Hills that spoke to me

In awe of what the mother can give,

So vast, so majestic, so pure and bliss

Of stony rocks that build a mountain

And pearly drops that make the sea

Of blues and greens that merge with chirps

And love that crosses swiftly in a breeze

An echo of lush every here and there

So serene, so beautiful

No bounds can meet to compare

Rocks that cling to one another

Manifest a bond of trust and care

Beyond the horizon and in the dark

Like an angel guardian with a silver spark

For every morn is blissful to see

Snow peaks that shine a golden glee

Divine chrome that paints the skies

Brings in warmth to shine and rise

The velvety trees that scale up high

So deep that one can barely see

So vast and plentiful is your love to me

A dream of heaven , blessed to be.

20th Aug 2018

Surpriiise!

3…2…1… Bang!!!! Surprise!!! And yes, Again!!!

He has now mastered the art to love me this way! And I couldn’t be less in love with him!

I was exhausted with the line of festivals- talk about staying with elders at home- all festivals are done in a pompous way. We had packed off all festive confetti, wrapped off the big lamps, scrubbed the pooja area and all done! I now needed a big break and my husband only guessed it right.

He told me to pack my bags for 3 days and that we were flying the early morning flight. Destination was unknown. A surprise indeed. Early 4 am, my bags packed with warm wear and my favorite head gear! Thanks to my not so wind friendly ears. We reached the airport in early 50 minutes and he handed over the boarding pass. Thrilled- It was a pass to Chandigarh. I ate, slept, did Sudoku and everything during the journey. We landed and there was a cloudburst. Heavy rains that faded the view ahead. We luckily had the taxi booked. As we hailed the taxi, the driver and Vinay shared a casual talk. I was too excited to notice. I adored the downpour and happiness filled my thoughts. Wait! Did I overhear about “Shimla”? Vinay was grinning and his face beamed pride. He managed to keep it a secret! Yes! We were going to Shimla. I screeched and my heart danced a childlike jump. I always desired touring the Himachal roads. The stairway that led to the most spectacular and magnificent mountains!

A long journey to Shimla with hot tea and lunch at Haveli. A well-located restaurant with the view of pines embracing the place and the mist clad aura that defined a romantic affair! Paneer that melted in our mouth and hot butter dripping tandoor roti. Slurpp! Land slide was a common sight through the journey. The slopes were jeweled by beautiful pines overgrowing the fluffy clouds. Lush green, warm arms, a majestic view, and the love of my life. Perfect!! I snuggled in his brawny arms and sang to myself  “ .. there’s nowhere else in the world I want to be…”

We reached our hotel by sunset. We walked up to the reception and checked in. Our room was on the second floor opening to the most awesome view of the hills. We left the curtains rolled up the whole time we stayed there. We shopped like maniacs that evening. Ok… It was just me! He captured the beauty of Shimla through his lens. He clicked the gleams of sunset, of sweets that smelt delicious, of clothes that displayed vibrance, of distant humanity and his elated wife who shopped for stuff that overloaded her bags. Camera is his new love. He sees things in a new perspective, talks about its technical stuff, tries to explain wavelength and aperture only to see my blank face. I love the camera too- only from the other end! We hired a bike the next day. We rode the Himachal curves in that beauty. Words don’t do justice to that beautiful feeling. A feeling of love tranquilled with the freshness of nature. I held him tight, closed my eyes and lived my dream! We rode all the way up to Kufri. Had lunch thousands of meters high. And relished every moment of togetherness. We then rode down to Viceregal Lodge – place of historical importance. The place was highly inspiring. We wandered the long hallways and were mesmerized by the architectural elegance. It poured heavily that day. The showers that nurtured the aura added a tad more beauty to the green around! Our checklists were marked off and we swayed happiness.

That night was wonderful as I gaped at the starry silence. It was pure magic to say least. The fine bliss of mist cracking your bones and the chilliness to celebrate the day. Vinay walked in with glowing candles lit up on chocolate pastry. Happy Anniversary to Us! For turning 3, for turning to be crazier and for each other’s best half! The year thought us (him) to make peace at times, to love(me) more and to be there together to celebrate every adventure together. Times have gotten wiser, I must say! Fights are calmer and giggles are plenty. Serious discussions are surely not helping us. As rushing against time and kissing the fades of light, we have crossed many days and nights feeling warm and blessed. We are not together to conquer the world! We have a different perspective of settling down. As against many others, we believe in travelling, in exploring new places, in being a part of crazy ideas and executing those mindless thoughts. Triple Love to Insanity!

