Motherhood Diaries — Part 1
It is 3AM, in the depth of night and I am just done breastfeeding my daughter. Sitting on dining room chair, I am scarfing down Ganapati prasadam. I should have warmed up the meal my husband, P had portioned out but I can’t be bothered, I don’t want to use the microwave — I am exhausted. Anyway, the prasadam is great — bits of savory and sweet bits(think halwa channa), along with crunchy samosa. I round off the “Mom Dinner” with a chunky piece of Tres Leche cake.
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I am not the person who will willingly go to Ganapati pandal at peak Aarti time but guess who did it. I am more or less an atheist; when we got the interiors done for our house, the designated builder provided puja space was converted to a bookshelf. Admittedly, there is a small mandir within the bookshelf but it is used only on special occasions (or daily when my mom is visiting). But things have changed now. Life has been intense and different since birth of my daughter, S. Even Science Confirms You Are a Different Person After Giving Birth. Social interaction with neighbors is scheduled, high traffic society events are agreeable and eating out at a restaurant is preferred over take out.
I would like S to have these experiences and not make a choice on her behalf. I have certain preferences and opinions but I do not want to impose them on her. For example — I do not want to get ears pierced while she is still little and has no say in the decision. This is controversial. Earrings are cute after all but in my head, ear piercing is equivalent to a permanent tattoo and while the latter is not ubiquitous (now!) in our culture, both are taking away the body autonomy from her. Parenting will be interesting, given P and I haven’t done a lot of things the traditional way but still are very much part of the society.
