FROM A GOOD HOUSEWIFE TO BEST HOUSEWIFE

Why is it often said, being a housewife is easy and being a career woman is tough?

When I was a kid, I used to always tell my father that on growing up, I would become a career woman.But my father always encouraged me to be a good housewife.

I used to then consider the whole thing as a typical case of male chauvinism.But now when I have become a housewife, I realise that being one is a real tough job with a hell lot of responsibilities.

Most of my friends are successful career women and also good housewives.Seeing their success, I used to often sit and grumble and feel totally useless.

I had to once again face the wrath of my beloved father. He still stuck to his views.I used to tell my father about the importance of being financially independent.Leaving the monetary benefits aside, our educational qualifications too would be used in the right way.

Father dearest agreed to this but asked me to assess the monetary value of all the services rendered by my mother for all of us.For example, cooking,washing,cleaning,ironing, taking care of the house....and the list went on and on.I was at a total loss for words and I had to give up the argument.Instead of going out and working hard to earn some money, why not stay at home,take care of all the household chores and save some money? This was the main point mooted by my beloved father.

The other day,I mentioned the same "topic" to one of my friends,who is a very successful career woman and also a good housewife.She immediately agreed that being a housewife is equally tough and she summed up the profile of a housewife as :

Cook

Childcare Specialist

Cleaner

Teacher

Finance Expert

Driver

Child Psychologist

Counsellor (for hubby and kids)

Friend

Seamstress

Marketing Expert

Vacation and Travel Consultant

PR Expert (writes all the letter and sends cards etc)

The list could go on and on .....

Well I, for once, have stopped grumbling about not being a career woman and am trying to change from a good housewife to the best housewife...

Till then, Cheerios and Tata....

My Childhood

I want to tell you the simple rustic childhood that I had in Trivandrum.My father used to work in the Reserve Bank of India there.Since my brothers are too elder to me,my elder brother came to BLR for his graduation and my second brother went off to REC TRICHY for his Engg.I was left alone.And since my father was a big officer in RBI,he was given a palatial house.Well,it was me and my mom and granny.Those days,TVM was one unknown small city or rather kind of a village.Just one bus,one cycle or a car on the road and human beings too were scarce then.You know,I did not have friends of my age and my only friend was my maid servant Lissy..I am sure she must be now in her 60's.She used to take me to her humble hut which was behind our bungalow.BUT behind our bungalow was a vast stretch of paddy fields with 100s of ducks floating in the fields during harvesting season and during the season when they used to start planting seeds,it used to be another look altogether.The women would sing folk songs and happily plant the little saplings without caring for the scorching sunlight.I used to sit and watch all that.You know,as a kid,i never felt bored.Then slowly the kids around my maid servants house became my best friends.They were a bit apprehensive to even come near me in the beginning for so many reasons a few of which were that i was a bit too FAIR as per their standards (they used to call me white cockroach and run away)and also they thought we were rich and so would not mix with them.You know,you must have seen the pathways between the paddy fields??well crabs used to make homes on the sides of those pathways.I used to take a coconut leaf, scrap out the leafy part,retain the centre part(the one with which broomsticks are made) and then slowly insert that into the crabs hole.The minute the crab used to catch on to the stick,i used to pull it out to see the crab hanging on the other end..Seeing its angrily moving claws,the till then brave maha,would throw the stick and scream her head out...What fun..water snakes were a common sight then.

I used to get into small ponds with my friend and dip one hankie into the water and then catch small fishes and tadpoles..you know,once my newly bought HAWAII slipper got stuck in the mud when i was catching the fish and the way I had cried because a thrashing was guaranteed if I had gone home with one foot with the slipper on and another foot bare..but with all my courage left,I put my hand into the clayey mud and pulled out my slipper!!SO many such "adventures"are there to narrate..

.Lissy my maid used to take me to her small hut for CHRISTMAS and serve me the goodies made for the festival..cakes,murukkus,and a curry made with tapioca(locally called as KAPPA which is supposed to be eaten with fish).Her neighbours used to come and stand and stare at a "rich"man's "fair" daughter eating from a poor man's humble house.But the taste of those goodies still linger on on my tongue even to this day...

I had a very very simple childhood and I am proud of it.Not once did my parents make me realise the fact that we were Brahmins and we were not supposed to eat in a servant's house.Infact,I was never made aware of the caste system by my parents.I was taught by my beloved father that all human beings are equal.I am teaching the same principles of life to my children.Hope they can assimilate these simple principles in their lives some day.

Till my next blog,Cheers and Tata..

My very first blog...

Good morning world...Well,let me start at the very beginning...

Who ever thinks or says that we,the grownups know everything under the sun,need to think again.Let me tell you why.Very often ,I used to hear my teenaged kids,well the little fella is fast approaching his teens unlike my daughter who is already a cute one,sitting and discussing about Big B's Blogs,AK's Blogs,SRK's Blogs.I used to sit and ponder about this newly heard word,well atleast to my old ears.So leaving aside all my apprehensions of being laughed at by my kids,I asked them what the word "blog"actually meant.Well,I guess I undermined my kids abilities..Very patiently ,my daughter told me the funda about Blogging...and here I am penning my first ever blog...Yipeeeeeeee..hope I am able to do more of this...Till then, cheers and tata....