I look at the clock. It is fifteen past six in the evening. I close my laptop, fold my spectacles and arrange my work papers in a neat pile. It has been a long day. The lines between my life and work have started to blur. I am thrown into work as soon as I get up. I miss my commute, don't you?
I go out of my room looking for my family. Slowly collecting them for dinner is something of a ritual now. I look forward to my dinner time, time with my family. My wife is in the gym. I peep in, she sees me in the mirror from the treadmill and signals with all her ten fingers. I smile, nod and blow her a kiss. These past few weeks, our marriage has been more honest, truthful and kinder.
I walk towards my son's room. I knock on his door. He is back from his university and is in the final few months of graduating with a Master's degree in science. No response. I peep into the room. Save for the light from his computer, it is all dark. I see him with a gaming console in his hand and headphones around. He is laughing and talking to the voice in the ether. I tap on his head. He turns around smiling. The smile dims a bit as soon as he sees me, he asks the other person to hold, mutes his mic and says he will be out in a few minutes. Almost at the end of a session he says. A couple of years of ago, he would not have responded at all, choosing to ignore me with a cold glance. Now it is not so bad.
I look for my younger one, my baby. She has always been close to my heart. She is still coming into her own, but her heart is strong. She is in the library. She is looking specifically for any first editions I may have. This is not a side of her that I know. I climb the ladder, grab my cherished copy of "Catcher in the Rye". She thanks me and lays down on the chair, arranges herself around my study table and put a pencil behind her ear. She hands me her phone and has me take a few pictures in various positions of reading. I am confused but oblige her. She looks through them, and picks one to go on Instagram. #mydadismyphotographer #firstedition #library #lightreading. I pull her towards the dining room. She is asking me if I will dance with her for a video...
We take whatever wins we can. Cherish what time we have. We are all in this together, and together we will be strong!
I go out of my room looking for my family. Slowly collecting them for dinner is something of a ritual now. I look forward to my dinner time, time with my family. My wife is in the gym. I peep in, she sees me in the mirror from the treadmill and signals with all her ten fingers. I smile, nod and blow her a kiss. These past few weeks, our marriage has been more honest, truthful and kinder.
I walk towards my son's room. I knock on his door. He is back from his university and is in the final few months of graduating with a Master's degree in science. No response. I peep into the room. Save for the light from his computer, it is all dark. I see him with a gaming console in his hand and headphones around. He is laughing and talking to the voice in the ether. I tap on his head. He turns around smiling. The smile dims a bit as soon as he sees me, he asks the other person to hold, mutes his mic and says he will be out in a few minutes. Almost at the end of a session he says. A couple of years of ago, he would not have responded at all, choosing to ignore me with a cold glance. Now it is not so bad.
I look for my younger one, my baby. She has always been close to my heart. She is still coming into her own, but her heart is strong. She is in the library. She is looking specifically for any first editions I may have. This is not a side of her that I know. I climb the ladder, grab my cherished copy of "Catcher in the Rye". She thanks me and lays down on the chair, arranges herself around my study table and put a pencil behind her ear. She hands me her phone and has me take a few pictures in various positions of reading. I am confused but oblige her. She looks through them, and picks one to go on Instagram. #mydadismyphotographer #firstedition #library #lightreading. I pull her towards the dining room. She is asking me if I will dance with her for a video...
We take whatever wins we can. Cherish what time we have. We are all in this together, and together we will be strong!
