The journey.....we started together

         Dates were finalised.  Plans were made. Wheels were set in motion. We were going to Pune. Your first vacation. A vacation a mother longed for 2 years.
         We were going to stay at Vidyadhar aajoba and Shubhangi aaji's home in Pune. Your mother's childhood vacation memories are mostly about Pune at her Mama-Mami's home along with their son Viraj. After our marriage, we had been to their place a lot of times. Your mother loves the drive on the expressway especially in the monsoons. The greenery in the ghats, the waterfalls from the hills, the drizzling raindrops on the car window, the batatawada and tea break at the food mall, everything on that route along with mami's great food makes every Pune trip a memorable experience.
         Aajoba and Mah-aaji wanted to stay a bit longer. So the plan was that they will go on Monday in a taxi. We will join them there on Friday and all of us will return to Dahisar on Sunday, just a day before your birthday. I arranged my lectures accordingly. Everything was set, the vacation was on.
         Friday (exactly a week before our trip) was the day when then your mother and you joined Aaba and Dah-aaji on a trip to Mulund. It was a little late till she realised that you had loose motions. Cleaning you with wipes many times resulted in rashes. Your groin skin had become so painful and sensitive that we had to take you to Dr. Shenoy immediately. There was relief with respect to rashes, but loose motions continued. On Monday, your mother took you to Dr.Mistry. He changed the medicines and told us that it will take atleast 3 days for you to get better. Our plan was on tenterhooks. We decided to wait till Wednesday evening to make a final decison.
         Thankfully, your motions reduced and we had a sigh of relief. But, Aaba and Dah-aaji were not completely pleased with the idea that we were taking you to Pune immediately after your bowel problems. At the same time, Sannah tai got unwell. On Thursday, when we were shopping, packing, managing maids and milk/paper vendors, filling up the tank of our car, getting ready for our first trip together, some forces in the universe were coming together and plotting against us. By Thursday evening, the trip was finally cancelled. I was sad. Your mother's hopes had dashed to the extent that she was in tears. Our little vacation had got called off.
       A vacation. A break from routine. Travel to a new destination. An off-road trip. A trek holding hands together. An adventure around the corner. Loads of shopping. Joy, happiness, smiles and laughter and a bagful of memories.
       Wait a minute. That is exactly our last 6 months. Your birth is all the above and so much more. I had so many vacations, but i never had a better time than the last 6 months. It is a new journey. And the destination is beyond the horizon. A new reason to smile everyday. A new adventure every now and then. We have been to new places (Pragati hospital), we have traveled (our temple trip, Vagdevi trips), we have eaten well (Starbucks , BBC, Aaswad). We have met so many new people. We have done so many new things for the first time in our life.
         And the best part is that you are with us on this beautiful journey of life. Rather, for us, you are the journey. You were the paradise, we always wanted to visit. This vacation has made us more happy, more relaxed and more content. We will have so many vacations as you grow up, visit so many places, enjoy our holidays together. But, nothing can come close to the time we had together for the last 6 months. It will always be a vacation, will cherish the most.
          A good vacation is the one which he hate to end. I know your mother doesn't want to go back to school, she doesn't want this time to go anywhere.  Ah, and yes Pune...soon, pretty soon and that will be another story to tell.
     
        

हॉठो पे ऐसी बात.....

