Of all the treasures we can collect in our lifetimes, memories are the most precious. I am off to collect more of them, to hold close to my heart to be savoured at leisure. I will be laughing, playing and running with the little one – yes, running too. With due apologies to Mitch Albom,** ‘The running girl is inside every woman no matter how old she gets,’ — especially when her granddaughter is with her!
Of the several posts I have written about the little one, this one written a few years ago, is very close to my heart. So sharing it again 🙂
*******
I know I promised to share the moments I savoured with my little granddaughter, but I am afraid I am unable to sort them out in any kind of order. So please bear with me as they jostle in my brain, each trying to get out in print faster than the other. Some simply refuse to come out through my fingertips. Hope you understand….
‘Are you going to stay here for a hundred years?’ I am asked the day after we reach London.
‘Do you want me to?’
The little head nods vigorously, the ponytails on her adorable head bobbing up and down as she nods.
One day her mother tells her sotto voce, ‘Paati’s birthday is the day after tomorrow,’ and the little one comes running to me.
‘Paati, I am going to make something for you for your birthday. You should not look at what I am doing. You will get it ONLY on your birthday, ok?’ I am banished from the living room as she busies herself with her crayons and other paraphernalia.
For the next couple of days she is excited about the gift she is making for me and asks me a million times if I have seen it. I reply truthfully that I haven’t. On the big day, the first thing she does after waking up is to run to the hiding place of the gift and presents it to me with a flourish. ‘Hapy BirThday Pati’, the painstakingly made card, with its glitter and stickers says. It is embellished with a lot of hearts, crosses and circles. She explains that the crosses are kisses and the circles are hugs, as she gives me real ones.
Then suddenly asks, ‘Paati, when will you become a hundred years old?’
I am reminded of the same time last year, when she had declared me to be ten years old. That number had been the highest in her little world back then. In one year, it has gone up to a hundred. My reply of course doesn’t interest her since the numbers between one and hundred don’t mean a thing to her – just the beginning and the end do.
I can’t but marvel at the simplicity of it all. How wonderful to have a limit to something! We could indeed learn a thing or two from kids, whose thought processes are simple and uncluttered.
*****
In the farmhouse where we stayed during our holiday in Cornwall, there was an armchair by the fireplace in the study. On the first day there, she was so excited that she dragged me in and made me sit on it.
The chair where all grandmas sit and speak grandma.
‘Paati, where are your glasses?’ she asked me. I had to dig them out of my handbag and wear them because, ‘all grandmas wear glasses and sit in that chair.’ Once the glasses and I were in place, she bade me speak ‘grandma.’ I wondered how I should do that, and she told me patiently that it is what all grandmas speak. The poor little thing didn’t know that this grandma knew no such thing and what was more, was as goofy as they come!
Stereotyping has not spared even grandmas! In the story books which she reads and in the shows she watches on TV, grandmas are indeed portrayed as being old sitting in a rocking chair, with white hair, and of course speaking ‘grandma!’
****
When it comes to games, she has her preferences. With her thatha, it is the rough and tumble ones which involve physical exercise. But with me, she just wants to play milder ones like hide and seek and other stay-put-in-a-place activities. This involved searching for her toys which were ‘hidden’ by her in the room or drawing pictures on demand, or finger-men walking on her back as she lay face down. The best thing about the hiding game was that she would give me ‘clues’ about where to find them, which were infinitely sweet and ‘awww-inspiring’.
‘There is something hiding behind that curtain,’ she would say. Or, ‘Maybe you should look under the table,’ she would offer, as she hovered anxiously around till I found them, not realising (or did she?) that she had told me the hiding places. But she wouldn’t want any clue when she did the seeking. I found it too endearing in a four-year-old, who saw herself as more capable in comparison to her old and doddering paati!
*****
What else do I share with you all? Her unique language Marhini, which she makes up and speaks fluently and expects you to speak too? You make up some gobbledygook but she is sharp enough to detect any variant syllable, tone and inflection in the ‘language’ and informs you accusingly, ‘You are speaking some other language and I don’t understand it.’ She does it with such panache that you begin wondering if it indeed is a real language!
…or do I tell you about her imaginary friend Poppy, who ‘comes all the way from Africa in a car that can fly’, across the seas to her home in London. I never ceased to marvel at her wonderful imagination as she created various scenario around her. Poppy has a little brother who is called Zima and who sits on Poppy’s lap as she swings in the backyard. ‘Pati, push slowly. Zima is little and will get scared,’ she would instruct me. Or at another time: ‘Shhh….Zima is sleeping. Don’t make any noise,’ she would whisper.
