Thursday 19 February 2015

Reminiscing Childhood

  


       Whenever I see this advertisement, I smile. "That baby is just so cute" I exclaimed, my eyes twinkling. "I wish I could hold it" I said to my mom. She saw the advertisement and smirked. "They are cute only on TV. When you have lived with one, you will understand what I mean" she said. Okay. I knew the jibe was pointed towards me. But I tried to play it cool. "You mean S? I know he might have troubled you a lot" I said. I was trying to shift the blame on my younger brother. But she wasn't buying any of it. "You very well know I am talking about you, don't you? Don't look so shocked. Your brother was a darling, unlike you" she mocked.

       Ouch! "How can you be so mean mom? I was such a cute kid" I sulked. "Did I ever deny that? You were cute, alright. But the trouble maker hidden behind that mask of cuteness; only I know how notorious you were. Of course you wouldn't remember a thing. No wonder you think you were as sweet as the kid in this advertisement" Okay. I knew she was right. Not that I remembered anything, but I have heard this story so many times! When I was a kid, I used to cry all night and sleep peacefully during daytime. Now when I think of it, I wonder if my mom ever thought I might turn into a Vampire? Of course, she didn't! Because she isn't obsessed about them like I am. But the thing was, I cried all night and that meant my mom had to stay up all night pacifying me. And when I slept peacefully during the day time, she had work to do. This left her tired. I feel sorry for her but hey! I was just a kid! I didn't do anything purposefully! 

       Seeing me frown, my mom raised her hands and smiled. "Peace" she said. There was a mischievous glint in her eyes. I should have known she was pulling my leg! Ah, how easily I got worked up! But now the subject of my childhood was broached, slowly memories started flowing in. I have a distinct memory, bits and pieces of it. And then there are stories that my mom and grandmother have told me. They love to talk about those days. I was a very notorious kid it seems. I had mom running behind me all the time with a set of "Don'ts". But I have no memory of this. All I remember is our bedtime ritual.

       I remember mom singing lullabies. There were also few rhymes and movie songs which I loved, and insisted she sing them for me. And she did. Lullabies were meant to put babies to sleep. But I used to stay awake for a long time, listening to her singing. Then there was a new ritual. After supper, we used to go on terrace for walks. I remember my maternal grandpa starting this. He used take me on terrace and let me run around. I used to come back every few minutes with a new question to him. He always answered them patiently. We returned back once I was tired from the running and mom said I slept sooner, exhausted from all the running. Once I was a little older, mom started reading stories to me. She used to buy a lot of picture story books and narrate stories letting me visualize it through the pictures. She says I loved them. I guess that is where I got my love for reading.



       "Lovely" I said dreamily. "Yeah, for you" she said taunting. I narrowed my eyes. "I am sure I wasn't the only one that troubled you by crying all night. S might have done the same?" I asked. He would have surely. After all, he was a kid too and all kids do the same. But my mom was smiling. "Oh he didn't! I had become smarter by then" she said and seeing the confusion on my face, she added "I had seen the Pampers advertisement by then" and left the room, laughing at my expression.

PS: This post is written for IndiBlogger in association with Pampers.

Until the next post,
Keep Smiling :)

Love,
Swathi :)

1 comment:

Go on, leave a comment. I would like to hear from you :)