Love unlimited

My four year old who is not a hugger or a cuddler comes up to me this evening and sits closer to me. Me taking her in my arms plant a kiss in her cheek.
She says shyly- " Amma I love you soo much."
Me ( who is so excited to hear these rare words)- "You do? You love me baby,,"
She-" Yes amma..I love you." And then she pauses for a second and continues " I love naaani too amma..I love him a lot"(naani- referring to her dad affectionately"


This sure brings smile to my face:).

Mother's day 2012

This is the first time I am blogging about mother's day.It's been four years since I have been graduated to the position of being mom.I have been blessed with two beautiful kids who cling on to me dearly. I feel content to be what I am today.

The day started with lots of hugs including from dad who pampered me with a trip to Disney and an ipad.I had a memorable time with my loved ones. Highlight is that I had a lovely dinner with amma who happened to be with us this mother's day.

Four years ago when I was blooming in my career,just when I was about to be promoted, when I planned to take maternity leave and leave my new born in the care of parents, life had it's own plans.On 19th March 2008 when I gave birth to the beautiful angel after twenty four hours of critical labour ,I could not let go of that new born in anyone's care.I could'n't get enough of that beautiful bundle. I decided to enjoy and savour every minute of my motherhood. I decided to stay home and love all I could,give all my best to be the best mom. Over time I realised that there are no secret mantras of being the perfect mom. As every job requires hard work and dedication, motherhood demands the same.I may sound biased but I realise gradually that this is the best job in the whole world.Then our life had another pleasant twist with entry of our son in 2010. With less than two years of being apart, these bundles keep me busy all day. I have moments of immense joy that would melt away my heart and also moments when I doubt I would land in therapy. But these bundles have taught me lots of lessons and I am still learning from them everyday.My day starts with their" amma " and ends with their "amma". Nothing more I could ask for.

Thank God for these beauties and just pray to Almighty that I have enough patience and health to enjoy them while they keep me on toes and teach me all about life!

Gems to remember

Forces against us can never be more powerful than the force within us. Trust GOD completely. He will never give you anything you can’t handle! Your problem is never really your problem. Your reaction to your problem is actually your problem. Your respect is not in the words spoken to you in your presence; but words spoken about you in your absence Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is like expecting a lion not to attack you bcoz you are a vegetarian! An arrow can be shot only by pulling it backward. So, whenever life pulls you back, don’t worry. Its going to lead you forward towards victory. Regretting about yesterday and fear of tomorrow are the two thieves that steal our present. If GOD is in your boat, it does not mean U will not face any storm. It only means no storm can sink your boat! As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because his son started kindergarten. Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts. One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off in time. One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident. One of them missed his bus. One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change. One’s car wouldn’t start. One went back to answer the telephone. One had a child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have. One couldn’t get a taxi. The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive today. Now when I am stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone…all the little things that annoy me. I think to myself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment. Next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can’t seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don’t get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you. May God continue to bless you with all those annoying little things and may you remember their possible purpose.

God

I asked God to take away my habit. God said, No. It is not for me to take away, but for you to give it up. I asked God to make my handicapped child whole. God said, No. His spirit is whole, his body is only temporary I asked God to grant me patience. God said, No. Patience is a byproduct of tribulations; it isn’t granted, it is learned. I asked God to give me happiness. God said, No. I give you blessings; Happiness is up to you. I asked God to spare me pain. God said, No. Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to me. I asked God to make my spirit grow. God said, No. You must grow on your own! , but I will prune you to make you fruitful. I asked God for all things that I might enjoy life. God said, No. I will give you life, so that you may enjoy all things. I ask God to help me LOVE others, as much as He loves me. God said…Ahhhh, finally you have the idea. Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many days in the year as you make use of. ~Charles Richards

butterfly lesson

The Butterfly A man found a cocoon for a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through the little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and could go no farther. Then the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. Something was strange. The butterfly had a swollen body and shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened. In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and deformed wings. It was never able to fly. What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand, was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the small opening of the cocoon are God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through all our life without any obstacles, that would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Not only that, we could never fly.

Decide

Decide!! While waiting to pick up a friend at the airport in Portland, Oregon, I had one of those life-changing experiences that you hear other people talk about — the kind that sneaks up on you unexpectedly. This one occurred a mere two feet away from me. Straining to locate my friend among the passengers deplaning through the jet way, I noticed a man coming toward me carrying two light bags. He stopped right next to me to greet his family. First he motioned to his youngest son (maybe six years old) as he laid down his bags. They gave each other a long, loving hug. As they separated enough to look in each other’s face, I heard the father say, “It’s so good to see you, son. I missed you so much!” His son smiled somewhat shyly, averted his eyes and replied softly, “Me, too, Dad!” Then the man stood up, gazed in the eyes of his oldest son (maybe nine or ten) and while cupping his son’s face in his hands said, “You’re already quite the young man. I love you very much, Zach!” They too hugged a most loving, tender hug. While this was happening, a baby girl (perhaps one or one-and-a-half) was squirming excitedly in her mother’s arms, never once taking her little eyes off the wonderful sight of her returning father. The man said, “Hi, baby girl!” as he gently took the child from her mother. He quickly kissed her face all over and then held her close to his chest while rocking her from side to side. The little girl instantly relaxed and simply laid her head on his shoulder, motionless in pure contentment. After several moments, he handed his daughter to his oldest son and declared, “I’ve saved the best for last!” and proceeded to give his wife the longest, most passionate kiss I ever remember seeing. He gazed into her eyes for several seconds and then silently mouthed. “I love you so much!” They stared at each other’s eyes, beaming big smiles at one another, while holding both hands. For an instant they reminded me of newlyweds, but I knew by the age of their kids that they couldn’t possibly be. I puzzled about it for a moment then realized how totally engrossed I was in the wonderful display of unconditional love not more than an arm’s length away from me. I suddenly felt uncomfortable, as if I was invading something sacred, but was amazed to hear my own voice nervously ask, “Wow! How long have you two been married? “Been together fourteen years total, married twelve of those.” he replied, without breaking his gaze from his lovely wife’s face. “Well then, how long have you been away?” I asked. The man finally turned and looked at me, still beaming his joyous smile. “Two whole days!” Two days? I was stunned. By the intensity of the greeting, I had assumed he’d been gone for at least several weeks – if not months. I know my expression betrayed me. I said almost offhandedly, hoping to end my intrusion with some semblance of grace (and to get back to searching for my friend), “I hope my marriage is still that passionate after twelve years!” The man suddenly stopped smiling. He looked me straight in the eye, and with forcefulness that burned right into my soul, he told me something that left me a different person. He told me, “Don’t hope, friend… decide!” Then he flashed me his wonderful smile again, shook my hand and said, “God bless!” With that, he and his family turned and strode away together. I was still watching that exceptional man and his special family walk just out of sight when my friend came up to me and asked, “What’cha looking at?” Without hesitating, and with a curious sense of certainty, I replied, “My future!” - by Michael D. Hargrove