ICICLE LANDSLIDE: PEBBLE DELUGE: DROPLET DELUGE refers to a large quantity of rain pouring down from the sky. When a large number of explosives pour down from the sky we call it a BARRAGE. Thus, DELUGE: RAIN is the same as BARRAGE: EXPLOSIVES. When it rains suddenly and strongly we call the RAIN a CLOUDBURST. When the WIND appears suddenly and strongly, we call it a GUST. In the same way, sudden and strong appearance of LIGHT we call a FLARE. Sudden and unexpected appearance of WATER or BLOOD we call a SPURT. Thus, BLOOD: SPURT LIGHT: FLARE WIND: GUST RAIN: CLOUDBURST Today, we’ll stop at this. We will resume learning tomorrow. Thank You. Bye.