The language dilemma

The inevitable has happened....i guess i knew it deep down but still i was very surprised when it jumped on me last week....i went to the first PTM at Aravs school....very excited to hear what the teachers had to say about my baby....They mostly had good things....i was surprised to know he is attentive and friendly...two traits he has yet to show in my presence....But then it came "He needs to improve his english"..... He understands english perfectly well but he only speaks in Hindi....Its ok now but later when he goes to the big school this might be a problem...

I came home wondering is that really true? we speak in both languages at home....not preferring one over the other....and thats what i have been speaking with Arav too....I was too busy rejoicing that Arav can now talk in full sentences and the fact that his vocabulary can justify his emotions...that he has finally got a way to express himself fully.....little did i realise that he was doing it in grammatically wrong way....So i came home and started noticing....this is what i got to hear "This is Aru ka bed and this is mamma ka bed" "Chalo mamma sleeping karna hai" "Mamma shoes open karo" "Mamma Aru ka petu hungry hai" so on and so forth...and it hit me that this is how i talk to him..not in english and hindi but in Hinglish....and i wished that if Singapore can have singlish cant we not live with Hinglish?

Isnt the main purpose of language is to be able to communicate? I am sure a lot of purists will happily kill me over this....but i found myself conversing in proper english with Arav for last 3 days and the poor guy is confused....he had finally sorted this language thing and im making things difficult again....to the point that he actually stopped talking to me for a while last evening...and i realised it was absurd....ofcourse i want him to learn his languages the right way....but i dont want to discourage him....and here i was thinking that he is ready to be introduced to Marwari....I dont know the right way of doing this....but i know that he already knows the difference between those languages....he knows that he has been using words from both of them....

The other day husband asked him "aaj school mein kya kiya Arav?" he replied "English speaking kiya" yes we have a long way to go :)

The morning-night paradox

The morning whiff of after shave on his face
The night that lingers as she can still taste
His knotted tie in its place
Her hair a tangled mess
His naughty eyes unfazed
sliding slowly out of her embrace
Him saying goodbye nice and slow
Her delaying not ready to let go
Two hearts one soul in the night
can belong to two strangers in the morning light.

Funny thing about birthdays

Hi all


i love monsoons....i love june....its my favorite month of the year....Both husband and i are june born cancerians...ya on full moon night ours is a mad house :)...So i turned 28....closer to thirty than ever before...but its just a number everyone said...ya ofcourse it is...but the funny thing about birthday is that it makes u take stock....look at your life closely and wonder are you where you thought you would be? like annual report card....I dont buy the whole birthday-is-just-another-day theory..... I mean it is a special day...how you choose to celebrate it is upto you....but you cant just ignore it.... (i might be tempted to do that in next 2 years though)

Anywho so as the writer of this post sat in her rustic cottage nestled amongst beautiful hills overlooking a gorgeous lake hearing the raindrops drumming outside (courtesy husband thank you very much dear) she couldnt help but feel grateful....For everything....and decided that this year is going to be about count-your-blessings year and not about things-i-wish-i-had year (husband amazed wondering if this is going to be a nag-free year Nah he decides she can write what she wants to but i know her too well)

So here are my 28 blessings (just a number i promise) in no particular order

1. For health : I am grateful for the general health and well being of me and my loved ones....Apart from the occasional sniffles and head aches and tummy aches we are blessed with good health. and I'm so grateful for that

2. For Arav : For the gorgeous most amazing little boy that you are. For being full of energy forcing me to be innovative and creative challenging me to keep up with you. I am truly blessed to have you in my life

3. For parents : unconditional love support and encouragement from both set of parents. truly lucky to have you.

4. For siblings : two by birth one by marriage....all three by love...

5. For extended families cousins their kids et al

6. For Mumbai : the city i was born in city i grew up in and the city i still live in....and would love to continue living in.....I love this place with all its amazing quirks and inconveniences....i am who i am coz i grew up here....

7. For my gorgeous curls and really long legs (grin)

8. For friends : small in quantity but big in their hearts....and their infinite patience with me

9. For being a woman : How else would i have ever known the joy of being a mother? or flutter my eyes or wear a short dress or paint my nails hot pink .... get my point

10. For food : for all sort of tasty brightful delicious mouth watering food thats there on this earth to devour....and for the food thats on my plate everyday

11. For freedom : for living in a free country and living with open minded people

12. For education : i dont mean the degrees but the process of education....

13. For books : How else would i have spent those countless hours commuting? not just for that i really do love books

14 . For romance : yes in a world full of cynics or practical people I'm just happy to be a sappy a little delusional romantic. it makes me happy vulnerable and also a poet :)

15. For losing most of the baby weight (except on few areas which can easily be camouflaged)

16. For cell phones and internet : mine not his

17. For my stint in New York : I loved to live there....I'm truly lucky to have been a part of that city for a little while...not only did it give me a taste of the big american dream it also opened my eyes to a lot of different cultures of the world....i have met so many amazing people there...

18. For vacations : self explanatory

19. For monsoons : Rains garam chai puddles greenery cool breeze whats not to like?

20. For music : for songs melodies rhythms dance all of that

21. For getting married early : i know i know it doesnt sound too appropriate....i wasnt too happy at 21 when i was asked to "see" guys...but trust me in retrospect it feels like a great idea....get married early enjoy the first years happily....have a kid....wait for few years have another one...and still you will only be 30...haha doesnt sound too bad to me :)

22. For being born a human : no other species are as interesting....

23.For a trained mostly co-operative house-help : Ask any woman who is her best friend at home and she will reply her house-hold help....yes the husband comes second here...if a woman has her maid/nanny/cook in place she can achieve higher levels of greatness....its a proven fact....and i'm happy to have that in my life....and hope that it remains that way for long (fingers crossed)

24. For American tv shows : i love most of them....not the reality ones though....and dont get me wrong i dont have anything against our desi channels but they have yet to produce a decent show that can hold my interest....So if it werent for Star world i dont know who i would be eating my lunch with.

25. For humour : sadistic, sarcastic, clever, witty non vulgar humour....its a big turn-on

26. For people : All of them who were not included in the categories above. teachers colleagues bosses lady i shared a bus ride with...all of them...i love observing people....how they inspire me to be like them or to be completely unlike them.

27. For hugs and cuddles and kisses and back rubs and foot rubs and stuff that it leads to (keeping it PG guys)

28. Saved the best one for the last The Husband. Yes I am grateful for thee. Thank you for being similar enough that i feel comfortable and secured with you and unpredictable enough to keep me on my toes. So that there is never a dull moment. Also the fact that you are hot doesnt hurt either (PG PG remember?)

So there.....phew it was difficult than i thought....somewhere around 20 i was really dragging it out.....but it is a habit worth adopting. Thank you for reading this through.....And write your own list today....