The joy of the outdoor

Oh, to sit in the garden watching the children play - one on the trampoline, one idly swinging on the swinging garden bench, and another attempting to beat his brother's record on the pogo stick.Sometimes, I get the children's colouring, activity books and a few toys down to the deck and sat with them helping each one out in turns. What a pleasure to be out in the evening sun, and seeing the children soak it up. Krithika loves to just lie down in the sun. She's a lounger, by nature. Give her a few minutes outside and she'll settle down in the most comfortable place in the sun, playing and talking to herself. Kashyap is a doer. He'll chatter away to me about things in school, but more often than not, take a book and read or pick up an activity book and get busy for a good hour or so. Kaustubh is a fiddler. He loves fiddling around with anything that can be fiddled with. He will do his studies for a short while and be off to dig the ground, prance around on the pogo stick, stack up the used planting pots and use it as a set of bowling pins. And if the game he's made up is interesting enough, he will coerce his brother and sister into joining him. And me, I am an observer. I can sit for hours on end, just observing the children play. Be with them in the sun and maybe grab a  book. The lastest I am on, is a fairly old one - 'Stories to be read with the lights on' - Short stories collated by Alfred Hitchcock. And I must say, its lives up to the hype he creates in the introduction. And now, back to the garden. I spent most of Sunday in the vegetable patch. De-weeding and getting it ready for planting. Now have carrots, strawberries, beetroot, peas, spinach, tomatoes, pepper and courgettes planted. Maybe, this weekend, we'll plant sunflowers as well, but I am not overly fond of the plant. Its just an easy one to grow, and the flower is a big hit with the children. Kaustubh picked one red pepper of the plant the day before and Krithika, one from the Cherry tomatoes. How they loved doing it. And all of them finished all the red pepper pieces that was in their plate for dinner. I am glad we moved into the new house in spring, so we have the time to set up the garden for what I am sure, is going to be a good summer. I hope it is, if just to make up for the utter lack of it last year. A laundry line, some more flowering plants, a few fruit trees, bird feeder and a bamboo patch will complete my to do list for the garden, for this year. And, I am going to apply strict self control and not buy everything that looks good. I so often end up buying small things and cluttering up the garden, that this time around, I am reminding myself that simplicity is what I need... There are the two vegetable patches, a fairly large trampoline, a patio dining set, the swinging bench, deck and the lawns in the middle. And the items from my to-do list will pretty much fill up the rest of the extra space in the garden without eating into the open space left for the children to play. Here's to a good summer, good harvest and some good times in the garden....!

Anguish of the unborn

Warm and safe, nestled I lie

No dreams and no nightmares torment.

Growing as nature intended me to be

A tiny speck of life, as yet dormant.

Do I know if I am wanted..

If who gave me life willed it so?

Do I know I am loved and will be cared for

That I am their bundle of joy? No..

But I am snug and safe where I am

Doesn’t that mean they want me much?

Soon I’ll grow, be the baby they longed for

They’ll feel my joy with my every punch..

But what is that noise I hear..

A sound so dreadful and its coming near..

I see something that I haven’t seen before..

I feel threatened, I feel fear..

Its taking away the only home I’ve known,

And its getting closer to me..

Now I know that its me, it wants

But I don’t want to leave, let me be..

I am near the monster, just seconds away,

My despair and longing, I can’t but share

I know now I wasn’t wanted,

It isn’t right, it isn’t fair.

I would have been the baby you loved most,

I would have made you laugh and rejoice

Oh why didn’t you let me live..

Why do I have no choice…?

India Calling

When I tell you, you won’t understand.

Its in the smell of the place, my friend.

Its in the sweltering heat,

In the soaking chill of your sweat.

Its in the bare bare feet,

Its in the cotton colours riot.

Its in the pa’an – ugly red

Its in flowers woven garland

Its in the temples, cool and at peace

Its in the people, who laugh with ease

Its in the dogs that roam the streets

Its in the food and other treats.

Its in the evenings after a blistering day

Its in the breeze with smells of the sea

Its in the hay, in the summer of May

Its in the traffic - live and let be.

When I tell you, you won’t understand.

You need to see, to smell and feel, my friend.

Joining the dots..

The next few lines quoted from Meera..
In one of his speeches, Steve Jobs insisted that you can always connect the dots in your life that leads you to where you are now.

