OMNI-IGNORANT: July 2014

“To a father growing old nothing is dearer than a daughter.” - Euripides

“Balt Van Tassel was an easy indulgent soul; he loved his daughter better even than his pipe, and, like a reasonable man and an excellent father, let her have her way in everything.” - Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

27^th July, 2013 – 6:30 a.m.

Ready to go to the doctor for Minakshi’s routine check-up. She is having minor pain but nothing alarming. The due date is on 29^th. We reach the hospital and wait for the doctor to arrive. Fifteen minutes later the doctor arrives. He suggests we have a sonography. We agree. Ten minutes later he said there is a good chance our baby is arriving today! The feeling was Wow!! Nervousness, excitement, fear, happiness and some unexplained emotions every to-be-father feels engrossed me!

27^th July, 2013 – Around 5:30 p.m.

The doctor comes and tells me that after what seems like a million saline bottles and unlimited medicines mixed in those, there won’t be a normal delivery. He explains some inexplicable complications. But the bottom line was that it had to be a Caesarean. I was annoyed that my Dad was still in train coming to Dimapur from Guwahati. And he was the only one who had first-hand experience of dealing with doctors. And everyone was going bonkers that it should not be a Caesarean and I was partly blamed for the situation as I was the one who emphasized on regular doctor check-ups. Finally after consultations over phone with Papa and Uncle, it was decided that we’ll go by whatever the doc says. Minakshi is livid on me. She doesn’t want a Caesarean. I try to make her understand but she doesn’t want to. She is crying. And I am helpless. I sign the required papers and then, they start the procedure.

27^th July, 2013 – Around 6:00 p.m.

Minakshi is taken to the operation theatre. In the reception we wait. My Dadi Maa, Aunty, Guddi, Khushboo, Sandeep Bhaiya’s mom, Sandeep Bhaiya and me. The clock just doesn’t seem to move. Time stands frozen. I don’t pray. I don’t bite my nails. I just pace around the room. It seems that the tension point cannot rise beyond this. But there were more heart-stopping and mind-numbing moments to come. At around 6:34 p.m. two nurses accompanied by the fat anesthesia guy (I still don’t know his name and my daughter should like this mysterious name ;)) come out from the operation theatre carrying a basket. There is something inside the basket wrapped in a pink blanket. We are not able to see clearly and he dashes in another room. My heart stops as there is no sound anywhere. Neither from the operation theatre nor the other room. I stand turning my head from one side to another. And then comes the climax of this magic day.

The fat anesthesia guys comes out of the room. He says, “Arre mota aase na maaiki itu bi saa naay”(Arre, I didn’t even see whether it’s a boy or a girl.) He pokes his head through the curtain again and asks the nurse, brings back his head in our room and speaks to me, “Maaiki (GIRL!)”. I don’t know how to react. I hug the fat anesthesia guy tightly. “Thank you. Thank you very much.”

All around the room the celebrations have started. Everything is blurred; but in the best way possible. I first ask the doctor whether Minakshi is ok. He says yes. And the happiness just seems to increase manifold. I remember making the first call to Jayanti as I had promised her she would be the first one to know. And the rest of it was mania, which is very hard to recall.

Her First Pic!!!

PICS IN THE HOSPITAL!!!

I don’t remember the exact time when my daughter was handed over to me. But one thing was sure. Nothing, and I mean nothing at all, had given me the happiness that I felt when I held her in my hands. Against all the predictions of astrologers, fake pundits, and so-called experts who know the gender of the child looking at the face of the pregnant mother (only one of my saalis had predicted otherwise), it had to be a girl. It had to be my girl. What magic it was to hold her in my hands. Her chubby cheeks, her big beautiful eyes wide open. Ahh. It just cannot be described. I thanked Minakshi for giving me the most beautiful gift of my life. Saline bottles were connected to her. But there was only happiness in her eyes. The greatest magical experience of human life was complete.

If I start mentioning the reactions of each and every family member on their first reaction on meeting Jhalak (My Dad had told us that her name had to start with “Jha” going by her birth time 6:29 p.m. and Panditji concurred with that and Guddi gave her the name Jhalak), this space would be very less. But the fact of the matter is that I have not seen any of my family members as happy as this ever before. Period.

And today when she turns one, she has changed the very meaning of life for her father. The person used to run from taking baths (17 days on the trot being a record ;)), has turned Monica-clean and hygienic nutcase. (Only when it comes to her case though :P)! The person who can move out at 2 a.m. at night to help a friend even after marriage, (Anshul can concur and thanks Minakshi for never stopping me!) has turned a more homely man than ever. Every single decision of my life is connected to her it seems. And I do get the nightmares thinking what if I become one of those possessively possessive dad! But again, who the hell cares for the future when the present is just so beautiful. Whatever be the problems, one smile from Bittu (host of other nicknames!) and it feels as if nothing matters. LIFE IS JUST SO BEAUTIFUL.

And the constant chatter that goes around the house when she is awake is the thing to look forward to every single day. From Dada’s Chhoniyo Moniyo, to Maa’s Jhalak Malak, to Papa’s Babudiyo, to Mummy’s Lado, to Uncle’s Bebo, to Aunty’s Jhalku, and to Bittu, Baccha and Chilly (this name because the first time she kicked was when Minakshi had Chilli Paneer and Pasta made by Jayanti: it was suggested by Mom that if it’s a boy he would be nicknamed Pasta and if it’s a girl she would be nicknamed Chilli. Another reason I was happy it wasn’t a boy :P) to her Naani, Nikhilji, Guddi, Jayanti, Rajju, Munna, Khushboo, Sonu, Divyesh, Minakshi and I, the names for my love are never-ending! But whatever the name, as I said before, nothing seems to have made the people in my family happier before. Period.

BITTU & I

And as for this nutcase possessively possessive father, I have like a gazillion pictures of me with Bittu sleeping on me with her head on my chest. Nothing in the world is half as good as these moments. If I would be offered a last wish, this is exactly the way I wanna die!!

Happy First Birthday My Baby! J J