Walking On SonShine
Monday, August 17, 2009
Nimbu Paani
Just to jump to the most crucial conversation I have had with my son in all these years of non stop entertainment…
As we settle down @ 56 (that’s an Italian restaurant in Gurgaon by the way) and munch our way through the amazing garlic toasties…..I shrewdly bring forth the topic…THE decision of our lives…although, it’s a bit early, to put it mildly..
“So, betu, have u decided? What are u gonna become in life?”
A very serious pause…I would have said pregnant but after serving the most clichéd question to my 8 yr old sweetheart I was avoiding clichés u see…
“Mom I’m going to sell nimbu paani….”
Ah…ah…ah…wellll ..good good (modern open mom…yummy I say!)
“And, why do u want to sell nimbu paani baby?”
“I don’t like what these CEOs do…I don’t want to become a CEO…”
“Hain??
Okkkkkk…so what don’t u like Ishu??”
“Mom, I’ll become a big director/producer..people will line up to take my sign..they’ll come from far…I don’t like this crowd business….”
Hmmm…biiig problem!
“I just want to be close to as many animals as I can and, make the environment around me happy.”
“And, how will selling nimbu paani help u do that?”
“Are mom…I will lead a simple life….all animals..all human beings feel thirsty…I will give them nimbu paani..and make them happy.”
I try not to react..and sort of take a tumble….
“Betu you could always try becoming a National Geographic photographer…..”
He looks at me, smiles an indulgent smile and says…
“yup… ofcourse…although, tum jaanti ho main kitna focused hoon….”
I wish I could get his serious face in print for u…and the thoughtfulness in his eyes…
I see a lot of myself in him at times…I don’t know if that’s good or bad…
I don’t want him to worry so much about the good of others…..he should just be happy with himself.
He tells me that is what he is gunning for….and the way to that is thru nimbu paani…haha…well, good for him…
Last I heard, my naani…his badi naani was explaining to him how he could open a company for himself, the coke way and sell nimbu paani.
And when his dad took great offence to the fact that he was having Nimbooz at 10 in the night, he very sweetly informed him
“Just checking out the competition dad”
Badi Naani pleased she had averted the disaster of the century, Dad happy his sonny boy was getting into general management so early…..
Hahhaha….the security we derive from the big and organized…complete lack of entrepreneurship I say…
Go baby.. open ur nimbu paani stall…if that is what makes u happy…
As we settle down @ 56 (that’s an Italian restaurant in Gurgaon by the way) and munch our way through the amazing garlic toasties…..I shrewdly bring forth the topic…THE decision of our lives…although, it’s a bit early, to put it mildly..
“So, betu, have u decided? What are u gonna become in life?”
A very serious pause…I would have said pregnant but after serving the most clichéd question to my 8 yr old sweetheart I was avoiding clichés u see…
“Mom I’m going to sell nimbu paani….”
Ah…ah…ah…wellll ..good good (modern open mom…yummy I say!)
“And, why do u want to sell nimbu paani baby?”
“I don’t like what these CEOs do…I don’t want to become a CEO…”
“Hain??
Okkkkkk…so what don’t u like Ishu??”
“Mom, I’ll become a big director/producer..people will line up to take my sign..they’ll come from far…I don’t like this crowd business….”
Hmmm…biiig problem!
“I just want to be close to as many animals as I can and, make the environment around me happy.”
“And, how will selling nimbu paani help u do that?”
“Are mom…I will lead a simple life….all animals..all human beings feel thirsty…I will give them nimbu paani..and make them happy.”
I try not to react..and sort of take a tumble….
“Betu you could always try becoming a National Geographic photographer…..”
He looks at me, smiles an indulgent smile and says…
“yup… ofcourse…although, tum jaanti ho main kitna focused hoon….”
I wish I could get his serious face in print for u…and the thoughtfulness in his eyes…
I see a lot of myself in him at times…I don’t know if that’s good or bad…
I don’t want him to worry so much about the good of others…..he should just be happy with himself.
He tells me that is what he is gunning for….and the way to that is thru nimbu paani…haha…well, good for him…
Last I heard, my naani…his badi naani was explaining to him how he could open a company for himself, the coke way and sell nimbu paani.
And when his dad took great offence to the fact that he was having Nimbooz at 10 in the night, he very sweetly informed him
“Just checking out the competition dad”
Badi Naani pleased she had averted the disaster of the century, Dad happy his sonny boy was getting into general management so early…..
Hahhaha….the security we derive from the big and organized…complete lack of entrepreneurship I say…
Go baby.. open ur nimbu paani stall…if that is what makes u happy…
Labels: career
Monday, November 24, 2008
What Are U Going To B When U Grow Up Dad ??
