Bridge Soul

A whatsapp message popped up saying “Today food eating pancake”. This is the best level of English in which my son in grade 1 can explain to me that he wants to eat pancakes for dinner today. After my meeting I called him to check the authenticity of the statement. Just to realize that it was utmost important and not at all avoidable as Peppa had the same thing to eat in her meal today :-O. I promised to buy and bring home the cake from the shop  And what I heard was “What! You don't even know how to cook a pancake? Peppa’s mom cooks it for herself”. ( Never in my life my boss or even my mother-in-law has criticised me like this ). But the confusion was overridden by the motherly guilt. Once in months my son demands something and I can't even fulfill this.. Had I been a SAHM, l would have fulfilled all his wishes ( stupid I know but happens ). And I searched for pancake recipe videos, bought ingredients on my way home, helped him in homework and cooked and served. It w...

    What do you like more? A laptop or gold? a friend asked me some 10-11 years back (some conversations are carved). I had replied "Gold". That might be an expected answer from a girl who is recently passed out from a college, new in IT industry and single. Back to present. From a last couple of months my mother was after me to buy some gold. Today, I am at midlife crisis in IT industry :D, married and yes I can buy some gold if required. "But what will I do with that? :/" I replied to my mother. "What do you mean what will you do with the gold?" She replied feeling frustrated. I also realized that probably I had asked a very wrong question.     Mother India won (as always). I went with her and selected a pair of bangles. Their design terminology was alien to me (familiar to mom). Finally while generating a bill, his system stuck and he apologized for the delay. There I jumped in and asked, "What software are you using? Who is the serv...

8:20 A.M. Got ready and stepped downstairs with one hand trying to implement a wrist watch on the other. Took keys. Took tiffin. Took the laptop bag. Started car and thought could step down for a minute and bow down in the temple (luckily no early morning calls today). Stopped for a while where the road turns. With the same hustle, removed my sandals and entered inside the temple.                 The moment I entered inside, the only person present inside left; making room for me. A room with the only curtain half closed and still filled with bright reflections of the sun rays. My heartbeats echoed in the space. As soon as I made an eye contact with the idol, it seemed unhappy. In the fraction of a second, I entered the different space. There was nothing between my eyes and His. And even without any thought being executed, I felt as if I have failed on my final day confrontation.     ...

Some stories don't have tangible outcomes but are very important to exist. Those who know me for years have an idea that I went to Chandigarh for one month for an official assignment before 9 years – almost a decade. There is also a blog series in my blog written at that time. And for those who don't know me, might think what's the big deal in that? It was after all not a foreign assignment or NASA project I should boast about. There are few reasons why it was different: I was the only female member who would be travelling and working there. I had to work mostly in a warehouse in a remote area covered by only fields in few kilometres of periphery. People said, “It is unsafe”; my parents denied. Some said I won't find a Jain food there. I was in a process to find a groom and this could create a bad impression. Etc… etc... But I knew I had to go. My manager asked me, "Are you sure you would go?". I said yes. My father asked me, "Can...