Little eyes, big scrutiny..

It's great to be a parent. From the moment you hold the baby in your hands and see them cuddle in your arms and fall sound asleep like it's the best place in the world to the moment they grow (which is recurring).

In the first year, every month brings in some new changes but they are visible.. The following years, there is indeed much more that happens with the minds of these little menace makers in our lives.

Cherith has been swamping me with questions ever since he was 3, the time he started not just noticing but even observing.

Lately, he has asked me questions like where do babies come from?, why did I get married?, why do I live with his papa rather than live with my mama papa?, why is earth the only place people live in?, why do we have to listen to elders all the time?, why do we have to behave when our elders don't behave the same way?..

His thoughts seem to be at war bombing me without warning. While I'm very glad about the questions, I try my best to answer all of them in the most simplest way so he has them answered and needn't go to anyone else for answers.

In fact I love this process of him doing an internal brainstorming resulting in questions which are a sign of a sharp mind. I must confess I was a question asker myself but I barely got any answers to them.

As I child, I mostly got the same answer "We do it because we are told to" or "That's how it's been" or "Our ancestors set traditions and we follow them". It all meant the same to me but these were not definitely the answers.

Coming back to present, after the lockdown eased up, Cherith got his cycle down and started learning. I was overjoyed to see him have his hands and legs co-ordinated so well that he perfected it in just about 4 months without much falling.

He has now grown tall and the cycle already has to be passed on to a successor. He has been insisting on getting a new one since the seat and handle have been raised to the maximum and it is getting quite uncomfortable for him now. So we agreed to get him a new cycle after his assessments.

He is not too adamant and fussy like many other kids I see around. He is pretty understanding and accepts logic which is a great relief to me as a mother.

So yesterday I was having lunch and he wanted me to play with him. Since his papa was done with lunch, I asked him to take his blocks and make something nice while I finish the chores. I challenged him to compete with papa and the creation I find the best will be rewarded.

They set out to the task and when I came out, I could clearly look at the two robots made of blocks and know who had made which one. I simply pointed at one and said I like this one and I could see his eyes sparkle and say, "I made this mumma".

"Superb" I joined him. "Now tell me what you want as a prize, you can ask for anything" I tempted him.

"I just want papa to play with me for an hour or half an hour everyday, that's all"

Silence...

While he went back to watching his cartoon I was not surprised by his words but shocked by his observation. Those little eyes do see everything but that little mind understands so much more. He evidently sees the lack of time spent with his father but the way he asked for it took my heart away..

When and how do our little munchkins grow up so soon.. Sometime back, he held my finger while walking, some more time back I lifted him while outdoors and some more time back he was in my arms all day cooing and even before that, I could not see him just feel him in me. After all the proximity, now I can put my hand on his shoulder.

While I'm writing this, he is trying to fit in my lap, failing but still trying. I tell him that most of my writeups are filled with him these days and when he grows up, he can read them and know what I feel about him. In my mind I'm thinking these are eternal memories that I will store online for him so he can revisit them anytime, forever..

As for his scrutinizing eyes, I just hope his brain keeps erupting with questions and pray that god gives me the sanity to answer them all in the most creative, satisfying and less intriguing way. 

Good luck to all the would be and already parents with the little joys of the greatest treasure of our lives..

CHEERS!

GOD BLESS!!

CHS

Wishlisted... The conclusion

Just to be on the safer side, I had texted bro and Sany that I was with him to buy Perry's birthday gift (they would have teased me to death if they discovered later) and guess what happened when I reached...

I ran straight to the kitchen to drain a glass of water so I could buy more time to face the question cannon awaiting me.

I saw papa looking at me. "Beta, kaha gaye the?" he asked casually.. "Papa actually...." I was thinking of telling him "Inko kuch samaan deliver karne jaana tha, mujhe bola saath chalo toh. .." but before I could present my case he took my hand and directed me outside.

