My weekly Slice of Life are my letters to my Doddamma. She is my father’s elder brother’s wife. Doddamma literally means ‘elder mother’. She is 88 years old. She cannot hear properly if I telephone to talk to her. So, I have been writing letters to her since October 2017. I enjoy writing letters and she is happy to read them. They are only about the everyday moments in my life. I post my letters to her every week.
17-11-19
We went to our village yesterday to spend a day with my father-in-law. He is 94 now. When I look at him now I remember how active and energetic he was in his daily life. We change so much as we grow older. He is able to do his daily activities but finds it difficult to connect with people and places. But he loves to listen to music. We returned home in the evening. I think we all pray that we should be physically and mentally active till the end.
So many thoughts about life now and about the future keep coming to mind when I watch the different birds flying about. It is such a pleasure to watch them. We forget all that is happening in the outside world. In the front yard we have three flowering plants, Mandara has cream colour flowers and lambana dark yellow ones. There is a jasmine creeper ( Jaaji mallige)intertwined among the two bushes. We have not trimmed them because we think the Bulbuls have their nest there. The flowers look beautiful. I am not sure what they are called in English 😊.
A Book club friend and her husband are not keep well, they have health problems. This month we are not meeting. I think we will meet only in January now.
My father had worked in Indian railways. He was getting a pension, after he passed away my mother is getting a certain amount every month. Every November she has to go to the bank and to sign a document to show that she is still living 😊. Today morning we went to the bank. My mother likes to talk to people. While waiting I heard her happily talking to another lady. I had prepared for lunch before leaving.
On the 16th afternoon we were surprised to hear thunders. We kept hearing them for quite some time. It was very sunny with not a black cloud in sight. But the thunders kept rolling on. It drizzled for a few minutes. It felt strange listening to the thunders.
We have been going regularly for our evening walks. One evening we went to the park near our temple. We had not been there for quite some time. We saw children returning from school. School life seems like a dream, mine or that of our children 😊. And on the way to EndPoint, we see students playing football and others frisbee. It is good to see this.
And in this way life is going on.
There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots, the other, wings. – Goethe
Mukhamani 
Comments are welcome :)