I had sort of got waylaid by a momentous writer’s bloc..think I’m over it now.
There has been lots happening on the Ishu-Mommy front. But, todays anecdote is about Ishu and Daddu.
Winter is here and, with it, has brought the usual coughs and colds. Ishu has been unwell for the last few days.
M, jumped on the opportunity and promptly took the day off to be with him.
This, while the hard nosed career mom took off for office in her ambitious avataar.
So, when this hard nosed career mom reached office, she had given herself enough guilt pills to finish of all do or die mails (hehe) in straight 60 mins.
By 11.30 am she set off for home, to give the ill son (oh baby) and the jubiliant dad (hmmphh) the surprise of their lives.
This is what she found….both of them still under the morning covers…with no intent of getting up and about.
And, this….
“Ishu what do u want to be when you grow up?”
“Daddddddddu, I am grown up”
“Haaaaaan beta, when you grow upto work..what do you want to do?”
I know, left to his devices, Ishu would have wanted to say Goku of DragonballZ fame.
However, since it was daddy who was asking, he made an attempt to think seriously about it..basically, about what M would love to hear from his most amazing son and, came up with….”daddu main subway ka…………”
“Haan beta bolo kya..subway ka CEO, Dell ka CEO, Pepsi ka CEO..CEO banogey Ishu, CEO?”
I was having a difficult time not reacting to such aggressive ambition and that too, vicarious in intent. M and I have very different parenting styles and had I not been in hiding, I can promise you this conversation would have died a very high decibel end.
Unfortunately, I was in hiding. Hoping that my tender hearted son would not get thwarted by such a naked display of histronics by his much emulated dad. Hmmmmph!
But, what do they say about my son being a mirror of me…
Ishu looked his father in the eye….smiled a wicked twinkle and said…”CEO…nah Dad..Customer..subway ka customer..”
Times are going to be very interesting indeed.
There has been lots happening on the Ishu-Mommy front. But, todays anecdote is about Ishu and Daddu.
Winter is here and, with it, has brought the usual coughs and colds. Ishu has been unwell for the last few days.
M, jumped on the opportunity and promptly took the day off to be with him.
This, while the hard nosed career mom took off for office in her ambitious avataar.
So, when this hard nosed career mom reached office, she had given herself enough guilt pills to finish of all do or die mails (hehe) in straight 60 mins.
By 11.30 am she set off for home, to give the ill son (oh baby) and the jubiliant dad (hmmphh) the surprise of their lives.
This is what she found….both of them still under the morning covers…with no intent of getting up and about.
And, this….
“Ishu what do u want to be when you grow up?”
“Daddddddddu, I am grown up”
“Haaaaaan beta, when you grow upto work..what do you want to do?”
I know, left to his devices, Ishu would have wanted to say Goku of DragonballZ fame.
However, since it was daddy who was asking, he made an attempt to think seriously about it..basically, about what M would love to hear from his most amazing son and, came up with….”daddu main subway ka…………”
“Haan beta bolo kya..subway ka CEO, Dell ka CEO, Pepsi ka CEO..CEO banogey Ishu, CEO?”
I was having a difficult time not reacting to such aggressive ambition and that too, vicarious in intent. M and I have very different parenting styles and had I not been in hiding, I can promise you this conversation would have died a very high decibel end.
Unfortunately, I was in hiding. Hoping that my tender hearted son would not get thwarted by such a naked display of histronics by his much emulated dad. Hmmmmph!
But, what do they say about my son being a mirror of me…
Ishu looked his father in the eye….smiled a wicked twinkle and said…”CEO…nah Dad..Customer..subway ka customer..”
Times are going to be very interesting indeed.
Labels: growing up
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Promise
I haven't written for so long....
Ishu has his own blog now..can u believe it!!!
I'm really struggling for time right now...will come for the stories soon...
Promise.
Ishu has his own blog now..can u believe it!!!
I'm really struggling for time right now...will come for the stories soon...
Promise.
Labels: blog
Monday, July 7, 2008
I'm Back
Ishu is back. All bundle of energy, wicked smiles and a to die for glint in the eyes…
My dad seems to have done a great job of teaching him the full year’s syllabus in flat 2 months…takes a load of my mind actually…now I can concentrate on just having fun with him.
And, under the maternally abled guidance of my mom, he has put on a few more baby pounds….looks absolutely adorable…the first time he came back from a 2 month vacation afew years back and we saw what my Mom had created, we got really psyched. But over the years, we’ve seen that the pounds go off in 15 days without nani’s love and care. So I’m just enjoying a more cuddly bundle right now.
Apart from that, hes fast acquiring an intelligent wit and of course his mom’s legendary charm (hehehe..what do I do, no one complements me..I make do with myself).