Once when we were on our way to the castle at St.Michael’s Mount in Cornwall, she was suddenly disconsolate. ‘We have forgotten Poppy. She is alone in the house!’ she cried. Till her mother picked up her phone and ‘called’ Poppy and asked her to take a taxi and come right along to the castle parking lot.
This was the conversation she held with Poppy: ‘Are you already on the way? Great! ….oh, we are so sorry to have left you behind. Where are you now? We are in the number 3 lot. Can you see us? Oh, come on quick then!’
We opened the door and made space for her friend in the car and the smile finally came back to the little one’s face…
…and how she found ‘treasures’ in the castle there. She brandished the map that we picked up at the ticket counter and informed us that it said there were seven treasures hidden there and she had to find them all. Her father played along and left a coin ‘treasure’ in nooks and crannies as we pretended to search for them and helped her ‘find’ them. Boy, was she happy to find all the seven treasures!
******
Back in India, they stayed for less than a fortnight and given the heat here, it was just as well. But the time sped past too quickly and I was not able to enjoy her company fully since I was pretty unwell for some time. Don’t they say that too much of a good thing can be bad for you? Maybe that adage was at work.
From the time she got up everyday, it was a countdown to 6 PM, when her thatha took her to the playground and for the rides in the mall near our house. One day, she bought me a huge balloon as a get-well present! During the day, she would periodically rush to my side and give me a quick hug and kiss before running out.
My get-well gift
Another day, when she went to the temple with her thatha and mother, she brought back the rose petals given there as a prasadam for her paati, holding them all the way in her little hand and thrusting them at me the moment I opened the door. The squished flowers smelt sweet and I put them inside my clothes cupboard, to sweeten the dresses with their fragrance and love. This is a fragrance that doesn’t fade with time but lingers on an on as I curl up with the memories and feeling her softness next to me….
** ‘The running boy is inside every man no matter how old he gets’ – Mitch Albom in The Five People you meet in Heaven.
(All pics Copyright Zephyr)
The Cybernag 
This was simply beautiful Zephyr !! I loved your narration , the love, the bonding with your sweet little grand daughter. And i truly loved Poppy. It reminded me of Hobbes and how Calvin once misses him when he was left behind. Children’s make believe friends are as real as they can get !
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Thanks Asha. What would we have all done as children if we didn’t have our own imaginary friends? But it takes patience and understanding to play along and make them feel good about their friends, imaginary or not, right?
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Wow! Thanks zephyr for sharing some Marvellous moments!
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Good to see you after a long time.Sorry for the delay in replying.
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Lovely post Zephyr.I loved reading the cute anecdotes.
Grandchildren occupy a special place in our heart.Isn’t it a torture to live away from them?
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I guess we value the time together more when we live apart but just a few weeks a year is sometimes a little too little, isn’t it?
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I remember reading this post vividly, sometime back! Never got bored of reading again! Grand children are always precious. You must have treasured the card too!
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I have, Sandhya, saved the card, that is! She has now begun writing letter!
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Loved the ‘speak grandma’ part Zephyr. This post has made me impatient to be a grandma. Unfortunately my daughter has dug her heels in and refuses to get married for at least 5-6 yrs more. Sigh!
It is heartening to see that her imagination was not curtailed and was allowed a free rein. Even more, that her mom played along with her. Thats truly remarkable. I doubt if i would have done the same. Foolishly I’d have tried to ensconse my child in reality… that magicless aridity. And I’d have been so wrong!
Do you know, you facilitate insight even without trying… you teach even without knowing?
Thank you Zephyr!
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I still don’t speak ‘grandma’ but I am sure she has forgotten her demand of back then 🙂 All in good time. I had become a grandma to my nieces and nephews’ kids even in my 30s though they didn’t want to call me Pati, because, another stereotype makes patis slow-footed, white-haired and spectacles-clad and at that age Id didn’t fit any of the stereotypes 😀 My DIL is very imaginative herself and can be very patient too. She had saved the day that day when she ‘called’ the pretend friend, because the child was inconsolable. And no, I don’t know I teach but yes, I know I nag a lot 🙂
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I dare say its the same thing 😀 😀
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Awwwwwwwwwww!! That’s so adorable, Zephyr! And your granddaughter is so sweet and funny. 😀 I don’t remember a lot from when I was little, but I do recall certain memories with my grandparents. Like being tickled by Pepere Letourneau, or watching TV with Memere Letourneau, or walking with my maternal grandfather as he held my hand and showed me his chickens, pigs, and other animals he kept. We all have our own bags of treasures, and it’s good to open the drawstrings now and then and sift through the contents. 🙂 Thanks for sharing these gems with us!
