The Sub-urban Hum

The sub-urbs, are not less urban, by any means (we have 'our own' Bed-Bath n Beyond, and Target, and a Whole Foods.)
Suburbs are just more peaceful, that's all.

The city-dweller's buzz is gone from the mind, and the quiet of a loosely connected set of houses wafts through.
Apartments in the city lack space.....closet space at least.
Houses in the burbs are spaces galore....spaces enclosed in walls, called square footage, and spaces flowing unbound from front yard, to back yard, to driveways, to tree-lined inner roads, to sparsely filled neighborhood parks.

Trees stand tall, and available, in full glory here.
Browning, pale, feeble leaves flutter to the ground, and stay there till raked into a mulch-bag by the big forky rake.

The lawn mower roars, in some yard, every morning.
Grass shines a verdant smile....there are not many mani-pedi stores here, but the green grass gets cropped every week.

I haven't seen many people, though I have looked into the big black eyes of many a does by now, and have had an umpteen lady bugs and beetles walk on my sandals kept outside to dry.
The rains have pounded on rooftops, whose symphony of pitter-patter I now hear....being closer to the roof, not sequestered on an ivory tower of a high rise, along the Hudson.

My kids : They don't now have to wait turns to run their fingers through washed, sanitized, uniformly fine and grey sand in an elevated sand-box.
They just run bare feet on soil full of worms, seeds and maybe deer and bird poo.
Their voices echo through the still empty rooms of the house, as does the sound of their footsteps stomping constantly up and down the wooden stairs.
And then they jam on the piano, croon to the highest pitch, squeal like never before, and clap with full gusto,
and their dad doesn't have to holler, "Hush...the neighbors will wake up."

We don't hear the neighbors, and we hope they don't hear us.
It's all quiet here, except the whistling of the winds sweeping through the lush canopies of the small, and big trees.

 




  

In Anticipation of Spring

There is still snow on the road side, 
It used to be pure white,
But it now has innumerable specks of dirt.
It is snow still, in mounds.
But mounds that are slowly and softly melting.
And I know that Spring is about to knock.

There is a forecast of snowfall, for the weekend. 
We still need those caps, and mittens, and long boots. 
But now, I can see that the sunlight is a tad yellower.
And that the day stretches just a few more hours before darkness.
And I know that Spring is about to knock.

The Winter began a long, long time ago, 
Or so it seems.
We have since lined in full length coats and furry caps outside Walmart on Boxing Day,
We have since skied down several slopes.
We have picked, praised and plucked away Christmas trees.
We have shoveled heaps of snow from our driveways,
And we have marveled at the fanciful reality of the 'Polar Vortex'.
But now, I can breathe that the air feels less weighed down,
And I can see that the patches of green grass peep from under the slush of snow,
And I know that Spring is about to knock.

Little One---Sweet One

My Dear Second Born,
           My all-the-time companion at home, my one word for all things 'cute', my one entity for all things irresistibly edible, there is so little I have written about you, for you, or recorded on films of you. You are the second in line of birth, but just as much a number one priority as the one who first made me a mom. Time was flying by even with just one of you around, and now with the two of you?----well, it is zooming off.....you girls are growing up, and growing up so fast. And you...littlest one? Well, it took your older sibling a full 4 and a half years of life, to call me a 'Meanie' (no not Minnie--like the cute mouse...but MEANIE--like 'U R MEAN')......and you.....you are not even all of 3 years of age, and you have called me MEANIE almost five times a day for a while now! You, little lady, are growing up too fast. You are attempting all things 'big kid', because you want to be that big sibling--that role model of yours. She sings, you sing, she holds a pretend mike to her mouth and pretend croons a number like a rock star, and you do exactly that...and in your size...those antics....simply DO make you a rockstar! If she laughs out loud, you do that too, and if she cries, I am surprised how you succeed in producing tears too! You love her, We love you, We love you both, and you are simply tooooooo adorable.

We know you two are similar in so many ways, but what is remarkable is that despite the same gene pool and the same environment, you two are so different too, in so many ways. And that is what we love about you two.....between you two, we feel we have seen it all.....you gals are indeed the embodiment of the world for us.