       "Good news कब दे रहे हो ?" Ever since I got married every aunty, sister, mavshi, aatya, bua, fufi, and even some men asked me this question hundreds of times. Some even asked this while standing for the photo during our reception. Some asked this so many times that i was tempted to reply with an insult, but the "angel" in me stopped me from doing so. Instead i gave answers like, "abhi amazon pe order kiya hain, delivery nahi hua ab tak" or "main toh last 10 saal se pregnant hoon" or "Panch-varshik yojna hain (5 year plan)"
        After our plethora of medical treatments and doctor shifting, we decided that our IVF treatment should be a secret. Even our parents should not know. It was quite difficult since aaba and Dah-aaji stayed on the first floor of the same building and their maid Sarita was a spy better than the RAW, IB, FBI and CIA put together. We had to think about new excuses every time we went for our consulation or your mother's injections. Making up stories like 'Going to mall, going to friend's home for lunch, going to movie, etc' took us back to our college days' relation with our parents.  Futhermore, your mother also had some guilt episodes and had some cravings about talking about the treatment with her parents or her sisters. But, thanks to some secrecy, some innovative excuses  no one knew about our treatment.
And then.... We got the news.
          We wanted to shout our lungs out, say it aloud to the whole world. But, it was just a positive test and we needed some more confirmation. The first sonography took place on 7th June. It was time. Time for the close relatives to know.
           'How to reveal' was a major matter of debate between your mother and me. I was always the more creative one, more adventurous, more out of the box. Your mother was the conservative one, more subtle, more 'no tamasha' kinda attitude.
            The 'reveal' in front of aaba, dah-aaji and aatu was a complete anti-climax. I wanted to surprise them. It happened the same day as your 1st sonography. Created a story about satyanarayan pooja at my place in september, but your mother wont be able to do the pooja. When they ask the reason, i was going to tell them, it will be her 4th month of pregnancy. I held the camera to capture their reactions. FffuuuSSSS. There were absolutely no reactions. It was like lighting up a fire cracker, waiting in anticipation and it sounding like a damp squib. The whole surprise was a complete fiasco. Yes, there was no surprise on any face, but the happiness on it was clearly visible. They had behaved responsibly throughout the last 8 years when the whole world asked about a grandchild. Never asked us uncomfortable questions or never gave a snide remark to your mother. Now, they had their wish. Gratification was obvious.
          8th June is 'Tatya's' death anniversary (Aajoba's father). Everyone gathers at Vagdevi. Your mother normally doesn't go, but we thought it would be an ideal day for the 'reveal'. The whole journey from dahisar to mahim was nothing but planning how to do it. I had a plan in mind and decided to go along with it. Aajoba, Mah-aaji, Kakoja, Priya mavshi, Swapna mavshi were present at Vagdevi. The plan was in motion and had to be executed before lunch.
          I told all of them that i wanted a 'Kelekar family' video. During the video they had to say aloud some things after me and once they were in a flow, i said 'Pooja pregnant aahe'. BULLSEYE. Surprise, Shock, Disbelief, Excitement, Joy, Speechless and then Shouts, Cheers, Laughters, Tears, Hugs. The video tells it all.
         ( I have edited it. There is a special performance by Priya mavshi in the latter part of the original video. Will love to show you that).
         We kept the news secret from other relatives till 3 months. I had plans about a Vengsarkar family reveal during Ganpati. But your Aaba's excitment couldn't keep it hush. After the chor-oti, Dah-aaji called her sisters to give the news, though I am very sure that she had done it much before. Your mother gave the good news to spandan dada, sanveda tai and sannah tai, on the day of spandan's birthday. They were quite surprised ( or if u trust my instincts, they acted quite surprised )
         Aajoba and Mah-aaji gave their own version of  surprise to Mangal aaji and Shaila aaji and their families. We also did a surprise reveal to Vidyadhar aajoba and Shubhangi aaji when they visited Vagdevi.
         Your mother had to tell the news to her seniors (Nick and Diane) in school and to her friend Shamal and her 'Banana Leaf'. But she kept it a secret for along time from other colleagues, especially 2 of the most भोचक ones. When the news finally came out, it spread like wildfire and your mother will never be able to forget the reaction of the students, who were happy about the pregnancy but sad that she wont be teaching them in the next semester.
          Your first smile, first teeth, first food, first words, first walk, first ganpati, first diwali, first birthday, first day of school, first result , first bat-ball, first cycle, first crush,........everything will be news. Photos will be clicked, Videos will be shared. It will be put on Whattsapp and Facebook (i hope not). But 'THE NEWS' was the best one we ever shared. Best one we will ever share, till you share 'the news' with us.