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Thank you, Sara. She is still funny, only now she knows she is being funny and enjoys making us laugh. Children might not remember things as vividly as older people. I am sure your Pepere and Memere can recall even the softness of your little hands then. And yes, we need to keep counting these treasures so that they enrich our lives with sweetness. But as I mentioned in the post, some memories are above articulating and can only be felt by the holder of memories 🙂
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Heart-warming post, Zephyr! What a wonderful relationship between Grandmother and granddaughter!
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A cherished relationship indeed, Manju!
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sweet and lovely post, full of precious memories. Diya is so lucky to have pati like you. Reminded me how I spent time with my grandpa. Few more hours and Diya will be with you have nice and great time .
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Oh yes, Suman. It is just over a day for them to land and then it is going to be a blur before they leave! Hope the weather holds out and doesn’t rain too much.
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What a lovely, lovely writeup this is Zephyr! Anyone, including a Martian, would want to be a grandmother after reading this one 🙂 The softness and beauty of those tender moments, full of love and warmth and cuddles and kisses, is so wonderfully expressed in your words. I could just feel how you ‘full of love’ you must be feeling while penning down these precious memories. That love-filled-heart has out-poured itself in this post. Thank you for giving us a peek of these beautiful memories.
In awe of the wonderful imagination of your little one. Her care and concern for Poppy and Zima is so touching. Loved reading that part.
Also loved the part about the lessons to be learned from the uncluttered thought-process of children. That’s so true, really. We adults miss out on so much because we think (or pretend to think) on complex things in complicated ways!
And that ‘speaking grandma’ part is great. Maybe this time around you will do better at speaking ‘grandma’ 😀
Wishing you many many more of such wonderful moments in the coming days/weeks.
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Thank you Beloo. Yes, I will be jealously collecting and hoarding the memories! In the three years since this post was written,her imagination and creativity have grown by leaps and bounds. I think she now knows that her grandma can’t speak any ‘grandma’ 🙂 When we ask her about Poppy and Zima she looks surprised and asks, ‘Do you remember them?’ Her memory is astonishing too. What is gratifying is that her mother never told her not to play with pretend friends and played along admirably when required as when she held the conversation with Poppy.
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Wow….for her age she sure is imaginative and very caring for her Paati. God bless the little sweetheart…many many hugs to her! Hope you get to spend time with her more often. ☺
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This was written when she was four, Varsha. Now she is a little lady waiting to wow us all 🙂 If our Skype conversations and activities are any indication, I will be super busy with her in person!
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How time flies and I read through this yet again with the nostalgia of the Sunday, three years back when I read and commented! I can see you have got three years younger since, Zephyr:)
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Really touched that you read it again and also commented, Rahul. When you are with grandchildren, the years drop away like magic 🙂
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Ah such a post Mami; my eyes are moist. 😀
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Kids do that to you, don’t they?
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Indeed a bagful of lovely memories!
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Thanks Rama. They were the most wonderful moments. 🙂
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Your lovely memories with Diya made my heart swell with happiness. I was smiling fondly all through the post reading all the cute little things both of you did. They brought out the child in me. My entire childhood streamed in front of my eyes and it made me nostalgic. You are such a wonderful grandmother and Diya is simply adorable. Reading this post reminds me again how beautiful life is and how simple pleasures fill our heart with bliss. Such precious memories! And I am fortunate to have a glimpse of these golden moments through your heart and your words. Thank you.
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Delightful remniscences of a loving grandma. I enjoyed reading it all, as I am also blessed with two grand daughters thru my eldest daughter and two grand sons thru my second daughter. Children are children where ever they are and I look lovingly at young kids, even, if they are total strangers. Their childish pranks and innocent observations, captivate one’s heart. What then, one feels, when they happen to be your own grand children, words cannot describe. My second daughter was here for a month from Canada and all of us made a trip to Bangalore where my eldest daughter lives. What a pleasurable experience it was, words cannot describe. Only, they very much missed their dearest grandma (my wife), who passed away suddenly in March, 2011. More than me, I felt, they seem to miss her, as she used to play just like children with them and prepare rare delicacies, which they relish and pester their mothers, saying, what they prepare is not as good as their grandma”s preparations. You have brought back to surface in my mind’s eye so beautifully in your own inimitable way, similar anecdotes, which I enjoyed reading aggin and again. The pleasurable experiences will linger till I breathe my last. Thanks for sharing.