Hes also giving me lines like “its my life, I like it, I want to do it this way”…phew tough 15 yrs ahead I guess…..
I can see M trying to reinvent himself, trying to keep pace with the demands of a fast growing alternate male influence in the family.
I’m just doing what I do best….loving and growing with Ishu at any pace he chooses to set….
My dad seems to have done a great job of teaching him the full year’s syllabus in flat 2 months…takes a load of my mind actually…now I can concentrate on just having fun with him.
And, under the maternally abled guidance of my mom, he has put on a few more baby pounds….looks absolutely adorable…the first time he came back from a 2 month vacation afew years back and we saw what my Mom had created, we got really psyched. But over the years, we’ve seen that the pounds go off in 15 days without nani’s love and care. So I’m just enjoying a more cuddly bundle right now.
Apart from that, hes fast acquiring an intelligent wit and of course his mom’s legendary charm (hehehe..what do I do, no one complements me..I make do with myself).
Hes also giving me lines like “its my life, I like it, I want to do it this way”…phew tough 15 yrs ahead I guess…..
I can see M trying to reinvent himself, trying to keep pace with the demands of a fast growing alternate male influence in the family.
I’m just doing what I do best….loving and growing with Ishu at any pace he chooses to set….
Labels: charm, summer vacations
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
The Case Of The Mirror Image
“Mom”
“Hmmm”
“What are we gonna do once I arrive at the station?”
“Go home baby..Why? What do u want to do?”
“Mom…can we go to delhi wala Mcdonalds….I haven’t been to one for 2 months now…pls…just one happy meal?”
“Baby, it’ll be 8 am in the morning..”
“Pls pls pls mom”
“Oky cool… we’ll get u a happy meal..”
“And, mom. Then?”
“Then what betu? We’ll go home, chill out, and have fun”
“No-no for lunch, we’ll go to Mainland China mom..”
“Hain?”
“Arre mom, nanu loves Chinese…”
“Ok baba, Mainland China it is..”
“And mom, we’ll go to landmark after that…u buy me a toy and, I promise I’ll keep it under 500 bucks…and, then we come home and u know nanu loves pizza…and unko begusarai mein nahin milta na..so we’ll order pizza and have fun.”
And, just as I’m sort of trying to figure out what the hell, he very innocently puts the icing on the cake (forgive me for the food phrasing…I can’t help it),
“And mom, then u can take me to myyyyyy favourite place Nanking for dinner…”
My dad, his nanu, who was on the 3rd line listening in to our conversation got his ticket cancelled and, called to ask me whether I’ve registered Ishu in some boarding school for the future or not…
“Hmmm”
“What are we gonna do once I arrive at the station?”
“Go home baby..Why? What do u want to do?”
“Mom…can we go to delhi wala Mcdonalds….I haven’t been to one for 2 months now…pls…just one happy meal?”
“Baby, it’ll be 8 am in the morning..”
“Pls pls pls mom”
“Oky cool… we’ll get u a happy meal..”
“And, mom. Then?”
“Then what betu? We’ll go home, chill out, and have fun”
“No-no for lunch, we’ll go to Mainland China mom..”
“Hain?”
“Arre mom, nanu loves Chinese…”
“Ok baba, Mainland China it is..”
“And mom, we’ll go to landmark after that…u buy me a toy and, I promise I’ll keep it under 500 bucks…and, then we come home and u know nanu loves pizza…and unko begusarai mein nahin milta na..so we’ll order pizza and have fun.”
And, just as I’m sort of trying to figure out what the hell, he very innocently puts the icing on the cake (forgive me for the food phrasing…I can’t help it),
“And mom, then u can take me to myyyyyy favourite place Nanking for dinner…”
My dad, his nanu, who was on the 3rd line listening in to our conversation got his ticket cancelled and, called to ask me whether I’ve registered Ishu in some boarding school for the future or not…
Labels: chinese, food, pizza, restaurant
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
A New Toy
Ishu has learnt smsing…theres one part of me that gets really psyched with the speed at which he is learning new things and, another part of me that exults every morning as I wake up to one of his broken smses...
Mom call
Mom ur mom is bad mom.not giving me chocolates
Mom commando is giving u mitthu
Mom how is dad
Mom call when Dad in office....hahahaaaaa
…..
Am gonna start him on blogging soon….
Mom call
Mom ur mom is bad mom.not giving me chocolates
Mom commando is giving u mitthu
Mom how is dad
Mom call when Dad in office....hahahaaaaa
…..
Am gonna start him on blogging soon….
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
The MBA Kid & I
Ishu has gone to his grandparents for his summer vacations.