P.S. I wrote this from the plane – with a view of sunset between the cloudy enchantment. Awwww...!

I also managed to be giggling in excitement reading the above and scaring my co passengers!

Happy Mother's Day Ma !!!

There is a power inside every girl- a power that draws its very essence from the umbilical that she shares with her mother. We are what you are mom! We love you!

Grace, elegance and charm… you name it and she portrays it in the most blissful manner. Her smile is contagious and the innocence that sparkles in her eyes will ensure you fall in love with her… Every.Other.Time !

Mommy darling is witty. But the kinds who makes u burst out laughing but she herself would be quiet and will admire the happiness on your face. Breaking the silence, giving you a reason to laugh out loud in between those stressed up studying hours and filling the air with her sense of time and humour – she certainly is the right company.

She solved my math problems, glued my craft work, dressed us up for fancy dress, inspired those creative ideas and as we grew up she showed how important it was to score those extra marks to top the class. She has never been harsh about shaping our life. She only spoke her sweetest words and you would mend your ways. She let me learn up my debate write ups and practice the narration with the right body language. Every time I went up on stage to deliver one those beauties, success was surely mom’s motivation. She nourished my love for the language, encouraged every time I wrote a liner and adored the creativity in me. This surely could inspire a rock to swell.

Mom has been the support system for daddy to accomplish his days, a best friend to Divya and me, amazing to Arun and Vinay and most of all amamma to Anagha as well ! How lovely it is to watch Anagha and mom spend time during the day. They play, sing and learn together. It is just her grace to pass on her wisdom to yet another generation. And she does it with all her heart !

She imbibed the purity in us. Pure love for one another. How important it is to stand up for someone, how honesty will always sway success and how our behavior builds our character. I am awe stuck at how she maintains her calm in the storm. She will never taunt or pass a statement that will hurt you. I grew up adoring her traits. This year as she turns 60 and we all turn a year older and wiser, I am thankful for I can learn the importance of accepting challenges, to accept life as it comes, to wait for the right moment, and that we are all blessed to receive what we deserve and we ignore those moments that give us plain pain.

When I call out for her- there is a super natural power – a sense that connect me to the universe. Of the many things, I have learnt from her, I have learned to mind my own business. How important it is to respect an individual’s identity and appreciate their small help in making us a better person. She helped us see through the warmness in others, to nurture a growing relation and to embrace life’s challenges with our best foot down. She kindly has led the way for us to reach our destinations, cross hurdles and master our skills with the best she could. I only hope to live up to her expectations and keep that smile glowing on her face.

I know it's not all easy for you every time ma, at least not as simple as you show it to be. I can't imagine coming back after a long days work to two tired, hungry kids who have to be fed, nurtured and loved. To ensure they don't miss your absence in times that u excelled working hard in office. To again get ready next morning for another marathon of a day. To keep all things in place and work as mechanical as it sounds to make the morning sunshine brighter and the dark nights dreamy with your warm heart. 

Mom… I have loved every moment that I have spent with you and wish to spend every other. Not that I don't enjoy my time with others but because I love you the most (mostest if I could say). I think of you at times you are not around and imagine how different it would be if you were around. I wish I could stop thinking of how terrible the days are without you, but it keeps haunting me like a drought deep down my brain. 

You will always be my forever - lingering those joyous feelings in my heart. You are my winged fairy that blesses me with all your might. And you are that soul that connects to all my thoughts! I am sure god’s smiling from heaven sensing your warm heart.

Blessed ! I love you ma :)

Appa

Being born his replica, growing up jumping on him to now being what I am….. Appa is my strength, my Super Hero and my dearest!

He is someone who ensured we smiled before we knew to cry, we had enough before we realized emptiness and someone who followed us in every step of our life. He fought ends, worked very hard and lived a life to respect and follow. His simplicity has based such a strong foundation in our hearts. We will never ever whine for what we don’t have but will always thank for everything we have. I have lately realized how our generation has become so greedy and have forgotten these precious values. How we are always at competition with our own selves, wanting to be the best at work, home and with our friends. We have lost our own self trying to be someone we never will be.

