Family

Being overseas and not having access to firecrackers, this festival is just not what it used to be. I wish I could go back to those days when we would try and wake up before Kitta mama would burst his 1000 wala before the break of dawn. Days when you yearn to wear those new set of clothes - The only time of the year when you get new clothes and not hand-me-downs. Days when you make a TON of sweets and savories to share with family and friends. Days when you would hop into people’s houses uninvited to see what special delicacy they’ve made. Days when every single house is lit up and the smoke of firecrackers permeate everything. Such good memories…. ...

With quite a few developments on the personal front, the last few months has kept me quite ‘busy’. Despite Covid, I did a bunch of travel which is always nice! Last August, Appa kinda lost his patience and wanted to make a trip to India. We figured September was the most optimal time and I flew over to MD to accompany him back. With just a day off work, I was able to finagle a whirlwind weekend trip to the US and back. M and S head over to the states in October to be a bit of a help in MD while I looked after two grand old men here in India. It’s been a while that I’ve done this and but for a few rough days, I loved spending time helping them accomplish what they wanted to over the course of three months. Appa was able to get most of his ‘admin’ stuff done and more importantly got to spend time with his younger brother. ...

Diwali it is and I’m so lucky to be at AJ this year. Though most of the family is not here, I did want to get those positive light vibes in the house. Appa and I got the diyas out and lit them up like we’ve usually done during the years past. Brought back so many fond memories of celebrating the festival when we were kids. Starting right at 04:00 with Kitta Mama’s 1000 Walla, Appa and Amma’s push to get us that pre-dawn morning shower, the house bustling with activity as sweets and savories are consumed quicker than they’re made, neighbors drifting in and out exchanging wishes and gifts, kids bragging on the volume of firecracker purchase, bursting crackers near oblivious strangers in the colony, smoke of various hues of green and orange bellowing from that ‘snake’ firecracker, appa bursting the ‘lakshmi bomb’ using a pair of tongs, and amma -oh looking so beautiful- cautiously lighting the ‘sparkler’ while keeping an eye on all of us. ...

Since March 2020, I’ve had this internal debate of getting the Covid Vaccine mostly underlined by the following: The science behind mRNA is fascinating and so is the engineering of the vaccine Every strand of mRNA is made up of four molecular building blocks called nucleosides. But in its altered, synthetic form, one of those building blocks, like a misaligned wheel on a car, was throwing everything off by signaling the immune system. So Karikó and Weissman simply subbed it out for a slightly tweaked version, creating a hybrid mRNA that could sneak its way into cells without alerting the body’s defenses. ...

“Oh wow, Appa. Nee romba beautiful aa irrukai” - Shasta’s impromptu response on me wearing the white checked shorts