“Na na abhi bahut choti hai isko cycle chalana mat sikhao gir jayegi” I remember Mom saying this to my Dad when I was a little girl . To this Dad would say “Gir Gir ke hi to seekhte hain na ”
Mom was very sensitive and emotional . I think all Moms are but my mom was somewhat xtra . I can’t say Dad was not emotional . He was , He still is , but he wanted his daughter to learn the skill of cycling and also many other skills .
I fell hundreds of times but he made me learn ‘kainchi art of cycling’ where you have to half pedal a bicycle . You have to get on just one pedal and balance it like that for few meters before you step on and get seated on it . This requires better balance you know and it was harder for me to learn as a child . But I tell you it was enjoyable once I could acquire that skill . It became fun for me after that . Then my mom also felt proud watching me ride a bicycle . Then she also took advantage of me and my bicycle by asking me to buy a bread or milk from the nearby market.
Journey was from bicycle to a moped to a scooter and then to car . He instilled in me the skill of driving all these . I remember the times when I was in class 11 . Early morning at the time of going for coaching classes the moped battery would often go down . Then I would call my Dad “Papa ye start nahi ho raha” He would come and give it many quick kicks to start .
I remember how patiently he taught me the skill of driving a geared scooter . Yes it’s a skill to maintain the timing between gear , clutch and accelerator for a smooth ride . He would ask me to drive and he himself would sit pillion. He would keep guiding me or even holding the scooter handle at turns or in traffic . We three( Me , Dad and our LML scooter) turned and fell down 2-3 times but after all “Gir Gir ke hi to seekhte hain na ”
Then came the turn of driving a car . I learnt driving with our first Maruti 800. Driving in reverse gear was tricky in the beginning and even trickier was to park the car or take it out from the small back garage of our house. I didn’t try much to learn that trick as Dad was always there to lean on.
One night Dad felt uneasy , some heaviness in his chest , his face turning pale . We had to take him to a doctor . With only me and Mom at home , I had to take him to a doctor . But what the hell ! I just didn’t know how to take the car out of the small garage space. He himself had to get up in that condition , he took out the car and I drove him to the hospital . The further story at the hospital is different . But I felt a desperate need to master the skill of driving even out of a congested space . After my Dad came back I practiced only one thing for many days with many times a day –that was how to handle the vehicle safely in a congested space.
Apart from the driving skills , there are many imprints on my mind how he developed many other skills and values in me . Whatever I am today it’s because of his efforts, sacrifices, support, teachings and his unlimited love. He is the greatest asset of my life , always there to support me and boost my morale whenever I feel low . He has a special kind of inspiration in his talks . Just talking to him makes the things easier.
He is a literature man and has a love of reading . He has a huge collection of different genres . He loves short stories the most and owns short story books in hindi ,punjabi and english languages . Occasionally he spends hours on a bookshop to decide just a small book for himself.
Yesterday only I went to meet him and he had just finished reading a short story. As he liked the story , he wanted to share it with me .
The story was something like that there was a girl who had a passion for classical dance kathak , was very hardworking in studies also but couldn’t achieve what she wanted in her studies and then in job too . She got frustrated in few years and committed suicide . One of her friends when sitting near her body wrapped in white ,said to her ‘What an easy path you have chosen – Suicide ? You were hardworking , then why did you choose an easy path ? You loved music and dance , then why did you choose to stop your beats at once ? Couldn’t you dance on a different taal ?
Then Dad said “See Mona (my nickname is Mona) sometimes Life puts us in very stressful situations . We are not able to accomplish something , we fall , but we should not be disheartened . We have to face the difficult situations boldly . We have to rise and work again with more determination . Falling is just teaching us to stand more firmly next time .
I said “Yes Dad , Gir Gir ke hi to seekhte hain na”
You are the best person in my life Dear Dad ! You are my strength and my confidence . You are the jewel of my life . You have given me the confidence to face the fears of life , struggle and take risks in life to achieve success . I can’t thank you enough for all you have done for me . Love you lots . You are just superb and exquisite .Wish you a very Happy Father’s Day ! God Bless you !
Raising a toast to my Dad -wishing him happiness forever #MyDaddyMyWorld
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