.... and yes I do cook :)

Cooking is not my cup of tea. I realised this TRUTH when I was a young girl and was always reluctant to enter the kitchen except meal times. I can stir up a snack for you or a dessert, but the idea of cooking a meal - that too a Bengali meal - always used to put me off. So, however badly my parents wanted me to cook, I never did that till marriage. After marriage I started cooking but not in a large scale..... breakfast used to be toast with butter, lunch at office and then cooking dinner used to be a joint effort with my husband.

So, when did I start cooking full-fledged? Yes, I started it with all gusto when Ishan came to my life. The idea of a maid cooking up for him never occurred to me. I am hygiene conscious to the point of being a pain in the neck for the cook. Has she washed the veggies, did she wash her hands well, did she taste the food while cooking...etc etc etc etc. The list of my peeves were too high for me to employ a cook. So, to be on the safer side I started to cook regularly. Then slowly a secret wish welled up within me. I wanted Ishan to like what I cook and so all my efforts would be to cook something healthy that he likes, something nutritious that satisfies me on the nutrition scale and satiates his taste buds.

I love whatever my Mum cooks. I crave for things cooked by her and so when I visit her I always have a long list of what I want to eat. Secretly I started wishing that Ishan too should love food cooked by me. He too should crave for food cooked by me once he grows up. Once he is in college he should say mere mamma ke haath ka chicken, fish etc etc...

I remember a friend telling me some couple of years back that my wish is ridiculous. Her kids know that Mom and Daddy work outside and maid cooks for them. In today's world that is the normal thing, she said. But I disagreed and we argued on it. I am not saying she was wrong, she has no time to cook and so she has done something that is convenient. But I am selfish, a very selfish mother. I want Ishan to crave for mamma-made-food when he grows up. When I look back at my childhood, food is so vivid in my memory - the Sunday lunch that Mum used to cook for us, the vegetarian menu on Thursdays, I miss them today. I want Ishan to have such memories in his memory bank when he grows up.

Last week I made gajar ka halwa and Ishan said - Mamma Sanjeev Kapoor should give you a medal, the halwa is too good. I was happy, genuinely happy. Not that my halwa was the best, but because he started loving what I cook. So, he has started dictating me what he wants for weekend breakfast and lunch - aloo paratha, methi paratha, matar paratha, idli, dosa, dahi vada, chicken, fish and specifically - Ilish maach. Not that I cook everyday according to him, but I try to accommodate something from his wish list each day and watch him in joy while he eats.

These simple things are what life is made up of. I wanted Ishan to experience this joy too. When Ishan grows up and goes out to study and to pursue his career, he should miss food cooked by me. He should always have a list of food that he wants me to cook. For someone who does not love cooking, this will be the best gift of life.

A Proud Mom

Sachin Tendulkar said that his mom performs puja everytime he is on the crease. I am sure she did, but how I wonder! ...and I wonder because I have a reason, a very solid one...
My 9 year old is cricket crazy and so I enrolled him in a cricket academy. My responsibility ended there and his father's started. I mean after enrolling I did not take the pain to go with him to his practice sessions. It is his Dad's duty. After all I did the main part, looked for a good academy and enrolled him!!

So every Saturday and Sunday morning as I sleep peacefully, the Dad-Son duo wake up, get ready and leave for the class. Have to clarify something here, Ishan does not wake up because I am sure he does not sleep at all. Friday night and Saturday night he thinks and dreams and breathes cricket. He is awake from 3.00 am. and constantly murmurs something. After many months I understood what he murmurs - 'why is it taking so long to be 6.00 am'!!
I was happy that he gets to play cricket. He comes home and rattles off how he scored 6 and 4 and how he was not-out till the end. I never paid attention thinking all that to be childish blabber of a cricket fanatic.

