MOTHER'S DAY, AN ETERNAL CELEBRATION--MAY 2011

Mother's Day is just around the corner,and the western world celebrates this day,with great fervour.In fact,these celebrations were virtually unknown in India, till a few years back,thanks to the publicity done by the card companies.And today, it has become a big occasion,with a lot of hype,and hoopla attached to it.But, I feel, that a mother is a mother, till the end of her days,and she plays her role to perfection,till the end of her days.The age,status,success,name,and fame of her child is totally immaterial,she always looks at him as her child,and nothing else matters,everything is unimportant.And the relationship between a mother and child, is sacred,special,unconditional,constant,and permanent,and it will NEVER change.
Today, Ashis is near 50,thats how the world sees him, also as the smart, hot shot executive,intelligent,capable,holding a good position,in a leading company.But to me, he's the tiny,wriggly baby, I brought home on a very stormy day,and both of us didn't know a thing about babies,how to handle them,or what to do.We learnt as we went along,and love was our only guide,mentor,and trainer.And he started his life, totally dependent on me.When he cried, he looked at me to soothe him,and when happy,he wanted to share it with me.I accompanied him on his first day at school,held him to my heart, to reassure him,and waited outside the classroom door to pick him up,after school,knowing he would feel lost, if he didn't see me.And his eyes were full of tears when he saw me,as if he said,"Why did you leave me here?"

From school to college,and further,he kept taking every step, with great confidence,and academic brilliance,but behind it all,mother and son shared innumerable soft,sweet, touching moments,which are the threads, that bind this very precious, relationship.I was always there, to soothe his fears,give him courage to go in his chosen direction,and applaud him,for his innumerable achievements.And he too,always stood with me,for everything,all the time.I was excited as a child when he got married,thrilled beyond measure when his children were born,enjoyed a lovely comraderie with his wife,and lived my role to the hilt,in all its various colours.He was my son, and I would be with him throughout his life,whenever,and wherever the need.And not only for the need,but because I will always be his mother.

Manna was a very thin,very fair child,with pitch black eyes,born early one morning,in the middle of a huge storm, in Chennai,and I took permission from the doctor, to allow Ashis to stay with me, in the hospital,while his father was away at work, so that he didn't feel lonely,and lost.And he loved his brother.He kept looking at him,wanted to hold him,and was curious as to why he didn't say anything.And then started a relationship that amazed everyone,Ashis was an exemplary elder brother,and mothered Manna, till he left home, for IIM Kolkata,when Manna was almost 18.And a beautiful friendship grew between us.We were very happy being together,and had lots of very enjoyable moments, as well as very tough, tragic ones too.Amid broken bones, hits, hurts, gashes,they grew up,and so did our relationship,and I've always stood with them,at every moment of their lives,watching their success, and also, their problems.But my love for them continues unchanged,unwavering,and is constant.

Today,as I get ready to celebrate Mother's Day,Innumerable little incidents flash before my eyes, like the scenes of a movie,that remind me, of our life together,which is our real strength.And when the world tells me, that they have their own lives,and I should stay away, I only want to say, that no matter where I am, or what I do,I will always be their mother, nothing,or no one ,can change that, and I will happily,proudly, stand up in this role,and celebrate every day as Mother's Day, because once a mother,always a mother.