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Good to see you here after a long while, GNB! Yes, I got to know about the time you all had together in Bangalore through your older daughter 🙂 It must have been wonderful to have a full house with children. I am sorry to hear about the loss of your wife and I am sure you would all have missed her. Children like to have everyone around them and grandparents are special in their scheme of things. My little one said wistfully before leaving for her maternal grandparents’ house, ‘I wish thatha and paati could come with us. Then everyone will be there and I will have lots of fun!’ I am happy the post made you remember all the good times and gave you joy. Welcome again. 🙂
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What a beautiful bag of memories you have there. Lovely hearing about the little one and the games she made you play. I am sure with your story telling skills, you gave her something of the stereotypical grandma – regaled her with stories! She must miss you as much as you do her. I hope you videoconference often with her! It certainly makes the distance go down by many thousand miles!
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Funnily, she prefers playing with me to listening to stories from me. Maybe I am not a good story-teller after all 😦 Anyway, how does it matter what we did as long as we had a wonderful time together, right? Right now she is with her other set of grandparents and it is not fair to intrude on their little time with her. We will skype once she goes back to UK 🙂
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Was reading this post with a huge smile on my face 🙂
Stereotyping has not spared even grandmas.
Sorry cannot bring myself to protest for this one. There is a certain warmth with this stereotyping and association that brings comfort more than regression to one’s mind.
She didn’t want clues when she was seeking?? Aww… you’ve got a strong headed independent lil girl over there! 🙂
We opened the door and made space for her friend in the car and the smile finally came back to the little one’s face…
I appreciate the fact that none of you is brushing it away but indulging her thought process. Not all families can do that unanimously.
Hugs!! It was a vacation you will keep cherishing and remembering with nostalgia for the rest of your life… 🙂
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I knew you’d enjoy it having been with your grandparents during your formative years 🙂 While I agree about the stereotyped grandmas bringing a measure of comfort to the kids by association, the same can be said of mothers staying home too, isn’t it? And we all know that it rankles. I will wait till you reach my age and then ask you the same question 😀
My DIL is still in touch with the child in her and so understands these sentiments very well. You should have heard her talk to Poppy that day. We were all hiding our smiles as the little one anxiously waited for her friend to come 🙂 There are so many more memories and I am still recording them all in print so that they will remain fresh for her to read and smile when she is older.
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oh!!very sweet paati-pethi 🙂
Your pethi is a lucky to have somebody like you as grandmom..and yeah the gifts,touched my heart.I remember,when I was a kid, I did put in lots of efforts to draw or make something and make it look like a gift.
PS: I would have loved the pictures even more if you were sitting in that arm chair
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I remember the post you had done on hand made gifts — lovely ones they were. No wonder they touched your heart 🙂 My pic on the blog? No ma’am!
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OMG!!
you remember that post?I’m happy 🙂
yeah,I have a special bonding with gifts and I’m dead against gifting rubbish to people
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Of course I do! My DIL and Diya are great ones for selecting gifts and personalising them too. Did you see my name on the balloon I got?
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Yeah I did… priceless they are 🙂
Once my mom showed me a diary in which I had written the alphabets for the first time and I nearly fainted 😛
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Beautiful. There are few things more sublime than the relationship between a child and his/her grandma. Glad to hear that you had a great time. Welcome back. We’ve missed you.
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It feels great to know that I was missed 😀 It is indeed a wonderful relationship, one where both lavish love on each other 🙂
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Nicely captured. The world of children is indeed nostalgic – either one’s own childhood in my generation and one’s children’s childhood for the next generation.
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And the children’s children’s childhood, as in my case 😀
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Wonder why we are not patient with kids as parents, but are infinitely patient with kids as grand parents? Good to know that you had a nice time with your granddaughter…
Destination Infinity
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It is entirely different, DI. We are indeed patient with our children too, but being grandparents makes it even more relaxed since there is not stress of raising them as parents. It is a time to enjoy — by both grandparents and grandchildren. 🙂
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I thoroughly enjoyed reading and re-reading your blogpost. It gave me a beautiful feeling that Farheena is just a small child, as she does many of the things like creating own language, having an imaginary friend like your little princess. Only difference is Farheena is 17 now :).
BTW the stone castle looks so much like a Ninja Turtle to me.. I am in love with your grandkid.
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I am happy you enjoyed the post Farida. There are so many more incidents and memories that if I needed to post them it would run into many posts 🙂 Farheena is a sweetheart and I am sure you are having a wonderful time being with her. Their innocence is what is most endearing, isn’t it? And you will love Diya even more when you meet her. She is such a wonder kid 🙂
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Tears, tears, tears!!..such a beautiful written piece..and what a darling of a lil girl you have!!..i loved her rock castle, her care for her imaginary friends, her care for you..what a gentle, kind and warm soul this lil angel is!!..god bless her always..