"Pata hai?" he said looking and mom, Sany and Bhavna di "Baisa niche gaye, povna ko phone lagaya, phir 5 minute Baad povna car mein aaye aur baisa car mein bethke nikal gaye. Inhone socha hoga bolenge nahi toh kya pata chalega"

I was flushed with embarrassment while everyone started laughing. Papa was suddenly treating me like an 18 year old caught with her boyfriend (well the idea was to experience exactly that) but I dint want it to blow up on my face like this.

Mom quietly took me to one side as I wondered how papa knew everything in such detail. As if reading my mind she said "Your dad went to the balcony as soon as you left to see where you were going. He might have become old but still keeps an eye on what his kids are upto you know. Apne papa ko kam mat samajhna".

Of all the people in the world, I dint expect papa to spy on me and then laugh it out in front of everyone. I simply smiled and tried to defend myself "Arey papa, he called me just 5 minutes before, I dint know what he had come for, niche gayi tab pata chala"

"With the long grin on your face, we understood who you were going to meet even before you told us. Bolke chali jaati, koi mana thode hi karte" Sany landed the blow I could not recover from and I rested my case losing to family.

When I briefed hubby about the blunder on my return he laughed heartily saying "Main tha isliye theek tha, kisi aur ke saath jaate toh pehle aapko aur phir mujhe papa ka phone zaroor aata, ki dekho meri beti kaha gayi hai" He too joined forces with everyone else, that was the last thing I needed.

While I was thinking about the excitement of an impromptu teenage stunt, my family clearly knew me too well making it impossible for me to pull it off.

It was a night of laughter and I was a target for the next couple of days but I enjoyed every minute of being with him thinking my family dint know and then kind of came to terms with the fact that my family can make out when I'm lying because I am a pathetic liar. Seems like it had happened just for laughs..

I hope you too have some fun time with family irrespective of who is the reason for laughter. May all of us find joy in such small somethings and may happiness prevail in all our lives.

P. S : I still have a long list of things to do, wonder which one to chose next (;

CHEERS!! 

GOD BLESS! 

CHS

Wishlisted... The beginning...

I can't believe I got back to this space after 3 months.. Although I confess I had so many things to write about, somethings and events kept me denying the time to do so. However, I also admit that there is a time when artists go blank and that did happen with me in the past months..

I hope you are having a good start to the new year and new decade.. Interestingly I am just going to throw light on an event that was planned with results unplanned.

How many of us have a wishlist.. You know, of things we want to do for ourselves, our family. A kind of to do list with our friends or partner... 

Apparently me and hubby agreed upon making lists of our own, list of things we wanted to do together. We're actually close to completing 8 years of marriage but couldn't really manage to get the we time for unforseen circumstances and unavoidable situations. So we decided better this way than never.

So I was on my vacation, enjoying my family time and freedom and during my usual chats with hubby, tried to put together a few things on the list. 

One such wish of mine was to sneak out of home without telling anyone. I wanted to be back in 20's mysteriously leaving home to meet a guy, enjoying the thrill of no one knowing and then making my brain run a marathon to come up with suitable excuses.

So I just mentioned it to hubby and he said 'hmmm'. Really?? I wondered if he was getting double older every year. I was coping up with that disheartening reply when I got a call from him.

"Come down when I call you and don't tell anyone" I was overjoyed. I quickly put on a jacket and did my hair and picked my wallet and walked out of the room to be welcomed with 5 pair of eyes that looked at me questioningly but dint question.

I hated it that my grin was getting uncontrollable. "I'll be back in a while" I blurted out and quickly shut the main door to avoid questions.

I ran down waiting for him. He arrived in the car in 5 minutes and I asked him "where to?"

"I had some work around here and you wanted to sneak out, looks like this one's set up for us already" We both laughed and started our journey enjoying music and talking but I could hide the excitement of being out of home at that hour without anyone knowing.

He stopped outside a cafe as the person was preparing to close and asked me to get my favourite coffee before he shuts down. I was even more happy to get my hands on devils own after ages...

I was feeling 18 again and my mind had already started permutations and combinations of questions and answer round that was just about to take place as soon as I entered home.

Just to be on the safer side, I had texted bro and sany that I was with him (they would have teased me to death if they discovered later) and guess what happened when I reached... 

To be continued.... 

CHEERS

GOD BLESS

CHS