Mommy Knows It All !!

It was May 01, 2017! Summer vacations had just begun. The one year long desire and anticipation to go to ‘mayka’ (mother’s place) was soon going to be fulfilled! Moreover this time, for the first time I and my 2 year old son were travelling by ourselves. The thrill, excitement and the profound happiness of visiting mom’s place and spending a short vacation of twelve days there, far surpassed the most probable challenges and adventures that I would soon encounter travelling with a naughty two year old toddler.

My son was equally excited as me. We bid a bye to my husband who had come to drop us at the airport and as we were exchanging ‘take care and miss you’ glances with each other, my little son already headed way through the entrance and gave me a naughty look from inside as if to say ‘Catch me, Catch me’!

I knew for sure, in this 90 minutes of wait plus 90 minutes of journey, my son would keep me on my toes. I beckoned the guard to go catch my son as I slid through the entrance with my heavy bag. The guard got him to me. After having thanked the guard profusely, I requested him to scare and warn my son not to leave mom’s hand and run around.

The guard took it sportively, went on a full-on acting mode and looking into my son’s eyes, said with a coarse threatening voice, ‘If you leave your mom’s hand and run, I will lock you in a jail’.

My son nodded his head in obedience, as I smilingly thanked the guard again.

After check-in, we headed to the waiting area. I fed my son with the stuffs I had carried for him and we started playing few games that we often play. After some time, he asked, ‘Mumma, can I play there with my car (pointing towards an empty space right in front of me.)

I nodded my head in agreement but warned, ‘But, you shall not run here and there. Just sit there on a seat and play. Mumma is watching you’.

‘Ok mumma’, he said in that usual sweet tone of his which melts my heart always.

I was constantly watching him playing happily all by himself. After a few minutes, I thought it was safe enough to flip through the pages of a book that I had carried. I took the book out, still with my eyes fixed on my son, ran my fingers across the bookmark, opened the book and started reading.

It had hardly been few minutes. I was checking my son after every paragraph. Probably the next para went a little long or my son was very fast. When I lifted my head up to see him, he was not there!

Panicked, I started looking around and calling out his name.

‘Am here mumma’, a baby voice called out. I looked in its direction to find him near the entrance of the gents’ washroom. As I was hurriedly walking towards him, he gave me the naughty ‘Catch-me-if-you-can’ look again and ran straight inside the washroom.

Having no option, I followed him at my highest speed, caught him and got him out. I hung my head down in embarrassment and walked speedily towards a seat. I didn’t know how to react. Was I to scold my son, hit him or tell him nicely? I chose to remain silent. He was silent too, knowing he had really annoyed mumma.

We soon boarded our flight. I made my son feel comfortable and within a while we took off. The initial few minute were fine, but suddenly my son started crying. He began with sobbing and the intensity went on soaring high and he was crying in his loudest volume.

The super dignified people around me were more than eager to pour out their precious pieces of free advices.

‘He must be hungry. Haven’t you fed him?’ quipped an elderly lady in a typical mil-tone. She offered a packet of biscuits too.

‘May be his ears are hurting’, said an elderly man.

Some just kept on giving annoying long ‘Can’t-you-handle-your-toddler’ stares.

Meanwhile, as I was making every effort to pacify my son, giving him toys and showing him pictures, my tired brain scanned through the probable reasons for his crying.

Hunger? No, he was not hungry, I had just fed him at the waiting area.

Ear pain? No, I had plugged his ears already with cotton plugs.

Pee/Poop? No, I had made him do all that during the waiting time.

Sleep? Oh yeah! Possibly!! I had woken him up way earlier than his usual waking up time. He was tired by all his ‘make-mumma-run’ activities too. I took him out from his seat to my lap, kept patting his back holding him very close to me and started humming his favourite hymn ignoring what people around would think or say.

As though it was a magic, he stopped crying immediately and in not less than two minutes went off to sleep. I kissed him gently on his forehead and sunk back to my seat with a sigh of relief. Mumma knows it all little boy, I whispered looking at him.

Looking out through the window, as we soared high over the clouds, mountains, rivers and valleys, I was chewing the cud of the past few moments at the airport and the flight. My son disobeyed me, annoyed me and embarrassed me, but honestly at that moment I was not at all upset at him, Because I loved him more than anything. I know what makes him smile, what makes him cry- because ‘Mummas know it all’.

I was wondering, God has millions and millions toddlers (we are no less than stubborn, naughty and disobedient toddlers at times) to handle. We annoy him, disobey his commandments, and embarrass him through our thoughts, words and deeds- sometimes knowingly, sometimes unknowingly. But He simply doesn’t seem to be upset at us, Because He loves us more than anything or anyone!

The word of God says in Psalm 139: 1-3, ‘O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways!’

My heart overwhelmed even as I was, for the nth time reassured of the fact that, our good Lord loves us unconditionally irrespective of our mistakes and follies, pasts and struggles, looks and status, health and wealth, caste, creed or nationality. He knows what is good for us and what is bad. He knows what makes each one of us smile, what makes us cry- because He knows it all !!!