Last weekend was different, Ishan's Dad was out of station. Ishan was extremely obedient the previous week so that I take him to the class. He knows how I love my Saturday and Sunday nap, so he obliged to everything to please me to such an extent that I could not say no to him. Against my wishes, shunning my favourite Saturday morning sleep I went with him to his playgroud. I dropped him there and came back home to do the household chores. By the time I went back to fetch him his class was over. I really felt bad. I know I am not going to come always so the day I came, I should have stayed back and watched him play. I was upset and so I decided to watch him play the next day. Sunday morning I went with him and stayed there. They started their day with exercise and running. Then 2 groups were formed for a match and Ishan was on the fielding side. He was wicket-keeping (remember, he is a Dhoni-Sachin fan, in the same order). He was average, I wanted him to be in action - bowling, taking wickets, you know how mothers are, right? He was doing a good job but not an impressive one for me.

Then came their chance of batting and Ishan was the opening batsman. In the first ball itself, the ball hit his thigh and he got hurt. I was so sad that I thought of running towards him. Then I saw a matured Ishan. I am sure he would have howled with pain if at home, but there he got up and told his coach that he wants to bat a little later as he cannot move his left leg. He went and sat down and started some exercise that I had no idea he knows. I lost all interest in cricket and thought how I can sue the coach and the academy and all the cricketers in the world for hurting my son. But he, unaware of my presence, did his exercise. It was already 9 and I was wondering when his turn to bat will come. Other kids were playing, but did I pay attention to them? Not really! But still I saw some kids bowling well, some fielding well and one kid exercising his hurt leg.

So at 9.30, when I lost all hopes of seeing him bat, he came to the crease. My God, how he imitates Sachin, he did all antics as Sachin does.... adjusting his pads, gloves, looking here, there, everywhere before taking position. One of the last 2 batsman, he scored a run and came to the non-batting side. The kid at the batting side got bold at the moment. I got up, thinking that the match is over as there is no one else to play with Ishan. But no, as this is an academy match and it is meant for teaching them cricket, so they have a policy called 'last man standing'. Till Ishan is not out, his team will be on the batting side. It was 9.35 and I anticipated that it will be over in 10 more minutes. I called up my maid and asked her to come at 10.00 am and concentrated on the match.

Then he started playing. And with joy I observed that he plays well. He scored boundaries and many singles. He had a good position and was focussed (wish he was such focussed in studies). After 45 minutes of wonderful cricket the coach declared - 'next Saturday Siddhartha (Ishan) will play again till he is out'. Then the captain of the opposition team protested against continuing the same game. But the coach was adamant. 'It is last-man-standing and he is not out and so I cannot do injustice'. Wow, how proud I was. Yes, it is a 9-year old cricket fanatic who made me proud. Some of the parents standing there said - he played well in the last match too. All these months I was not aware that my Lovu plays well. I thought he was one cricket fanatic like millions of kids in India. We all grew up on cricket and we all love it. To be frank, I put him in the class because I wanted him to channelise his energy somewhere. I never thought that he will play well......true I never gave it a thought.

But I was a bit disappointed as I did not hear one word of appreciation from his coach. Usually the coach shouts 'good shot', 'well played'. But for Ishan, he did not say anything. So, I went up to him to ask how Ishan played. He said - 'Yeh bahut achcha khelta hai but ekbaar good shot bol diya toh next ball mein out ho jaata hai. So I refrain from saying anything.' I was a bit jealous, here is someone who thinks he knows my son better than me, aah? But in my heart I knew the coach was right, absolutely right. If you make him conscious, he does blunder.

But trust me, I was on the verge of tears when I saw him play. My hands went cold and I felt nervous despite 1000 of self assuring words like - it is just a practice match..... out bhi ho gaya toh kya hua..... he is just a kid, so he should enjoy..... !!

At that moment I wondered how Sachin's mother did puja when her son was playing. I cannot. Her son is known as the God of cricket. What must be her feelings. How she must be feeling when her son got hurt, got out, when he scored the match winning boundary!

But one thing is sure, I cannot do anything except looking at Lovu and hoping he plays well even when he plays a gully tournament. I don't know how far he will go, but till he plays he should enjoy.

..... and yes, my bai went back and I had to do the household chores.... all for cricket!!!