Shifting scenes

(Scene 1: Mom (a.ka. me) coming back from work and being greeted by an over-enthusiastic 6 yr old)
Mom: "How was school?"
Sid: "It was good. You know we had discussion about God today."
Mom (frankly amazed that the teacher actually had a 'discussion' about God): "What did you discuss? Did you tell anything?"
Sid: "No, I had gone to the restroom."
Mom: OK!!

(Scene changes, Sid having dinner and hesitatingly tries tonDekayi palya)
Sid: "Mamma, this is very nice, it is so juicy, I am eating it all."
Mom: "Very nice."
Sid (amused): "You know why I am eating?"
Mom: "Why?"
Sid: "Because Ma'am talked about God today and so I am eating this."
Mom: "Ok, but what was talked about? You were in the restroom right."
Sid: "Ya, but Ma'am talked right, that's why."

(Scene ends with a befuddled, albeit, relieved Mom, asking the kiddo if he wants a second helping of tonDekayi palya.)

Dooriyan

Sometimes, you can't decide which moral or saying is correct and which is not.
Usually, this happens, when the same topic is addressed differently.

For eg, take these sayings about people close to you, but not near you.
Distance makes the heart go fonder.
Out of sight is out of mind.

Say, you are with a person (friend/spouse/family/kids - anyone close to you) for sometime, but then separate. The separation can be temporary (going for a short trip, education, meetings etc) or permanent (changed companies, shifted to a different place etc).

Sometimes, the first holds good. You are so used to that person, that a brief separation puts things into perspective. You miss their presence and their importance in your life.
But sometimes, its the latter. You don't miss them nor do you feel a void without them around you. This does create panic in your mind - do you not love them? Am I a bad person for feeling like this? Not necessarily!
It might just be that you are more practical then you thought you were or that you and that person is happy in the individual space that you have created by being apart.

I think the 2 sayings are too vague and might work for some persons or some point in time but not necessarily otherwise.
What it usually is, as I have observed, is that, distance makes people forget each other, because you are not a part of each other's lives, you do remember them and talk to and about them occasionally, but you get on with life. So does the other.
But when you meet again, its like nothing had ever changed.

Ok then, I think I am done rambling.

Honesty!

So the kiddo was giving the usual trouble of not finishing his milk quickly in the morning. I was sitting next to him reading the paper, and was telling him that I will visit a 2 month old baby today.
He asked what his name was and I said its not yet decided.

And then started this very honest conversation!
Sid: So you named me Siddhant because you thought I would be a good boy. (giggling uncontrollably) You were wrong no?

Me: (surprised) Probably, so would you be a good person now?

Sid: Maybe when you die!


Kids, I tell you!

Clay and stones

It has been quite a long time since I posted travelogues. Although, there are quite a few to add, thanks to our wonderful vacation in Australia, this post is not about it, but a quick trip planned with the family.

Since the kiddo and his cousins did not have any good outing together, this summer, we decided to go to 'Our Native Village', near Hesaraghatta for a day.

Well, it was terribly hot, but the place had shade, thanks to the trees, and was full of engaging activities to keep us occupied, for the most part of the day. The highlight of the place was all the rustic games - Kite flying, Laggori, Gilli-danda, catapult, tyre-racing, spinning tops. There were added attractions too, in the form of pottery making, garland making, rangoli making, cow-milking (yeah, you heard that right!) and a bullock-cart ride! A few indoor games, like carrom, chess, snake and ladder were also present.

Through the bullock-cart ride, I was trying to recollect the bullock cart ride songs in Hindi/Kannada movies that I had come across! Some of the ones I remembered were 'Oh re taal mile' and 'Janumada jodi' songs.

It was a return to our childhood seeing the games, and the village ambience and the other activities made our parents nostalgic! Needless to say, the kids enjoyed thoroughly, making the most of the time we spent there.
The adults had fun too, although, there were pockets of time, when we did nothing, but just slept/sat on the mats/benches and talked. Well, doing nothing was fun too, I guess, if you could excuse the heat!

Food was very good, and the buttermilk was just what the doctor ordered for a hot summer day!!!
We even got to buy some organic vegetables, that were grown in the resort.

All in all, a good place to spend a day, esp. with kids and if you enjoy playing outdoors.

View greeting us on the way to the resort.

Inside the resort. The fruit ladden mango, sapota, lemon trees were a beautiful sight!

And so were the flowers!

Decorative door

Fun with Sid!

"Mamma, you are so lucky to have me as your son!!!"

This, when I caught him playing with toothpaste and water and chided him for wasting water!
"Why do you say that?", I asked.
"Because I love experimenting. You will be happy right, when I experiment."

Scientist or not, he sure will be a smooth talker! 