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She is all that and more and a moppet to boot. She has so much love in her heart that it encompasses a lot of people and things. She shares a special bond with each one of us — in her own unique way so that makes us all feel that she is closest to us 😀
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She is very warm and caring. Like when she was to leave for Bangalore to visit her other set of grandparents, she consoled us saying that she had to go there because they were waiting for her and then she had to go back to London because ‘that’s where I live’ but that she would come back to Delhi ‘very soon.’ 🙂
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🙂 children build such castles in their heads. So intriguing and so innocent.
My little nephew, who was introduced to the concept of death just didn’t seem to get it. He kept asking, “if Rajesh kumar (Khanna somehow became kumar all the time) was sick and had a stomach pain, didn’t the doctor give him medicine?”
None of us could explain, till he finally said, “maybe he was not strong enough”.
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Hey Priyanka, good to see you here after a long time!
children do build castles in their heads, but they are also firmly grounded. Explaining death is harder. Earlier it was sufficient to tell them that the concerned person has gone to God or has become a star, but today’s parenting wants everything to be logically explained to them which makes it difficult. In my opinion, we should expose children to the concept in words that make sense to them at that age and slowly let them understand them instead of completely blanking them out or thrusting too much info on them. Your nephew is smart to realise that Rajesh Kumar was not strong enough 🙂
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Haha.. Yes. I’ve been away, over working myself, not doing things that I actually enjoy. 🙂 I’m back!
In the midst of all our misery, the little fellow just happened to get us cracking on the whole Rajesh Kumar saga. Like a stuck tape recorder, he went on, questions after questions. 🙂
How old is your grand daughter? She must be a bundle of joy, love to her.
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Does that mean you are now doing things you enjoy? Good for you 🙂 My Diya is four and is really a bundle of joy — a soft, cuddly and affectionate one at that 😀
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🙂 No.. I’m still working equally hard, but i’m making time for stuff that i love doing as well. I’m done being a workaholic.
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Good for you! So I can see your lovely smile on my blog more often, I guess 😛
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You bet! 🙂
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Hi Zephyr
It was a very pleasant ride with you through your memories and the little angel seems to be such a cute darling…Loved the part about leaving her imaginary friend back and having had to call her…My mother is starting back to India tomorrow after spending a couple of months with my little brat…Being a grandmother is a joy only other grandmothers can relate to I suppose 🙂 Lovely Post!
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Thank you Jaishree. Yeah, only grandmothers can actually understand the joy and pride of being with grandchildren but it also helps the grandchildren to hark back to their own childhood spent with theirs.
Her imaginary friend is very real in an imaginary way. She has this habit of informing us that it is ‘pretend food’, ‘pretend ride,’ etc. whenever she feeds us something she has ‘cooked’ or taking us on a ride. But she enjoys the pretend paly enormously 🙂
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She is adorable and I have been the Lucky one to have actually MET her too. You had a good time here in UK, see see you shud have stayed with us , you went to india and fell sick..
beautiful post , reminded me of the lovely time and beautiful days I had with my grandparents .. Lucky are the ones who have enjoyed that ..
How are you doing Mami 🙂
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Oh yes, and she asked me about ‘Vikram uncle’ even later. And she enjoyed all the chocolates that you gave and deigned to give you a thank you note. She loves writing things out and not speaking them. Do you think the genes are at work? 😀 😀
You are right, lucky are the kids who are able to enjoy the company of their grandparents and vice versa especially in today’s world of distances.
And next time I will most certainly stay with you. Thank you so much for inviting me 🙂 I am doing good now, thanks for asking, Bikram!
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What a joyful post! Lovely read 🙂 When she grows up, she would definitely come back to read this over and over – to stay connected with her innocence. She is very lucky to have you, just as much as you are to have her.
Children grow up real fast and this is a perfect way to capture their childhood memories 🙂
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I do hope the bond remains strong over the years and time. When I read blog posts about how children feel embarrassed about their grandparents and consider them intrusive, I feel blessed that I would never have to go through that experience 🙂 And I would like this to be a record of those times too. We record the memories in pictures and sometimes videos too, but not very often the feelings in words. I am trying to do just that 🙂
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Memories are treasures,
And this one speaks of it.
I have spent very little time with my grand parents:(
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Thank you Ghazala. I am sorry you couldn’t spend much time with your grandparents. Sometimes things happen over which we have no control.
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I love your heart, Zephyr. Your relationship with your grandchild sounds so adorable! thank you for the beautiful glimpses of the little one—Now, I am waiting to be blessed with one…donno when though *grumpy*
God bless you both…and share many many golden moments tog!:))
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Oh Panchali, sabr karo. We don’t want to push our kids do we? 😀 It is the little one whose heart is large. She has to share everything and loved giving gifts — handmade cards embellished with trinkets and phonetically written out messages are her forte.
