Every time during a long holiday (specially diwali) at home, we visit aai’s parents. (well, baba’s father passed away when he was 19, so he pretty much grew up with lots of responsibilities and really looked upto aai’s father. Plus other granny lived with us. We don’t have much biases otherwise.)
Aai always tells her mother (my aaji, granny) that we are so lucky, as we got all this grandparents’ love while growing up. Aaji’s and aajoba’s (grandfather) parents passed away when they were really young. Hence. Aai thinks all this is very special. We normally take it for granted. Don’t we all ?
As a kid, aai used to write letters with all her out-of-station rakhis. I learnt from her and continued the tradition well through college (afterwards I got into work and grew up :(). So much that I would write letters to aaji-aajoba complaining about aai too! Talk of pay back! Just out of making conversations with aai’s brothers and sisters in law, I used to address everyone in my letters. Aajoba always replied to my letters. In the most literary way. With marathi verses and cryptic words. He would give gandhi references too! Sometimes it used to take me aai’s help to even read them properly and make sense.
I was his first grand kids who left town for education and he wrote me a 3 page letter telling me to never get home sick and how to work towards one’s ambitions. I did not understand any of it much then.
He followed स्वावलंबन (self dependence) all through his life. He used to go for long walks, wash his own clothes and thali (dinner/lunch plate). When we were visiting and otherwise as well, he would go to the market and pick the freshest vegetables for us. Sometimes he would pack some stuff with aai, saying we lived in cities where we don’t get to eat the fresh veggies. It would amuse us and we would roll our eyes.
Aajoba passed away 2 years back in the most bizarre manner. We are still uncomfortable talking about it.
And then all the things aai says about being special suddenly strike me. And during this year’s visit it gnawed at me.
I still carry all his letters with me. They are my treasure. He was a voracious reader. Aai has most of his books. I think she has found her treasure too!
~nightflier
Aai always tells her mother (my aaji, granny) that we are so lucky, as we got all this grandparents’ love while growing up. Aaji’s and aajoba’s (grandfather) parents passed away when they were really young. Hence. Aai thinks all this is very special. We normally take it for granted. Don’t we all ?
As a kid, aai used to write letters with all her out-of-station rakhis. I learnt from her and continued the tradition well through college (afterwards I got into work and grew up :(). So much that I would write letters to aaji-aajoba complaining about aai too! Talk of pay back! Just out of making conversations with aai’s brothers and sisters in law, I used to address everyone in my letters. Aajoba always replied to my letters. In the most literary way. With marathi verses and cryptic words. He would give gandhi references too! Sometimes it used to take me aai’s help to even read them properly and make sense.
I was his first grand kids who left town for education and he wrote me a 3 page letter telling me to never get home sick and how to work towards one’s ambitions. I did not understand any of it much then.
He followed स्वावलंबन (self dependence) all through his life. He used to go for long walks, wash his own clothes and thali (dinner/lunch plate). When we were visiting and otherwise as well, he would go to the market and pick the freshest vegetables for us. Sometimes he would pack some stuff with aai, saying we lived in cities where we don’t get to eat the fresh veggies. It would amuse us and we would roll our eyes.
Aajoba passed away 2 years back in the most bizarre manner. We are still uncomfortable talking about it.
And then all the things aai says about being special suddenly strike me. And during this year’s visit it gnawed at me.
I still carry all his letters with me. They are my treasure. He was a voracious reader. Aai has most of his books. I think she has found her treasure too!
~nightflier
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