Goodnight world

The fiery ball of blazing yellow,

Has gradually turned mild and mellow.

Retreating slowly in the ocean blue,

Coloring the sky with an orange hue.

 

Gently putting out its fire,

Its raging dreams and worldly desire.

It quietly sinks without a sound,

And then there's darkness all around.....

Strengthen Math concepts using playing cards.

Playing cards are a great way to spend time and have fun. My daughter loves to play cards. She was introduced to card playing by my father in law, who used to play a simple matching game with her when she was about 3.

It was like this:

·        The cards were equally divided among the players and kept in stacks with their face down.

·        The players took turns in drawing a card at the top of their own stack and placed it at the centre.

·        You keep drawing cards in turns and piling them at the centre till a matching card comes up.

·        If your card matches the one at the top of the central pile; you can keep the entire pile.

·        E.g. If you put a diamond on a diamond that is already at the top of the pile; the pile is yours.

One day, she told me that she was bored of this game and wanted to play something new. So I tried to invent an age-appropriate game for her.

While racking my brains, I discovered that many mathematical concepts can be introduced and strengthened using playing cards.

These are some of the games we played together and which have helped her understand some concepts thoroughly after they were introduced at school.  

1.    Sequencing:

     Oh, this is just simply solitaire.

·        Place all the aces in a line.  

·        Shuffle the rest of the cards well and stack them.

·        Keep drawing cards one at a time till you get the next number in the sequence.

My daughter soon understood that number 3 follows number 2 and so on.

2.    Before and after:

This is actually a traditional game called “Badam Satti”. It is a slightly complicated version of the sequencing game. Of course I had initially kept it simple.

It’s like this:

·        You place all the sevens in a line.

·        Then, distribute the cards equally among the players and start sequencing on both sides of 7 i.e. before and after.

3.    Greater than/less than:

·        Keep the pile of cards at the centre.

·        Both the players draw one card each.

·        The person who draws a card with a bigger number is allowed to keep both the cards.

4.    Addition:

·        Draw one card each.

·        The person who draws the bigger number gets a turn to add numbers on both the cards.

5.    Subtraction:

·        This is similar to the addition game above with a slight difference.

·        The person with the smaller card subtracts his number from the other bigger card.

6.    Odd/even (level 1):

·        Draw a card and tell whether it’s odd or even.

7.    Odd/even (level 2):

·        Draw one card each.

·        Add them up and tell whether the sum is odd or even.

You can add your own fun elements to the games and even invent your own games.

Happy playing J

Time Please!

“Summer vacations! Yay! What fun!!”

I kept repeating this to myself while going through my “things to do” list.

It’s so important to keep the children busy in the holidays to keep boredom at bay. In addition, they should have enriching experiences that develop their personalities and help them in the future.

As a parent I consider it my duty to engage my children in fruitful activities in the vacations.

Summer activity camp in the morning, swimming lessons in the afternoon, robotics classes twice a week in the evening for the older one and drawing classes for the younger one.

Plus, weekend outings for the whole month…….A visit to the zoo, one to the science center, one to the museum, one or two movies and finally a day of fun at the amusement park. Not only that, we also had our annual outstation trip booked.

I had also invested time in convincing some of their friends to join us on those day trips and summer camps.

 I am really pleased with myself.

“You are doing a good job, super mom.” I tell myself, already exhausted with all the planning.

I went to my children’s room and called for their attention. “We are going to have a really exciting summer vacation” I said enthusiastically.

They stopped their pillow fight and eyed me with suspicion.

Ignoring their looks I read out my list to them.

As soon as I had finished my son unexpectedly said, “I wish we had school in summer. At least I have some time free to play and do what I want.”

I was stunned!....As if I had been smacked right in the face.

And then I realized that he was right. I was really going overboard with my planning.

They actually had no free time!!

True, there was no school for more than a month. But I was trying to rob them of their VACATION....A period of time devoted to pleasure, rest, or relaxation.

In my enthusiasm, I had forgotten what vacations are meant for. After a whole year of following structure and routine, that’s the period when children are supposed to let their hair down and unwind.

How could I forget, that it was I who was complaining all year round that there is so much work during school days that I hardly have time to sit and chat with my kids. I rarely get time for fun and nonsense.

How many conversations do I have with them without having things like “growth and development” at the back of my mind?

I decided that I had to reform myself.

I had to cut down on a few activities. How about going for just 2 day trips instead of four? We could save the other 2 for the next vacation. After all there are many more vacations to come.

No. I will not go to the other extreme of doing away with all the activities. That would be disastrous! Having the kids in my hair all day long for a whole month would make me go berserk.

I also have my sanity to think of.

But right now I am determined to take it a bit easy….Spend some time with the kids without glancing at the clock to see whether it’s time for the next activity.

Somehow I am feeling a little lighter...more relaxed and definitely a little more happier as I take this decision.

 I hope I manage to strike a balance. I step out of the room with these new thoughts of reform when suddenly I am attacked from behind with a pillow.