He loves it there for two reasons (I quote verbatim)
“Momma full freedom hai yahaan..koi kuch nahin rokta and, I don’t have to go to a park to play..the park is in my house only.
And, theres Mirchi and Commando (two very mad and completely over the top melodramatic Alsatians). And, nani kitni pyaari hai and, I can box Nanu. Baba dadi bhi toh bilkul paas hain and, baba tells me the most amazing stories and dadi is so good with maggi………
Two reasons you said?? Hmmmmph
Nevertheless, he calls me every half an hour to ask me what I’m doing, whether I’m feeling well, is daddy taking good care of me, etc, etc.
In one such call yesterday, he enlightened me,
“Momma,”
“Haan baby…”
“Kya kar rahi ho?Momma parcel bhej di?”
“Parcel? Kaun sa parcel?”
“Arre, I told u na, slip trick game” (or I think thats what he said)
“Whats that betu?”
“Tumko nahin samjh mein aayega momma..u just go to landmark and pick it up”
Hmmmmm OK
“Par momma, I’m telling u woh chahe kitna bhi bada ho I’m buying it…”
First round of alarm bells go off in my head
“How big is it Ishu?”
“Mom, we’ll set it up in dad’s den..and, I don’t care if he screams about it..”
Oh yeah!!! Just about this time I can hear my mom really egging him on in the background.
“Momma, look at it this way…
mera beta jab sheesha tod dega cricket khelkar
aur
main usko boluunga betu yeh kya kiya tumne
aur
woh mujhe bolega dad, bas cricket heen toh khela hai, sheesha gir gaya, aapne kabhi seesha nahin toda kya
aur
main bolunga nahin betu maine nahin toda, mere dad ne mujhe nahin khelne diya
toh
uske baba ko, yaani mere dad ko kitna bura lagega….
Pin drop silence.
My mom lost her voice.
I couldn’t believe my years.
This chotu kid, all of 7 yrs, traversed the future, made it relevant to the past and used it so strategically to drive in the present.
You know what they say about a kid getting affected by what his mommy experiences when shes carrying him…
I think it works..hes bloody come out armed with an MBA man….
And as I put down th receiver I could hear him saying
“momma I know u’ll put this up on ur blog…u always go silent when I say something u want to put up there
Par mommy, hindi mein likhna saara, English mein feel nahin aayega…”
HOLY SHIT !
He loves it there for two reasons (I quote verbatim)
“Momma full freedom hai yahaan..koi kuch nahin rokta and, I don’t have to go to a park to play..the park is in my house only.
And, theres Mirchi and Commando (two very mad and completely over the top melodramatic Alsatians). And, nani kitni pyaari hai and, I can box Nanu. Baba dadi bhi toh bilkul paas hain and, baba tells me the most amazing stories and dadi is so good with maggi………
Two reasons you said?? Hmmmmph
Nevertheless, he calls me every half an hour to ask me what I’m doing, whether I’m feeling well, is daddy taking good care of me, etc, etc.
In one such call yesterday, he enlightened me,
“Momma,”
“Haan baby…”
“Kya kar rahi ho?Momma parcel bhej di?”
“Parcel? Kaun sa parcel?”
“Arre, I told u na, slip trick game” (or I think thats what he said)
“Whats that betu?”
“Tumko nahin samjh mein aayega momma..u just go to landmark and pick it up”
Hmmmmm OK
“Par momma, I’m telling u woh chahe kitna bhi bada ho I’m buying it…”
First round of alarm bells go off in my head
“How big is it Ishu?”
“Mom, we’ll set it up in dad’s den..and, I don’t care if he screams about it..”
Oh yeah!!! Just about this time I can hear my mom really egging him on in the background.
“Momma, look at it this way…
mera beta jab sheesha tod dega cricket khelkar
aur
main usko boluunga betu yeh kya kiya tumne
aur
woh mujhe bolega dad, bas cricket heen toh khela hai, sheesha gir gaya, aapne kabhi seesha nahin toda kya
aur
main bolunga nahin betu maine nahin toda, mere dad ne mujhe nahin khelne diya
toh
uske baba ko, yaani mere dad ko kitna bura lagega….
Pin drop silence.
My mom lost her voice.
I couldn’t believe my years.
This chotu kid, all of 7 yrs, traversed the future, made it relevant to the past and used it so strategically to drive in the present.
You know what they say about a kid getting affected by what his mommy experiences when shes carrying him…
I think it works..hes bloody come out armed with an MBA man….
And as I put down th receiver I could hear him saying
“momma I know u’ll put this up on ur blog…u always go silent when I say something u want to put up there
Par mommy, hindi mein likhna saara, English mein feel nahin aayega…”
HOLY SHIT !
Labels: MBA
