Any guesses?
No points for those who know me personally- they know it aright.
It was almost an year since I last saw her. Ever realized how every second passes with great difficulty when you are awaiting someone? The clock almost refuses to move. Time seems to be frozen still and you wait with all eagerness for the moment when you can see that person again.
I was at the arrival lounge of Delhi Airport, expecting a certain flight from Kolkata to land, and for her to alight. I saw a celebrity walk past me, but my attention was focused on the conveyor belts to see which one would carry the luggage from home. And then I saw the distinct outline of the woman I love most in this world. The tears brimming in my eyes were the expression of a plethora of opposing emotions I was feeling inside- of longing and of getting, of missing and of meeting again. I held her in a tight embrace like a child clings to its mother. And I was feeling like a baby again.
She means "home" to me. A place that will take you back, no matter what. She is my refuge and yet my strength. She believes in confronting what she fears the most and she has taught me to do the same.
She means a unique flowery smell, the duplication of which I have not found yet. As a child, I would dig my nose into her clothes when she went out for work, just to feel her proximity. This is how I went to sleep in the afternoon after I came home from school .
Like every other emotionally insecure teenager I had problem accepting the changes in myself. She was the one who made me see the beauty in me. As she does in everybody around her.
I don't remember her hollering ever. When she gets angry, she doesn't lash out. She just clams up like an oyster. And that is what I fear the most. Her silence. It is more deafening than any rebuke I can anticipate. Every time I have been at fault, I have expected her to reprimand me, but she has answered me with quietude. Completely ignoring the fact that I have gone wrong somewhere. She prefers to say how things would have been easier if I had done the right thing, so I can analyze the situations myself. Her pet refrain then is " Nera beltolay jaay kobaar?" , meaning "How many time does the bald venture under a bel tree? The answer is Nera beltolay ekbar e jaay ! (He goes only once i.e makes the mistake only once) And I swear to make a new mistake the next time.
She also means patali goor-er payesh. Her sweetness is like my favorite rice pudding she makes for me. She is like the spring flower she offers to the deity in prayer. She is like the incense stick that doesn't make a screaming entrance but leaves a lingering fragrance even when it is extinguished.
Over the years I have learned to appreciate the words from a lullaby ..."Kiser maashi-kiser pishi, kiser Brindabon? Chotur dikey cheye dekho Ma boro dhonn" ( Something to the effect of.. "even Brindavan is nothing compared to a mother" )
I had conceived the idea to write this post on Mother's Day (US- 2nd Sunday of May), but then I thought- a bond such as this need not be celebrated on a restricted date.
Love you Ma
11 comments:
a very moving post :) .....dun have any words to add but just a silent prayer for all the moms :)
P.S - gee tx another calvin strip :D ...heheh love it :)
http://www.mediangler.com
check this out :)
charming, heatwarming, touching... :)
beautiful..
god bless you.
beautiful....
Wonderfully written! Just loved it...
Very touching post!
My Mother taught me about ANTICIPATION:
"Just wait until your father gets home."
My Mother taught me about RECEIVING:.
"You are going to get it when we get home!"
My Mother taught me to MEET A CHALLENGE:
"What were you thinking? Answer me when I talk to you... Don't talk
back to me!"
My Mother taught me LOGIC:
"Because I said so, that's why."
&
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going
to
The store with me."
My Mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE:
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that
way."
My Mother taught me to THINK AHEAD:
"If you don't pass your spelling test, you'll never get a good job."
My Mother taught me ESP:
"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you're cold?"
My Mother taught me HUMOR:
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."
My Mother taught me how to BECOME AN ADULT:
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."
My Mother taught me about SEX:
"How do you think you got here?"
My Mother taught me about GENETICS:
"You're just like your father."
My Mother taught me about my ROOTS:
"Do you think you were born in a barn?"
My Mother taught me about WISDOM OF AGE:
"When you get to be my age, you will understand."
My Mother taught me about JUSTICE:
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you.
Then you'll see what it's like."
My mother taught me RELIGION:
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."
My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL:
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle
of next week!"
My mother taught me FORESIGHT:
"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."
My mother taught me IRONY:
"Keep crying and I'll *give* you something to cry about."
My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS:
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper!"
My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM:
"Will you *look* at the dirt on the back of your neck!"
My mother taught me about STAMINA:
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is finished."
My mother taught me about WEATHER:
"It looks as if a tornado swept through your room."
My mother taught me how to solve PHYSICS PROBLEMS: "If I yelled
because
I saw a meteor coming toward you, would you listen then?"
My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY:
"If I've told you once, I've told you a million times: Don't
Exaggerate!!!"
My mother taught me THE CIRCLE OF LIFE:
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."
My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION:
"Stop acting like your father!"
My mother taught me about ENVY:
"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do!"
@anonymous
You are luckier than those who did not have a mother. Thank your stars
@ others
Thank you all.
Very Touchin...can relate so much to it....Mom has been my best friend...always!
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