I turn around again.

 “Heeeyaaa!!!”

 I let out a shrill war cry and tumble on the bed to join the kids in their pillow fight :)

Dip, dip, dip, my blue ship....

I can swim!

Not kidding! I swear I can!
In fact, I can even say at the cost of sounding immodest that I was a really good swimmer when I was younger.
I had often been complimented for my graceful diving and powerful swimming.

And how I love water sports!
I was overflowing with this love for water and all kinds of water sports on my visit to Bali (Indonesia). I wanted to do everything that they had to offer.
But on popular demand (kids') I settled for jet skiing.
I had done that before on one of my trips to Goa and had enjoyed it. So I did not particularly mind, though I would have liked to do something a shade more adventurous.

So, Jet-skiing it was!
We divided ourselves into two teams to balance the weight.
You see, the sum of my weight and my son's weight at that time was almost equal to the sum of my husband's weight and my daughter's weight.
Let me put it in a mathematical form. Its easier to understand.

(Me + son) = (Husband+ daughter)

Getting it?
(It's very important to understand everything; though in this case I can't really explain how it matters.)

We put on our life jackets. Even me! In spite of being the good swimmer that I am!
They said it was necessary.
Bah!
What rubbish!
Swimmers like me don't need life jackets to save themselves. We swim with strong, powerful strokes and stay gracefully afloat.

But the owners of the jet ski would not listen and I had to comply. But I made my displeasure known in no uncertain terms.

There were going to be three of us on the jet ski.
 A gawky 18 year old, Paul, was going to take us for a spin in the ocean. Well, I was definitely grateful for that. For I had discovered ages ago that anything that runs on a motor does not obey my commands.

But I was in for a surprise when my twelve year old son declared that he wanted to drive that contraption. I was a bit apprehensive and asked Paul whether it was safe for children to drive. He said breezily, "No problem! It's easy." And then he went ahead to show my son which buttons to press in order to start, accelerate and stop. 
Looked simple enough. So I allowed my son to take charge.

We sat on the ski. My son in front, me at the back and that kid, Paul,  in between. He had the ignition key tied to his wrist with some kind of nylon wire that looked somewhat like a telephone wire but was much thinner. 
He started the ignition. And before I knew it the ski had started! 
I was not holding on to anything and I can still remember that electrifying moment of enlightenment when I got  true insight of Newton's first law of motion! 
I wanted to jump up shouting, "Eureka!"

But unfortunately I could not because I was still at rest while the ski was set into motion. And all I knew was that I had to save my skin from getting soaked. So in a split second I hugged the boy tight almost pulling him off the ski along with me.
Thankfully he had a good presence of mind and quick reflexes and he immediately grabbed the handle bars of the ski.

Meanwhile my son had picked up a good speed and we were happily bouncing off the crests of the waves.
For all I knew of this sport, jet skis were not supposed to behave in this particular fashion.
I panicked and started screaming. But the boys seemed to be enjoying every bit of it.

And then!.....My little man decided that he wanted to turn!
He did a sharp left turn. 
And all I can remember after that was that I was flying in the air one moment and gulping in salt water the next.
But in a few seconds I surfaced, and to my relief I saw my son swimming towards me with the other kid just behind him. But the ski was nowhere in sight!
I looked around and saw that it was more than a kilometre away! (Of course I am exaggerating.)

But yes, it was a good distance away from us and we were going to have to swim towards it. 
We set off....... and to my horror I realised that I was not able to move ahead! 
I called upon all my strength and skills but to no avail. The boys had almost reached while I was still at the same spot.

To hell with grace and technique, I thought and clumsily doggy-paddled towards the jet ski. Down went all my grace......sinking right to the bottom of the sea :(

Meanwhile the boys had managed to straighten the ski as I continued my slow progress in that direction. My son had already boarded it by the time I reached, and Paul was waiting in the water to help me get on board.

I got another shock when I could not pull myself out of water!
The young kid made an attempt to help by trying to push me on the ski!

Ridiculous!

"Get on that thing and pull me up, you idiot!" I snapped at him.
 And there ..........deep down......I could see my manners sinking and lying right next to my grace.

Eventually I too boarded the ski, soaked to the bone and shocked to the core of my existence.

You will not imagine how blessed I felt when we touched the shore.....
I wanted to kiss the sand!
Believe me, the beach had never looked more beautiful!

After a long time.....

Good lord!

Where have I been all these months?

I have not written since July!

Nothing to write about ......nothing to report ......nothing to smile at!
All this inspite of the fact that a lot has been really happening.

Too much in fact!

Not in the physical world, in case you start imagining that I have been doing 'xyz' and 'abc' and 'lmn' all at once. But on the mental plane. Everyday has been a constant struggle. Fighting uncertainties and fears and taking hard decisions which destiny with one flick of her fingers can easily change.

Adversity suits some writers. They become more eloquent. I have realized that I am a writer of good times. I can see comic situations in regular day to day events. I cannot write when I am mentally not at peace.
Well, I guess, that explains my long silence.

