Dear Piya,
In the last few months, I have had 5 letters enter my mind, and 10 leave alongside.
I wove each letter to you with conversations taking place in the form of monologues that the voices in my head played to perfection.
So much so that, they became pretty complacent with the letter having somehow flown your way.
As did I.
Life is happening as we speak, my darling girl!
There is so much to share, so much to capture, so much to weave as a memory and at the same time live through to the fullest, that I have decided to kick the complacence out of the window and give you an update on all that we have been through.
First things first, you have grown up, yet again, much like the ache in my heart that wonders how numbered these days of having you fit into my lap, truly are.
As you grow, so does your spontaneity, your creativity and that spark which I am yet to find the pulse of!
Your responses take me by surprise every second day.
Just the other day, you interrupted a conversation I was having with someone, with a polite 'Will you please stop talking and listen to what I have to say? It's important!'
When you Papa was away on a trip, recently, your first question to him on the video call was 'Baat baad mein, pehle batao mere liye kya laoge?'
There is an 'Act of Kindness' jar in our home, which you fill in with a chit, every time you do something helpful. You are attached to it with all your life, so much so that I use the tact of emptying the jar as a threat to extract good behaviour out of you.
You now have a pet rabbit, who you have wittily named 'Vanilla' citing 'Look at it! It is so white! It has to be Vanilla!'
You are getting better at taking in this 'online school-class' with each passing day to the extent that you are one of the most talkative kids in your class as of today, much to the delight of your very own super-talkative Mumma! Just a few months back, you used to be a quiet witness to all that went on the screen before you. Whenever I probed, you would be ready to with a 'I am too shy, Mumma...'
Too shy to howl throughout the day? Nope.
Too shy to keep mum when I am on a call? No way!
Too shy to sit in one corner and play by yourself? How I wish at times!
But when it comes to matters that do not necessarily agree with you, my little girl all of a sudden realises that she has a 'too shy' boat to back on.
So much has changed, Piya. So much is changing even as I write this; I am just going to reel it back with nostalgia in another letter, later.
But some things haven't changed and they are -
You still give me the best hugs, everyday.
I still kiss you a thousand times each day.
You still have the most innocent face I have ever seen.
You still annoy me & amuse me, all at the same time.
You still amaze me with the little wonder that is the girl I gave birth to.
Keep staying this amazing, my darling.
Life is too short to be anything else 💛
Love,
Maa.
P.S. I have taken up storytelling more seriously than ever. I wish I can become somebody you would love listening to always. After all, there is a different level of satisfaction in gaining validity from one's very first muse ❤️
