Daughter in disguise

For a lady who has spent most of her time in the company of men…let me clarify…as a child and a girl until about 16-17 years of age growing up with a brother who was more than a twin and a cousin brother who led the way for all mischief…in college having good, well-meaning boy friends (friends who were boys)…at work colleagues most of who were men…in my own family surrounded by my own two sons and 6 nephews…my yearning for daughters and female company only increased. Of course, I have two nieces. One of them is still too small (literally and figuratively). The other one…the post is about her!!!

She shares my month of birth and I am glad she is a Leo. But just the opposite of me. For my 100 words, she speaks hardly 10!!! For my speed of speech, she would lose to a snail. For the loud person that I am, she is such a simple, quiet, sensitive darling. Yes. Darling, she is! The only common trait of a Leo that she shares with me is the laughter - we both laugh at such high decibels that any glass would break. I love those moments.

I met her when she was hardly 4! My then “would-be” introduced her to me. She was his sister’s daughter. I was hardly 19. I fell in love with this chubby doll. When she spoke to me first, I was 27 or 28. It took her almost 10 years to even strike a one-word conversation with me. I used to play with her, watch movies, hang around chatting (mind you, only I would be talking…she would either laugh aloud, smile or shed a tear depending on what my stories are).  I saw her blossom from a child to an young school-going girl to a smart engineering graduate to an ambitious career woman and today she is at the threshold of the most important phase of a woman’s life. Yes. She is getting married in the next few months.

Having done her schooling predominantly in a so-called English Medium school way up in the Northern part of India, I have always wondered at her command on the English language. One of those few people who defy all laws to prove that it is students that make a school and not the other way around always. I am proud of her.

In the recent few years, she has really understood what a working woman has to go through balancing and juggling family and work. She has matured into a responsible person capable of making assertive decisions. Most importantly, she stood like a rock against so many odds to get the man of her choice! I like her values.

Many times I have wished she would have been a lot better had she invested more on her health. Many times I have wished she would pick up a few hobbies and excel in each of those. Many times I have wished she would socialize more, shedding her inhibitions to speak up. But for these, she is a perfect daughter a woman can have. What if I do not have a daughter that I haven’t delivered? I have Rintu…she is my foster-daughter!