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Zephyr patti,(from now on i am going to call u by this name) belated b’day wishes.. glad that u had good time with ur granddaughter.. ur granddaughter is really cute.. she wants u to celebrate 100th b’day.. :)..she has a great attitude.. hope it continues till end..
i liked the stone castle a lot .. hope my daughter too will make such memories with her both sets of grandparents. 🙂
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That is wonderful. It is a new title the Cybernag has earned 😀 But Ashreyamom, I am little concerned about her increasing limit of numbers: from ten to hundred…maybe a million next year? 😀 😀
Don’t worry, children make their memories and give the old folk theirs. Let her get a little older.
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This is such a precious, precious post! 🙂 Loved reading it. I was smiling throughout the post. 🙂
Glad you could enjoy some beautiful moments with your grand-daughter.
Hope you are better now.
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I am glad you enjoyed the post, Girl Next Door. Such memories evoke more in us when read about them, don’t they? And thank you, I am better now. 🙂
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That brought a wide smile on my face.
I was always so close to my grand parents. I might not have my parents’s pictures with me but I always keep my grandparents’s . Just seeing them brings peace to my mind
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I am happy you enjoyed reading this, Ritika. You might like to read the other posts about our times together too. They would be found in the family/relationships category. Having reached the stage of grandmother from being a daughter and going all the way to this exalted position — I can vouch for it that this is the best phase of my life when I can enjoy my relationship with another so completely. I only wish it continues like this but going from other comments here, it looks more likely than not. 🙂
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Aww…..that’s such a sweet post !
No doubt the memories of the time spent with your granddaughter will fill your days for a long time(read till you are together again) !
My boys too spent some previous time with their grandparents as kids(when in US) and their bond and attachment with their ‘ajji’ is strong as ever !
Loved it !
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Your mom is a cute ajji, so much in tune with today’s world and doing it with such elan too. I loved her, so can understand her grandkids adoring her. The memories will have to last till we meet again, which is why we both share our moments with each other, because she has this way of spending time alone with each of us too apart from doing it as a family 🙂
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…such a lovely post throughout 🙂 loved each word of it 🙂 thank you Zephyr 🙂
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Glad you liked the post Amit 🙂 Did your own grandparents come to mind?
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..yes they did, but unfortunately I lost them young.
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That is sad. I lost my paternal grandparents early too, but my maternal ones lived longer. Things are very different from those days, but the bond is the same. 🙂
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…life is like that!
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Awww! these are such adorable memories 🙂
hope the health is better now 🙂
Errr..wish you were my grandmom too 🙂
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Thanks RM. I am better now, only the angel has left for the house of her other set of grandparents’s 😦 Do you want to be my granddaughter? Then you have to behave like one. How about calling me paati/nani/dadi to begin with? 😛
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Such a cute doll 🙂 and that get well gift will make anyone get well soon. I am sure you don’t look like the stereotypical grandma. Or do you? 🙂
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She is not like many children who are rather shy of going near a person who is ill. It is as if she knows that her presence can make a difference to your well-being. As for the questions about my looking like a stereotypical grandma, I guess you know the answer, don’t you? 😀
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ha ha 😀
You are right. Most children shy away from ill people. That’s actually very endearing about her.
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The make believe world of a child that feels more real than ours. Makes you wonder if the child in you is still alive!
And it’s a pleasure reading about the rare bond she shares with her amazing Paati.
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the child in us should never die, else we would lose all the magic and charm of life. Faith and goodness are the first casualties of ‘growing up.’ Glad to know that you enjoyed my store of memories 🙂
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Lovely post again aunty! Just got to spend a few hours with her but they made my day…the way she speaks and the things she says at her age is uber cute!! Felt like just squeezing her up when she said some things but was scared she would become conscious and stop talking! :D.. Thanks for sharing all these tiny things.. I can totally imagine them..bought a smile to my face!
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Hey Sahitya, nice to see you here again. I heard you are leaving for your Masters (or have you already left?) 🙂
She is a doll, isn’t she? So full of energy and love and a huge heart to boot 😀
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Zephyr,
I was nodding all the time I was reading this. And it took me back to similar times when my son was little. Actually mothers and fathers kind of become irrelevant with the grandfolks are around. Both the grandmas in my family used to refer to my children as “tonics” ; you magically recovered from anything when the “tonics” arrived !
Lovely lovely post and would love to meet the little lady one day !