From me..

Yes..I can see the dots connecting, but can't yet make out what picture its going to make!! And I'd belived that my picture was made and all I needed to do was color in for the rest of my life, and boy..wasn't I wrong? New dots were being drawn all the while..would they erase the picture as it stands now, or complement it? Lets see a year from now..

Poxy holiday..

And thats what happens when life moves on too fast..you end up catching yourself at a few moments recaping all thats been happening and wondering where you are..

Relocating from Cambridge to Bristol would have been even more fun if not for the Chicken Pox..considering that I seemd to have everything mentioned in the websites as 'In rare cases', I haven't done too badly, if I am sitting down now and typing this away! But ofcourse, this is after 5 grilling days of blisters, itching, headache, sorethroat and sheer pain! Its also a great deal of fun to pop in paracetamols every 4 hours in the vain hope that I can sleep off the days till it starts getting better..not very feasible with three very boisterous kids at home on holiday! If it is an Octonaut waking me up now, its a Banana in Pyjamas the next..so, sleep was more or less restricted to the nights, which too was eventually sucessful once I pushed Karthik off to the other room..

Santa did visit us, though mummy was sick..and suprisingly, he seemed to have given a cart load of craft! A few cheap guns, bubbles and some chocolates, but mainly, a lot of art and craft..
How does santa know we like craft?
How does he know our names?
Did you and dad buy these or Santa?
How did he know that Kautu likes 3 Cars?
Why didnt his Reindeer eat the Carrot we put for him outside? (*Ahem* Yes, we forgot to remove it in the morning!)
Why did he buy it from Sainsbury?

Mummy and daddy almost told you guys the truth this year..but surely, you boys will be told it all by next..but take care, Krithika's isn't to know for another few, ok?

And thats all from us for now...wish you all a very happy year ahead!!

Life as I knew it

Changes so often. I wonder at times if it is something to do with me. I worked for a year, then married and took off for another year while pregnant with the twins, then worked from home another year after they were born, worked full time whole carrying my daughter, quit after another year, relocated to uk a year later, and now going back to college and working in a totally different field all together! Ahhhh.... To tell the truth, life has been full and varied, but now I long for some consistency and my old work back! Teaching seemed very fascinating while in IT and IT looks exciting when in teaching! Its not that I don't enjoy what I have, my commitment to work has always been 100 per cent, yet, there is always the thought that I will only be happy with something that pushes me well beyond my comfort zone and I am not too sure that this job is doing that. Anyway, this post is just to clear my head..and I will greatly appreciate input for your end...have you had issues like these before? If so, how did you sort it out? If not, what would you do if you were me?

Goblie (Final and last part)

Story for a picture book..a favourite with my kids!
..............................................

GOBLIE

There is a monster called Goblie,
Who lives in the Caribbean sea.

She is blue, big and good,
And no, children are not her favorite food.

She has eyes the colour of the sun
And hair on her head looks like a bun!

One day when she came up for air,
There was a fishing boat stuck in her hair!

She shook her head, for it was tickling her so
And the boat fell, far far below.

'A monster! Blue, big and bad!'
The fishermen's words made Goblie sad.

She swam away with her head bent low
And the fishermen swam to the shore.

'Do you know what we spied?
A monster in the lake!!' They cried.

With sticks, bricks, shears and bows,
They set out to give Goblie some blows.

But Goblie heard them and stayed far away
And they went back, the very same way.

Goblie stayed in her tiny cave,
Lonely, sad and very grave.

It was a hot summers day.
Children dived into the sea to play.

The water was pleasantly cool,
BUT, what they didn't see … was a WHIRLPOOL!

Two of them were sucked into.
Their cries of help echoed through.

'Horror of horrors! Who could that be?
Surely, its the monster and it's coming to eat me!!!!'

Their daddies and mummies on the shore
Began crying even more.

But what they saw happening out there,
Made them stand still and stare.

Goblie was emerging from the whirlpool,
With a smile on her face, ever so cool.

And seated on Goblie's back,
Were two tiny backpacks!

Beaming from ear to ear,
They gave everyone a loud cheer.

Goblie is a monster, blue, big and good.
She wouldn't eat children, even if she could.

She used to stay in her tiny cave,
But now has a house her tiny friends gave!!!