Smell the flowers

So yesterday I think I drew one of the best sketches I have ever drawn in my whole entire life. I am giving this much emphasis because it looks so good that I can’t stop staring at it and I am just so proud of myself. Just that I look around and I can’t find my old man to give me that smile and say “Fantastic ah iruku” He has been my biggest cheerleader all my life. Never had anybody else tell me I was good at something for a long time. Except for him.

Every time I made something and I was excited that it came up well, I would run to him and show it with the same excitement a 5 year old has when they show their kindergarten drawing class sheet to their parent. Be it a drawing or something I baked or any kind of crafts I made he was the first one I would show it to. As I grew up, he did a little bit more to reward me which was to take me to the Sangeetha Baker’s Cafe and share a paneer puff with me.

Yesterday after a very long time I felt that rush in me to run to him and show my sketchbook to him. I wanted him take me to that cafe so I could have a chocolate pudding while he drank his coffee and complained that it wasn’t good. I was a neglected child, but this old man tried his best to catch up with me and bond with me. More than anyone has ever tried…What I miss the most is when we celebrate the most smallest of things like this. I do not have that many achievements to appreciate and enjoy, I sure as hell did not have amazing victories in life. What I did have is fun over the little joys of life. Not sure if I acquired this on my own or from my father. But I do not miss out on enjoying the small moments that life has to offer.
Like cradling that one drawing you knew is almost perfect like it is your first born child. Or running around the house so my cat could chase me. Or pestering a friend to make sweets and give even though we both know that its almost impossible to meet up now. Or randomly remember that a guy used to love the way I put my hair behind my ear and smile about it.I keep telling that it’s the little things that matter.

Because at the end of the day you will be left with memories of not the grand party you put up, but that one time you were covered in cake at your school when a few friends managed to sneak in a cake for your birthday. When you look at that expensive car/bike you will not remember the time you got the keys to it or buying it but the time you used to take your dad’s vehicle out and somehow managed to get a scratch on it and feared he would find it. Or the time you tried to evade the traffic police because you did not have any papers with you. Sometimes the big things just don’t even matter!

So when you walk past flowers, go and take that picture. Stop and look at the sunset once in a while. Enjoy that filter coffee when it is served hot. Clean up your inbox and reward yourself with cake for that effort. Send a random meme to your friend and say it reminded you of them. Post pictures of your pet on social media. Get that weird looking shade of nail polish and flex it. Try that recipe. Go on and do all of it. Honestly you won’t remember much about this after 10 years but some day your brain will decide to bring up this memory and it will make you smile. Just like how I am smiling through my tears now.Here’s the sketch I drew…