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Thank you Suranga. They are tonic indeed! When I was laid low with a migraine last week, she had obviously been told to keep away from my room, but she somehow managed to sneak in. ‘Paati’, she whispered, pressing her cheek to mine and giving me a hug before running out surreptitiously! Believe it or not, my vomitting stopped after that 🙂 What I admire about her is her wisdom and compassion. Hope you get to meet her too!
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Such a cute post! Had a smile all through!!! Gentle and innocent!!
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I am glad the post made you smile. You can imagine how I am all the time — grinning at various memories 😀
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Grandparents and grandchildren have such a unique relationship – and I’m glad that you were able to gather a storehouse of precious memories on this trip, Zephyr. The little lady must be truly treasuring her time with you all. I remember my Mum having a bad case of ‘flu a few Christmases ago. She could barely sit up in bed. But as soon as her grandson came to visit she perked up and started reading him a story! That’s the magic of grandchildren, I guess.
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I always felt that when it comes to grandparents and grandkids, the generation gap mysteriously vanishes 🙂 I can understand how your mother got back her energy. When the little ones come and hug you, you find a fresh surge of energy and strength 🙂
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Such a sweet post… these are some treasures for life. I really cant find any words right now… Just a BIG warm hug to you aunty, get well soon! 🙂
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Thank you so much for the hug, Arti. And here is a hug right back 🙂
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Reminded me of the time I spent with my sis-in-law’s kids this year.
They have such a beautiful world of their own that sometimes it makes me sad that they will grow up one day.
Beautiful post. 🙂
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How we wish that the innocent world of the kids remains with them forever! But alas, they have to grow up and we have a responsibility to see that they are able to fit into it without much trauma of adjustment. Glad you enjoyed the post, Amit 🙂
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How lovely 🙂 i miss my own grandma so much… we had such a close bond!
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I can understand how you must be feeling. But I am sure you have a store of memories too. Do note them down, won’t you?
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My nani… she was so kind and gentle… we would visit her during our summer vacations and she lived with us for the last few years of her life… she was such a joy… a wonderful friend, confidante, never judged or criticized… A fabulous cook, always ready to make anything we kids wanted… Very comforting presence, always welcomed us with open arms, and all her grandchildren adored her… she had such a quirky sense of humour… and she was such a regal person, commanded so much love and respect. I really miss her. I have so many pics of her in my room, she was always smiling.
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Oh Ash, that is a lot of memories. I am sure had your grandma been with you now, she would be regaling you with all the things you had done as a child and how much she had enjoyed them. I only hope and pray my own little one would remember all her times with me when she is older 🙂
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Loved it..loved it..and again loved it. Ammamma and grand daughters are always special..being the first grandkid, I soaked and baked in all the attention…Your grand daughter is sooo innocently cute..haha..grandmas sit in that chair….kds’ imagination and their creativity…I left my 3 yr old with my mom in India for few months…and one should hear my mom’s jubilant voice on the phone..everyday she has a new story to tell about my daughter. I bet even I won’t enjoy each moment with her so much as my mom does..long live grand moms!! Wonderful post..waiting to hear more stories…:) until then, cherish your time with the lil angel…we are always here..you can get back to us anytime..:)
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All grandmas and grandchildren bond well, whether they are paternal or maternal. I am a nanamma btw 🙂 I remember when my children were young, I would be surprised to hear tales of their smartness, creativity and a lot more — which I sometimes was not even aware of. So I can understand how you feel. And now it is my turn at being grandma 😀 Alas, the time with the little angel is over and she has now gone to her ammamma’s house to leave them with memories to cherish till we meet again!
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How sweet!! I don’t have good experiences with nanammas unfortunately. Whoever it is, grandmas are always special. And I am happy for you to have a wonderful grand daughter.
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What a lovely post. Obviously you enjoyed a delightful vacation with your granddaughter! And had a Birthday and birthday gift to treasure. 🙂
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Oh yes, Manju. June is a month of celebrations including two anniversaries and three birthdays. So you can imagine. It was card time all the way as she loves drawing and painting 🙂
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Loved it… Kids and grandparents, there is a different world out there! 🙂
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Wow Mayank! You still reading me? I thought you had stopped. You must be seeing the bond at home, to come out with that comment, right?
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Ofcourse i do catch up .. usually at one go .You are absolutely right.. .. :-))
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Circles and crosses as hugs and kisses……I am sure you would want to stay there for a hundred years. Your granddaughters innocence and your love for her came across so beautifully. Have a good time and forget all about the blog or reading other blogs while you are with your precious angel.
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Alas, a hundred years didn’t even translate into a hundred days 😦 But no matter, what I had can fuel me for another year when we meet again 🙂 She is the most warm-hearted and large hearted child I have ever seen and these are not the words of an indulgent paati, mind you!
