THE DIARY OF A HOUSEWIFE

I know that I'm not perfect And that I don't claim to be. So before you point your fingers, Be sure your hands are clean. Judge not Before you judge yourself. Judge not If you're not ready for judgement. The road of life is rocking And you may stumble too. So while you talk about me, someone else is judging you. Bob Marley   There are ladies and then there are girls and then there is me. Feminine, decent, dignified, graceful …the perfect lady… I am not. I am and have always been tomboyish, loud, non-accepting, crazy, rebellious and not at all submissive. Women aren’t supposed to have a mind of their own, should be quieter and not speak out, they are never in charge, they are supposed to be damsels in distress, never the hero. Aha…just some of the stereotypes I have grown up with and face till date even in my middle age. What are stereotypes? Stereotypes are widely accepted judgements regarding a person or group — even though it is overly...

Another soldier martyred another father, son and husband lost to terrorism, while the rest of the country goes about its daily routine and sleeps, blissfully unaware of what soldiers have to go through each day to keep this country in a secure and peaceful state. It has been reported that it was unusual for the second-in-command of an infantry battalion to lead a Quick Reaction Team (QRT) responding to a militant attack but Lt Col Sankalp Kumar rushed first to the spot when first reports of the terrorist strike came early on Friday. For those who knew him well say that he was known for his "never back down" attitude. Fighting militants is of course not something anyone actually prays for but the army has been trained and is being trained to do it each day. We as outsiders or as the defence personnel call us “civilians” can’t even begin to fathom the rigours of their daily routine; a process which ensures that they are always fit and ready to fight a battle wit...

And at last it seems we have a leader who people want to listen to and follow. As nations like China and the US stand up and take notice of us and our new charismatic leader, Indians have begun to believe that Modi will bring about change as promised. As Modi carried with him the hopes, expectations and aspirations of billions of Indians the excitement is palpable. Indians back home thrilled with the reception the US accorded to their Prime Minister, some calling it a “rock star reception”, were glued to their television screens; this kind of viewership I believe only bestowed upon Bollywood stars and cricket. Seen as India’s saviour, by the citizens of India and Indians abroad, The Washington Post suggested: “Modi will arrive in Washington Monday a hero to a majority of the region’s large and successful Indian American community.” As someone the other day commented, “ love him or hate him but you can’t ignore him.” Many Indians see Modi as India’s saviour: a s...

Every time I close my eyes the nightmares come, they attack me over and over and over again until dawn. Flashbacks, nightmares, he is back again he takes control, I’m like a puppet, he has all the strings. He is strong, I am weak, he has all the power, I have none. He caused pain. I got hurt, I am tortured because of him! Vickie Bell "Two men drank, watched porn and then lured a five year old from her play area using a chocolate as bait. They kept her in captivity in a rented room in the same building where she lives with her parents and systematically raped her, in turn, f or three day s. Her cries led neighbours to find her locked in the room, bruised and bleeding. By then, the two men had fled, thinking they had left the child for dead." An innocent child, oblivious to the ways of this world goes about his daily life in his own playful naïve manner. Blissfully ignorant, children are full of carefree laughter and play, unmar...

I am an individual who loves life; the smallest of things make me happy. A kind word, a loving gesture, a hug, a naughty quip from my kids, a good day at work, a smile, a fun evening with my family or friends…keeps me brimming with joy. I love to laugh (loudly), talk loudly (without realising it), giggle at the silliest of things, talk nineteen to the dozen, chattering away as if everyone’s life depended on it, saying sometimes the most foolish things to sometimes the wittiest (if I can say so myself). I like to be friends with everyone who crosses my path, investing in them, doing my best to learn more about them and what makes them who they are. I do not differentiate and I do not judge (at least in my mind), it doesn’t bother me if you are a guy or a gal, young or old, rich or poor, educated or not educated, for me you are an individual I can connect with no matter what. All I need is that wee bit of warmth and that expression of acceptance from the other person an...

Mid life crisis has hit me hard. It’s a complicated, uncomfortable time which has me questioning myself a lot. Thoroughly confused about who I am, what I want to do and where I want to go, I am in a perpetual state of emotional turbulence. The experience of a mid life crisis they say is a combination of feelings, events and physical changes that indicate a transformation is at hand. Well, I see it this way it could be the best thing that ever happened to me or it could be the one thing that destroys the life I have been living for ever. Eventually, mid-life crisis is about managing change of one kind or another, and the positive spin on midlife crisis is that there lies a fresh perspective and much more contentment on the other side of the transition. It’s how you look at it and experience it that matters. I read somewhere that midlife crisis is about shifting life to better fit where the person’s spirit yearns to be . I like that. It makes sense. Psycho...

The utter helplessness I feel sometimes when faced with life’s situations has made me realise that we live in a brutal and harsh world. What kind of a world are we actually leaving for our children…a world full of cruelty, struggle, failure, doubts and sorrow, a world so hard, you wonder what the point of it all is. Every day that I drop off my son at the school bus stop, I question the wisdom of sending him off all alone into this world I sometimes am petrified of myself.  Today when I saw an older child lashing out at my little baby in the bus, all I could do was watch helplessly as the bus drove away. My little one is all of 4 years and he has already been pushed by the world and his family into a path of hardships and pain. Life is tough and full of risks. There is always that person around the bend, who is judging you, trying to pull you down, gossip about you, deride your achievements, cheat you, make you feel worthless and scare you into believing that you are...