Offerings to Time on A Steel Plate…!

Write a letter to your 100-year-old self.

Hey…

I hope all of you are doing well…!

Running a bit behind my schedule as it’s almost 8;

Technically 7:59 as I am writing this…

I had to wake up early as there is a puja 🙏🏻 (A prayer)

That we do each year on the Tuesday that comes after Holi festival;

Preferably the next week of Holi;

But I’ll confirm this and come back to update it after making this post after asking the adults that are still in our home…!

(Update here-> )

Well the context is that we pray to a goddess named,

Sheetala (शीतला माता)

An incarnation of goddess Durga,

Who protects us,

Well technically all of her worshippers from infectious diseases like pox and its forms…

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For which every year we make food before the midnight strikes and eat that food throughout the day making it a day old and the same is offered to goddess Sheetala…!

We wake up before sunrise and in a plate we keep what we made,

The same are mentioned in the image 👇

Puri filled with potato(A veggie version of your standard empanada…)

Gulgulay( literally donut holes but without a consistent shape as they are hand dropped into hot oil…)

Sweet roti( A standard Indian flatbread that is sweet…)

And wrapped in the newspaper is turmeric and chana daal( split Bengal gram…)

And Bengal gram you see in the plate were used as an offering to the goddess; a handful of which were left overnight to soak in water…!

And a crisp 20 rupees note that you see which we will put in the temple donation box…!

Walking right into our prompt

A letter to my 100 year old self…!

Remember all of these traditions that we carry;

And have been carrying for generations that have moreover been morphed according to accessibility…!

These traditions make us who we are,

Without them we are just nameless,

Clueless being whose days are just stringed together without any change,

You work,

Come home to sleep and then repeat…!

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Make an effort to talk to your friends,

Try to do something with them every once in a while and keep them in your good books and be in good books with them…!

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I hope we found a life partner that tolerates us and the deep thinking and over analysis that we do…!

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I’ll be spending more time noting down things that I like and both of us love to do—

I know that’s what we both want,

Also I know there would have been times when it would be great to keep our phones in our pocket after noting the bullets that we write and continue them later…!

Because if you’re not present with those who are around you,

You didn’t live your life…!

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I know we still have a habit of taking morning walks maybe on the rooftop of our house or maybe with a pet that we have,

Because I know we have a pet at home…!

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I hope we do occasionally go on night outs on the weekends and drink tea stopping at random thela(a tea stand);

And we have conversation about life and it’s happening with people that we love and travel with…!

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Something very important,

I hope our kids and their lives are taken care of and not left hanging in the middle just like ours—

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And I hope—

I sincerely hope you remember the infinite sacrifices that our parents went through and you do remember dad’s laughter and our mom’s smile including both the sad and happy moments that we spent both in our old and new home…!

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And,

If you’re alive at the time of reading this one,

(Which I really hope you are…)

Look around you and tell me if the people those who surround you—

Are they really happy for you to be there or they’re there just to mooch off of you…?

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Also,

I hope we are still writing,

It might not be much because with age comes a lot of forgetfulness,

and some of our posts might sound repeated to the readers …!

But continuing something for almost three fourth of our lifetime would classify as some sort of special event…!

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Well,

I hope the entire world is cheering for us,

As we make another post—

And even if they aren’t;

I know each one of them is special to us;

Both of us…!

Cheers 🥂

Love Waakiye 🤍