A few months back I
penned down thoughts on my mom and mailed it thro. Was highly appreciated.
Everybody at my home was happy, got calls from my relatives. I showed it to
Dad. He told, "already read it the day it came. Read it 4 times. It was
good". "Jee dad, thanks. Are you not curious why I didn't write about
you?", I asked. "Of course not! You love your mom the way I love my
mom, words or without words", pat came the reply. This set me thinking.
It's been 2 months
now and I still can't give enough words to what I've been thinking. There's this shloka in sanskrit: "Mata,
Pita, guru, Deivam" which sets the order of precedence. Dads come 2nd.
After much thought, I can safely say that Dads are as equally important as
moms. I remember once I went with my dad to a temple. The 'hundi' of the temple
was enormously huge, and it had an opening at the top. I wanted to see what was
inside it. Dad brushed me up in an instant and placed me on his shoulders. I
clutched the hundi cloth with my small hands and peeped in. I saw those
glittering coins and beamed at my father. My father reciprocated.
'who beat you the
most?', I asked myself. 'Dad!', came the reply from within. 'Why?', I asked
myself. 'Because he wanted you to improvise on your mistakes, be better, and be
disciplined', the reply echoed from within. Somehow, I didn't regret the times
I was beaten. Maybe I saw that he was sad from within when he beat me. Maybe I
knew that I was at the wrong side. Once Dad was very angry at me, even I vented
it all out and we didn't talk for days. Mom came to me the other day, and told
that Dad regretted having scolded you so bad. "No. . He shouldn’t be. . I
was at fault", I murmured.
Mom and Dad are like
yin and yang, like the good cop and bad cop in everyone's life. One appreciates
you, and the other pushes you forward. I asked my dad once nonchalantly,
"You simply say good. Even when I got high marks in board exams, all I got
from you was good". "There was once a son who used to make intricate
jewellery. He got praise from all places but one. His dad, a goldsmith himself,
would always point out some flaw always! One day the son asked the same
question you asked me. 'If I were to appreciate you, I'm afraid you'd grow
complacent. I want you to test your limits, break your records', his dad
replied", told my dad.
The problem is
simple. While mom's efforts are seen by their children, dad's efforts are
behind the curtains. And dads don't speak out, not sure if it's in their genes.
The other day, my friend celebrated her birthday and dad came home late. He
gave her the gift she yearned for, but she furiously retorted "I hate you
dad! Do you know all my friends waited for you? I don't need any gifts from
you. Don’t compensate!". Mom saw this and was about to reprimand her, dad
stopped her. "Beti, I'm sorry. Got stuck in work and traffic. Please
forgive me", he stood in front of his daughter with his fingers stretching
his ears. She ran to her room and slept off. "Honey, why didn't you tell
her that you searched all the shops in this city to get her this one doll she
wanted!", she asked her husband. Her husband laughed it off. Her daughter
had heard this, and she ran to her father and apologized.
Such are fathers,
one letter short of feathers. Because they play a pivotal role in your life,
career, and relationships. They are the ones who give you wings, not some
beverage company. I believe in my mom, and am confident of my dad. With these 2
persons around, I can face any problem in life. At times of play, he's one with
me; and at times of studies, he ensures that I study harder. A perfect mix of
salt and sugar, my dad. I'm not sure whether we need a day to be allotted as
"Mother's Day", but we definitely need a "Father's Day".
wonderful
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