The life that has been…

Here’s a glimpse at my life in the recent past. It’ll tell you why I experience the writer’s block and go AWOL every now and then.

1: Talk of the Stork and more…

One evening, out of nowhere, Shloki asked me, “Amma, how do babies come out of the stomach??”

Shloki has been curious since his earliest days. I still remember his nursery teacher once telling him to go home and give his head a break from all the thinking that happens inside him! One can see it, you know? He’s not really into talking, conversing, socialising. But the boy is a keen observer. Nothing misses his eye.

“- Why don’t you go to office like Daddy?

– Why don’t you wear shorts at home even though you sweat so much? Why am I and daddy allowed to wear?

– Why do all moms come on scooter to pick up their children, except you?

– At what age will you die? Will you be there till I die?

– Can we return Mokshi to Doctor and get a nicer baby that doesn’t bite and beat?”

Nothing is ever trivial to him. He demands answers. He’s perfectly okay with my “I don’t know” response. He knows the answers to many of his Qs can be found on Google.

There’s no denying that my current understanding of a plethora of things, ranging from space to underwater, including tantrums, emotions and MOTHERHOOD are courtesy of Shlok. 

Anyway, so when Shlok asked me about the babies, I explained to him that doctors remove the baby from our stomach.

He took a moment to process that. Next came a list of questions;

– how’s that possible?

– what do you mean they can cut your stomach?

– how can they stitch it up?

– how is the thread different?

THEN CAME THE ULTIMATE QUESTION – “Do you have a stitch then?”

Ooops!!! I like to consider myself blessed that both my deliveries were normal. So ‘NATURALLY’ I had no stitches to show him! Did I want to explain the concept of vaginal birth to the 5 year old? Or should I have changed the topic? Or should I have cooked up a cock and bull story to convince him?

Finally, I told him about it. I named the parts of the body as is. He may not remember the labels but he has understood how a girl’s body differs from his. He was actually amazed at the canal’s elasticity and the way it expands to push the baby out! So yes, I like to believe that I did a pretty decent job because the Qs stopped thereafter!

2: MAID in HEAVEN

Once upon a time, (a really long time ago in 2020) a woman named Bharti came knocking upon our doors, requesting for work. She set the standard so high that no maid had ever and would never match! There was no looking back after that! We all lived happily ever after! One awful day in May 2025, one call from her changed our lives forever. She quit.

After that, began our jinxed era with finding the right one. Honestly, I think it may be easier to find a husband. But the right bai? Not unless your jodi is – MAID IN HEAVEN 🧿

Let me tell you, neither am I bossy nor do I deny them the money they demand. I’m okay with them taking an off as well. Don’t get me wrong.

But you can’t blame me for expecting a prior notice. Call me paranoid or what but whenever a maid goes on leave without calling, the past record shows that she’ll never return.

1) husband beat her up, so she escaped 

2) some issues in her home that needed her to relocate

3) father got sick so she decided to stay back in the village

All these maids apparently LOVED me and even promised to come back. But did they? NO.

I’m very vocal about my maid issues on my WhatsApp status. And what people think is helpful advice – “WHY DON’T YOU DO A SNABBIT?” doesn’t make me feel any better because:

Confession: occasionally I’m guilty of doing somethings behind their back.

YET they leave me. 

3: Gee, why can’t you Pay???

Recently I experienced a very embarrassing situation. It’s been two weeks since I’ve enrolled my younger one to a preschool and let me tell you the journey hasn’t been smooth. It is one with bumps and red signals and situations that make me say OH SH*T! I cannot leave early. It’s always a last minute hurry up thing with me, you already know! So the last thing I am likely to have on me is loose change or even my wallet for that matter.

Everyday my car stops at a red signal where I am greeted by a team of trans, hoping someday I’ll have a penny to offer. This week, when I yet again showed them that I didn’t have any money on me, they kept their phone to their ear. I refused. Next morning, one was put off by me and walked away while the other one stuck their QR code to my window!!!! Ouch, was that the most embarrassing thing to happen to me or what!?

On the following morning, I made it a point to carry with me some cash. I rolled down my window and called out to the team that was now ignoring me. They had not expected me to be nice. They blessed me and off we went in the opposite directions, with a smile on our faces.

4: Emotions to Eww-motions

We went to NMACC a couple of weekends ago to catch up with their latest event that many were raving about on Insta. It was only upon reaching the entrance that we adults learned that tickets to their SECOND NATURE show needed to be booked way in advance. There were no on the spot tickets available. Had we travelled from Panvel to Bandra only to be declined entry?? OH NO!! Can adults err???! Are we even allowed to make mistakes? And what about confessing to children that there was poor judgement/ bad decision making on part of their parents?

At their ticket counter, we were lucky enough to get two tickets to an event called the EMOTIONS LAB for children in the age group 5 – 11 only. One adult was allowed to go with the child, so that meant the fathers were on duty to babysit a 2 and 14 year old with no other source of entertainment!

Three days later was Shlok’s birthday party. One that was supposed to a surprise but with his permission and approval. From past experience, I am not a fan of surprising Shlok on his birthday.

So it was decided that I’d be hosting a group of kids at our home. But but but… where’s the fun in having everything ‘under control’? Hence, my tummy chose to play host to a group of virus on the night before the party. I’m not new to diarrhoea. I’ve had several episodes in the past, so much so that I’ve always been an inspiration to my sister.

BUT this time the virus had decided to level up their game! HOW WAS I GOING TO THROW A PARTY WHEN MY BODY WAS HELL BENT ON FLUSHING EVERYTHING OUT INCLUDING WATER? 

A mother’s will, however, is stronger than…. stronger than her stomach at least! I refused to eat. I starved the whole day. The party was  a success and how!

The morning after the birthday, my body collapsed from not having eaten anything the earlier day. This level of exhaustion I hadn’t experienced even during Shlok’s birth.

5: “You wanted TWO boys na? Aish kar!”

Guess who’s having the last laugh? The husband.

It’s only after having my second one did I fully understand the truth behind the million memes made on the second child highlighting the stark difference between a gentle first born and the typhoon second one.

People in the mall, people on the road, everyone stares. Some laugh, some sympathise, some may be murmuring “tch tch tch, what a mother, she can’t even handle her child!”

One sits still, the other? A 24/7 mock drill

One is scared, the other? Is scary

One builds, the other? Destroys

One still needs to be fed, the other? “NO. MOMO SELF!”

One puts on his uniform, the other? Throws it out of the balcony

One aims for salvage, the other? Wreckage and damage

One believes in peace, the other? PIECE

So to people who always wonder the secret behind my being thin, the answer is:

MY BOYS, MY BAIS AND AN OCCASIONAL BOUT OF DIARRHOEA 😂

By the way, I also happened to realise and conclude that I, for one, am certainly not cut for being a vlogger. I tried. An experiment. The result felt so terrible to me that I gave up on retakes. After two attempts 😋

I mean, if you want me to express myself, then WORDS ARE ALL I HAVE and that’s all I’ll ever need. I’ll let you be the judge.

Leave me your feedback on the comments!

Cheers 😀