Lockdown With 2 Little Angels..

Bangalore is my karma bhoomi (the land of karma). Despite 4+ years of stay, I am still in the mode of trying to settle down. Another perspective to look at it is luckily I do have few first cousins (brother & sister), friends for life in Bangalore who have made this stay bearable. And so the news of my sister expecting babies and that too twins was music to my ears. We were all eagerly prepping to welcome the angels but unfortunately this global pandemic corona virus came up in March. Not just us but also our relatives back home in Calcutta were quite worried about the care required for the mother and newborn kids. Each time my sister visited hospital for regular check-ups, I eagerly waited for a call anticipating an operation for the following day. At times, I even begged her to deliver the kids as the wait was proving too much to endure.

Good news wasn't far away. Delivery date was finally set for 27th May (same as mine except month). I took that day off to ensure that I'm one of the first recipients of this good news and then trickle it down to my family. Luckily the hospital was at walking distance for us as we didn't prefer commuting via public transport. My sister was tensed for obvious reasons but we kept trying to cheer her mood by indulging in some face time. My mother waited downstairs while I stayed close to my brother-in-law (BIL). Although the hospital staff did try to send me downstairs but cleverly I stayed upstairs near the OT. It almost took three hours before the doctor broke the good news to us. 'Mr. Siddharth, you are blessed with two little beautiful daughters' - those words brought about a sudden rush of emotions last experienced 4 years back with the birth of my little heart - Krishu. Happily crying I called my Mausi (mother's sister) and shared the delightful news. Within few seconds, first glimpses of the newborn angels were shared back home and series of phone calls started. My mother who is highly inclined towards Lord Krishna's devotion quickly termed it as birth of Lalita and Vishakha (gopis or friends of Lord Krishna) who would accompany her on her trips to Vrindavan. Being the only relative from maternal side, naturally I was receiving numerous calls for face time and latest pictures of the adorable angels. It was now time for me to act pricey although I was equally scared of taking them in my arms. Nothing can beat the feeling of taking new born babies in your arms.

2 days later we welcomed the angels back home. With limited resources at our disposal due to lock down, we tried decorating the house with balloons, ribbons and messages. Later when my little angels look back at their welcome video, I hope they like it and feel our love. For the first time, I now had the opportunity to experience something unique - seeing a daily growth of babies. Luckily it was a weekend and there was nothing else to do other than adoring my angels. It is strictly known to my family that I cannot withstand foul smell so I won't help in changing clothes and diapers. Except that I am always available (hmm except midnight as I prefer a peaceful sleep). Initial few days was a struggle for everyone as we were trying to come up to terms of their sleeping patterns and feed timings. Sleeping & feeding were the only things they did the whole day. It was so refreshing to watch them sleep carefree and relaxed with their open arms. It's a sight to behold of.

This lock down has been a blessing in disguise for me as I am now working from home beside my little angels. I actually don't feel the urge to go out anymore as I have two angles to play with. Fondly, we call them badki and chutki (elder and younger one respectively) despite just three seconds separating them. Further, my sister and BIL are more attracted towards badki while I and mumma are lured by chutki. Jokingly, I tell them I would even go ahead and register myself as a single parent of chutki and then avail some paternity leave as well. Initially, while others had a hard time distinguishing between them we had our own little tricks like badki has more hair on her forehead; chutki has a shrill voice which can awake anyone etc. My first question to Mumma every morning was how well did the angels sleep. Did they cry a lot last night? A negative answer was a sigh of relief to ears and heart and vice versa. It was a mandatory routine to take them into arms before opening my shop (logging in). Even the smallest of breaks, power breakdown and internet connectivity time-outs were all dedicated to my angels. I would look forward to the opportunity of making them sleep in arms, bed. In short, I was always at the service of my angels.

Slowly, the scare of taking them into arms has vanished away with self-confidence of making them sleep and awakening them. Mumma has in fact grown in such confidence that she once called my sister-in-law in Bangalore and said I'm now ready and all prepped to take care of your future kids as well. They have quickly turned into our heartbeat. Even the smallest cry from them would make myself and BIL quickly rush to see what's wrong with them. I still get scared seeing them have continuous hiccups although I am given to understand that it is good for their growth. One day with shifting work in place, I had to work from a different location away from kids for hours. Upon returning home, I immediately rushed towards them quickly sanitizing my hands. Feeling of being away from them for so long made me sad and I quickly asked my mother - How will I stay away from them once we go back our home? Recently we also celebrated their first month on Mother Earth by decorating the house with balloons, ribbon and a home-made cake by Mumma under the strict supervision of my sisters (in Calcutta also). It was great to see them cut their first cake in the arms of their parents.

For me their presence and warmth is a feeling I cannot describe in words. Seeing a smile on their face, their red chubby cheeks and little fingers are nothing less than a dream for me. I eagerly await the closure of these social distancing norms so that I can take them out in garden, swimming pools and play with them all day long. In fact, I talk to them about plans of a world tour with just 3 of us, them visiting Vrindavan with Mumma leaving behind their parents to only a weekend gateway near Bangalore. Perhaps these angels will make my stay in Banglore easier and try to replace my saying in previous blog (click on blog) - 'sab kuch yahin hai, yahin hai, par kuch kami hai'..