Familiarity

Many people might be familiar with the concept of a friendly neighbourhood auto driver! He is the one, near your house, who you know and who knows your office and other familiar visiting places.
I have 1 such auto-thatha (grandpa!), who stays near my mom's place. Moreover he is dad-approved! :-D

I made an impromptu outing to my parents' house this week. On the rare occasion that I was there without the kiddo, and having spent nearly 2 hrs on the road earlier, in a cab, I did not want to go back home in another long cab ride. As luck would have it, Dad, who obviously volunteered to send me off, found that auto-thatha and after some ooT-aaytha exchanges, I was off.

The driver, knowing the route, went to my area effortlessly. As I gave the final left-hogi, right-hogi instructions, I reached home. After settling the bill, he asked (or rather told) 'Mane change maaDidhira?!' (You have changed the house?!).

Oh, also, I actually saw a golden Audi on the way. Yes, not the Vitara Brezza golden color, but having a gold-plated look. It looked terrible!

An Experiment named Parenting

Here are some of my honest, albeit randomly ordered, thoughts and opinions about parenting, some personally experienced and some observations. Some simple, some complex!
Over the coming years, am sure, I will learn new things and be exposed to different situations and will have to rack my brain as to how to deal with those, but that is a worry for another time! :)

Parenting is an extremely personal and unique journey. It cannot be duplicated, cannot be modelled on other's journey, and it should be done on your own (with your spouse, if you have one).

Difference of opinion with your spouse is extremely common. Having a stand is good, but negotiating and coming to a common ground is beneficial to the child, in the long run. Constant difference of opinion will tire not only you, but your child as well!

Some mistakes in judgement happen. This, even when people willingly correct it, sometimes, even before the mistake becomes visible. But if you don't go through it, how will you be sure? It might even turn out to be right.
You never know, unless you try.

Talk to your child, a lot! Keep the communication open. I like to give my child the benefit of doubt. I like hearing his views, thoughts and provide my views and theories to him. I assure him that it's ok to feel or behave a certain way, even if everyone else is against it. It just reinforces that it is ok to be different, to have an opinion and be vocal about it!

Love your child. Respect your child. Don't humiliate or chid him in public, unless, you are very sure he was wrong, if so, then do educate him gently. But do not be tolerant of consistent bad behavior though.

Actively use 'Please', 'thank you', 'sorry' and encourage the child to do so too.

Try to avoid the social/school pressure of the child excelling academically, if you can. Constantly encourage your child to do his best, and then forget about the results. This is true for all endeavors, not academic alone.

Let your child watch cartoons/songs/nature,animal and cosmos videos etc, under your guidance, for maybe half an hr a day. It won't harm them too much, but will help them expand their knowledge as well.

Invest in a hobby or class (music/karate etc), but not too many, the child should be able to get some playing time. Make exercise (physical - playing/cycling etc and/or mental - board games, painting etc) a daily habit. But its also ok to take a break and relax on Sundays.

Be creative and explore fun ways of spending time together with the child.

Love and Respect your spouse, be vocal about it, your child will be immensely benefitted by it.

Never tag your happiness to your child/('s). Rather, never make your child as your only source of happiness. The burden that they will subconsciously carry through their life, might/will affect them negatively.

Be happy in your own space, don't tie it with your child's. Eat chocolates when your child can't. Go out and explore when your child won't. It is as important as, say, giving away your last piece of cake to your child without a moment's hesitation or playing hide-n-seek by hiding and seeking at the same place, multiple times, without making it look like a chore, enjoy these moments when you can.

Don't let guilt (internal and external) mar your perspective and stability. Be brave, be your own person. Your child might sulk or not like it now, but gradually and surely, your child will respect that and when time comes, would definitely be his/her own person easily, probably without the internal struggle you have had to endure.

At the end of it all, there will still be imperfections, I-could-have-done-better feelings, but take a deep breath, relax and remind yourself that it's ok, really ok!

Katheyondha Helidhe....

The new breed of directors/actors in Kannada movie industry are truly making a mark. Be it Lucia, RangiTaranga, U-Turn or for that matter, a college story like Kirik Party. The freshness and innovation that these guys brought to the table, is what makes them stand apart. There have been other good movies - GBSM, a few arty movies, but since I have not watched them, I am not talking about them.

 I read a review of Kirik Party by Rangan (link) and what he says is true! This movie indeed was a musical! Be it the slow waltz (while the fight happens), or breaking into a song when the guys are suspended. Brilliant take. I did like the background score of Ulidavaru Kandante too, but this movie takes the cake! (hey, I am turning into a rhyming expert!)

