Showing posts with label #Gratitude. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Gratitude. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Of Uncles and Aunts- Part 2 Our Santa Claus : Kamalachettan

Did you write letters to Santa in childhood asking for gifts? 

When I was small, I would write letters to one person who made my wishes come true. Once in a while, in our little village, in our home, a handsome man with a mesmerizing smile would arrive carrying the gifts I had asked for. He didn't wear red nor did he come from the North Pole. 



The gift-bearer was my uncle, who worked in Saudi Arabia then and would be home on vacation once in two or three years. Even if he didn't come every year, he would send gifts to us through friends who were coming to Kerala. My father's ancestral home would smell divine during the days he came home. His arrival was nothing less than a celebration for us all. For sure, we would get new dresses, chocolates, and fascinating toys. 

The doll who would start crying when the pacifier was taken away, the plane which almost took off, Penguins that climbed stairs and jumped into slides, scented notepads, butterfly stickers... the things he brought were some of my most cherished toys. I would keep them safe and secure inside the cupboard to save them from my naughty, younger cousins who were experts at breaking my treasures. 
Seeing off Kamalachettan at the airport ...A trip for us kids to see Aeroplane in 1983

Because of him, I tasted the best chocolates in the world, used expensive perfumes, wore dreamy princess-like-dresses and also became acquainted with the latest technologies in the world. Karaoke cassette player with mike awakened the singers in us, VCRs and Hindi movie cassettes made us cousins fans of Bollywood movies. Then there was his vast audio cassette collection. I was introduced to songs by Pankaj Udhas, Lata Mangeshkar, Rafi and Kishore Kumar thanks to him. 


Kamalachettan with my son
It was only later in life that I realised that the gifts he lavished on us were bought with his hard-earned money which he could have saved for his own future. But for him, our happiness was uppermost. 
When he brought a wife home, our new aunty became our new favourite. While growing up, I always made a pit-stop at uncle's home on the way from the school where I would binge watch songs on VCR, eat snacks and play with my cousins. By the time I was in my teens, Uncle quit his job and settled back home. There were no more letters written, but our Santa Claus still remained the same benevolent man.

Still, he insists I eat lunch/dinner whenever I go there. When my father fell ill, he along with my elder uncle became our pillars of support. He was forever at our home talking to my father who had by then lost his memory. 

Whenever I feel down, I recollect those happy childhood days and my heart fills with gratitude.
Thank you, Kamalachetta for all that you have given me. Thanks for a million sweet memories.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

A Gratitude Note for May 2017

May 2017 has been happy from the beginning.

I had my mother giving me company at home, the kid had no school and the hectic blogging month of April was behind me.

 Reminiscing old memories, talking late into the nights and guiding each other in areas of our own expertise became our main pass time.

 While the kid and me introduced Amma to the magic of Google, Whatsapp and YouTube, she patiently corrected the mistakes I was making as a home maker. Teeny tiny tips brought in a world of difference.

Most importantly, I became more disciplined in her presence. Ordering food from outside was not to be heard of, home-made food, that too prepared from fresh ingredients became the norm.

I am grateful to her presence here and for the chance to be able to take care of her.

It became all the more happier day before yesterday when my short story ‘The Rumour’ got published on the Juggernaut App. It also happened to be my brother’s birthday. So, double happiness.
Image Source


At Anitasattic, Anita Nair used to tell us how writers are like scavengers who dig through their pile of memories to create something memorable.

For writing this story, that was exactly what I did!

Many of my friends have contributed to this story unknowingly.

I am especially grateful,

1) To that batch with whom I went on a trip to Munnar as their guide while I was a guest lecturer at GCEK. The story has Munnar as backdrop and I have used memories from that trip to add colour to my story.

2) To that classmate who poured her heart out to me one summer afternoon. I shared the story with her and she loved it. She was happy to read her own experience becoming fodder to a story.

3) To all those fun days spent in ladies’ hostel.

4) To the never-ending laughter riots in the college bus.

5) To all those hours of Antaksharis in class!

Story Blurb:

Rohit broke Tara’s heart when they were in college. She’d sworn never to see him again. But years later they found themselves making a journey together. Herding a bunch of Engineering students in and around Munnar!

The forced teaming up seems like a disaster to Tara. Will it open a can of worms like it had happened years ago?

Intrigued?
Read the book here:



Happy to note that it has become the topper of the charts on Juggernaut this week and the short story of the week.

Thank you Universe for all the blessings.

And a big Thank you to Anita Nair for all the encouragement and guidance.
Here is what she tweeted about my book.



Linking this post with #ThankfulThursdays being hosted by Tina or Amrita, Mayuri and Deepa 



Thursday, March 23, 2017

5 Little Joys



Most of the joys I have experienced came to me unexpectedly. Nothing was planned. I guess happiness always comes exactly that way: in tiny packages.

My home library:

 I have a small home library which contains my favorite books.

 I am adding to it every now and then. I can spend hours in a bookstore searching for more books to add to my collection.

 Books by my favorite authors like Anita Nair, Chitra Divakaruni, Julia Quinn, Nicolas Sparks, Dan Brown, Nandita Bose, Nora Roberts, Cecilia Ahern, Jojo Moyes, Rainbow Rowell and Anuja Chauhan dominate my collection.


Over the period of the last few years, I have created many paintings, portraits, and sketches which had given me joy while I had created them. Art still continues to cheer me up. When I feel a need to cheer up, I pick up my pencil.


My iPhone:

I didn’t want an iPhone ever. I was smitten by my smartphone with a large screen and hence every time my husband attempted to gift me one, I refused.

 Then after a particularly bad experience with a smartphone which had to be returned days after it was purchased, he asked me to try an iPhone, promising he would exchange his smartphone with mine if I found the iPhone not to my liking.

Now my iPhone is my joy. It helps me plan my day, write, take super clarity photos, videos and makes me exercise. I have become a fan.


My Laptop:

My laptop is a mini encyclopedia which stores records of all my favorite things in the world. More than anything, all my writing is done on my laptop and hence I can say it is the origin of my joys. With the amount of time I spend online, I can’t imagine being without my laptop for even a single day.

My Debut Novel ‘Without You’:

Like every author, I consider my first novel my baby. It has given me so much joy from the moment it germinated in my mind. 

All the appreciation I have received from complete strangers through emails, messages and reviews make my day. 

I do not market it excessively and most of the publicity it got was from mouth to mouth publicity. 

Yet, it has become an Amazon best seller. It was #1 best seller more than twice on Amazon India and has always remained in top 50 from the time it was published. Today it is #3 on Amazon India Best Seller List.

#1 Position on Jan 11, 2016
Thank you, Universe for the little joys that you send my way.


 This post is written for #ThankfulThursdays being hosted by Amrita, Tina, Mayuri, and Deepa.

Yay, it is voted as a top post!
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