It is a pretty severe winter on the East coast this time.....every week oodles of snow gets dumped on us, and the Hudson freezes, and temperatures dip, and we humans become unidentifiable under layers and layers of clothing and caps and mittens and boots. And then you ride along, on the stroller, bundled up in a warm sack, only your face popping out. You in that striped hat with two bobbing pom-poms for ears...that warm hat I bought long before you arrived. Your sister wore that hat, and looked just as cute, and surprisingly some people still remember that hat from those times. And yes, you look just like her, and in those moments, for just those split seconds, we go back to times of the past...just then. Otherwise, you girls are the galloping ponies, speeding our chariot at full speed forward. Slow down we cannot, you will not let us.....so we are in for the ride......tally ho!

With love,
The Happiest Person on Earth---a mom!

Don't Let-go this Wonderful Work of Art

My nephews, 6 and 9, started building with Lego some four years ago. They started and never let it go. Till date, their eyes sparkle at the sight of Lego. Some new Lego on the block, is always on their wish-list, and all their earned points at home go towards procuring more Lego sets. Their house is full of the most outlandish Lego creatures, which the boys nurture with utmost possessiveness. Afterall those multi limbed rocket propelling outrageously ugly creations with lighted noses or whirring eyes, have each been created by a persistent toddler, bent over a copious amount of instructions, piecing together one brick at a time, for durations of time that could be considered mini-lifetimes for these kids! And then, just when it was high-time, Lego introduced a whole series of building sets with more 'feminine' themes---like friendship and fun, aimed precisely for the little girls. And just as it should have been, the aunt of my kids---the lady with two Lego fanatic boys, presented my five year old daughter with her very own Lego for girls. Bingo! the girl cousin was hooked. Like my sister--the aunt---I am now collecting minute pieces of Lego---no really they have Lego hot dogs, and Lego flowers-----from the dust pan every time I sweep the floor. If I let those pieces go, I am considered a negligent mom--by my daughter.

The moral of the story thus far is, that if you are a mom/dad, or an aunt/uncle, of a Lego crazy kid, then chances are you are just as bugged with this Lego fervor as I was. After all the Lego sets are NOT inexpensive, and once the set is made, that's it---what next? Nothing. The creation needs its own space, and the child now needs the next Lego set. Of course we encourage the kids to re-use those pieces, and sometimes they do, but their thirst for more pieces and more sets is hard to quench. In this context, I want to write here about Nathan Sawaya's work. He is better known as the Art of the Brick guy. I had the fortune of visiting his exhibition currently running at the Discovery Museum in Times Square, of course with my five year old. And was I impressed?

Beyond that! The exhibition was a delight, because what we get to see there are world's famous landmarks, and works of art, rendered now in this medium--of the Lego. So we have a Lego Statue of Liberty, and we have a Lego Mona Lisa, and a Lego David, and tons of the familiar traditional and modern musings in Lego. And the precision of these reproductions is simply breathtakingly accurate. To be in that hall looking at 'paintings' created in Lego, framed in a 'frame' of Lego, is to suddenly be reminded that creativity literally is thinking out of the box, even when the building material may come in a (lego) box! 

I was happy to be there with my kid who I could orient at least in two ways: I was able to talk with her about some renowned pieces of art (without having to fly to the Louvre), and I was able to be amazed with her at how a person can use creativity in so many different ways. This was one exhibition where my kid was rapt with curiosity from start to finish, and I didn't even have to promise a candy at the end.

I loved the exhibition, but I have to say that it is a small exhibit....it will not take anyone more than an hour at most to see it all (and there is no re-entry once you exit it). In that light, I feel the price of entry is somewhat on the higher side ($23 for adults and $18 for kids). I know there are Group discounts, and I highly recommend availing those discounts and NOT missing this visit.

Overall, Nathan Sawaya's catch-line says it all, and is worth coming home with to inspire all kids: Holding a tiny red Lego brick in his large hand, he says, "Every dream starts with a Brick"......Indeed. 

For me, his rendering of Girl with the Pearl Earring--that famous painting by Vermeer, is so lovely, and so beautiful that I know that even when the original Vermeer is on loan for this winter to the Frick Collection in NYC (from the Dutch), I think I have seen it already--at Discovery Museum!

