The drudgeries of life
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Homecoming!
For as long back as I can remember, Christmas time and the holiday season have been all about family time.
Save for the one-off occurrence a couple of years ago, I have always spent this time of the year with my parents and sister. This time is no different! :)
Earlier all four of us used to pack our bags and rush off to Calcutta for a quiet, peaceful and beautiful getaway during Christmas time. But for the past few years, it has been an all home affair - something I like much more than the sojourn at Cal. In those trips to West Bengal's capital city, all we did was go shopping, devour delicacies, attend mass, roam around and relax, all of that in a city which for me always had the tag "It's a neat place to visit but you wouldn't wanna live there." At home, we get to do all of that plus, best of all, feel at home. Sighs :)
Home for me is Fantasia - a name which my dear parents gave to the nest they built on a foundation of love and dreams - yep, as strong as ever! True to the name, our home is a free composition structured according the composers' (my parents, in this case) fancy. Over the years, despite the winds of change and the sands of time, proper planning and relentless efforts have ensured that the foundation of the place has just grown stronger in parallel to the structure expanding like a big heart, where, needless to say, love has thrived and memories have been cemented.
Myself and my kid sister grew up in Fantasia, and no matter where life takes us or what we become, our home will form an integral part of us and whenever we go back there to visit our beloved Dada and Mumma, we'll be back to being kids and will relive the pleasant nostalgia of our childhood days - for us, it will always be Square One.
To reiterate, home for me is Fantasia - it is Dada's warm embrace, proud eyes, easy laugh, and wonderful talks; it is Mumma's cozy lap, beautiful smile, caring hands, excited chatter, and her relentless pampering; it is Sweety's big hugs, reminiscent ponderings, sibling wars, and cute dramebaazis!
Aahhhh! Just 2 more days, and I'll be there to experience it all. Just that, this time round it will be a tad bit extra special for all of us. I've never been so sure of anything else till date.
Life's more or less perfect when you're touching wood almost always :)
I remember an age old wall hanging on the walls of Fantasia which had the caption, "Home is where the heart is." I'm retracing my steps back to my heart pretty soon!! This time round, I'm taking another heart along... :)
Happy Holidays and a Merry Christmas, well in advance!!
5 Comments:
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Sudha said...
So finally a fantastic post by a fantastic person. Yes do you remember how we chose the name of our home as Fantasia? Do you remember the Never ending story? Do you remember how we (including me and Dad) loved this movie and decided then and there that our haven (heaven) will b e nothing else but Fantasia where nothingness will not eat up all our dreams and love and laughter and happiness. And yes Appi, this heaven of ours has ensured that lov, happiness, caring , dreams and our fantasies grew and yes at times we did have some arguments and fights, heart aches and distemper tantrums and other minor drawbacks but Fantasia kept its promise to us and all that was pushed back and love and happiness always have the upper hand in our small little nest. Yes, it may not be the big palace with big rooms with built in furniture etc, but your Dada’s relentless planning and replanning and dreaming made our home into the most comfortable and loving home with all the comforts and a lot of luxuries in it as well to make life more comfortable and more cozy.
Yes darling, I too love our little home and I too look forward to the family times with all my loved ones around me, where I am the center and my both kids are one lap each and my hands caressingly passing through their hair( in spite of their bickering, Mumma, don’t spoil my hair) and talking or listening to their baker and gently massaging their back or head, and sensing Dada’s presence nearby , silent yet listening, cracking pjs and giving expert comments now and then and gently pulling my leg (mostly). My making all of yours favourite eats and bloating with pleasure at the praise I receive especially from your Dad, ( You both always praise everything). Yes, I can’t wait to have all my family with me.
Yes, honey, this time is extra special for us too. Looking forward to the other heart also and wondering and hoping that you get all the happiness you deserve and much more. Hoping that God keeps you all safe and shield you from any hurt or unhappiness and fill your life with all the happiness, love and understating. I pray that you feel the happiness and love I feel in my life. I pray that you enjoy and cherish life and be as good in all other relationships as you have been as a son, as a brother.
Counting seconds and minutes till I will have you with me.
Mumma
There's nothing like going back home for a festival, even though each visit is a celebration itself- festive spirit adds more joy !!
Come Christmas time, I get super nostalgic.
I still have memories long before that when Joseph uncle - mu auto driver way back in kindergarten took us kids for a treat for Christmas- movie(jurassic park was one that I remember)+ icecream+ his home for rose cookies and gifts :D + being wed by the Christmas tree decorations !
It was way back then I had my first glimpses at the crib set up in the nearby Church ( a gorgeous one - stone built; the sleepy town Sagar was proud of this) and me being totally awed !!
The long vacations I got in school days - Playing secret Santa, decorating Christmas tree before the schools closed off for a fortnight !!
Family-friends reunions : getting to taste different delicacies prepared by all aunties; getting to visit the cake exhibition ( so many sculptors made of cakes- its simply wow) ; visiting a Christmassy home; hanging up stockings; seeing the cards all hung up and gawking at the tree; munching on rose cookies...
Though the scene changed pretty much after that, the festive feel always hung around.
If last year's Christmas was about having a scrumptious dinner on the eve; attending the midnight mass , singing carols, campfire night with music and dance till wee hours of the next morning along with 40 other people, getting to taste all the couriered Christmas sweets from various homes – this time its going to be really different from the rest of all the years that have passed :))
Looking forward to it eagerly !
Merry Christmas :-)
Thanks Appi, this home coming for Christmas of yours was one of the best from all the other, earlier ones.It was extra special because of the beautiful gift you brought along with you. Our home was filled with love ,togetherness, laughter, fun ,& memorable moments, not to forget the beautiful photos all you guys captured with your cameras .
Excellent work. Ehswar & Shrutee’s ( even Appa’s ) short stay added an extra fun and enjoyment to the occasion, and I guess we all really enjoyed the time we shared together.
After dropping you guys off at the airport your mother was all misty eyes ,and sad I could understand how she was feeling , as I myself felt the same way. As if some one had taken away some thing precious from us. Anyway we came home we ( sue and myself ) went though all the photos, once again. We felt proud and very happy, seeing the smiling faces of a wonderful, big happy family. Though it was only three days , it’s given me memories to last through my life time.
What a special Christmas it was indeed! Can't believe it's over...beautiful moments encased as beautiful memories when retrieved bring a sweetness and warmth into the atmosphere surrounding me. Bittersweet, because a time like that had to end...the heart you mentioned and brought home matched the rhythm of its beat with all the other hearts' in Fantasia, didn't it? :);)
I have always thought of our home as the warmest, coziest and the most beautiful place on earth! It is filled with millions of memories starting right from our childhood...it feels like wherever I end up, or wherever I go, the only place I won't hesitate to come back to, would be Fantasia...though Fantasia came into all of yours' lives before I did, I feel maybe the stars planned it that way...Fantasia had to be the only place where this star would fall and find a home for itself :))
I loved the way you wrote this post...very beautiful and very honest and I identify with it totally as I guess, most people will when they read it. Sorry for the delay in commenting on it- You know what a hectic week it has been, right?
Please don't stop writing, you do it beautifully and once again, you had me bawling like a crazy person as I read it! :D
"home for me is Fantasia - it is Dada's warm embrace, proud eyes, easy laugh, and wonderful talks; it is Mumma's cozy lap, beautiful smile, caring hands, excited chatter, and her relentless pampering;"
Truer words than this couldn't exist...Love you :*
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