The Undomestic Damsel: This time last year

January 2015 

Huddled on the couch with a steaming cup of coffee, and drafting blog posts in my mind…my typical start to winter mornings.

January 2017

Manoeuvring the rolling pin on a paratha that is fast loosing its rectangular form into some kind of amoeboidal, an unfinished cup of coffee getting cold on the counter somewhere, I’m in a hurry to wind up breakfast for the household before my baby girl wakes up. Coffee is no longer a sacred ritual that I used to enjoy, it’s just a means to survive the day now. How time flies and you’re thrown head-first into a roller coaster of events you have no control over. Such is life.

There are two things you should really prepare for before time tides over. One is death before you die. The other is equally grave: culinary skills before you get married. No really. It will save you a lot of frustration, even if you’re lucky enough to get nice in-laws like I did.

People like me who fancy themselves behind a laptop rather than behind the stove, we end up with regrets. Don’t get me wrong here. It isn’t the I-wish-I-knew-how-to-cook regret. Oh no, I’m pretty glad I’ve seen happier days that were spent out of the kitchen. The only regret I have is that I wish I had served my mom the same way that I have to do other people in my life now. That would’ve been more rewarding. I wish I had served her breakfast in bed.Or gotten up earlier one fine morning to prepare the meal for everyone. That would have been a HUGE help.

So while the tea froths, the milk boils and parathas turn golden, I munch on the leftovers in the fridge. The secrets are finally unravelling– why moms never feel hungry, why they survive on leftovers and why they always have a simple toast or a fruit in hand when they join the family for breakfast. They never spend on themselves. Time and energy. That’s for others.