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what a lovely post, zephyr!!! i could picture every moment so perfectly through your words….
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Hey Anu, nice to have you back here. Glad you enjoyed the post 🙂
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Oh, my comment didn’t go through :(. I will try to rewrite it. Reading through your nostalgic experience takes me back to my childhood memories of my nana. Unfortunately, he was the only grandparent we were close to. But, his stories, the games of rummy he played with us, the stories of courts and criminal cases are still fresh in my mind. Just recently, my dad came over on a short stay, and he bonded beautifully with my younger son. Nana and nati would talk for hours, the adult listening and reacting in amusement to an excited child :). Gautam also has a lot of curiosity about age. He is trying to grow up fast so that he can catch up with mom. I told him you can be taller to me but never older :).
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Nana-nati bond can be as strong as dadi-poti bond, I guess. Only the dynamics would be slightly different, just as dada-poti bond is too. He is missing her even more, since the duo always went out together, even if just to go the presswala at the back! I am sure glad this post has found an echo among all generations. And when you told Gautam that he can never be older, what was his reaction? I am sure he would have come up with some unique rejoinder 🙂
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He said first you told me that I cannot be older than bhaiya and now you say that I cannot be older to you. Then, what is the point of growing older?
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I knew he would have come up with something 😀 And he is so right, what is the point of growing up if you can’t become older than your mom or brother?
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Gautam’s reasoning is very profound and even morbid at times. It is a pleasure interacting with him, and I end up marveling at his observations. Alas, I am biased! 🙂
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These are such gems of experiences only a Pethi and Paati can go through. You have put it in your usual beautiful style , making it a thoroughly enjoyable reading . Thanks Zephyr, for giving us the feel of the world of Paati.
Hope you are better now. Take care.
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As a paati yourself to a little girl, I am sure the post found an echo in your heart too. These are precious times and I am glad to be recording some of the memories at least 🙂
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Yes, And you record it so beautifully. It will remain with me for a long time.
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Thank you Pattu, for the nice words 🙂
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I see the same beauty in the recording of your green thumb adventures, Pattu 😀
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Ah! How true it is that the things that matter the most are the things that are most difficult to say since the very fact of putting them in words seems to diminish them! Yet, you have managed to portray the endearing incidents in words without losing the warmth of the love that infuses those incidents with Life. Thank you for making me feel happy as a child for these moments.
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I am so glad that you harked back to your childhood with the post. Didn’t you read the disclaimer at the outset? There are so many memories that refused to get translated into words. What I managed to bring out is just a fraction of what I have hoarded 🙂
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I did Zephyr! I was conscious of echoing the disclaimer when I wrote my comment 🙂
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🙂
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Zephyr you are lucky to relive the childhood all over again away from the maddening world ! This post was a reflection of the true bond between the grandparents and children:) A rewarding read on a Sunday morning!
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Oh yes, Rahul, but the flesh was a little weak and so I couldn’t race her in the garden or run after butterflies as fast she could, as much as I wanted to. But the time was so precious that I had to share it with you all. Glad it gave you a good time on a weekend morning 🙂
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i was smiling while reading the post! what a fabulous time you had!!
Poppy and her brother Zima can visit India in their flying car. they won’t have any problem with the traffic here.
someone spending hours and days to make a gift is by far the best gift on earth one can get!! belated birthday wishes Zephyr!!
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I am glad that you smiled as you read it, Deb. It is such a lovely thing to share such moments with friends. It is at such times that I am glad for my writing abilities 🙂 Ah, the flying car! I will remember to tell this to the little one. She would be thrilled that her friend is able to visit her grandparents even if she can’t till next summer 🙂
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What a beautiful and fragrant bouquet of memories, Zephyr. I could picture each and every interaction that you have shared here. It also reminded me of times spent with my Paati. 🙂
I got my mother to read your post too. She loved it and told me to tell you that. Her granddaughter, and my niece, left earlier today after a week spent with us. My niece is extremely close to my mother and very protective of her as well. I’d like to share what she told me before she left, “Don’t spend too much time blogging or surfing. Spend time with Paati instead.”
Whether 4 years or 18 years, the relationship between grandmothers and granddaughters is special indeed.
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That is such a lovely comment Sudha 🙂 I am so happy that your mother read and liked it too. All paatis feel alike, don’t they, going by Pattu’s comment too. For the past few days both thatha and paati are doing nothing else but recall every little incident and sharing it, for we realised that she has given us some combined and some individual memories and we should share them to extract the maximum enjoyment out of the memories 😀
Give Aditi a big hug from me when you next meet her. Her advice is typical of an adoring granddaughter, so you better follow it 🙂
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