The blue sky

When my close friend M broke the news that she is expecting, I was overjoyed. I so wanted it to be a girl, and yes god and the baby listened to all our prayers, and a baby girl decided to enter the life of my close friend and her husband. The extended family of friends and relatives was eclectic too. On 26th January 2020, a baby shower took place, and on that occasion, I wrote a letter to the baby who will come into this world in 2 months. The would-be mother and the father and all her friends and relatives loved the concept. I was quite emotional when I penned this letter and even more nervous when I read out to the audience there. Read the letter here and let me know how you like it!

Dear K, Yesterday it was your 26th birthday. How time flies! I remember taking you in my arms as a newborn, and my joy knew no bounds that day. I had become Tai, an elder sister, and was ready to take on the full responsibility of this title. Your tiny hands and legs and that toothless smile made my heart sing. You were my brother. I was going to take you under my wings. I was going to tell you stories, dress you up, take you to play. I didn't spare a single moment of seeing you. Though I stayed far away, I came to see you every time I could, sometimes directly from the college for a weekend or sometimes during holidays for a longer time. We loved each other so much. You shared everything with me as you grew up and started going to school. I was present for every special day in your school, be it elocution competition or your annual day. We went to Chowpatty to play in the sand and eat Bhel puri. We also rode on horses there. We went to our favorite restaurants to eat our favori...

The year 2020 started with a bang. I flew back to Germany to a new area and a new house and a new routine on the first day of this year. T was with me and bags full of love and stuff, back from Mumbai. It was a freezing evening, and due to the delay of the Air India flight, our whole schedule got upset, and we reached Karlsruhe in the evening at 7:30 pm. There wasn't a single taxi on the Karlsruhe central station, and our friends, Monika and Harshal, rushed to our help. Harshal picked us up from the train station and took us home. Monika had cooked the tastiest meals as always, and I felt so much at home. They both accompanied us back and brought our stuff to the new house. God shows his presence in such people and their selfless help.

As I have already mentioned in my previous posts that I was in India for 3 weeks, it is but obvious that we flew with some airlines there. And which one did we choose this time? It was, of course, Air India, the national carrier of India. Due to last-minute booking, the cheapest option available was only available with Air India. And due to it, we had to wind up from the old house in Karlsruhe on 9th December itself. We flew on the 10th, and the return tickets were on 1st January. We had to miss T's school for two weeks. He was not very happy with it, but we had no choice. We had obtained special permission from the school on its letterhead, lest we would be questioned at the border control. But the officer there didn't take cognizance of the fact that a 7-year-old was with us. We didn't have to show the letter. We went to Frankfurt airport well in advance, and our flight was scheduled to depart at 4:30 pm.

On my 3 week trip to India, I couldn't help but notice the different buildings in the 3 cities that I visited. Pune, Bangalore, and Mumbai are different cities with different vibrancy, yet they all are so similar. Similar because of the people, the inhabitants there. A few random thoughts that came to my mind about the people living in houses, apartments, and buildings! Have tried to create a parallel world of people with the homes they live in!

The month of December was very crazy. I didn't realize how the month started and how it ended. It has been very hectic, and I didn't realize how time just flew, and our tenure ended in the first house in Karlsruhe, and it was time to move to a new home and start a new life. Our tenure in Germany got extended, and I looked forward to another exciting phase and a beautiful new year 2020.