Ma and God... A peom

God gave us fingers--Ma says "Use your fork".
God gave us voices-- Ma says "Do not scream"
Ma says eat Broccoli, cereals and carrots
But God gave us tasteys for maple ice-cream.

God gave us fingers--Ma says"Use your hanky"
God gave us puddles--Ma says"Do not splash"
Ma says" Be quiet your father is sleeping"
But God gave us garbage can covers to crash

God gave us fingers--Ma says"Put your gloves on"
God gave us raindrops--Ma says"Do not get wet"
Ma says" Be careful and don't get too near to
Those strange lovely dogs that God gave us to pet

God gave us fingers--Ma says"Go wash 'em"
But God gave us coal bins and nice dirty bodies
And I ain't too smart, but there's one thing for certain--
Either Ma's wrong or else God is.

The grey begins to fade...

In the hustle bustle of daily chores, I had forgotten the beauty of a morning sky... One morning, on my flight to Mumbai, I rediscovered the joy of watching a sunrise...

As the sun lifted up its head, and the the grey started fading and the blue started strengthening . The hues of orange and red mixed with the blue made the horizon look like a huge canvas with umpteen number of shades. The colours started creeping to each life form unveiling various shapes - trees, buildings, sea...

If only I could catch some colours and keep them with me for life... if only!!!

Star light, star bright, the first star I see tonight...

How I used to love this poem as a kid! "...I wish I may, I wish I might, I wish I have the wish tonight"...But these days I really dread it.

Especially when my son wishes for- a monkey, a bear, a puppy, a lion...and the thing that almost gave me a heart atack..A Ferrari!!! God help!!!

Now I know why my parents preferred "Chanda mama door ke" to "Star light, Star bright"!!!

Simplicity!

Like all (normal) parents, I once asked my son what he wants to become when he grows up.Is that a pilot, or an actor (like "Don" uncle), an astronaut, a researcher (like his father) , the answer was 'no' to all of them. I finally gave up and asked him " So what WILL you be when you grow up".

What he said was very very beautiful and simple " Mama, I dont wanna become anything, I'll just be Addwait"...

It made me feel so silly and made me realise yet again how simple the thoughts of children are and only we, as adults, make them complicated....

And I have committed that sin.. he now wants to be a "car racer"...:)

God's creation

Its hard to imagine how a child's mind may work despite our assumption that they learn what they see.
One fine morning, we (I, my husband and my little son) were enjoying cups of our favorite drinks when I saw a group of children playing cricket in the slums behind our apartments. They were playing really well though instead of a bat they had wooden ply pieces(this being a construction site). We were enjoying their strokes and enthusiasm when I told my son to go and give one of his bats to the children there so that they can enjoy their game. The response was shocking and sad "I won't, they are not good... they are chee so dirty".

For a while I stood in total shock trying to understand how can my child say such a thing. But its so natural...he has never interacted with any child outside of his elite apartment and elite school. I asked him "Addwait could you please tell me what makes them different? How many eyes do you think they have, and how many ears and how many hands...and so on"...This was followed by an explanation of why they look the way they do, and that they are God's creation too and not respecting them the way they are is like humiliating God...

That day he took out not just his bat but many other toys that he thought his 'friends' would enjoy playing with him...

We are planning a cricket match soon!!!

Clothes maketh a man!

Yes, such a cliche' topic you'd say... but when was really the last time you saw a man with a 'perfect' or 'near perfect' wardrobe or dress sense?

To my delight, I recently did!! (and he isn't gay!). He just knows what colors look perfect on him, what style fits him best and is absolutely comfortable with what he's wearing (Mind you, no adjusting the crotch or shrugging the shoulders in an irritating manner). He's not a 'brand- conscious' but clearly a comfort and style conscious. The absence of a floral shirt showed that he also doesnt follow the fads.. but he looked "oh so handsome".

So what makes this man different from the other two types of men : a) who feel fashion is limited to magazines (or worse FTV) and they ae fine with their 'Uniforms' and b) followers of Govinda/ Akshay kumar with those Hawaiin prints and orange pants...

I'll leave it for you to decide!!!