  

Saza-e-kalapaani

           9 months in your mother's womb. I wonder how was the experience. Closed room... arteries, veins and nerves everywhere, total darkness, nothing to do. If you think that this is eerie, unnerving and torturous, wait till I tell you about the time I spent at your aajoba's place at Mahim after your birth.
          'Maherpan' is a very cliche tradition in hindu culture. Daughters shifting to their parents' house for delivery and returning only 3 months after delivery is an age-old concept. Fortunately, since our IVF clinic was at Borivali and the maternity home they had recommended was at Dahisar, shifting to Mahim for delivery was out of question. Your Mah-aaji and aajoba came to stay with us one day prior to your birth. They had been very supportive and helpful during our previous illnesses and this time was no different. Your Mahaaji's cooking and aajoba's tidiness helped us cruise through the initial few days of your birth.
            And then started the dreaded discussion of 'Maherpan', the 3 months of you and your mother staying at Mahim. One thought was both of you shifting there during April to June, when I would have been too busy with my lectures. But then I wanted to see you every day when I returned home and staying at Mahim during my busy schedule would have been difficult. So it was decided that the shifting happens immediately and the return to Dahisar in April before my classes started. Some debates and discussions later, 19th Jan was finalized.
           I never had an extended stay at Mahim, and without you around, I don't think it would have been possible. It is a spacious house. Separate room for us. No traffic during travel. Mahaaji cooks wonderful food. Everything was fine, but........ Dilip Jaywant Kelekar.
           Lets get one thing straight. He was never the problem. The problem was that we were poles apart. A doctor by profession, a disciplinarian by compulsion, a cleanliness freak by obsession, always confusion in making decision, unnecessary aggression, sometimes causing depression, led more by emotion, more discussion and less solution (a typical kelekar trend), your aajoba and me staying together was going to be nothing but a head-on collision.
          My habits were more Vengsarkar-like. Having a bath whenever i wanted to, not washing hands immediately after eating, eating on the bed instead of the dining table, keeping half-filled bottles in the fridge, clothes on chair, not keeping shoes in the rack. I was getting on his nerves. Being a जावई , he avoided direct confrontation with me. 'तोंड दाबून बुक्क्यांचा मार' was his state of mind and his frustrations were let out on his wife and your mother. Indirectly, i was getting the message and the air was filled with tension.
          But then ur dadda is one कोडगा  person. I did not change, will never change. I stayed there with aplomb, with my habits intact. Your Mahaaji is one cool lady. She doesn't care much, except a टोमणा or 2 everyday. She was more worried about me discovering expired things in her fridge.Your mother was trying to do a balancing act between her father and husband, but you kept her quite busy and she found her relaxation on the rocking chair.
          You were in a completely different world. U enjoyed Usha mavshi's oil massage and bath,  used to sleep for hours after that. (I hope u meet her once and listen to her "Sonu, Sonu"). Mahaaji' tel-maalish at night was an entertaining ritual before sleep. Giving you 3 medicines A-Z, liv52 and D3rich400 was a never a tough job, u loved them. Priya mavshi used to drop nearly every day and carry you, until her shoulder and neck gave way. Sunita and Sharmila mavshis were the maids at that time. Sharmila's complete disinterest in you caused quite some heated discussions. Aai's friends came to meet u, so did Manomay and Asmita Wagle. Shaila aaji, Mangal aaji dropped by. Loud-voiced Kamat kaki peeked through the door every day. Ur first month birthday forced Aaba and Dah-aaji to come all the way to Mahim.
        Vagdevi was a tough time for your dadda, but i dont think me, aai, mahaaji and especially aajoba will ever forget even a single moment of that time. The walls of Vagdevi are filled with the sounds of your crying, the sights of your smile, the scent of your baby-powder, the taste of your lactogen and its dahi. Every nook and corner has felt your touch and still yearning for it. Your every sense has been lovingly stored in every brick of Vagdevi.
          Today when you are reading this, Vagdevi wouldn't be standing anymore, most probably redeveloped. But over the years, there will be your childhood memories attached to that place. You will remember some of them, will forget many. But do one thing. Mahaaji must be quite old now. Go to her. Ask her to put some oil in your hair and sing 'aakko maakko tel makko' or 'Bhaiya dheere dheere chale'.
          And just wait. Close your eyes. From the other corner of the room, an old fellow in white clothes will say
"शाणू गुणु तो ".