Mr. Responsible

He is Mr. Responsible.

Though only two years older than his brother, he is expected to keep an eye on him, and steer him away from trouble. He is the one who gives the dog his lunch, and runs errands for me. Kids instinctively turn to him when they are in trouble, and though he doesn’t enjoy it, he ends up taking care of them.

Sometimes, I feel guilty about forcing him to grow up so soon. And then he does something really cheeky, and I realize he’s still a kid at heart. A responsible one, but still a kid.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Responsible

Day 43 of #100happydays

The light from an overhead fixture falls on a soap dish and casts a shadow on the wall. Normally, you would not give it a second look- after all, who even notices the absence of light?

But when the wall in question happens to be a corner, you find something that cannot be overlooked. A near perfect heart!

Suddenly, the shadow gets pulled out of the status of mundane, and gets pushed into the category of masterpiece. You never tire of looking at it, admiring it.

How much beauty there is in unexpected places. If only you look for it.

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Bottling Jam: day 42 of #100happydays

To say that I have always dreamt of making my own jam is an admission I would be scared to make. But it is true. As a child, nothing personified winter more than my mother making and bottling tomato jam, which we would then enjoy for the rest of the year. In my eyes, I knew I would attain Domestic  Divadom the day I could do similar.

But though I bottled fruit preserve and fruit chutney often, I never had the courage to try a jam. And then, I gathered all my courage. And did it. Nothing Ventured, Nothing Won.

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Each Day is Precious: day 41 of #100happydays

The melon can never get too large for the vine, goes a saying in Tamill. My Younger One seems determined to prove it right. Everytime I lift him up, I’m sure it will be the last time I can. And the next time I try, I am pleasantly surprised.

But knowing that this might be the last time I can toss him in the air, makes every occasion when I can do so memorable. Knowing life is short, makes it more precious.

The day will soon come when he is too heavy for me - but it is not Today.

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One year back, I was musing about the same thing- I still am!

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Everything changes: day 40 of #100happydays

I dislike pigeons when they fly into my house looking for a place to roost. I hate them when they lay eggs in my balcony. I dislike having to clean up their poo from my floor. I think they are smelly, I think they are dirty. I am convinced the world would be a better place without them in it.

And yet, when I encounter the same pigeons in public spaces, everything changes. They force me to pause and smile. They compel me to whip out my camera and snap a few pictures. They fill the heart with joy.

Strange!

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Many more pigeon posts here

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When you are a Reader: day 39 of #100happydays

Life is hard when you are a reader. You can’t walk by a bookstore without being compelled to go in and check out the titles. When your favourite bookstore announces a sale, you cannot help but pick up a few absolute steals.

When you are a reader your ‘To Be Read’ pile increases in exponential proportion to the books you read- every book you love adds half a dozen others to the pile! You soon run out of space. You never have enough time to read all you want to read.

And that’s exactly how you want it to be.

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I picked up this book more than a year back- it was every bit as lovely as I hoped it would be.

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Four Seasons: day 38 of #100happydays

I often dream of living in a place where there are four seasons. A snow-covered Winter Wonderland. Crocus blossoms heralding the advent of Spring. Warm Summers, giving way to the Reds and Golds of Autumn.

Reality is different. The four seasons that we have are Hot, Hotter, Hottest and Wet. Not much variety, unfortunately.

 But it is precisely because we don’t have real seasons that we have an experience uniquely our own. Leaves turning red on one tree, barren branches on another, new shoots on a third. All the seasons in one orderly row of trees. The cycle of life.

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