These past few weeks I have been travelling between choices. And a decision has finally been made. I'm quitting my current job and joining another firm. The commute is lesser, the hours are better, the pay is better. And still, I'm going to miss this place. I will have worked here for about 2 months when I leave, but it feels longer.
Those who know me well know how much my grandmother influenced me. She practically brought me up and a lot of what I think in terms of family and responsibility stems from her. Now that I am married and have a family of my own, she is a constant presence in my life, guiding me in ways I wouldn't expect.
I'm not particularly religious or ritualistic, but now I find myself quietly, sometimes even surreptitiously, carrying out the rituals she did. Lighting a lamp in front of our small selection of gods, fasting on days she considered holy, enjoying the kitchen and feeding people.
But by far, the most important lesson she taught me was that of humility and empathy. She was fond of saying, "No matter how big or small a man is, his stomach is always the same size as the next man." And true to her word, every man who came to our table was treated as well as the next, regardless of who he was in the outside world. His worries and achievements were as important as ours. Sometimes even more so. Which is why today, I find myself thinking of what she would do in my place. S, the man who has helped me clean my house once a week for the last seven months is leaving to get married and settle down. He is excited and happy, as he shows me her snap. He says his wife to be is a little fat, but that she's hard-working and that his mother likes her.
And somewhere, I know, my grandmother is grinning down at me in anticipation of a shopping trip for a new bride-to-be.
