I love you so much Dadi!

'Aashvi, come here, have your breakfast, ' called my mother.

I was deeply engrossed in my thoughts. Tomorrow is my sixteenth birthday. Party is all set. Everyone has been invited. Many relatives are coming from India as well. Nani and Nanu, my cousins, Chachu and Chachi.

'Why are Dadi & Dadu not coming Mama? '

'Dadu couldn't get his Visa, ' replied Mom.

'But Dadi can come, I will miss her so much! '

'Dadi can't leave Dadu alone, Aashvi, 'answered mom.

After having my breakfast, I was back on my desk brooding again. I have definitely inherited this habit of penning my thoughts from Dadi!

My parents named me Aashvi which means unique. True that I'm unique but so is my Dadi! I will recollect my memories of Dadi!

She has been named Aparna by her grandparents as it's another name of Goddess Durga. And my Dadi has so many qualities of our beloved Deity! Always energetic& most vocal against injustice.'Oh! Dadi I love you so much that today I'll write about you ! Just,ever loving & caring! Her grand parents were right when they thought that if children are named after Gods & Goddess, they inherit a few of their qualities!

She isn't traditional; she isn't modern. I find her wearing a traditional Sari one day & rambling along in a pair of jeans & top on the next. Her students remember her as the best & the most devoted English teacher, who could really make them learn every bit of the language in the most interesting way! I remember many of her students coming to our house & expressing their true love & gratitude for her.

Otherwise who would like to visit a teacher ever!

My father, who I admire so much, my Chachu, who I love whole heartedly, have been brought up so meticulously by her & they have all the qualities that anyone would like to see in a person. And most of all I've never observed any difference of opinion between my mother & my Dadi till today, which is quite incredible!

I hark back to the days when we used to visit India. I was always eager to sleep on her bed, hear her never ending stories where characters would be invented in the process of story telling only & all of the characters would revolve around the central character Aashvi (me). Whether it was Red Riding Hood or Goldilocks or Angry Birds, they were all my friends & I was their savior in their troubles. Can't express how much fun it was imagining that Goldilocks was in trouble & I was helping her come out of it!

I reminisce about calling her my BFF( best friend forever). When I used to hear that her visits to my parents' place were finalized, I would start making a list... I've to show her my best toys, dresses, play board games with her, talk against Nishka( my younger sister) & so forth! I used to look forward to her interesting talks about plants, birds & animals. Nishka & I would quarrel like cats to sleep close to her & voice our thoughts against each other!

I remember reading the poetry 'Grandma climbs a tree' by Ruskin Bond & Sudha Murthy's write up 'How I taught my grandmother to read'. These stories portray the extraordinary characters of Bond's & Murthy's grandmother. Well my Dadi is no less! I'll tell you how. She started learning piano at the age of 55.I remember going with her to her piano classes.And the piano teacher was less than my chachu's age! So one can easily understand who was the real teacher in this case!! But her extreme dedication & struggle with the staff notation was amazing. She would try to learn piano from me as well, that too , on video calls. And what fun it was to be Dadi's teacher! She would call me Madam & would play the piano in the same way as I instructed. Imagine my mother sending scanned copies of all my piano lessons to her as Dadi felt that pianos are taught in a better & more methodical manner in US. And now I can proudly say that Dadi did learn to play good piano! My Dadi is unique! Isn't she? I love you so much Dadi!