apaa

"She had prepared eighteen to twenty nice hand stitched dresses, all in time for you.

When she was admitted in the hospital she instructed the nurse to get you to her in the best of the little dresses.

We had a brand new ambassador, not my own,... given by a friend of ours to facilitate taking her to the hospital 

and to bring you back safely..

And from then on you've always been in a car

basically you were born on a silver plate 

and we've been taking you around on a golden plate..

So that's the story till now

....now you're a rascal

so that's that...."

Apaa paused then for a bit, I could imagine him looking outside at the water, little crinkles by the sides of his eyes, 

even more crinkly now, since he was thinking of that other time.

"...... I remember all the dresses mummy had made, about eighteen to twenty of them

basically to cover your body

so they could move easily over your head, with the back open

all the best of cotton

so there would be no rashes

you were such a cute little girl

we had given the name even before you were born

and now you don't want to talk to either mummy or me."

He laughed his gentle, rumbly laugh. And I smiled, here so far away in Mumbai. 

With apaa still on the line, I looked at the cityscape around me distractedly, and slowed down a bit, 

....it wasn't familiar all over again. goddamit.