Jan 1
Reflection 2021
Closing a year, which follows the one that started it all, seems so long and somehow short, so fulfilling and still left with a feeling of something missing, so dreaded and with a much needed respite. Yet there remains hope despite all the pandemonium around. If surviving was the biggest achievement last year, it doubly remained so in 2021 with the horrifying second wave and it shall continue to do so this year.
And I never thought I’d be consistent with this little habit of mine entering its 6th year. As I open the book of my life to the world, I had a very few noteworthy events. Relatives, friends, meals, weddings, tours, celebrations and a little salt mark the first year of my married life. Salt to remember that I am not getting younger, and it is not too late to work on my fitness and prioritise my health.
5. Normalising
It feels weird to recognise that living is an achievement. And it feels proud to have lived this year. We celebrated festivals of Uttarayan, Holi, Chetichand, Rakhi, Ganesh Chaturthi and Diwali with a glimmer of hope. We went around to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries of friends and families sending them cakes or gifts if in different cities. I met friends that I had not met for long: Ashish, Neil, Ninad and Ichha; and I want to meet friends I have not yet met. I normalised setting up a workstation at home. We made a Christmas tree with books. Heck, I even watched late night Euro cup football with my cats!
4. Weddings at destinations
No, not destination weddings, rather weddings of friends and family at destinations I hadn’t been. Udaipur called us in March and November, while Rajkot beckoned us in November. These might not be special at first but noting that people, including us, traveled and traveled for wedding with over 100(and sometimes 800) guests sounds crazy given the times. And miraculously, we pulled it off and so did the wedded couples. Bless them.
3. Jambughoda
This was a much needed trip as I hadn’t been anywhere alone this year. And it was over one and half year the last time I met my colleagues. A nature trip to a rural area surrounding a wildlife sanctuary with government accommodation and delicious village-style food around a bonfire sums up the trip that was more than just catching up.
2. India travels
My wife is outdoorsy preferring multiple little trips, and I like to have one carefully planned long trip in a year. Then again, life gives a limited set of opportunities to travel, so we did oblige. February saw us covering the state of Sikkim expansively, and then a couple of days at Darjeeling fulfilling my wish to travel in a heritage train! And then on our anniversary to vineyards in Nashik, concluding with a trip to the revered Shirdi.
Honourable mentions:
- We all got vaccinated against Covid! High five if you did too 🤚🏼
- I secured top rank in my company’s global heritage month quizzes.
- My wife got a cycle in the home; we did book a car, and it seems that honour is reserved for the next year.
- In a year that was filled with the news of demise all around, I lost two of my pets: the senior alpha dog Dim-dim and my beloved cat Dingi.
- Just add magic!
1. Theobroma and Catventures
How can it be that cats occupy the first honours! I am equally surprised. Gucci left her children Theo and Broma at our doorstep never to be seen again. To witness the growth of the brother and sister was nothing short of an adventure. The little paws, meows and mischief leading to purrs and them being more resident in our house than others established that they are family; even making my dad terms them as grandchildren! The other cats didn’t stop coming, even bringing their partners or children and were all fed well. It’s just that these two stayed close.
Merely making a resolution doesn’t help. I saw people struggling, which shattered my illusionary confidence; and my father-in-law and aunt too faced difficulties during their Covid hospitalisation.
Being overweight and in a pre-diabetic state of affairs, the goal to fitness is resolute. Hope that I make it free of these ills, and hope that I make it alive.