Appa has a basic phone, 4 pairs of clothes, a loving wife and all of US. That’s his world!

You saw it in movies but we witnessed it in our lives. The first time I rode my cycle to school, I had my dad hiding behind - just to ensure I reached safe. It’s different that I fought about being embarrassed, only to realize how special I am today! He promptly took off for all our exams, sat through till we cracked our brains and never minded doing this over and over. Unlike other parents, he did not discuss the question papers with us but instead was always worried about how hungry or sleepy we were. It takes a million odd thoughts for me to believe that somebody can dedicate their whole life for the best of you.

Appa has never beaten us. Forget that, he has never clearly raised his voice against us. Not even at our worst best. So, that makes it very difficult for us to accept that the world around is not like this. I was once at my neighbor’s house and my friend was beaten with a belt for low scores at a grade test. The only memory I have of that day is panting and fleeting back home and cuddling daddy. The incident was unimaginable for me. As we grew up we knew peers who had a childhood- very different from ours We, as a family never fought or teased or made nasty comments on each other. Even to this day we find it weird that such things are acceptable! . I will never blame for being raised this way. Love is what kids need to grow up- to grow up to be humans who prioritize loving and being loved. I will never cry because it will break his heart; I will never sigh because there could not be anything better.

As kids, we approached him for everything. He was our very desi google maps, our storyteller about kings and reigns, for history of the world wars and of course our only guide for the list of Indian Presidents and Prime Ministers just before the GK exam day. So, daddy used to always write news for me in small pieces of paper and I proudly read them in the assembly hall. For all this I see Anagha use Google. But daddy did it all for us. He carried us on his shoulders, imparted his wisdom and dint care his life to see his loved ones have a new reason to smile each day.

Appa also has a great flair for music. His encouragement got me into music. Not an ardent singer myself, but for him I mostly sound like a chirping bird! Most of our Sundays were like this- he bathed and wore his bright white dhothi, forehead smeared with Viboothi and glancing the newspaper with classical music playing in our double decker. It’s sad that our next generation will never value the table drawer oozing with our cassette collection, planet M stores or recording songs on empty tapes. Not to forget, the time when there was power shutdown. All the kids in the neighborhood sat in front of our house in the veranda and sang songs. All on a competition to be the best. The very thought has drawn a faint smile on my lips today-an everyday affair back then!

All thanks to him, we experienced some of the finest places on Earth! The innumerable trips have added that sense of cultural warmth and and an aura to tell tales of different cities. From hills to oceans to cruise and sail - A tell tale travel experience. Checking off many places in my bucket list - I owe it all to him. Mom, dad, Divya and me enjoyed the finest hotels, rides, flying times and of course the yummy cuisines around. From seeing the remains of Julius Caesar in Rome to Sentosa in Singapore, Burj Al Arab in Dubai, the mammoth Mosque in Abu Dhabi, the rides in Genting, being kids in Disneyland to the divine temples of South India and not the least- the hill stations! That was hilarious- we as a family went on this honeymoon special trip!! 

Cheers to the time when eating roti curry at a restaurant was a luxury, when bajaj scooter was no less than flying the emirates, learning geography was using the globe with daddy, feeling warm and protected was only in his arms and being his princess was the only fairy tale dream.

There is a rare sense of unconditional love, a point of comfort to bliss the space and a whole lot of being together. Words can only do the justice of what emotions sway my mind. Gentle and caring, smearing love and an aroma of a familiar spice. A perfect blend to be a part of him. I don’t know if we have reiterated to him of how much we love him, but for Divya and me he will surely be our hero- in fact our dearest! 

For what it has been....

2016 has zoomed by…. In a wink of an eye! And, if you disagree – you have just been a lazy bone, m sure!!!

With just 2 months for this year to complete, it kept me thinking of the many things that has just remained as ideas rusting in my mind while a lot of unwanted stuff has gone by.

