My Rock, My Diamond, My Solitaire…

I have missed you everyday for the past six months… But you and Dada will enjoy in heaven together… 🙂

 

I don’t know where to start or what to say. My mom and I have always been close… Anyone who has seen us together will know exactly what I mean. We share everything, happiness, love, laughter, fights, anger and even all the material

stuff like clothes — it helps that we have similar tastes. Mama and I have been a dynamic duo from young. The stories of how she would try to feed me when I was a baby have always been popular dinner-time conversation.  The entire building knew it was “baby’s feed time” and she was giving trouble.

My kindergarten days were even more filled with memories. Mama and I would go to school together everyday. We would go to the church or grotto for a quick prayer, then she’d drop me to the KG block and then walk to the “big kids” school building. she has always taught me to be independent and strong, just like she was. I think the first time she got to see this independence was one morning, when I had not completed my homework. As usual, she dropped me off at the KG block and moved onto her journey. I had fallen asleep the previous day in the afternoon without even watching my cartoons! Slept right through to the morning without doing my homework. My mom’s plan, as I later found out, was to come and explain it to my KG teacher, who was her good friend (Tr. Loretta, you know this story). To my mom’s shock and surprise, as she was coming to the KG block armed with the excuse, she sees her daughter — me — sitting outside on the benches, quickly finishing HW. She let me do my thing and went back to her work and this incident became one more popular anecdote to share. I think itnot only mirrored her independence but also her “burning the midnight oil” habits — I, of course, take it ten steps farther…

Mama loves Bombay and her favorite time of the year was our summer (July-August) which turned out to be monsoons out here. I HATED IT! My perpetual complaint was that the roads were dirty! When I whinily stated: “Mama, the cows are walking with me…”; Her response was: “So, let them” — no mollycoddling there. The same Bombay I learnt to love with a passion — the passion my mom had for the city, she shared with me. As I grew older and understood the dynamics of relationships and the importance of “boys”, my mom took me to all the places which would me start appreciating the city. We went to see Grease, I saw groups of girls and boys enjoying themselves and having fun and “that” piqued my interest in the city. Today, when I see young girls and boys laughing and joking around, I remember my days as a teen, when mom was introducing me to the spirit of Bombay. To this day I love this city with a passion (slightly wavering now that I’m older and more cynical) and I will always continue loving it, no matter what.

Mama also taught me how to dress. She bought me the best of clothes, fuelled my love for shoes and introduced me to funky accessories, especially the big earrings. She encouraged me to buy my first celebrity T-shirt — a plain white tee with an autographed pic of Boyzone smack in the middle (and no, I don’t want to hear any backtalk about the band — I still love them).

Mama taught me how to ramble and find my footing on my own. We have roamed the whole of Abu Dhabi, a lot of Bombay and plenty of weekend getaways around Bombay. The trait it instilled in me is this natural instinct to be able to stand on my own wherever I may be, with or without support. The roaming I did in Paris alone this year was only possible because of two things: My mom’s blessings and her brilliant teaching of how to explore a city without having a fear in the world.

My mom has met and known every single boyfriend or crush of mine and has always tried to become good friends with them — every single one of you’ll can testify to that. She has supported me through all the ups and downs and has been the rock in my life to rely on. She has grown and nurtured me into the person I am today and strength I have today is a gift directly from her.

My mom was, and always will be, the diamond in my life — strong, resilient, beautiful, rare and a true gem. I hope to become half the woman she has been and that would be enough to fulfill me. She’s been the guiding force in my life — she’s been the constant in my life through everything. We have fought (like all mothers and daughters do) and have been close as ever at any point of time — Noone could break that bond.

As I sat on the morning of her funeral, at the dining table, I could hear Mama speak to me, grumble actually “Today you managed to keep the house neat and clean, I hope it stays like that all the time” — Exactly her words; Mom, I think you and I both know… That was too much to expect!

Mama, I will always miss you. I have so many stories to share everyday, who did what at work, where each person sat, who said what to me. I know that you’ll be watching it all and will be part of the story with me. You are my rock, my diamond, my solitaire — I love you.