My Mom - My EXPERT !

This post is dedicated to the only person in this world whom I trust blindly ,no questions asked .Yes , she is a an expert at everything -she is my Mom !

She was the one who taught herself to speak English and French  when she found herself in a foreign land ,even though she had only possessed a basic hindi medium education .She was the one who taught us to continuously work upon ourselves and to never give up when faced with adversities .So when her rolling pin for rolling out chapatis was left behind , she made do with an empty beer bottle (!) for rolling out her perfect chapatis .Talk of innovation !

A pure vegetarian from a rural background ,she learnt the art of baking and fine dining etiquette in order to continuously move with the times and re-invent herself , never mind a few burnt cakes initially !We ate with all gusto as to us that was straight from our super Mom's food factory and anything that came out from that factory tasted really great !

From taking care of my skin through home remedies like besan ka Ubtan and chandan facepacks to hair care with hot oil massages and reetha , amla shikakai pastes , all my initial exposure to beauty and self-care came from my expert -my Mom .To this day I too give the same lessons in hygiene and self –care to my teenaged daughter because what held good for me should hold good for her too .Isn’t it ?

Most of all my mother taught us to persevere in our endeavors , never losing sight of our goals yet to enjoy ourselves .She was a strict disciplinarian too ,so every last bit of food on the plate  had to be finished off. Not that we ever complained !

For her, all her off springs deserved the same treatment - male and females were treated alike .So my brother too had to learn basic cooking and cleaning when we girls had finished learning .This proved so handy in our later life that we never had any problems in adjusting anywhere - be it the hostel or the post marital home where I had to start my household work  from scratch .

Even today , though I am a doctor I turn to my mother for her advice when my kids have an upset stomach .Because when I was a kid she was my pediatrician and handled everything effectively  from a sore throat ( alum and warm water gargles ) to a colicky abdomen ( asafoetida packs on the belly).She has always been my pillar of strength whenever I was in doubt or trouble.

So today on  Mother's Day ,I salute my one and only expert - My Mom .

MOM ,YOU ARE THE BEST !