Category: School
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Traveling Light – Mom Edition
Last Wednesday, I woke up at an ungodly hour of 3:00 am and got ready quickly to be dropped off at our local airport. I was flying across the country to meet a bunch of my friends, some of whom I last saw when I left high school in 1993. Yeah! I know I am…
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End Of Summer
Today has been a day lived in full cognizance of the passing of time. Each moment together, sweeter because of the change that sets in tomorrow with the beginning of the school year. I put in the effort to make a meal that could be savored as a family. We went out for dinner and…
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Counting Down To School
“Two more days before school starts!” My youngest literally springs down the steps two at a time, her energy too bright for the morning. I am yet to have my coffee. I am grumpy. “One more day…” I correct her. “We are already on Saturday. One more day and you start school the following day.”…
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Speaking Up
Over the past month, I have been participating in our local school board meetings. The experience has been anxiety-inducing and scary. The first time around my hands and legs were shaky, my voice tremulous. This time, I went with notes. I had trouble reading and facing the board. My hands still shook but it was…
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Diversity, Equity, Inclusion – Why Should YOU Care?
Last night, I stood up in a room of over 150 adults, mostly white, and spoke up. My heart raced. My phone registered four instances of my heart rate going over 110 when I was not doing anything physically active. I was at the local school board meeting. I have lived in two school district…
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What Is Wrong?
A few times a week, I am on the verge of blowing up. The things the people in my family do want me to break things, raise my hand, yell or cry. Thankfully, most of the time wisdom prevails. I hold back, breathe hard and, walk away. The few times I do things I regret,…
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COVID-19 Diaries: Dilemma
I lace up Laddu’s new hi-top shoes. She tests them out tentatively. I force a fleece jacket on top of her already cozy top. Her school bag is heavy. Her literature anthologies, fundations journals, composition books, iPad, charger, water bottle and lunch box weigh her down. She is ready though, masked, eyes twinkling and raring…
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COVID-19 Diaries: The Demands of Virtual School
My fingers are almost frost-bitten by the time I am back from my early morning walk. We went from tee shirt weather to winter like cold over a day. The sun is an eerie orange ball on my evening walk. Despite the cold and the bitterness of the wind that swirls around me, these are…
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COVID-19 Diaries: Virtual School
It is late Monday morning. It is also a long weekend. I should be cooking, instead I am seated at the breakfast table, two iPads, two dated planners next to me, my Macbook open to a spreadsheet, my iPhone showing me the schedule for the child whose planner I am attempting to fill. I have…
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COVID-19 Diaries: Back To School 2020 Edition
I woke to a home smelling of coffee and a child already awake and excited. By 6:30 am, Pattu and I set out on a walk around the development. I walked slowly, savoring the chill breeze and the warm sun’s rays. Pattu was clearly thrilled. She jumped, skipped and danced as we wound our way…
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COVID-19 Diaries: Back to School Rumblings
This week the school district my children are part of voted on a plan for the fall. Kids stay home until November. Then, they revisit the guidelines at that time, evaluate the safety of students and teachers and make a decision. The board meeting was telecast live. I tuned it and listened on and off.…
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Milestone: Fifth Grade Graduation
For the last day of the school year, today did not seem any different from the three months preceding this. When the school decided to close on March 13th, there were no goodbyes, no last day pictures, no walkouts to cheering children, no teary-eyed parents waiting in the wings to ferry their children to douse…
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Letting Go, Just A Little Bit
I hear the bus before I see it. My pace picks up speed. I meet neighbors on the way to the bus stop but my mind is on my five-year-old Laddu. The bus passes me and Pattu waves from inside. I am wondering if I should jog the last few meters to the bus stop…
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Fleeting Childhood
She is staring out the window, a stuffed bear under her elbow, a piece of paper with the drawing of a little girl in her hand. In a week she will set foot into a new era. One in which her life will be ruled by teachers, friends and timers. In the eight months she…
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Musings: End Of School Year
The water swirls around my feet, pulsing from the jets in the tub. The chair I am on pounds in synchrony, massaging my back as I let out a sigh of contentment. The woman scrubbing my feet, sloughing off dead cells, works in silence. My phone dings, an aberration in the otherwise zen space I…
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Becoming Our Mothers
In the midst of stir-frying a melange of vegetables for my children’s’ lunchbox, I reach out for my phone. I shake the pan on one hand and scroll through my FB feed on the other. I set the pan down and lean on the kitchen counter as I catch up on writing-related posts. Next up…
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A Big Girl
I circle the school parking lot a couple of times before resigning and finding a spot in the grass farthest from the entrance. I grab the folder containing documents that I need, close the door and help Laddu from the car. She is bundled up, her hood covering most of her face. Her tiny hands…
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Why Homework?
The lights are on at the breakfast table and the dining table. I walk, swinging my arms, hoping my iWatch will count the strides toward exercise minutes. Laddu ambles behind me clicking her flashlight on and off to illuminate what she considers dark corners of the house. Ammu is bent over her homework, way past…
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It Will Be Okay
I feel the familiar band of stress tighten around my head. My ears are taut. I feel like a loaded spring, ready to jump in and rescue Ammu as she sits doing Math with her dad. They are working on two-digit multiplication. “What is 7 times 8?” asks Saathi his voice even, a controlled impatience…
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New Beginnings
I woke to the sounds of Laddu crying at 4:30 AM. Bringing her back to bed with me, we snuggled and she slept, an arm around my neck, her hair tickling my nose. Me? I was wide awake. For the past three months, mornings have been relaxed, days have been organic, eating, sleeping and playing…
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Of Reunions and Confidence
A couple of days have gone past since we have come home. A few suitcases still lie at the corner of my bedroom awaiting attention. The toys we picked up from vendors along the pavements in Pondy Bazaar are scattered in the living room. The breakfast table is claimed by wrapped packages. One blue box…