As I Turned ONE

 

Good Wishes greetings began to pour in a day before I turned 1 this year and belated wishes continue to come in – until two days later! 

 

 It all began with a stunning bouquet of mildly fragrant pink-purple flowers that dragged a slumbering me out of bed, to pose for a shoot, one day in advance. It was the handiwork of inimitable JR, my spouse of forty one years. His springing sweet surprises, has not waned over the years; rather with each passing year, they happen with greater gusto. Thanks to the Big C and consequent lockdowns, JR wished to leave nothing to chance. And thus came to be this wonderful floral gift, delivered by courier on June 7, a day ahead.

 

Amma, always the first to greet us siblings on our birthdays until our respective life partners emerged on the scene, has obviously been nudged to second place. In my case however, the octogenarian parent has a strong competitor in her fellow Capricornian and granddaughter, my young, adorable princess. My chirpy little one with her genial and sunny disposition is vocal and dismissive at once: “Mum, I have to be the first one to wish you. Of course, it doesn’t matter that I am forced to concede this pride of place to Delta X” (that’s her dad, JR!). So it’s normally at the stroke of midnight that she would call to wish me. But she made an exception this year. Not wishing to wake up a sleep-starved being, she messaged me her hearty wishes at 12, and followed it up with a much awaited early morning call.    

 

“Birthdays last an entire day and even beyond”, for my lovable doctor son, the demands of whose profession often robs him of the luxury of that much needed nocturnal rest. His affectionate card addressed to the “bestest mum” that arrived before noon on ‘my day’, brought on the ocular humidity to my eyes and made my day.

 

By evening I realized I had scored a little over a century – wishes I received via multiple media including two dozen calls from family and friends – friends from childhood, from our Dubai days with whom we had spent a major portion of our lives, from our travels, and a host of others.

 

Needless to say, it was “a-no-cooking” day for me and I basked in the warmth of all the attention paid me. I had very stimulating conversations (almost hour-long each) with my daughter, sister, a sister-in-law. The icing on the cake however was a couple of greetings that touch me beyond compare. One was from Deepak, resident in Korba, Chattisgarh. I was his colleague in the PR department for a couple of years when we were resident in Korba. A youngster my son’s age, the bond Deepak shares with me truly leaves me zapped and touched. Since our leaving the place 11 years back, he has not ever missed wishing us on auspicious occasions, on my birthdays and whenever something good comes his way. And all this has come about with just two years of working together! Chhattisgarh to Chennai and thence to Bangalore, nothing has changed this healthy equation, largely forged by Deepak.

 

The second and even more heart-warming gesture came from my two very young friends, Sahana and Bhargavi, all of 3 years. For the second year in succession, they insisted on, and whipped by a yummilicious dinner for me on my birthday! I wonder at this amazing camaraderie the twosome, “Adorable Dushtoos” as I fondly call them, share with me and often drop by home to spend some time. It is astonishing as much as it is gladdening and cheering to have these little ones on the threshold of teenhood seek me out, drop by home and spend time, when at best, the young engage in polite interactions with silvers.

 

I’d say every day is a birthday for me, a cause for celebration because I’m surrounded by so many well-wishers and such spirited friends. Is it any wonder then that I choose to live forever in single-digit years! 

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