The Conscientious Believer

Who am I? I am the mother of a 20-month old adorable baby girl. I am also a wife, a sister and a daughter but all these roles have taken a backseat for now as I feel being a mother is what defines me right now as I want to do everything right and still learning so many new things about this new relationship.  

To describe me I would say I am close to average in height and still in the process of losing all that baby fat but you will always find me smartly dressed with a ready smile on my face. A few inches, a little gloss and healthy hair is my secret to looking pretty always and I don’t want to change anything about myself, at least physically, but yes otherwise I wish I could be more manipulative. I feel that my straight forwardness plays the spoilsport every time I am dealing with a tricky situation. And as you know there are lots of such situations in life so I yes I want to learn those tricks too.

What am I doing? Right now, I am at home cooking food for my baby and hubby, spending that rare time that we three get together. I enjoy pretending to my daughter pretending to drink tea made by her. I also looooveee reading to her from her ever-increasing library. This is my favorite part of the day, especially since if it’s an off day and the non-stop all day rain has made my balcony picturesque. 

I am a media professional, with an erratic work schedule and after enjoying TV madness for over a decade and performing in a stressful and short deadlines type environment, I would like to step out and do something that’s more and fun and creative and at the same time leaves me enough time for parenting too. I chose to work even after having a baby as I didn’t want to give up my financial independence and more so utilise the education and capabilities that my parents have instilled in me. I believe my genes have taken a cue from my mother’s when it comes to my professional capabilities. But yes, I surely dream of a life in which I don’t have to rush at 6 am to my workplace and work on 'the sacred' Sundays. Despite little cribbing as we all do I thank my stars for giving me an opportunity to work at one of the best companies and with some of the best people who are not just very fine professionals but great human beings too.

My daily highs come from little things like my coffee without any disturbance around me, a stroll in park, cooking for my daughter and she finishing off her meal, my baby’s kiss, a glass of good wine, chatting (read cribbing and scheming) with that close friend and confidante, my hubby appreciating home-cooked meal (I am still a novice in the kitchen) are some of the little things that give me happiness on a daily basis. I am blessed to have a better half who has not only supported me but has also encouraged me to get back to work. His support in small day to day activities mean a lot to me!

My best stress buster is the time I spend with my child. I believe in religion and rituals as they give me peace and strength. I also believe in Nichrin Diashonin's Buddhism philosophy so I chant to deal with the every-day stresses of life. I read the literature of this philosophy, something that inspires me and uplifts when I feel low. Sometimes I go for a walk alone listening to music. I also believe in spiritual healing and often resort to wine and beer therapy to keep calm ;)

I was born and brought up in a joint family in Delhi. Both my parents I would say till date are thorough professionals who worked their best to give quality upbringing and education to their children. I grew up as a spoilt child thanks to a very doting father. Like any other child I have immense respect for my mother who balanced job and home responsibilities quiet well...Its definitely not every woman's cup of tea especially the kind of expectations Indian society has from women. She didn’t quit even when she was transferred to another city, especially in an era which did not really encourage women to work. I guess that was possible only with my father’s support. According to me, he is what Raymonds would define as the perfect man! 

I may not have topped in academics but was always considered bright. I faced opposition from my parents in major decisions of my life like choosing journalism career, picking TV journalism job, buying my own house at a young age of 25, my choice of marriage partner but I think I can say I made them proud in all my choices!

My life-altering event is something that still scares me. Few years back my mother was diagnosed with blood cancer. That was a long period of struggle for which we were not ready. No one would be, but I consider me and my family very lucky. I started respecting life even more. This event took out all fears out of me & made me a stronger person. Life is full of surprises - it can change overnight, for good or bad!

Motto for life – Enjoy each day as you don’t know about tomorrow!