The reason behind it, I suppose, is my continual denial of the unpleasant. Things have to be pleasant or else they do not exist. Often I try to wish unpleasant things away instead of facing them boldly.
I am a coward, aren't I?
But I have never made any tall claims of being brave.
Yes, I look at the world through rose-tinted glasses and I want my bed to be made up
of roses. If there are thorns, I try to wish them away.
Not very wise, I agree. But effective most of the times.

But there are times when certain things can't be just wished away. I have been going through those times. I need to do something about it. But I don't know what to do.
It only adds to the burden of appearing fine in front of the world.

No!
I don't need advice and I am not even asking for it. Not because I think that I can handle everything on my own. I am far from that. But it's because, no one can see my perspective from where they are standing. You have to stand in my shoes first to see my point of view. And it's not only that!
You also have to feel the way I do! What is important to me might be quite trivial to you.
It's just a question of perception.

Aah! Perception!
It comes to my rescue every time.

Why do I have to see 10 questions where others can see only two?
And why do I have to feel everything so deeply when I can easily shrug my shoulders indifferently and say..."whatever"?

Thinking on paper is much better than thinking in the mind :)
Writing does give structure to thought.
So, now I have a list of structured questions in place a bunch of unstructured thoughts.
I hope that helps.

All I can try to do now is perceive things differently.
Who knows, they might not be as difficult as they seem right now.

Car(ried) away

Two years ago, we had a very smooth routine in the mornings. I admit, the rest of the day was always crazy.... But the mornings were smooth apart from the regular shouting and the mad rush to step out of the house on time.

It was like this....
-Prepare breakfast and set it on the table.
-Prepare lunch.
-Stuff it in everyones' tiffin boxes.
-Push the elder one out of the bed and shove him out of the house with his school bag so that he catches his school bus.
-Wake up the husband.
-Get dressed for work.
-Wake up the younger one and get her ready for school.
-Sit in car with husband and little one.
-Drop little one to school.
-Get dropped to work.
-Husband drives away to office.

Perfect! Isn't it?
Well, it was a perfect day as usual, when chaos reigned supreme and the brain was working overtime listing out the things to do throughout the day.

After winning the first battle of dispatching my son off to school on time, we sat in the car, ready to deposit our daughter to her school.

The little lane outside the school gate was jammed with vehicles, as usual.
Cars and scooters of various shapes were trying to find a way to escape. Weeping toddlers, annoyed drivers and distraught mothers completed the scenario.
Yes! All was fine in the world.

Suddenly, we found ourselves face to face with another car coming from the opposite direction. With vehicles parked on both sides of the road, there was only enough space for one car to pass. And the situation was similar to that in the story of two goats on a bridge. Unfortunately, there wasn't even space to back off. There were 2 or 3 cars lined up behind on both the sides!

I decided to walk to the school gate with my daughter instead of waiting for the jam to clear.
My husband agreed that it was a wise thing to do. And I got off leaving him to figure out how to get out of the mess.
If only the car had wings!
But wishes are not horses .......and cars cannot fly...

I handed over my little one to her teacher and returned to the place where our car was stuck.
Oh God!! It was still there. We were going to need a crane to lift it out of here. Never mind, someone will have the sense to back off and ease the jam.
I hastily opened the door and jumped in. The seat cover felt a bit strange.
So what?
It has every right to feel strange!
But what was little teddy bear doing .........dangling ridiculously from the rear view mirror?

I turned to my husband to criticize his taste in teddy bears...........and ..............my eyes nearly popped out!

Well, I admit I have prayed often enough that my husband would change for the better, but never in my life had I imagined that he would change altogether!!!!!

I stared incredulously at him wondering how this had happened when I was brought back to my senses by a series of rude honks.

There! How typically like him to disturb me when I was trying to solve an interesting mystery!
But what was he doing over there....in another car?

Goodness gracious!
I was sitting in the wrong car, was I?
I quickly muttered sorry and almost fell down in my hurry to get out of the car. The man was too shocked for words. I ran towards our car and clambered inside, not even looking at my husband.

Then mustering courage, I tried to explain, " That car looks just like ours, doesn't it?"
"It's not even the same model" he replied.

Oops!

We reached my destination in total silence.
I got out of the car and shut the door... Too softly.....
I opened it once again and shut it more firmly this time. Then looked in through the window to say goodbye.
There was a strange smile on my husband's face.

"For a moment I thought, my dream had come true."  he said with a wink and zipped away......

Happy Valentine's Day

I do not want the sun,

It is too bright.

I'd rather have the moon,

And it's gentle light.

And a fistful of stars,

What do you say?

And I can be,

Your valentine today.

 Let's watch the sunset,

 By the sea.

And have dinner on the terrace...

Just you and me!

A glass of wine,

And a long stemmed rose.

It will be so sweet,

If you could get me those.

At half past eight?

Yes, I'll be there.

Just remember to bring my....

Solitaire ;)