July 2011.. the successor of my title was born, fondly called "babu" (baby of the family), after a long wait and a not-so-smooth pregnancy. Rhea - aptly named - is like a princess. My first sight of her was a scrawny, tiny figure cocooned in her wrap. Few hours old, yawning and trying to break free of the constraints. It was symbolic, somehow! Those days bring back memories of her smiles and some not-so-fun memories of her wailing in the night. To this day she continues to amaze me..I left the country when she was a year and a half, since then I followed her journey through her pictures, which she once hated as a baby and now voluntarily poses for, the videos that are recorded by the paparazzi without her consent or the rare phone conversations we have when she has the inclination to spare time for her Maasi, in between her cartoons.
The first year that I got to spend time with her made me notice a few things - she was a stubborn, strong-willed individual. Reminds me of someone I know all too well! I, therefore, understand the challenges she will face as a woman, firsthand. Although, she may fare better than me, she definitely knows how to twist people around her little finger. An art I shall never master. She turned five a few months ago but, makes me believe she is going on twelve. She is way ahead of me in many things, she loves to take a dip in the pool and plays the keyboard. Things I have written in my bucket list, but haven't been able to start yet. Couple of other things I don't care to mention. Lol! Some of the similarities we share are uncanny, like our love for Chinese and chicken and a passion for arts. Some are poles apart. SHE DOESN'T LIKE CHOCOLATES! I know, right ? Takes after her mother in that respect for obvious reasons. This time, when I flew to India, I got her a bag of chocolates (which I ended up eating more than her) She would only eat snowflake chocolates, since that was in tune with her "Frozen" theme. Even that she wouldn't mind sharing, that says it all. If she loves something, you can't even eye it, let alone eat it!
She has always been smart and constantly astounds me with her ever growing vocabulary and diction. One can't even fault her grammar - linguist in the making! There are so many facets to her personality and her interests. Her ear for music was apparent when she was a baby and would stop crying when I crooned "My Bonney lies over the ocean" or "Raindrop on roses." That's not an underhand compliment to myself. I can do better than that. :) My very first gift to her from US was the keyboard when she was three. I am happy that she loves playing it. She loves stories, just like I do and, has a good memory and recall for them. She makes her mom, naani (my mom) even my dad tell her stories (that itself is a miracle, considering never has our dad told us one growing up!) She enjoys books just as much. One of my best memories is getting her hooked to Dr.Seuss. I bought the collection, not knowing if she would like it. Then one day we were playing and out of the blue she said" I don't like green eggs and ham". My sister had this nonplussed look on her face. I wanted to laugh and laugh I did, that is when I knew she loved the book.
She loves dressing up, her fashion sense is definitely very good, maybe even better than her parent. She unabashedly says so herself. Oh well! we all have different sense of aesthetics and tastes. Although, I love seeing her in all her gowns and beautiful dresses (my dad loves shopping for her), I prefer to contribute to her knowledge base. Be it art, literature, music or even general knowledge. The first doll I got for her was from the movie FROZEN, leading to it being her all-time favorite movie and thus sharing my love for animations and fairy tales. Her first travel abroad to Thailand was definitely a memorable one. We had a lot of fun. She learnt the currency of the country and FYI she also knows the currency of the US and that is more than I knew at her age. She is like a sponge who soaks up everything around her, even when we think she is not paying attention. She has too many interests making it hard to focus on one. But I know one thing for sure. She will grow up to be a beautiful person inside out, successful at whatever she chooses to do in life. I only pray that she remains a sensitive, considerate and kind soul that she is, no matter what trials and tribulations life throws her way and the whole world will definitely be her oyster.
Love you always - Maasi! .
The first year that I got to spend time with her made me notice a few things - she was a stubborn, strong-willed individual. Reminds me of someone I know all too well! I, therefore, understand the challenges she will face as a woman, firsthand. Although, she may fare better than me, she definitely knows how to twist people around her little finger. An art I shall never master. She turned five a few months ago but, makes me believe she is going on twelve. She is way ahead of me in many things, she loves to take a dip in the pool and plays the keyboard. Things I have written in my bucket list, but haven't been able to start yet. Couple of other things I don't care to mention. Lol! Some of the similarities we share are uncanny, like our love for Chinese and chicken and a passion for arts. Some are poles apart. SHE DOESN'T LIKE CHOCOLATES! I know, right ? Takes after her mother in that respect for obvious reasons. This time, when I flew to India, I got her a bag of chocolates (which I ended up eating more than her) She would only eat snowflake chocolates, since that was in tune with her "Frozen" theme. Even that she wouldn't mind sharing, that says it all. If she loves something, you can't even eye it, let alone eat it!
She has always been smart and constantly astounds me with her ever growing vocabulary and diction. One can't even fault her grammar - linguist in the making! There are so many facets to her personality and her interests. Her ear for music was apparent when she was a baby and would stop crying when I crooned "My Bonney lies over the ocean" or "Raindrop on roses." That's not an underhand compliment to myself. I can do better than that. :) My very first gift to her from US was the keyboard when she was three. I am happy that she loves playing it. She loves stories, just like I do and, has a good memory and recall for them. She makes her mom, naani (my mom) even my dad tell her stories (that itself is a miracle, considering never has our dad told us one growing up!) She enjoys books just as much. One of my best memories is getting her hooked to Dr.Seuss. I bought the collection, not knowing if she would like it. Then one day we were playing and out of the blue she said" I don't like green eggs and ham". My sister had this nonplussed look on her face. I wanted to laugh and laugh I did, that is when I knew she loved the book.
She loves dressing up, her fashion sense is definitely very good, maybe even better than her parent. She unabashedly says so herself. Oh well! we all have different sense of aesthetics and tastes. Although, I love seeing her in all her gowns and beautiful dresses (my dad loves shopping for her), I prefer to contribute to her knowledge base. Be it art, literature, music or even general knowledge. The first doll I got for her was from the movie FROZEN, leading to it being her all-time favorite movie and thus sharing my love for animations and fairy tales. Her first travel abroad to Thailand was definitely a memorable one. We had a lot of fun. She learnt the currency of the country and FYI she also knows the currency of the US and that is more than I knew at her age. She is like a sponge who soaks up everything around her, even when we think she is not paying attention. She has too many interests making it hard to focus on one. But I know one thing for sure. She will grow up to be a beautiful person inside out, successful at whatever she chooses to do in life. I only pray that she remains a sensitive, considerate and kind soul that she is, no matter what trials and tribulations life throws her way and the whole world will definitely be her oyster.
Love you always - Maasi! .
Don't expect her to paraphrase her life for you;
she was born to be a story.
And if you can't understand that,
then perhaps she's beyond your reading level.
-Jonny Ox
Hi, extremely nice effort. everybody should scan this text. Thanks for sharing.
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