Birthday celebrations

Orange and red, the colours of the horizon. It is partly marred by a large thick grey cloud. Where it is clear, the blue skies merge with the fiery colours. Even with the clouds, it is one of the prettiest sights to drive to work in. The trees have now mostly lost their leaves and hover over the bushes and hedges. The branches spread out like giant brooms trying to sweep the clouds away and failing. I sit transfixed as the scene opens up in front of me as I drive towards it. Soon I will be driving to work in the dark. These moments will not last. Enjoy them while you can, I hear myself say. 

The weekend gone was a pretty good one. Chinnu was transiting through London on her way to India from Canada. She had a few hours to kill in between, which meant we could spent some time with her. As we waited for Chinnu to emerge, Lakshmi decided to pour orange squash all over her dress. We didn’t have a change of clothes and had to layer her clothes with tissue to keep her dry and warm. After the initial confusion and when Chinnu was finally let out, we just had a couple of hours left to spend together. With both Kavitha and Chinnu celebrating their birthdays in the next couple of days, we had a mini Birthday party at the only restaurant in terminal 4. 

In the tube on the way home, it was the giggles coming from across the seat or rather buggy that made me look up. A little boy in his pushchair was having a giggling fit. The source of the happiness came from our side. Little Lavinia was, unknown to us, making eyes at him. Soon both were chuckling away to the amusement of their parents. Unlike our shy Lakshmi, Lavinia seems to have no shyness genes in her.

Huw was working and so the girls spent the weekend with us. A lovely brunch followed by a walk in the woods made for the perfect Sunday afternoon. Kavitha and Lakshmi sang along to Christmas songs and watched the swans and ducks paddle along. I sat with Lavinia on the bench and took in the sights. It was mid afternoon, the lights were slowly fading and the breeze was cold but gentle. I took a minute to capture the scene, ‘my girls and I’, another moment to keep locked up safely forever.

In the evening Kavitha’s friends picked her up for another bout of celebrations. I was left with the two children again. Lakshmi ran around laughing her heart out while Lavinia crawled around her. The laughter was infectious as it filled my kitchen. I used to worry when Kavitha laughed out loud like this at her age, as it always ended in tears. With Lakshmi the happiness just continues. 

I had plenty of moments this weekend to be thankful for. Something I read the other day, made me think. When you see the sea, some people find pearls, some fish and some wet their feet. Mine definitely is full of pearls and that is how it will stay and the thick grey clouds can hover but will not ruin my days. 

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