As I look back to see I remember the time spent on your knee When it came to my biggest fears you came along to wipe away my tears You always seem to know when I need a smile especially when you haven't seen one in a while
Ridding on your shoulder, holding your little finger It was you who taught me how to hold my head high with vigor Daddy that’s why I'm so thankful for you I would never ask for anyone new And I love you so very much because you help me with all my problems and such
We seem to always be on the same page even though there's a big difference in age We know how to make each other laugh and it makes time fly past
I know you wish you could give me the world but I'm proud enough with my title of being 'Daddy's Little Girl' My mentor, my Hero, my Best friend and Guide, Dad, you have been the special man in my life.
P.S - Wrote this almost 2 years back. And forgot all about it until I started searching for all the old writings today:)
There are two voices in my head One always contradicting the other. If only it was easy to choose which one should I listen to? Choices are difficult to make, Of two evils I should choose the least A constant struggle with my fate Oh only if I show a little more faith
Even a mirror has a blackened side So why do I see it as black or white? There is no beauty in knowing one and not the other. Look through my eyes O’ prisoner of mind; Even in the grey you will see splendour.
I am waiting for the light to dawn It is no longer about the right and wrong If only I realise that I am being led Then I would stop worrying And enjoy till the end!
I was very afraid, it was my first time and I didn’t know what to expect. I was told it was fine, though a little weak and tiny than expected but it was breathing. My palms were sweaty and I was exhausted but more than anything I was unable to contain my anticipation. My mind was swimming with all the possible ‘what if’s ‘which were masked behind the veil of my prolonged silence. A moment later, the head nurse came in and walked towards my bed head. I looked at her with expectations in my eyes but there she was standing with nothing in her hands. I was disappointed but I said nothing. She read the look on my face and understood the language of my silence. Next when she spoke she gave me an encouraging smile and told” Doctor will be here in a while.” I returned her a weak smile and yet again my eyes drifted towards the door.
Few minutes passed...which looked like a lifetime. The doctor entered the room with a tiny bundle of what looked like a towel. With every step he took towards the bed, my heart skipped a beat. Words failed me as I had my eyes for only one single thing in the room. So tiny, so delicate and yet so beautiful. I have not seen a more beautiful thing in the world before. My fingers outlined the tiny almond shaped brown eyes and the pear shaped lips. Soft, thin pink lips which looked more like two lines drawn on the angel like face. Then my finger traced the bridge of its nose...the nose which crinkled and relaxed immediately. I laughed silently more to myself than to anyone else. I laughed not because the nose bore a stark resemblance to mine but I laughed at the reaction. She has taken after her mother after all. Yes, it is a girl! In that one moment I knew nothing or no one mattered more. It was just me and my baby.
I have never been a ‘chai person’ on the contrary I have always been partial to the other hot beverage and substitute ‘ which is popularly pronounced as Kaffi or co-fee’ (coffee) in South India. Why my loyalties lie with coffee and not ek garam chai ki pyaali, could be attributed to being brought up in South India or maybe growing up on Cafe Coffee Day’s frappes and mocha chinos during college days. At one point of time I was a self declared coffee addict and without my hot cuppa I couldn’t even manage one late night during exams.
But as we move places, grow older, make new friends or move from college to work life, we undergo subtle changes. And suddenly the garam masala chai has taken precedence over hot piping coffee.
Galli ke nukkad par shetty’s ke dukaan ki chai peene mein jo tripti milti hain woh machine ke Nescafe ke coffee mein nahin hoti. (Aur Chai ke saath glucose biscuut ka mazaa alag hi hota hain. :)
Why chai-breaks are refreshing and so tempting because they are shorter in length (supposedly) than your lunch breaks. A separate slot need not be assigned in your working hours to accommodate them but they will automatically find their way into the timings. One takes it whenever he/she feels like it or when work gets too tiresome and monotonous... as someone says ‘ arrey chai break toh baanta hi hain” :). Chai breaks are the perfect time to catch up on gossip and gup-shup. For the smoking friends chai and sutta is not a bad combination too. And there is also no compulsion of having a full cuppa....barah number ki (1 by 2) and in bigger groups Choubees number ki (24 or read as 2 by 4) can also be had.
One cannot miss the aroma of the assam spl.and the flavour of the handpicked Darjeeling leaves in the tea parlours of Kolkotta. Move through the chaurahis and gallis of Charminar and you cannot miss the clinkering of the cutlery in whichirani chai and samosa are served. And you move a little down south, madras spl.and filter coffee will equally mesmerize you in the Coffee Houses. The fan club for ‘black coffee - no milk’ isn’t small either across corporate offices.
From the bade saab in offices to thechachaji ki dukaan, whether served in china, plastic cups and tiny glasses why tea or coffee holds so much importance in the daily life onecannot explain. Intellectuals, movie buffs, political followers, erudite poets and sports enthusiasts all flock to the‘adaas’ to discuss the lastesht news over your ‘ ek cup’. Even in apna bollywood when the hero comes to the heroine’s house for the first time, the heroine sings the song ‘ shayad meri shaadi ka,,,mummy ne chai pe bulaya hain’ or when the hero’s best friend comes home the Maa tells ‘ beta chai-nashta karke jaana zaroor”.
On one side if we have the ‘ Maa and her chai ‘ then on the other side also we have the love-dovey chocolate boy asking the girl next-door ‘out ‘on a coffee date. If we thought it was only about which is more ‘hotter’ (pun intended) then the buck doesn’t stop here!Whether iced tea is an equal match to cold coffee one cannot answer the question convincingly, as both are very different in taste, flavor and base.
The debate over which is better ‘chā’or ‘qahwa’ is never ending and it can go on and on...as long as people have different tastes and preferences.
As for me, yes I am a convert from being an absolute no tea person to chai-break why not! But have I given up on my filter coffee, cafe latte, cold frappes and cappuccino? Nah! why choose when one can have best of both worlds.
Last evening I was mending my compound wall, when I stooped down to mix the wet mud with the bricks. I wondered what led to the present state of this wall. All these years, I was busy pouring water on the plants in my garden waiting for them to grow and nurture and bear fruits of my hard work. And I forgot about the surrounding wall which bore the brunt of the changing weather conditions. The irony of my life, new relationships, recent friendships and latest objects got more importance than old parents, childhood friends, known places and heirlooms. It is then I realized how indifference and negligence can do more harm than outright dislike.
