Twenty- five Seven

Flying loose , flying high

January 15, 2023

On Makar Sankranti the sky is normally filled with kites. But today the sky is still bare. Perhaps they will start flying in the evening when the sea breezes start coming in.

I love watching the kites soar high into the sky, riding on thermals taking them up as high as the eye can see before finally breaking free and vanishing forever. Or come crashing down in mid-flight mercilessly cut down by men and boys chasing them as prized trophies.

Thanks to the return of the Overseas Indians I am celebrated out. From December we’ve done nothing but meet and eat or eat and meet! It’s always fun to meet family and friends and catch up with old memories while making new but finally the wining and dining has taken its toll on my body that has begun to grumble and groan .

Possibly most of my compatriots are feeling the festivity burnout which is why Makar Sankranti has lost much of its shine. After all, with Diwali sweets, Christmas treats and dozens of meets with friends and family, flying kites is not for the faint of heart.

At one time I would buy kites for my young girls to fly and would make the traditional tilache ladoo ( a toasted sesame seed and jaggery confectionery) that is exchanged with wishes for letting bygones become bygones. (Tilgool ghya ani gode bola) .

This wonderful sentiment is a great way of starting the New Year with fresh thoughts and kind words for everyone ; I sentiment that I wholeheartedly endorse and would seriously like to implement.

Why do we carry the burden of grudges, often imagined slights and emotional hurts when it so easy to forget them and get on with our lives. After all no two moments are alike and we accept them with equanimity, so why can’t we accept each others’ baggage?

But obviously this is easier said than done and on this day, even though I’m not flying kites and not sharing tilgool I do hope I have it in me to let go of past grudges and restore fractured friendships.

Ciao
Goodbye 2022

December 31, 2022

Parting is such sweet sorrow, That I shall say good night till it be morrow. My necessaries are embark’d: farewell. Adieu! I have too grieved a heart to take a tedious leave.
Juliet in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet

I was reminded of these lines when the Little Po asked his brother who Shakes Pare was. They were reading Romeo & Juliet in their drama class where they were learning how to read with expression. Little Po could be excused for asking who Shakes Pare was because his exposure to literature was limited to his previous obsession with ‘Supa Strikas’ the animated football show on YouTube where Shakes is a major player.But Wow Dinga who had already heard of the Bard since he is older and wiser immediately put things in context and mockingly corrected him with the right name .

More than being amused at this mix up, I was astounded by the fact that the Second Graders were already being exposed to plays that I had read as a teen . ‘Romeo & Juliet’ was our prescribed English text book in Inter Arts ( or Senior High School as it would be known today).

However, these lines remain etched in my memory for one is always saying goodbye to one thing or another in one’s life . And 2022 seems to be a year marked with changes where I said goodbye to many things.

Today I will be saying goodbye to a way of life that I have known for the past three decades because Hubby Dear will be retiring.

From the beginning of this year, Hubby Dear’s retirement has been looming ahead of us and throughout the year, there were frequent discussions at home about what likely scenarios would play out in our lives. On good days we saw good times ahead and on the days we felt low we saw nothing but gloom. After all, shifting gears is never easy.

It was also the year when Prima Donna’s break said goodbye to her 12 year long association with a company that she loved working for. Like her father, she will be looking for new avenues.

We said goodbye to Anna Shetty and her family when they relocated to a new home. Though she still remains close by, it feels strange to look at her now former home across the road and find it empty. The emptiness is further compounded by her infrequent visits home and the boys’ absence that we feel. For ten years their lives were intertwined with ours and now we see them only on a Saturday.

However, there were many reasons to celebrate: like birthdays, a wedding in the family and the addition of another little one. Schools began after a lull of two years and we met cousins from abroad and re-connected with old friends.

Health wise, we all had a brush with Omicron and a terrible scare when Little Po was rushed to the hospital with acute ITP. Those were the worst moments of our life but thankfully we came through.

So it would seem that 2022 was a year like every other year with its ups and downs without any earth shattering changes for the good or the bad . For this I’m grateful yet at times it felt like we were living in a limbo and I’m glad to say goodbye to 2022.

Though 2023 begins with no plans in place , I hope it will be the start of new beginnings at a kinder, gentler pace.

Happy New Year and thanks for visiting.

Ciao
Mid-week Musings : flower power

December 7, 2022

On the mid 1960’s Flower Power meant meant countering war with peace – offering flowers during peace protests . It meant Peace and Freedom . This eventually led to a completely new culture of youth that challenged the old order yet peace still remains in many parts of the world where there are insurgences, uprisings, instances of social unrest and violence almost every day not to mention all out war in modern day Europe .

Yet Flower Power is in full bloom in our garden. Thanks to the member in charge of the garden, ours is one of the few high rise societies in Mumbai that actually has a garden. And everyday as I get into my car , I am assailed by the fragrance of Sweet Clematis. It’s amazing how these tiny almost insignificant looking flowers can set off such a strong and cloying smell! But I’m not grumbling .

Last week the beds were laid with Geraniums, Pentas and Begonia . Pots of petunias some already in bloom will soon overflow in riot of colours.

In another bed there are vibrant hibiscus and blue Hydrangea that nod to all the walkers passing by. And with the lawn lush and green it is indeed a pleasure to sit on the benches and watch the sun go down .

Our weekend brings some cheer as Prima Donna is celebrating a birthday. Growing older is fun but not without its fears of what the new year will bring.

This afternoon Ms Papaya was complaining that someone at school was copying her business idea so now they have to be very careful with their ‘prototype’. I told her that she could secure her position by having a ‘copyright’ or ‘patent’ for her idea so that anyone who wants her idea will have to pay for the copyright. She stared at me and said that they do copywriting in school but does that mean they will get paid to copywrite?

Hope your weekend promises to be happy

Ciao