Not a great year and not that bad either. There are days I have been extremely busy burning my bones to meet ends at work and days I have stared out of the car window cursing the never-ending traffic lanes. I have spent an average of 5 hours a day on road just shuttling between office and home. Those 5 hours have been a spot to action out frustration, get creative on things I CAN do (but don’t), of quilling to tatting, of cooking virtually with beautiful Italian ingredients, to memorizing how I can give back to fights with Vinay, to revisiting days that could have been better and to role play many characters I mostly admire! No, don’t conclude. I haven’t lost my mind yet… these are just figments of imagination- if only you can digest the sophistication in the statement!

Some challenging moments and some scary days- from crying, fighting to laughing our hearts out, to watching Anagha grow into a smarter kid, to digesting facts that we are all growing older, to act responsible at times that I thrived to stay dumb, to betraying the beauty of truth, to feel mistrust, to walking memories that sang melodies of promises and to the classics of being family!

Lost in between was being “US”. Vinay and me spent hours thinking and talking our minds aloud. To making our life more meaningful from where we all started. We made plans, re-plans and re-did them again! Dusting off ole school thoughts and building fresh hopes, we decided to take things our way. Living in days that bought untold freedom and comfort, a little naïve but m sure will nurture with time. We now spend more time doing things we love. He helps me in house old chores and I have started using the canvas and colors again. What a rejoice it is! We do some dusting, some bare minimum cooking, laughing at old photos and a lot of cuddling. Moments we missed amidst the chaos!

I am only hoping to do many more things I can relate myself to in the next two months! I hope to create a memory I can blush about in 2017. For now, I am looking forward to a great vacation with my childhood buddy. As amazing as it sounds. Gearing UP!!!

ANAGHA

“Puppu, puppu…. Let’s do a sister activity today… take a cardboard roll… stick a shiny paper…. 2 moving eyes and let’s colour it….. Good idea right??!!??” Couldn’t just get better right? I hardly can picture her imagination but m proud she thinks so deep in her thoughts. Its crazy fun and ‘m her crazy Aunt !!

I surely do have my hand in spoiling her, to pamper her and to annoy her.

I.Love.Her.
That’s the point - Bold and strong. I can play, fight and compete; when it’s time out - she runs to her mum!

Anagha is 4 years and a couple of months. She has currently believed she and I are sisters. Not to doubt her parents consider me her sibling too! This whole sister thing became our fancy when we wanted to tell her that she could and couldn’t do a few things…. So it’s always mommies’ vs sisters at home. We both sisters (m used to these terms now) have everything in common. From wearing similar dresses, to not touching the stove or operate the oven, not to take the stairs alone, can’t wear makeup ….so on…we even carried our sister bag to the last trip we went!

The day I first met Anagha is a very beautiful memory in my mind. Tiny paws and pink cheeks. Precious. She was born with a pair of jet black eyes. Contradicting her mom’s ravishing green eyes this one is equally a treat! We clicked her pictures every day. We tried a lot of our skills and creativity. We wrapped her warm once and did the nude baby one’s too. We once poured a box of strawberry’s on her and clicked pictures. She was a darling. Going on, we enjoyed every minute of her sound sleep to live those sisters time or spend happy moments with my mom n aunt! In the evening Arun danced to the tunes of “Chai Chai, coffee coffee” wrapping Anagha in his arms. Anagha started talking very early. Even before she started walking she managed to tell the stories of how the cooker whistled and the thirsty crow stories. She hummed to her own tunes of fantasy music and ran like a darling.

Sometimes am jealous. I feel she is extremely lucky to spend the entire day with my mom. Learn and play with her. I meet them every day but you know it’s different once you’re married. You truly know the value of staying at mom’s house from the very moment u get married! I will keep this topic to discuss another day. For now this space is about her. My Muddu bangara !!!

Her imagination is a soaring kite. Her ability to beautifully link many stories into her everyday life is a commanding act to adore. She was once asked to learn to speak about her favorite toy for a narration at school. Mom and I tried to teach her a few lines about her bunny. We told her about its tooth, its love for carrot and a few common lines which she could easily remember. In a matter of a few minutes she came up with this story herself – Trust me , her innocence won! : “One day there was a rabbit. He was very hungry. He looked for carrot everywhere. Then he found a tortoise. They began to race. The rabbit slept under a tree. A crow dropped a leaf on its head. The tortoise won the race!” By the way this story is the remake version of the thirsty crow, Hare & the tortoise and another story of a crow!!!

