Across the Board !

With bated breath P and I await , the declaration of the Class X Board results ...
She had worked with her usual focussed non-chalance . Being all that i am , so wanted her first brush with a big exam to be a successful outing !

And we yelled .. as the results got published online. she had aced it with 5 straight A1s and a 10 CGPA !.

Go forth , my baby
.. you have many skies to traverse , exciting paths to walk and deep depths to fathom !

Bestie dates

Come summer and its bestie time ! P and kids kept their  date with us and Kerala.

And off we went to wild wayanad. As we unwound by the placidly beautiful karappuzha swapping stories, playing boardgames, eating, outing and goofing , cherished the gift that P is in my life !

Growing and glowing comes easy with you , P !

New year in tradition ..

Time to ring in the new year traditionally...
In my world it falls on the first day  of the malayalam month of medam ( around April 14). Vishu in sanskrit means equal and it  signifies equal number of hours in a day and night or an equinox . This spring equinox is the harbinger of the sowing season .The highlight of the new year festivities is the "Kani Kaanal " or looking at the Kani.Kani means" that which is seen first "and what better way to start a new year by seeing a vishu kani speacially set up with all things auspicious . grains, fruits ,vegetables, gold. Care is taking to choose those vegetables and fruits that are yellow/green hued!

The golden flowers of the kani konna also find a place of prominence in the vishu kani.

The matriarch of the home sets up the kani, on new years' eve late in the night and is up before all to light the lamp at the altar on which the kani is set up , welcoming the new year and ensuring all in the home wake up to this sight ..

Here's to new beginnings !

Spring is here ...

As the year spins by , its March so soon !

Exam fever in the air , what with P appearing for the Class X boards.  
I soaked in  the beauty of a dewy morning  at a friends' lush garden on a sublime spring day !

Therapeutic! 

Moments that help you realize the meaning of  serendipity .. happenstance ..when you trip into an oasis of peace amid chaos 

As Shelley said “If winter comes, can spring be far behind?” 

Smelling spring in the air , i could not agree with him more !

I also smelt hope along with Spring as Charlotte Bronte ( In Jane Eyre) eloquently remarked 

“Spring drew on...and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which, freshening daily, suggested the thought that Hope traversed them at night, and left each morning brighter traces of her steps.” 

Pursuit of Happiness

Is it something to be pursued - happiness ?
Or something to be found  in every moment !

A psychologist may define happiness " as a  state of well-being that encompasses living a good life—that is, with a sense of meaning and deep satisfaction"

what about times you are searching for meaning , when satisfaction eludes ?  and can happiness be appreciated without its twin sadness ?

 At  a personally unhappy time , pondering over god knows what , i step into the balcony to find little D blowing bubbles !

I was suddenly enveloped by a deep sense of peace to see her so engaged in that moment .. without thinking. I guess , thinking does take it away !

Engaging with each moment being fully present to it .. does the magic, i think !

Happiness could be a happy by product of this !

And She turns 11 !

And she turns 11....
My Younger one..

Industrious, diligent , beautiful ...
and discovering Magic !

Thank you S, for  turning Ds' 11th birthday a magical one with a Harry Potter cake complete  with wands, glasses ,snitches et al!

As Hagrid says , its not every day a young woman turns 11 ... ...Go on  D .. create your own magic !

Year end !

A wrap to another year ...

A drive along the malabar and konkan coast to Goa !

Drive with the ocean for company , home stay in south Goa,  beautiful sunsets, beaches by the night ,  flea market runs  ,sight seeing ,yummy goan food and happy times with the family .

Wrapping the year with a lot of gratitude for all it held... hind sight is not a luxury , we possess ! Hind sight tells me i could have dealt with quite a few things much better than i did .. i hold with gratitude many lessons  i learnt with the deep realisation is  making the most of every moment presenting itself is the only key to living this life..Embracing the good , bad and ugly for what it is , is what is the need of every moment !

Another year end thought ! if every moment is precious  , why is  such a deal made out of a year end .
As a race , we are so stuck with time as the most important thing and rue its passage . A year end i guess gives a kind of  break to the unrelenting continuum . A period that can be left behind to pass over to  a new zone !

"Make it new" said  Ezra Pound , the modernist poet who made it his maxim !

On that note , here's wishing a Happy NEW year!!