Quite frankly I completely forgot I had this blog. Over the years I’ve had so many blogs that I started and stopped that I honestly thought that this was one of the blogs I had closed down or had automatically closed down because I hadn’t bothered to write and keep it alive.

Yesterday I got an Annual Report from WordPress about this blog and I was amazed to find that it was a good report. Somehow it inspired me to get back to this blog and write at least once a week if not more often. I am not too sure if this blog links back to my main blog Mumbai Daily at http://chowmiaow.blogspot.com and am still trying to get all my blogs under one umbrella.

2013 was a life changing year as was 2011 and 2012 which brings me to my pet theory that life is all about lessons and learning. There can never be a day when one doesn’t learn something new about oneself, your family or your world. This I find is a universal truth.

So what were my lessons in 2013 ?

1. Motherhood is different from grandmotherhood.
2. It is harder to lose weight as you get older not because your metabolism slows down but because your motivation is less.
3. You can still find a new pastry shop behind all the tomatoes – I discovered the most amazing pastry shop Quality which has been around for 12 years or more. It’s just that I never saw it.
4. Travelling solo is one of the best ways of seeing the world.
5. Yoga at 4.30 am  is the best way to get a  sticky back on track.
6. Weddings can unite and disunite a family.
7. All that glitters is truly not gold – many myths of happy families were busted this year and I realised that you really don’t know what happens behind closed doors.
8. Parents who send their children abroad to study should never expect them to return back to the fold especially if they don’t have property, a family business or an industry to come back to.
9. While you can never forget your sorrows you can never forget to smile.

So here’s hoping that 2014 will bring smiles to everyone!