Each year my birthdays get more special with the fun and joy that I am embraced with. Or maybe with every passing year the significance of such shared moments become more valued. For someone who at 27 wanted to stop any commemorative fuss over "this day or any other" it would certainly appear that I have now flipped to "the other side" in the complete delight of all the enjoyment that I derive from such occasions.
Last year my gallery celebrated by 50th birthday by hosting an exhibition of my work and throwing me an absolutely fun party, in which the crowning moment was an item number specially choreographed for me with all the Sakshi team dancing! How do you describe moments of such celebration that are born from years of friendships where such gesture spells love and belief? In today's world of fly-by-night relationships I feel privileged to have strong friendships that are so genuine and real, and that are unconditional.
Yesterday I turned 51 and friends and family spent time to make surprises that would engulf me with the wonderment of feeling special. With madly packed schedules, each person took time off to make me a gift! Perhaps the gift that was extra special was a bag of letters that my near and dear ones presented to me with the instruction to read them when I was on my own ! Sitting in bed at the end of the day satiated with happiness, with both Surendran and Begum the cat fast asleep, I read these missives of love and knew that I am blessed in ways that not many others can ever claim to be.
Today we are celebrating Mithun's 31st birthday one day earlier because he flies off to work tomorrow morning. The dining table will groan with food tonight, and I have made my special chocolate cake! The house has loved ones tumbling about in various nooks and corners, with rowdy scrabble sessions at one end and quiet reading groups somewhere else, all co-existing under one roof, and the cat thankfully not on a hot tin roof! In the midst of all this a discussion on art and a collaborative art work in the form of an interview also took shape!
Happy! Happy! Happy! I like it that way! Touch wood that the next years also amble along with the same energies that make my life special. The bright city lights never fascinated me. I made a choice of a different life style many years ago and Insha Allah it was a decisiveness that has been rewarding. The day is special so let me raise a toast. To the world of friends that makes my life so special....salute and thank you all for the love you give to me!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete