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The Human Connection
It was 3:30 in the afternoon. The traffic was thin. This was a real good sign as I had little patience to maneuver the traffic. I whizzed past on the sizzling, dry summer roads trying to cover as much distance in as little time as possible. As I left more and more cars behind, my mind started to go back into flashback mode. It was about 14 years ago that we received the news that my eldest sister was expecting. I was young, single, and into my first job in those days. The excitement to welcome a new born in to the family just drove my mom and me crazy.…
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Story of My Life
I am working on the presentation for tomorrow, but somehow my mind is not able to concentrate. I open the thick black cover of my phone to check for any missed calls or messages. Nothing there! I chide myself. I just checked my phone status 5 minutes back. If there is any change in status, I will hear it. I don’t need to check again on the same. I should concentrate on the presentation. I need to finish it today. A few minutes later the door bell rings. My blood races causing my heart to jump. Yes! Finally! I rush to the door and open it. “Shilpa Roy?”, the man outside nonchalantly asks.…
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The Gift of Good Health
Most days Yogs unlimited energy can be the source of real strain on everyone in the house. Jumping on chairs, climbing on tables, trying to get the TV down or putting his hands between the elevator doors, all these pranks manage to keep everyone on their toes. On extreme days, I wish he would be a little less active, a little more calmer and a lot more disciplined. I guess, my prayers were answered and I was gifted such a day today. Yog contracted a bad stomach infection and he lay in bed barely able to move, dirtying diaper after diaper. There was no jumping around, no broken cups, and absolutely…
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Genes
Most parents I know regret the fact that their children have taken after their spouse. They secretly wish that their children were more like themselves. For me it is completely the opposite. I am really glad that both my children have taken after their father. It works out extremely well for me, as their father himself is on the move quite often. In such a scenario, just looking at both of them, I see glimpses of him in the food we eat, in the way we go for walks, in the way we roll over with laughter. He is always midst of us even when he is miles away. I…
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Grow Up to Be
“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy.’ They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” -John Lennon When asked what I wanted to become when I grew up, I used to say, “A Dad!” I guess that is the reason Pavan gets to travel so much. Didn’t realize, God would grant my wish of being a Dad, while being a Mom at the same time!!!
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Brother and Sister are supposed to fight
Toyna and me squatted on the floor trying to get some Hindi revision in order. Yog feeling left out, tried different means to get our attention. From scribbling on the books, snatching pencils and trying to tear the books, he tried his best to rescue Toyna from me. When everything failed, he came to his last tried and tested technique – Hitting and Scratching. He caught hold of Toynas arm and pinched and scratched her. I turned to give him my dirtest possible look, trying to tell him it is not OK to hurt others. He acknowledged my look with one of sweetest smiles, maintained the eye contact with me…
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Maid in Heaven
Any professionally inclined woman in India, in order to foster a hope of having a rich and rewarding career, has to get two extremely important decisions, right. The first one is quite obvious. It is the decision to choose a life partner who believes in her capabilities and considers her ambitions at par with his own. As easy as it may sound, all of us are aware of the hard work it takes to find someone like that and then settle down with him. I thank God, hundred times a day, to have gotten this decision right. The second decision, which I underestimated the importance of, and hence have been…
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Sweet as Sugar
Sugar was always meant to be sweet. It doesn’t care if flies are attracted to it, or if it is blamed for half the obesity in the world. It will not change its constitution, no matter what.
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Tooth Fairy – Part II
Since the last few years, tooth extraction in our house has been synonymous with the Tooth Fairy. It started with giving Toyna something to look forward as a child, in return for the painful extraction. Six to seven extractions later, she is no longer scared, but for some unknown reason, the tradition of the tooth fairy still continues. Since the tooth fairy is somehow supposed to know Toynas wish and grant it, I have to try and get to know Toyna’s wish and pass it on to the fairy for her midnight shopping spree. One more extraction today, and I casually asked Toyna, “So what do you think the Tooth…
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Teachers vs. Dogs
Yog’s morning walk starts when we leave to drop Toyna to the school bus. Toyna’s school teachers at the stop, are very fond of Yog and love to play with him. Yog, on the other hand, has different set of preferences, which are in this order: 1. Dogs, 2. Automobiles, 3. Stones, 4. People. He, therefore, rarely obliges the teachers with any attention. Today, as we dropped Toyna to the stop, one of the teachers implored Yog to play with her. When Yog didn’t concede, she retorted, “There are no dogs today! Play with us, at least today!” With that she burst out laughing, but I was red in embarrassment. To…