 Anagha Ma’am- that’s fondly how she calls herself – is an amazing teacher to all of us. Her obedient students are Sudha & Rajshekar(her ammama and thata). She narrates her entire day at school back at home here and it’s a treat to watch her do this. Sit, stand, colour and sing- you gotta do everything in her class. Kalli is my husband. He steals her chocolates and she knows them. Hence the name. She now remembers to buy extra ones just for him. Now that’s being clever! I am Puppu and that's the best someone has ever called me.

I have off late been telling Anagha about the existence of a fairy godmother! Like how this fairy is fond of obedient lil girls and would silently draw stars on their hands when they were sleeping. This has been working for some days now. She sleeps like a darling and when its time, I frantically search for coloured pens to tattoo her tiny paws with twinkling stars!!

I can write volumes and would never be done with this topic. For now, she is the most happening part of all our lives. I love the way she runs to open the door when we reach home, stretch her arms, hug us and crawl all over vinay and arun … Blessed!!!

The Kanive Homestay - Hearty uphill !

“I wanna do sky touch!!!” that’s exactly what the lil brat kept mumbling as we soaked in the dusky sun at the view point…..

Her imagination knew no bounds. Her eyes were too little to capture the mammoth of the Kudremukh hills. She kept saying she would touch the sky if we took her there. She was building castles in the air- a fairy tale of messing those milky clouds, feeling the flaky blue sky and warming her tiny hands as she would give her warmest hugs to the gilded fading sun!

We reached the resort late in the noon. The sun was still bright and we fell in love with the place! It was spic and span. If the hills that snugged the place was not enough, the chirpy birds and the aromas of the tall trees created an ambiance of a perfect holiday.

The food always thrills me. It is the only purpose of visiting Malnad Homestays again and again. And this time it was special. I was with my sista who loves to experiment with cooking. I only enjoy eating!!! We had an amazing range of food from kadbu, neer dosa, manglore buns to shavige and so on… I can feel myself slurping in the air as I write. We also went down the hill 6 odd kms just to have breakfast an hour before they would serve at the resort. All thanks to my foodie husband! We tried the local hotel. It was early in the morning and were at this really tiny place. Hot food and we were all smiles!!!

The place was thoroughly booked for both the days. From toddlers to oldies- a blended mix of folks who were all enjoying the bliss of staying in the warmth of the hills.

How wrong are we at judging strangers? Raghavendra Rajkumar and family had also halted in the same place for his son’s movie shot. Div and I dint bother much, unlike the routine of approaching film stars with an autograph or a recent craze of selfie! Anagha was running around and she happened to bump into him. We were taken aback with his approach… he very sweetly told her not to run too fast and continued talking to her. Div and me stood at the doorway and overheard the conversation. Though he is recovering from his recent illness, he spoke with utmost poise and warmth. This was so different from my imagination of hard hearted wealthy stars! He even came by to bid Anagha a good bye before he left. We finally spoke to him. He happens to be extremely sweet and warmhearted. We did the routine now! We approached him to take a picture. He bent down with sophistication and asked Anagha if he could take a picture with her! She barely knew him. She just giggled a nod!

The next day, Arun went out on a trek and the rest of us just lazed around. We leisurely got ready and went out to the river close by for a dip. We put on our life jackets and splurged in to the blue waters. Heavenly! The river was in spate. We moved from one end to the other without much effort.  Adrift under the bright sun and drenching in the cool waters was just as merry as it sounds. Anagha and I collected a few pebbles on our way back and shivered as we trolled the muddy roads back to the resort

The evenings were a merry go round too. Dim lights, swaying LED’s and loud music. We danced like it dint matter… some boogie down and rock n roll! Mind leaped a joy of smiles and my hearth throbbed some new air! Mist filled the aura and added an essence of music to what the tunes of nature can do to our everyday life.

We tripped, sprained our ankles, lived those sisterly moments and were clowning around all the time. To add on we connected. We reached out to the healing of the everyday chaos and dusted some bad ole days. We laughed our hearts out and played to the inane tunes in our thoughts. We yearned to touch the sky! We promised to create these memories more often and fancied to glide the hills again!