April 8, 2008

Yesterday marked the end of year two - April 7, 2008. Time is so subjective. I realize this most when I talk to others. Family and Friends sometimes ask us - "what's it been? three years, four years?" "No," I say, "It will be two years on the 7th." So the 7th of April has come and has gone. I spent the day at home with my father and his friends who are visiting from Canada. I asked Mom's best friend to visit us in the afternoon the way she used to when my Mom was here. Usha aunty would come over a little past noon, have lunch with my parents and chit chat with Mom for hours. So, thats what we did yesterday - Usha aunty came over for lunch and coffee. We laughed about things my Mom had said and reminisced about the long conversations we had with her. Surprisingly, both her and I have a hard time recollecting what exactly we spent hours talking to Mom about. Whatever we talked about, we do remember that it was all fun. My cousins were visiting Augusta so I got to visit with them for a little while in the afternoon. We talked about how my mom grew cotton in her yard. Laughed at how mom was always herself; how she made the ICU nurses try her interesting flavored home made juice - carrots, celery, apples (eww, I know).
So full of life...
In the evening we went to temple for monday pooja. I took prasad and a rose that grew on our rose bush. Last year, there was only one flower on my Mom's rose bush on the morning of the 7th of april. The same was true this year: the first rose of the season bloomed on the 7th of April. Maybe nature's way of showing us she's still with us.
Temple was beautiful: everyone chanted in unison, sang bhajans from their heart. Indrani aunty and I led everyone in singing mom's favorite bhajan. The whole time I imagined her sitting next to me and singing at the top of her lungs out of devotion, not minding that her voice of completely off-key. Mom's friends told me how they felt her presence on monday poojas. Mom's laughter, craziness and more than anything her strength is amongst us all. It is amazing how one life, lived well brings such happiness to so many. All day we got phone calls from friends and family in the US and in India - remembering mom and seeing how Dad and I were doing. One can only hope and pray that we all can spread such warmth and love in the world as well.
Hope everyone is doing well. Just wanted to share a little of my day with you all.