the brat pack...

there are some things that are replaceable in life, and then there are a some that are simply not. the funny thing is that most often than not amidst the storehouse of life's things, there is no clear way to determine which one is which.

anyways, in more concrete thoughts, last night as i lay in bed alternating my gaze between the pictures on the wall and my Ba (maternal grandmother), it just struck me that time is such a fleeting thing. it only seemed like yesterday when as kids we cousins used to run around the house in Camp (my Ba's house). a bunch of howling, screeching, up-to-no-good team of indefatigable brats, that's what we were

Palak di having lived in US all her life, and the new American kiddy trio of Sachika, Saahil and Sashrik are not accounted for in this bratiness although they manage to hold their own just fine.

it was only yesterday that Ba taught me how to keep time in Gujarati on the grandfather clock in the living room and differentiate between dodh (half past one) and aadhi (half past two) after innumerable attempts, threats and cajoling. it was only yesterday that Ruju didi marshaled her troop of brats and led them up the hill into the ruins of the old castle (that in reality was this old abandoned building on top of a mound of dug up earth). it was only yesterday that Anu didi bullied me into doing whatever she wanted to while playing. only yesterday that we ran to Ba every time we heard the Cotton Candy man's bicycle. only yesterday that there was so much...and today?

well today, Ruju didi is married with a kid (my dearest little Dodo Rushku), Anu didi is getting married this December, Rhythm is studying and applying for her masters in Dental in the US, i am still a student in Baroda, Mithila is on her way to becoming a doctor and Noella is almost done with her schooling in Mauritius. wow! where did time fly?

in the old brat-pack, everyone is either getting married and settling down or busy making their careers. and now today is the onset of a new generation of tiny monsters led by Rushika. there is so much that i look forward to from them. an entire new world of mischievousness is waiting to to discovered.

all this makes me feel old. and i miss the good ol' days. and I'm sure that if there is anyone who feels the passage of time as strongly, then it is my granny. she has seen it all.

but the bottom line is that maybe there is a new bunch of kids in the family with a license to make trouble and create chaos, but they still have a long way to go before they even come anywhere close to us!

:)