Write between the lines

Elder R is on a long vacation. Each day (we try to be regular) we diligently practice some form of the alphabet and the number. 

She has a problem with word formation. I have to keep reminding her - write between the blue lines, baby (it's not always so polite, I admit) and she with all the wisdom of a 5 year old innocently asks - but why? 

Because baby, life is about sticking to blue lines. That's the correct path. Of course, I won't stop you if you want to traverse on the upper red or lower red, but remember, those are the Reds. Not the comfortable hum drum blues. 

I wish I could tell you just draw the damn letter and be done with it. You know your alphabet as well as I do. But I can't. I have to coach you to do your best and what's correct. 

I have to lay your foundations just right. 

So baby, just write between the blue lines, please? 

Temple

Monday is my weekly visit to Shiv-Mandir day, to offer water to the Shiv Lingam.

Little R is most excited to go- she likes Gods.

While I have sole focus of offering water, praying and leaving, little R observes much more. Sample this:

At the temple:

1. Hi! Gampa ji (Ganpati)

2. Oh look- cat

3. Dhyan se Loli (floor is wet)

4. Woh Dekho cow

5. Cow Kuch kha rahi hai

6. Cow ke pass jaana hai

7. Le le le cow

8. Prasad chahiye

9. Yeh kya hai- misri do (she saw half-cut banana pieces as prasad)

10. Pujari ji kahan hai

11. It's raining too hard

12. Hanuman ji ko jai karni hai

13. Nandi ji kahan Gaye

14. Skoda kahan hai

15. Old man ko Dekho!!!

Once we return home:

1. Mein shiv mandir ja rahi hoon (hitching up her pjs like her Dadi does her salwar)

2. Shatrughan (our driver) City le aao

3. Woh ladki kahan hai (who was offering prayers horizontally on the ground) - Dekho aise

4. Jaldi karo shiv mandir band ho jayega

5. Lota kahan hai

Clearly, I have a lot to learn.

Image courtesy: worldnomads/ google

Tender Technology

Imagine my delighted surprise when I walked in onto my daughter and my mother-in-law playing one of their favourite games.

On the iPad.

Now, little R is a tech-connoisseur. She was quite proficient with the iPad before she was a year old - and- at the risk of sounding like a gloating parent- can manoeuvre her way through the myriad of icons, knowing exactly where to press what. 

She also likes to play those home-grown, age-old traditional 'Akkad bum bum' and 'Aam-wale' with her Dadi.

Dadee, dadee, dadee- she'll go, hitching up her frock just like Dadi does her salwar for fear of being soiled in the muck.

So- R and Dadi- hunched over the iPad, playing Animasher (R's rendition of Ant Smasher) and as Dadi squashed the ants, R let out peal after peal of cackly laughter. And to add to her merriment, she all but guided Dadi's hand to be bitten by the big bee. As Dadi squealed yeoww to amuse her, R jumped with joy and called me to join in the fun!

Thank you, iPad!

 Photo credit: google

Hope

So here's a little something that prompted me to write:

This pic taken by my dear friend Amrita in  Victoria, Melbourne.

Isn't it simply beautiful?

The rainbow- signifying hope, in all it's colourful splendour, behind the bleak autumnal tree in shadow- bereft of leaves/ colour yet alive and the presence of the clock tower- a reminder that hope springs even in the dreariest of surroundings!

Isn't that how life is summed up?

Just when you think you can't possibly withstand any more strain, the glass sheet cover melts away, allowing you to feel the prickly green grass underfoot.

Even in the worst scenario there's a best outcome.

Lifeline

Away from the blogosphere, away from the chatosphere and away from the pictosphere. That sums up my existence for the past 13 days without my iPhone. Yes, I depend on it. Rather than call myself a slave to it, I'd describe it as an extension of myself- for it performs not just the above-mentioned functions but provides a moral support just by being there. I don't know if you understand this.

The past 13 days went by in a blur.

Since I didn't have my organiser beeping every day to remind me of tasks, I forgot booking the gas and almost forgot R's inoculation (dutifully stencilled in the iPhone months ago). 

Since I didn't have my 500 odd favourite songs accompanying me on my morning walk, I decided to sleep in extra till my phone returned. (An additional kilo gained)

Since I didn't have easy access to my 3k odd photos, I didn't waste time rifling through them whenever I had a minute to spare and actually used that time productively!

However, I cannot imagine living on endlessly without my phone. It helps me connect/ meditate/ express- just live.

Yes, it's my lifeline!

Image courtesy: scaredpoet.com

Mindfulness!

Today I read about Mindfulness, as part of Sarah Napthali's Guide to caring for yourself and your children- A Zen guide.

I have been blessed with a patient nature, but I'd like to improve- because LoML would rather not have even those couple of flare ups that invariably occur sometimes.

Mindfulness requires you to be calm, alert and let the universe seep into you. It challenges all your senses- visual/ tactile/ olfactory- to live in the present.

Often we are swept along by past prejudices and future plans. The present is merely a bridge between the two on which we balance precariously. 

Mindfulness encourages you to evaluate the moment, live it, sink in it and forget the past and future.

This is a great thought, especially since I'm precisely thinking of the future - all the time.

I sometimes even forget what yesterday was like. 

But, with mindfulness, I'm beginning to appreciate little moments that make up the day.

It's like a dandelion clock- the mind being the ripe flower- and the petals/ clock coming in to the open mind.

 (Photo credit: mindfulconstruct.com)

Temple Run

Raania has been overawed by the iPad game- and she plays it like a pro. She artfully runs/ dodges/ gets the coins - requiring just a wee bit of help while swiping to turn.

Her favourite character is Karma Lee with her red hair and embroidered jeans. She also likes Barry Bones (Baiee Bones) just the way he is and Guy Dangerous just because he has 'dangerous' in his name (her Dadi had once showed her a pic of a polar bear in Reader's Digest and said it was dangerous - since then it's stuck as something fantastic).

One day- we played the game at least 25 times, if not less, so much so that when I closed my eyes I could see only coins and my character running. For a wild moment I wondered what if life was an iPad game? 

How would it play out? Would I have different avatars- different roles- like I keep juggling every day...

Would scenarios change too? Market, home, study, bedroom...

What laurels would I achieve by completing a set of tasks? 

Would leader boards define me any different, just because of the motherly love I felt for my unique baby?

But

Looking after your children is a thankless task- and no one appreciates the common housewife- however well educated she may be.

The pace of life may not be an iPad game, but unlike the game- you do not get lauded for any High Scores. 

Life's too ordinary to be an iPad game.