Lessons in craft and love...

Yesterday would have been like any other Sunday, sleeping it out till a little later, warm in the knowledge that no alarm was set on the mobile last night...... wouldn't need to rush through the regime of getting up, a quick yoga routine (to try and ensure that the heart and lungs continue to take uncomplainingly, the grind of modern living....), wakeup the little one, trying out different methods of ( coaxing, threatening, cuddling) to keep her from going limp again and closing her eyes.... in short go through the entire marathon of a working day routine.

But my little one had better plans for me. I felt a little soft palm across my cheek and sprung open my eyes. A beaming pixie face greeted me, full of the promises of a bright and sunny day... quite like the beaming sun peeping in through the half parted curtains....." Mamma craft korbo"(I want to do craft!!!)......I do a double take and trying focussing all my attention ( read eyes and ears) on the little bundle of energy who was trying to get settled on my midsection..."Craft????".. I manage to croak! My all of three years and ten months old bundle of joy nods her head confidently and says " aami butterfly korbo" (I want to make a butterfly). By this time she also had the attention of her father who sat up groggily rubbing his eyes and asked me " what did she say she wants to do ???" I rolled my eyes and again focussed on the little cherub, " Baby you want to draw a butterfly with crayons or paint??". She shook her head sending all her hair into a tizzy and educated me " naa naa Mamma, craft korbo paper diye, gum diye..... scissors diye ....". O.k O.k , now I am fully in the picture, she's in the mood to follow in the footsteps of "Uncle Neil " of "Art Attack" fame..... a program on Disney Channel which rocks with the kids.

The morning ablutions, breakfast all are a cakewalk, thanks to the child's by-now-on-fire-desire to get busy with scissors and paper and gum.

So by 10.00 am the mother-daughter duo is ready to begin the Krafty-Butterfly Program.

I ruffle through my bookrack housing old magazines and glossies to gift my daughter a peppy and ready to fly butterfly and presto, find a 2006 may edition of Filmfare Magazine full of pages with colourful ads and starlets in bright designer wear and jewelry.

I take out her drawing book, pencil, eraser, the glossy, fevistick and spread them on the bed. By now my daughter has planted herself squarely in the middle of the bed, her upper body swaying to and fro in anticipated pleasure.

We get on the job without much ado...... I draw a big butterfly taking up an entire page of her large drawing book. I ask her to choose a coloured paper from the glossy and she chooses a green and grey ad page. I teach her how to tear little pieces from the page and show her how it should be stuck on the paper. She laps it all up like some eager beaver...... Her face is a frame of happiness and concentration. She proceeds with amazing dexterity for a three and something year old.

We have been at it for the better part of an hour now. I supply her with more coloured papers " Mamma eto colour paper keno dicho " (why are you giving me so many coloured papers???) I tell her, "Beta ..... a butterfly should have many colours on its wings or it will feel sad...."

She thinks about it and asks....

"Mama aami jodi anek colours di tahle butterfly ki bolbe??"( Mamma if I give many colours to the butterfly what will it tell me??"

I ponder and say " tomay thank you bolbe beta aar khushi hoye ure chole jabe..." (It will thank you and fly off happy...)

She looked at me with round happy eyes and said " Satti mamma"( Is it the truth Mamma?)

I shake my head in the affirmative and hold out my arms.....she jumps into them, I hug her little body close and thank her silently, for giving me this wonderful and priceless lesson in the Craft of Love....