Its a no-no to cake!

Many birthdays with this man has gone by. One thing sure shines through. He hates mushy romantic expressions. This year has been special in a lot of ways for him. 41 is a clear indication that the 40 has started and trouble with the bones and limbs brewing. Quite literally one of his finger bones have been broken from some heroic cricket. I’m not proud of it any more. They bother me big time. I digress. Will come back to what annoys me a little later. Pleasantries first!:)

His daughter makes the ‘mushiest’ card and he receives it with the ‘mushiest’ smile I heard(Amma, Daddy was so happy and shy!).   Many years have slipped by starting with the first year of our married life when I brought a small cake with candles to blow at the stroke of 12 and my man simply thought that I was out of my mind and need some serious counseling. It shocked him, annoyed him, puzzled him and opened his eyes to a whole new idea of celebrating a birthday!

By laughable Rach means 'Fun loving'. But all the adjectives have a message for me also:)

more hearts and stickers for the dad!

Some years I have been scolded for spending on expensive gifts and wasting my time in the hot Madurai sun looking for A.R.Rahman CDs. It made no sense to him as the songs could well be heard on normal cassette tapes. Music was his second love (first being Cricket as you all knowL), it still wasn’t reason enough to spend on a complete ARR album those days! Now  are you already wondering its not worth it as the first and second places have been taken off and  where I feature! Well, better not to speculate and lets move on. Third place still has many contenders you see!  And I simply rest the issue of this ‘whole place thing’ (like he calls it!) for reasons very apparent!:)

One year was a Tshirt that was ‘wrong’ colour because the only right colour was blue you see! One year was a perfume that gave him a strong migraine and another was an informal shoes that were not tasteful enough and a bit garish too in his standards. Sigh! Never got it right! Oh not to forget the wallet that didn’t have a coin pouch and the Robinsons leather belt that was too large for his jeans loops. Sigh again. Comedy of errors! And yet I persevered!

This year is the first time I get it right! A plain milk semiya payasam does the magic. Of course there are small things to take care but most of all a fantastic hit with him! Let him watch some cricket if he gets home in time for it, a good traditional meal that has ‘Morkuzhambu’ in it and of course a visit with the family to the temple. A short walk, then sitting by the side of the pool and listen to (no sorry ‘bear with’) some cricket jabber.   People,  that’s about what he ever wanted in the first place to start with.

Its strange as years roll by that the more we need is just being us and them. Its about the simplest things that the heart finds happiness and peace. Me and my family!  It took us many years of stumbling to hit it right! Though I do complain like a normal wife will always do, about all the differences, its but in great love and respect that I must admit that surprisingly its for the same things that I fell head over heels!

Here’s to my birthday post for him!

As a teacher!

There has been a lot of messages on the phone, mails and messages to tell their wishes! A great  day for teachers indeed. It always warms my heart to see the real and genuine thank you in their eyes. Students and batches come and go. Its but in great interest and memory that we remember each student and that one thing they did, that definitely gets them remembered forever.  

If ever we meet students after many years and that has happened a many many times, there is a certain fear that immediately pops up. God, can I get the name right? Batch right? Almost always we do get it right. Nothing is more offending than to get these two wrong. Else of course you got to remember something uniquely the student did right. Well, that sets them smiling and they are just plain immensely happy that they are still in your memory with such detail even though you forgot the name and batch. I admit that at the stroke of the word, “Hello Ma’am. Do you remember me?”I am very nervous and already wearing a smile to conceal my wracking of the head to place a kid in a batch that left 8 years ago or 10 years ago. Then quickly recall the name. One thing is assured-every kid we teach is special and we had them in our heads all the time when we taught you and perhaps as years go by and so many more batches have come to take the place in our minds only miss placing them by a whisker!

Its an absolutely engaging conversation thereafter. It drifts to the other classmates they are in touch with, the small incidents they recall from their still young minds(which we sometimes don’t recall…. age does catch up on us!). Most of the times we do! What they did and what they are doing. What plans for the future and then of course “Ma’am did you have more brilliant batches than us?”(this question is normally from the more competitive ones). Now this is a tricky one. Well yes and no! Well we might want to say yes(because that’s what they want to hearJ) ,  the answer may still be we did have other batches brilliant in other different ways. The fact remains all students and batches are indeed special to all teachers and we do hold them in our memory all the time.

Year after year we teachers take pride in telling others how brilliantly our kids do in University and even share with our other colleagues those brilliantly written short notes of appreciation from students. Its in all these little notes, the thank you mails and messages, the eyes that scream gratitude, the smiles that show the respect that we teachers think a world of what we do. We brag subtly (this is refined as we get older in this profession!:)) and sometimes more proud of their college admission than their parents themselves. I am boastful- Like so emany more of my other colleagues, I hang these notes in my cubicle in the staffroom and have a whole lot of them read them right through the year! Now –a-days its also when students knight you to write their college ‘Letter of recommendation’.  The words flow and ebb with content when it indeed was a fantastic student. We then know that what we did makes a difference and even strive to do it better as years go by!

And wonderful notes and surprises!

Happy to acknowledge another year of Teacher’s Day wishes!