Post dinner, Naman usually slouches on his Grandpa's lap reading books and listening to stories. Last night, the story was - "who will bell the cat":
Once upon a time, there was a cat. It was a menace to the mice living around.......the mice decided to bell the cat......they had to find a wire, so they got it from the net (at this point my mind went - whoa!! net, really? Let me see how he explains this one... ) they had stolen - you know the one which the hunter uses? (Ah! that "net" and I go back to eating my food)........but now they had a bigger problem - who will bell the cat?......Many a times, things are easier said than done.
Story time complete, time to play with amma and pappa now! :)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
A letter to my son
My dearest Naman,
Some of these are promises, some advice, but actually, these are just a few thoughts I want to share with you as a mom who is super excited about seeing you grow up into a self-respecting, happy and healthy individual.
- I will never ever raise my hands on you. This is a promise. I loathe with all my heart, those that strike another human being. This detestable action is nothing but the mark of shortcomings of the person inflicting it. There is nothing that a kind word of advice will not do that a slap on your face will accomplish. I firmly believe this. I refuse to believe that beating/hitting is a part of discipline. It is physical abuse, period. If anything, it gives rise to fear. And I want you to grow up to be a young man unbridled with fear of any kind, least of all, fear of your mom. I would want you to take a course of action knowing that you are doing the right thing rather than with the fear of what I, your dad or anybody else would say.
- Respect: Now here is another word which is grossly misunderstood in our Indian culture. In my opinion, respect and love are inseparable emotions. And more importantly, it is ALWAYS 2 sided. Asking questions, answering back, disagreeing with another's (whatever their age may be) point of view - none of these are tantamount to showing disrespect.
- I will strive to never answer any of your questions with - "Because I said so". Logic and reasoning should win the day. Oh! arguments - I believe we will have our share of them. There will be difference in how we see things, more often than not. I will try my best to explain my point of view, listen to yours and promise to correct mine if yours is more reasonable/practical and I would expect the same from you! I can see that this is not always going to be easy - especially for me - but I will give it my best shot.
- I want to be your best friend and confidant.I would want you to think of me whenever you feel the need to share something with somebody. Be it a problem at school/work or a crush or a heart-break - anything at all, you come to me without hesitation and with no fear of being rebuked or reprimanded. That's what I wish our relation to be - best friends.
With lots of love,
Amma.
Some of these are promises, some advice, but actually, these are just a few thoughts I want to share with you as a mom who is super excited about seeing you grow up into a self-respecting, happy and healthy individual.
- I will never ever raise my hands on you. This is a promise. I loathe with all my heart, those that strike another human being. This detestable action is nothing but the mark of shortcomings of the person inflicting it. There is nothing that a kind word of advice will not do that a slap on your face will accomplish. I firmly believe this. I refuse to believe that beating/hitting is a part of discipline. It is physical abuse, period. If anything, it gives rise to fear. And I want you to grow up to be a young man unbridled with fear of any kind, least of all, fear of your mom. I would want you to take a course of action knowing that you are doing the right thing rather than with the fear of what I, your dad or anybody else would say.
- Respect: Now here is another word which is grossly misunderstood in our Indian culture. In my opinion, respect and love are inseparable emotions. And more importantly, it is ALWAYS 2 sided. Asking questions, answering back, disagreeing with another's (whatever their age may be) point of view - none of these are tantamount to showing disrespect.
- I will strive to never answer any of your questions with - "Because I said so". Logic and reasoning should win the day. Oh! arguments - I believe we will have our share of them. There will be difference in how we see things, more often than not. I will try my best to explain my point of view, listen to yours and promise to correct mine if yours is more reasonable/practical and I would expect the same from you! I can see that this is not always going to be easy - especially for me - but I will give it my best shot.
- I want to be your best friend and confidant.I would want you to think of me whenever you feel the need to share something with somebody. Be it a problem at school/work or a crush or a heart-break - anything at all, you come to me without hesitation and with no fear of being rebuked or reprimanded. That's what I wish our relation to be - best friends.
With lots of love,
Amma.
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