The Joys of Ammahood!
A compulsive worrier I am...just like my Amma and my Amma's Amma..my Ammuma..! It started from day One...why is she so red? Why is she so tiny? Will the jaundice subside? Will it matter too much to her reaching her milestones, because she is a pre-term child? A few months more, the worry remained, the questions altered...it became things like "Should we try formula milk? Will she like it? Can I step out to the parlor to do my bushy looking eyebrows? Will her father be able to handle her? Is Ragi too heavy for her little tummy to digest? A year down and queries like these sprung up, "Why hasn't she started walking? Is it ok for a baby her age to babble as much as she does? The better half has become sort of immune to these seriously very inane questions. He simply nods and continues to say to this day and age, "She is fine. Stop worrying".
Yet the worry never leaves. A week ago the questions ranged from ,"What could have brought that skin infection? Will that bruise heal quickly? Should we ensure that she wears her sandals every time she steps out into the garden? My Amma has grown accustomed to these woe-filled phone calls of mine, she has other things that worries her....all them connected to her kids...me being one of them! I had earlier noticed that my elder sisters also share this rather contagious quality of worrying. I also realized through twitter and Facebook updates of other friends who also spoke out on their Worries related to their kids and understood that any "Amma=Worrier"! And many a times that compulsive Worrier may turn into a Warrior soon enough if the worry factor supersedes all thought and even constricts the common sense.
The point of this blog being that I have learnt to accept the fact that I am a serial Worrier, it is ingrained within me. Of course the intensity of it has reduced over time as I learn to accept the fact that my daughter will bruise when she falls. But even as she maneuvers a tricky corner of our home with her leading her toy turtle, I make an effort to check that leap of fright that flows from my gut to my mouth. I push it right back and whisper an "Oh be careful darling!". So trust you me, I still worry. So all the Ammas out there, the DNA of an Amma inherently carries the worry gene and instinctively resides within everyone one of us special species...the trick is to understand when to stop and let MOTHER nature (mother being the operative word!!) take its course and when to intervene...how you may ask do you know when to intervene and when to let go...Don't ask me..I am still learning and growing accustomed to the joys and perils of Ammahood!!:D
Yet the worry never leaves. A week ago the questions ranged from ,"What could have brought that skin infection? Will that bruise heal quickly? Should we ensure that she wears her sandals every time she steps out into the garden? My Amma has grown accustomed to these woe-filled phone calls of mine, she has other things that worries her....all them connected to her kids...me being one of them! I had earlier noticed that my elder sisters also share this rather contagious quality of worrying. I also realized through twitter and Facebook updates of other friends who also spoke out on their Worries related to their kids and understood that any "Amma=Worrier"! And many a times that compulsive Worrier may turn into a Warrior soon enough if the worry factor supersedes all thought and even constricts the common sense.
The point of this blog being that I have learnt to accept the fact that I am a serial Worrier, it is ingrained within me. Of course the intensity of it has reduced over time as I learn to accept the fact that my daughter will bruise when she falls. But even as she maneuvers a tricky corner of our home with her leading her toy turtle, I make an effort to check that leap of fright that flows from my gut to my mouth. I push it right back and whisper an "Oh be careful darling!". So trust you me, I still worry. So all the Ammas out there, the DNA of an Amma inherently carries the worry gene and instinctively resides within everyone one of us special species...the trick is to understand when to stop and let MOTHER nature (mother being the operative word!!) take its course and when to intervene...how you may ask do you know when to intervene and when to let go...Don't ask me..I am still learning and growing accustomed to the joys and perils of Ammahood!!:D
oh yes..i understand this completely...and i thought i was the only serial worrier around!
ReplyDeleteHey Harshikaa,
DeleteThanks for your comment...I reckon all of us Serial Amma Worriers-Warriors are all around:)