Category: Abstract
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Inequities
The view out the balcony mirrors my mood. Patches of grey sky peek in between the dense upper branches of the tree by the apartment block. Dead limbs hang limp. Tiny buds peek through the very tips of the healthy ones. I hear raised voices again from the other side. I feel my body shake.…
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Little People Problems
“I can’t believe foreigners are in our apartment!” “Won’t they think India is dirty?” Her face wrinkles in concern as she eyes Ammu and Pattu as they soar on the squeaky swings. I look at them too and answer the girl in front of me with questions of my own. We trade replies and she…
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Growing Up
“I am off to read my book…” She waves the book in her hand as I look quizically. My maternal instincts are screaming something is off. “Are you taking the iPad with you?” I ask, eyes scanning for evidence. She holds out her hands which hold the hard bound copy of Charlotte’s Web. I smile,…
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Up and Down, Around and Around – The Carousel of Life
Laddu clings to my knees, screaming with a vehemence that takes me by surprise. The sauté pan with the hot oil waits for the seasoning. The freshly cooked rice cools on the adjacent stove, the pearly grains emitting wispy spirals. The lunch boxes are open on the other side of the counter. I pick Laddu…
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The gift of timelessness
I sit on the stoop by the side entrance, Laddu bouncing on my lap. The morning is crisp and chill as Spring mornings ought to be. I turn towards my driveway and the sun pierces my eye. Squinting, I watch Ammu and Pattu make circles on their princess bikes. In matching pink and purple jackets,…
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Sleeping child
I hold her close to my bosom, her even breathing feeling warm and precious as we stay cocooned in the rocking chair as the fan whirrs overhead. The room is dark, the blinds filtering the sunless daylight from behind the clouds. I run my fingers through her curly hair untangling and separating the strands. I…
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Warning: Hurt feelings ahead
“If you hurt my feelings one more time…” Pattu looks at Ammu with threatening eyes. Ammu replies hardly looking up from her coloring book “I hurt your feelings already. I hurt you first!” Saathi and I grin across the dining table and file these conversations to retold and enjoyed years later. My mind however is…
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The Things We Treasure
Few things are in my possession that I treasure. Over the years, it has been books, mementoes from childhood. With every move a few have been lost, misplaced or given away. Some things, however, come into our lives and transform it. The year was 2005. It was mid October. The season when leaves fall, trees…
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Mortality
I hang up the phone. I can almost smell the disinfectant. See the dull grey of the rooms. Hear the monotone of the nurse. Hospitals do that to me. It brings my deepest fears to the fore. Mortality. Perhaps it is because I have been in and out of them for a fair share of…
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Losses: People on pedestals
Sometimes in life, a realization so startling occurs when you least expect it. Like when you are in the shower or when you are mid sentence talking about inane things. Sometimes it is triggered by memories. Today’s Writing 101 prompt at Daily post is about a three-part series. It asks you to talk about losses.…