I am just like you Mom…. I call out to my children, ripe into their youthful years, an umpteen number of times. Sometimes they do not respond. So, I barge into their rooms. “What???” she quip sometimes, with headphones plugged into their ears, the annoyance in their tone is a signal for me to leave.... Continue Reading →
For World Down’s Syndrome Day
Dear Avani, It’s been more than a decade now, yet I clearly remember the day I met you and your mom at Sapling Nursery School in Pune. My family had just moved to India from the US, and it was Varun’s first taste of schooling in a country that was not yet his home. He... Continue Reading →
Alien – A Glimpse Into the Autistic Mind.
Just imagine yourself on an adventure of a lifetime. Your spaceship has landed on planet X. Eagerly, you step out of your ship excited to explore the place and immediately find yourself surrounded by immense beauty. Your eyes fall on your favorite fruit lusciously hanging in bunches from a tree but when you step close... Continue Reading →
Love Story
“Rejoice, O fortunate one. I have it in my power to grant three wishes! Go for it!”“No," she said, "I mean thanks and all that, but it's fine. I’m good,” Hazel replied. Sheila sat rapt in attention listening to author Neil Gaiman read his short story - October Tale. As the magical love story between... Continue Reading →
The Red Maple Tree
In my backyard A maple tree Blazes red, her allure unparalleled She stands tall When at her vibrant best She gently lets go Of her leaves, that once made her glow the ones she has nurtured And seen grow. She does it with grace. One by one they abandon the embrace of her arm And twirl... Continue Reading →
The Little Red Cabin
This past week I made an escape from the new normal with a wonderful friend. We drove to a little red cabin nestled in the mountains around Asheville. Far away from the mundane, the routine and the to do lists that filled our daily lives, our only plan for the coming days was to live... Continue Reading →
A Daughter’s Love
“Again, Papa, again!” “Sumi, enough beta. I’ve already read the book to you thrice. It’s 10:30 - go to sleep.” “Last time, Papa, pleeeeease... just one more time. I promise.” Sumi’s big brown eyes pleaded with invincible intent as she stared directly into Prakash’s loving gaze. They lay in her bed for the nightly ritual... Continue Reading →
The Gift
This story was written to the word prompt - Awake. A big thanks to Did You Write Today for the nudge and opportunity to create and write a story each week. The Gift. “Twenty years we’ve been married, Amit! Twenty years! And you are still clueless about what... Continue Reading →
The Leo-nine Life.
I curl up in my favorite spot, a low ledge by the bay window in the living room of bungalow no. 57, a two storied house in a suburb of Mumbai. Beams of the mid day sun stream in; they pattern my luscious fur into streaks of sparkling white and gold. Mom sits by me,... Continue Reading →
Poornam- Complete
This post is written to the word prompt "Complete" in a weekly contest organized by DYWT (Did You Write Today?) FB group. Though I do not know much Sanskrit, when I read the prompt, the shloka "Poornamadah Poornamidah" was all I could think of. I could hear the words reverbrating in my core. Poornam stands... Continue Reading →