 

A Re-kindled Affair with Books in Paper and Ink

It happened on the spur of the moment. I was browsing for a new book to read. I came across a book review on the Times or the Post, I forget, and I liked what I read about the book. I wanted a book to read so badly, that I just had to do it. I went on Amazon.com, and gave that defining peck on the keyboard. I had bought my first Kindle book.

The book was mine now. The device Kindle was surprisingly home, and not at work with hubby. So, I grabbed the reader, planted myself on the sofa with my feet tucked under me, and began to read. The kids were asleep, the afternoon sun kissing the room was lovely, and the book was absolutely to its promise. I did not put down the e-reader at all! At night, when all the lights in the house went down, I still wanted to read, even while the kids slept next to me. And I did, in the illumination of the i-pad this time. When I first picked the i-pad, the software even asked me, if it wanted me to start the book from the beginning, or from the page that I was on on the Kindle. (How thoughtful, I thought!) I loved the book, and when the book was finished, I realised that I was almost a convert---I think I am not so much against e-books anymore.

And then, the other day, as I was about to recommend that book to someone, I realised that I didn't even know the name of the author. The entire process of reading the review, buying the book and reading it had been so quick, as to seem almost surreal. Even while reading the book, I was actually taken by surprise, when the book ended. Not because the story line did not lend itself to an end then, but because my fingers had not felt the weight of the book shifting from the left hand to right. That percentage estimate of the portion of the book read, that shows at the bottom of the screen on Kindle, is a good way to know how far is the end, but its not enough of a tactile experience to fill up the senses with the book. And last, but not the least, I dislike now the fact that I can't see the spine of that book on my book shelf, from where I can simply pick a book and read a favorite line or a favorite page. I always have to ensure  that the kindle or the i-pad are charged enough unless I want to read plugged into an electrical outlet.

So, my verdict is that I would still like to lay hands on a real paper and ink book, if I can. However, for those 'right-now' moments, its always good to have somethings a mere click away.

Oh, by the way, the book I read is: Tomorrow There will be Apricots, by Jessica Soffer.

A Morning to Reclaim

Anu Garg's Daily-word mail always ends with a quote, and usually these quotes are absolutely fantastic---simple and truly pearls of wisdom, without the sermons. I try to make that mail one of the first things to read, and of course read it from top to bottom, savoring the end quote throughout the day. Today's was just as poetically lovely:

A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books. -Walt Whitman, poet (1819-1892) 

This used to be so true for most of us in the bygone days....me in particular, would sit with my warm glass of water, and look out at the greenery, or at the sky or at anything that was outside my house, outside my mundane existence, and that which was full of fresh air. Even with the glass windows shut tight, I inhaled a freshness through my eyes and my ears. I was perhaps still but not lifeless. I was filling my limbs with my share of the undivided nature. 

Today, I often do check the measurements of nature in the morning, before stepping out of the house: the weather forecast, precipitation chances and temperatures, but the shade of greyness in the rain filled clouds, the height of waves on the Hudson river and the newest cherry blossoms---still not as profuse to be pictured, but getting there, are lost to me. I am forever zipping to some place, for something. 

And we are all doing that most of the time. Our urban environments and life-styles are of course dotted with time accounting---and urban mothers' schedules are going beyond the roof. Between ferrying kids to school, grocery, enrichment classes, ped visits and playdates, there is almost no breather for the bees and the birds. And yet, it is our little companions--the children, who most need that time to take their steps, make their impressions and indulge their senses. They need to be shown the waves, their fingers need to touch the water, their feet need to jump into and out of the puddles and their hair need to get wet for them to even know what  a lovely earth they are born into. And as their moms, we need to first start, to start our days soaking in the glory of the morning glory. Time to make a trip to Home Depot to buy some potted plants? No, not another car-ride.....not for now at least.

A List of Books I Want to Read

I am going to keep adding to this list as and when a title crosses my eyes, and publish it here, so that I am openly challenged by myself to get to these books some day:

1. Something of Myself----R.Kipling
2. Any book by Joan Didion