February’s focus has been on meeting and eating. Meeting old friends and relatives!

I had 10 posts planned for February. Some of them made it to this page while some remain as drafts. Will they make it as blog posts or will they languish as drafts till one day I actually bin them?

February being my birthday month is special. What makes it really special is the celebrations with family and friends. Yes! multiple celebrations for one birthday because in these busy times it is difficult to organise one big do that everyone can attend. And over the years I find that meaningful interactions are only possible when you meet in smaller more intimate gatherings.

The Saturday a week before my birthday Prima Donna and Anna Shetty booked a wonderful experience at ‘Mag. St.Kitchen’. You can read all about it here.

Later that week I met up with old friends, one of whom I was meeting after 40 years or more! Of course, Prima Donna wondered how I could have such an old friend and not so much as mention her name in all these years! But in all honesty, I did occasionally think of her but it was only late last year when I saw her Mum’s obituary in the newspaper was I struck by a sudden urge to meet her and condole with her.

One of my learnings from the pandemic has been the transience of life. Surprisingly, the Universe seemed to agree with me for no sooner had this thought crossed my mind than another old friend called me up and re-connected me to the long lost friend. So I got my wish and a chance phone call from a common friend allowed me to reconnect with my old friend and condole with her.

But more than the condolences, I got a chance to catch up with her and share news and exchange gossip of the old times. Sharing news of old friends, hearing names associated with my childhood was in a strange way reassuring though often the news of old acquaintances wasn’t exactly pleasant. Many had passed away in sad circumstances and for many life hadn’t been exactly kind.

That very week I met up with two more sets of friends which meant more eating and more laughing on two different occasions. And the meeting and eating went on for the following week as well when I met up with cousins at Bandra.

This was a real surprise because the cousins are out of towners and we don’t meet very often ( especially with the Pandemic). The sisters hosted a special birthday lunch at Seefah one of the many trendy, quaint cafes that Bandra is famous for. Once again it was a delightful combination of exquisite flavours and invigorating company, reminiscing about our childhood and memories and sharing our anxieties for the future

This meeting was bookended by a lazy walk through Ranwar village, (a tiny slice of yesterday’s Bandra deceptively camouflaged by the busy main road) and a browse through one of Mumbai’s latest Malls – JioWorld.

The meetings and eating continued well into the last week of February and it didn’t come as a surprise when I found myself 2 kg heavier but much lighter in spirit.

February also saw the re-opening of physical school, a sign that things are slowly limping back to normal.

So while I have a lot to be grateful for February, I am anxious about what March will bring.

With the war currently raging in Europe, names like Lvov and Kiev which were once consigned to our History and Geography books have suddenly become as commonplace as Thane and Dombivili.

Like the rest of the world, I am praying that it soon comes to an end.

Till the next time,

Ciao