‘We’ll come to your place this weekend then. Papa has some work and I hate to be left behind, so I’ll be joining him’. These were my mother’s words when she announced that they’ll be coming on Friday and will be spending the weekend with us. I couldn’t help chuckling all the time while talking to her and even after hanging up. Why? Because I knew that all these were mere reasons to see A Junior! Grandma couldn’t take it that Grandpa (who in turn was cooking up a story himself) would play with their laadla grandson while she’s sitting alone at home watching repeat telecasts of Balika Vadhu. :)
A Junior, in turn, couldn’t be happier with all the attention showered upon him. Last two days he’s been riding high, getting loads of chocolates (which by the way were introduced to him just recently), new toys that he can dissect and pull out open, and lots and lots of hugs and kisses which are best left unnumbered. It’s remarkable (not for me!) how he’s already learnt that it’s his victory when Grandma or Grandpa scold Mamma for being strict about his eating and napping timings!
I never told this to my parents, but seeing all this made me feel a bit jealous, good jealous, if there’s anything like it. I lost both my Grandpas when I was very young. My paternal grandmother never really bothered herself a lot with us. My maternal grandmother was the sweetest and purest human being I’ve ever come across in my life. She was the perfect Grandma; who told us lots of those raja-rani ki kahaniyan, made us our favourite dishes and saved us from our mother’s anger whenever we disrupted her sweet afternoon nap. Even at her age, her skin had a glow that no fairness cream can boast of, and shiny black hair, not one grey. I miss her a lot, and seeing my parents with A Junior I wished I could get a hug from her too. May her soul rest in peace. Love you Ma (that’s what we all called her).
I can now understand why my mother always grumbled when our Grandma took sides with us. It's amusing to see how our own parents change once they get this promotion. Any complaint about A Junior made to my mother falls on deaf ears and I've to eat my own words everytime. As she herself puts it, ' मुद्दल से ब्याज हमेशा प्यारा होता है' (We crave more for the interest earned than the principal amount itself)!
(My value seems to be depreciating fast...but I'm not complaining :P )
