Desi Witch

To my mother.

Who put up with labour pains.
Who cleaned my pee & my poo.
Who gave up her favourite foods,
so I could eat more of them - because they were my favourites too.
Who sang me lullabies.
Who fed me a teaspoon of yogurt,
before every exam I took - for good luck.
Who picked out the onions and tomatoes
from my plate because I used to be a fussy eater.
Who cries when I am in pain.
Who beat me up when I was naughty.
Who combed my hair and tied my laces.
Who taught me the joys of reading.
Who showed me the worth of money
And education.
Who gave me my OCDs of not touching things in public places.
Who shoves almonds and raisins in my mouth, even now,
because "they are good for you".
Who set the bar so high, I don't think I can ever reach it.


Happy Mothers Day, Dearest Mama.

"Is the Gujarat police so impotent that it had to kill a woman in cold blood?"
This dialogue on the Times of India - apparently started by the editor - confuses me.
Are they implying that men who are impotent are likely to kill women? Or that men who are potent are not killers? Or that the police force only comprises of men?
Why do men associate everything with the size, shape, and/or functional efficacy of their Penis?

When India made an early exit from the World Cup, I watched an irate fan say on some desi channel " Unko chudiyaan pehenke wapas aana chahiye". [They should wear bangles when they return.]
Meaning what? That women are losers? "Real" men can't lose?

Sorry for the rant. I just got another "Life for single women is so tough and filled with sharks" talk from my folks yesterday. And it made me mad that rather than having faith in my ability to look after myself, my parents want me to rush into another marriage or atleast "think about it". So I'm highly sensitive to the "women are weak" type of remarks right now.

And what's with the sharks? I mean, where did that analogy come from?
Argh.

Akkare, one of my favorite bloggers, wrote a post inspired by me and ME. (that's confusing!) And ME wrote a follow-up post that made me feel like I needed to realize that my life was mine to live. My mistakes, mine to correct. My joys, mine to savor. My sorrows, mine to rue.
Yes I love my parents. And that will never change. But it's like we're from different planets sometimes. Separated by more than just a continent. A fundamental divide in our way of thinking.

So... I am going to say something on this blog, about me, that they don't know yet. Some of you left comments saying that I should get it off my chest and tell them sooner rather than later. But, I'm going to tell you first, my dear fellow-bloggers. Not in this post. Because I need a LOT of deep breaths and calming down, before I share this with you. (besides it keeps the suspense alive!)

Call it a "testing-the-waters" exercise.

All of you that left me encouraging comments on my "Square One" post - thank you. It means so much more than you'll ever know.