Day 63: Happy 11.02.2011!

Turned 18 today and I haven't changed a bit.


The day started with a kiss from my darling Priya, followed by a wake-up call from my wonderful varlets. Next came cards, gifts, and hugs from Nani, Mama, and Papa -- along with phone calls to Nanaji and Dadi. Nanaji had sent me a very sweet e-card, and Dadi had mailed me a card made by the students at Gyaan Ghar.

I spent the next few hours alternating between reading (Shakespeare's Sonnet 63 is a depressing poem about aging), cleaning (my jewelry drawer is now about 100 pounds lighter), and responding to birthday messages (thank you so much to each and every one of you who make my days so full of love).

Mama and I also flipped through an album from when I was less than a year old.


In the afternoon, Papa and I went to school to watch Priya's volleyball game -- go Flint Hill! The team played beautifully and earned a majestic win.

This evening, we enjoyed a cozy family dinner at Maggiano's. Many people there were celebrating their birthday today, and our talk was rife with "baby Ratna" stories, as well as tales from The Parents' recent trip to Bolivia and Peru.


Back at home, the family surprised me with one of Papa's signature beautiful birthday cakes. A huge photo session ensued, with the reasonably adequate Laura taking photographs with her superlative camera.


Having tucked in the rest of the family (not before helping Priya rehearse the speech she will be giving in school tomorrow), Laura and I now look forward to watching the Little Mermaid -- the Disney movie we both are proud to call our childhood favorite.


Thanks to all of you, our lovely planet, and God for a memorable day.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bygones -- by Marina Keegan

Image
I had a dream the other night that I was checking my email. That dream sucks. And woke to woes of seniors writing love songs for tomorrow and Tomorrow and the melodies That flirt us forward, whispering the next thing and the next thing and  – so we beat on birds flocking south until we circle round and realize maybe maybe all that running wasn’t worth it. Maybe we should build a cabin. Or teach high school. Or use our hands. My palms are smooth as words – Weak with fashion and double spaces. I want everyone else’s club and job and class The grass I sleep in always browner than Than that around erasing dreams To sit and breathe because you Only bank for two years then it's over And twenty two is nothing new It’s just another chance to build For when we’re twenty three And twenty four And time begins to sell for more than Any 9 a.m. to never. We’re not stuck. That's the thing, we're not stuck. We owe no o
Read more

Din 227: “God took his time making you.”

Image
I awoke this morning to the sound of my students -- what could be better? We started today’s class with 15 minutes of Anapana (the first step of Vipassana meditation), which is designed to concentrate the mind. I have never seen meditators more still or focused than these children! After teaching them the technique, I told them we would be starting every class like this from now on. Meditation is a wonderful tool they can take with them wherever they go, and they are lucky to be starting at such a young age! As the class broke into groups and started practicing numbers for our upcoming Variety Show, I caught up with a few students. Vandna, a sophomore and our oldest student, was supposed to pick her academic stream (cf. major) a few weeks ago, but had been waiting for my return to consult me before making her final decision. She is most interested in commerce and dreams of holding a high position at a bank one day, but her family is advising her to take liberal arts, which has le
Read more

PSYCHED for summer!

Image
The last few days have been emotional with packing and moving and no more exams and lots more goodbyes. Wednesday night we threw a fabulous surprise farewell party for a very oblivious Reylon, with many of his closest friends and entrywaymates turning out to shower him with love, song, and pizza. Yesterday came my last exam of the year, a truly tragic event -- I stayed in my Latin classroom until the very last possible moment, twiddling my thumbs and staring at my professor and trying to draw out my freshman year as long as possible. I cried when I turned in my test and left the room. In the evening, the Opportunes had our last private gig of the season at the Faculty Club (throwback to our first gig this year!), where our beautiful seniors performed their last public rendering of "Midnight Train to Georgia" amidst laughs from the audience and tears from Bernie. After a night of packing and snacking and New Girl , I fell asleep hoping to stay in
Read more