The tunes are so infectious (The trumpet in Kaagadada Doniyalli or the chorus in Belageddu, Katheyondha, for eg). Nice work by the music director - Anjaneesh Loknath.
I esp. loved the hat-tip to Ravichandran and Hamsaleka in "Hey, who are you" song! Took me back to the time of Prema-Loka, Ranadheera. :)
The lyrics of the songs are also lovely. The use of some of the bhaava geetes ( Toogu Mancha and Neecha Nalige(?)) is refreshing.
The singers have done a great job, some established and some new names, a good mix altogether.

 Wrt the movie, the last part was a tad long and the plot seemed lost. A tighter second half would have made it even more enjoyable!

Check out the album in Saavn, or better still, watch the movie in the theatre (It has English Subtitles!) and then listen to the songs. They grow on you that way.

The fallen gate

Dusk was setting in. The gate of a nearby park had fallen and everyone had to enter the park trampling on the fallen gate. A guy, an elderly couple and I were the only people walking in the park. 

I noticed that 4 workers had started to fix the gate. They lifted it up, tried to hold it steady and were figuring out how to put it in place. 

After a few more rounds, I wanted to go home. I stopped near the workers, asked them (in Kannada, translated here): "Will this take more time?" No response. The workers refused to acknowledge my presence.

The elderly couple, who were right behind me, stopped, and the lady asked the workers "Can we go from here?" Again, a stoic silence. A pause, and then the elderly man, calls out authoritatively - "Aye! Can we go from here?" Pat came the reply ' No Sir!'.  

I continued walking and exited the park out of the other gate. 

Stuff kids think and say!

On one lazy weekend, Sid and I were reading in the balcony and I happened to see a Kite (mostly) and showed the same to Sid. He asked me which bird that was, and I said "Mostly Kite, don't know for sure". He, excitedly, quips: "Mamma, do you have any bird-scanner like QR-scanner? (I had introduced it to him, because of some kiddy game app) You know, we could point the phone camera to the bird, and the app can scan the bird and tell us what bird it is."

I was dumbstruck! What a brilliant idea. There might be something similar wrt image-search, but live scanning and searching sounds interesting!

Waiting to see such an app now! Remember, you heard it first here!!

In Dino..

After a terrible 2016, a new year has started. There might be many things that will go wrong and many that might just be perfect, but its another chance to change for the good! As usual, there are some goals and resolutions, but who knows how much can be accomplished. Give it your best though, will ya?

Some thoughts and happenings, that individually were too small for a post and too long for a tweet, had been housed in the back of my mind for some time, and now, I have listed it out here, as a collective, so that it doesn't slip away from the already cluttered, confused mind.

• Had high hopes on Prof.Bharadwaj's tryst with the present, but was throughly disappointed. I am speaking, of course, of 'Immortal' by Krishna Udayashankar. After the brilliant, excellent, amazing (and other such superlative adjectives) 'The Aryavarta Chronicles', I expected too much perhaps. It ends up like 'Indiana Jones', which in the Professor's word, was actually not supposed to be! I was reminded of 'The Emperor's Riddles', which I did not like either. Although, both gave a lot of materials, history, mythology, places to learn about, so can't complain much!?

• One more book that I read and was not impressed by was ' One Indian Girl' by Chethan Bhagat. There are some parts, that do portray a lady's plight, but there is nothing new that the book offers, and looks to be mostly a script ready to get some or the other Bollywood studio's nod!

• I did catch up on short stories though. Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot. Ah! What plots and twists. What words, what sentence formations. Brilliant!  Loved them to bits! I did try to read some aloud for Sid though, and he refused to listen. He is happy reading the books he likes. 

• Speaking of Sid, well, he has progressed to reading on his own now, and the bedtime and weekend afternoon readings has become a breeze! I have, sneakily, made a deal that I will read 1 story and he gets to pick and read whatever he wants. Those are the most peaceful minutes of the day! :-D Moreover, I get to read in that gap as well! 

• I did not watch as many movies as I wanted to in 2016! I flare up when I see the nominations, that have started for the Annual award ceremonies. Not because of the choices, but I must have watched probably only a couple of them, that's all! Oh, the horror!! I don't think I can get myself to watch any of the award ceremonies this year! 

• 2016 has also been a year of great highs and lows. I, who has claimed, never to have caught a fever, as far as I remember, finally caught one! The family too kept falling sick. Hope we fare better this year.

• Arijit Singh sounds constipated now-a-days - 'Channa mere ya' and a couple of more recent ones!  'Ae dil hain mushkil' title track sounds fine though. Compare some of the recent ones to a 'Phir le aaya Dil' or a 'Laal ishq' and you can notice the difference. Or is it deliberate, to sound sad, perhaps? 

• Speaking of Phir le aaya dil, it still sounds magical! I am not sure if I loved the song instantly (kiddo wanted the Barfi songs on loop) or loved it after I saw the video. I sometimes think it is, indeed, the latter. The silent emotions that are expressed in the eyes of the leads are just so beautiful! Well-directed and emoted!  

          Check it out here: