I know that the word “baking” has a lot of different interpretations. I mean baking as in the cooking in the oven baking.
Today I tried waking up early but the weather outside was so cold! I did not want to leave the comfort of my warm blanket. The cold floor was a nightmare quite literally. I kept snuggling until I realized that I was awake and did not have any sleep left in me.
I definitely had huge plans for today. I went into the kitchen cleaned up the table to make space for my baking stuff. Once that was done, out came the eggs, sugar, flour, baking tins and the other ingredients. The first cake of the the day was a traditional plum cake. I had to keep taking breaks in the process due to my shoulder injury but I made it. It went into the oven to bake.
Meanwhile, when my nephews came over we set out to make a simple chocolate cake. Because according to them it is cake only when it is chocolate!
The plum cake came out okay – a 8 out of 10. The chocolate cake probably needed a little more time – a 6 out of 10. Regardless, I am happy that I could atleast make them this year.
The medicines are working. I may not be out of pain but it is getting better. I am able to stand for longer and do things that I used to. Little steps but little steps are moving me forward.
Thank you Jesus! For teaching me to find happiness in the small things of life.
I am a calculated impulsive buyer. I do not know if that makes sense.
Name the most expensive personal item you’ve ever purchased (not your home or car).
It’s just that when I really want to buy something especially if the item in question is on the higher end of my usual spending bracket I take my time.
The “take my time” statement does not make sense when I call my self impulsive. Self Contradictory. To put things into perspective, the desire to buy is impulsive. As soon as I see something I like I want to buy it! The only thing that restricts me is my need for financial stability.
I end up saving for the item first. I take my time and restrict my expenses to the come up with the money to buy it. Sometimes by the time I save the money the item is out of the market and I loose the chance to buy it. However, on the other hand there are few items that I did end up buying.
My largest spends till date are: my Samsung Flip phone, my iPad and my Sony Camera. These may not be “pricey” according to some peoples standards but with my education expenses buying even these were a challenge.
Totally worth the wait and worth the cost! I think the wait to buy it made the actual purchase even more special!
Growing up is never fun. I guess it’s worse when circumstances push you towards it.
Being the younger child I am the family baby. My parents protected me all through my life and my sister always went above and beyond to shield me from every pain.
Life had a different path set for me. When I was 14, I saw my mother fall sick. I saw her working through her pain and exhaustion to provide for her children. And then, I saw her body fail her. She forced herself to get up and pretend everything was okay but I somehow I realized that she was hiding the truth.
I remember walking into the hospital with her when she finally could not push herself any longer. I remember her on the hospital bed talking and explaining her issues to the doctor. After that, it was like a switch. She slowly started fading. It like her mind finally was exhausted holding on and then she started getting worse. My sister and father were unable to be with us at that time. So I sat at the side of my mamma’s bed, alone, seeing her struggling to breathe. Every time she woke up she told me she is okay but I could see her fading away, I could see the color of her skin change, I could see her slowly loose her appetite, I could see her fighting to stay alive.
My mother thought that I was small and that I did not understand anything but I remember every update the doctors gave. I realized the possibility that I could loose my mother. I used to cry when I showered so that no one would know that I was crying. I did not want my mamma to worry about me. I could see that she was in pain and there was nothing I could do to get her out of it.
I realized that seeing her in pain was far worse than the pain of loosing her. I tried to grow up to be stronger. When my sister and father were able to join us I sought to be the person they could rely on. I held my sister when she broke down crying in worry and told her that we need to be strong for mamma. When my father put his hands around my shoulder I told him that we were a family and that together we can face anything. In those moments I knew I could not be the person that is been taken care of rather I needed to be the person who took care of others. I took it upon me to stir conversations away from the gloom and glum. I know that the worry will always be there in the back of their mind but for those few minutes I wanted them to remember the happiness.
By a miracle, I got my mother back and lets be clear there have been many close calls after. But today, I am not fearful, I am determined to be the wall to fall back on. There is no circumstance that my family would have to face alone. I will be the courage they need to continue.
To all the Children who grew up to soon, I may have been hell but you got through it. Your courage and determination is beyond comprehension. I hope that you get to have days in your life to relive the innocence of a child.
Work life balance is something I am just starting to learn.
When I got my first job I was so unsure. Being an average student all my life, I was worried of being average again. Till it was school it was okay I could write the exam again, but failing in job would be failing in life.
Every time I stepped into my workplace I was 100% committed to giving it my best. However, somewhere along the way I gave up on living my life. My life could be summarized as work and sleep. I thought that being good at my job would give me the respect in need in the society. Slowly I realized I had disconnected from my friends and my family.
It was when my family was in a crisis that I realized that my family was more important to me. The society never will matter. I want my life to be filled with wonderful memories with the ones I love. I am learning to disconnect from work and spending time with my family. Even if its just sitting and talking with them.
I am getting better at it. Balancing my time between my family and work. Being a 100% present for my family. I think in this post COVID world everyone is learning what are their priorities. People want people and work can always get done.
This prompt is something you really need to think about. My instant thought when I think of sacrifice is all the things that I had to give up in life. When I had to walk past a toy that I really wanted because it was too costly. When I had to give away my gifts because my cousins had lesser. When I had to give up my dream degree because my parents didn’t want to be alone.
But now that I have taken a minute, they were never sacrifices. They were choices that I had to make with age. After you grow up these childhood “sacrifices” you realize were just things that you had to let go. It was about choosing between two things. I was not giving up anything for anybody.
Sacrifice is when my parents gave up on pursuing their education to save up for my future education. They gave up their health because check ups “costly” or “not required”. The real reason was they wanted to provide for the family even if it meant that they become sicker. Even when they were tired and exhausted just one whine from me and they would carry me in their arms.
Sacrifice is what my sister did. When we were children, she always gave the bigger piece of the chocolate she loved. She is immensely talented. However, when there was a school program she never gave her name because my parents could not afford paying for us both. She didn’t pursue her career dream because that meant that I could not afford to have a dream.
But the biggest sacrifice of all is what Jesus did for me. We do not like when we get punishment when we do something wrong. He was punished when he did nothing wrong. He took that punishment without a word of protest so I could be guilt free. He gave His life for me so I could have life. When sins closed my way to God He broke down the walls to pull me closer.
Sacrifices are those that can never be paid back. All I can hope is be worthy of the sacrifices made for me. Maybe one day when I does come to me I also am willing to sacrifice for the people I love.
When we are self focused we seldom realize that there are people in this world who have walked the same path. What seems so difficult to us right now someone has already overcome it.
My Parents It is very irritating when they start with the line “When we were young…”. However, whenever I am stuck in a decision my parents are my first source of advice. I may not always follow their advice but their perspective teaches me a different thought process than I could imagine. There are times when I choose not to trouble my parents and make my own decisions. My parents keep watching me closely making sure they are there next to me the instant I need them. They never want me to fall, but they want to be there every time I need support to get back up.
My Sister Some would find it odd why I chose to mention my sister separately. But she deserves the specific mention. She may not be very old to me but she has taken care of me at every stage. If it was up to her she would tie me up with a mattress and cushion so that nothing can harm me. “To harm her you need to cross over my dead body” – seems like a very cliché line in movies. My sister doesn’t need to say it, cause with her every action she shows it. She goes to the extent of saving me from myself. She doesn’t sugar coat her advice. If may not always like it but I know she says things out of love. I may not understand it an the very moment but eventually it all makes sense
My Mentors At different stages of my life I meet with different people who guide me. Whether it be in school, college or at work. Each and every one of them have taught me something new. The most astonishing part of the whole thing is that they do so with so much humility. They know so much but yet they come down to my level to help me understand things. I admire those who can impart knowledge with such impact.
My Friends I admire all my friends. I think I become friends with people because I am fascinated by their moral character. Some them are epitome of patience, some are so selfless, some of them are so self driven and motivated. All characteristics I seem to lack in. I turn to them for advice when sometimes I just want another perspective.
Without a doubt Christmas is my most favorite holiday of the year and also the most waited!
We may have a million different problems in our life that weigh us down. But when Christmas comes around we forget about all that pain and hurt that the year brought us. We come together as a family and enjoy every minute of the joy we share together.
We bake cake and cookies. Often ending with baking fails of raw cake and burnt cookies. We decorate the Christmas tree and our home. Often spending more time in debating how the decoration should look like rather than actually getting the decoration done.
But the best of all we spend hours talking and listening to each other. And just like that you get the strength to fight for one more year.
I need time for a lot of things. I think we as humans always feel that we are running short of time.
I think it mostly comes out of the fact that I procrastinate a lot. I keep putting off things with the idea that I have time. And when the deadline actually comes by, I have not completed the task and then I keeping wishing for more time.
I wish I had more time on vacations. I wish I could travel to all the places I wanted to see rather than remove things from my itinerary. I wish I had more time to appreciate each place that I could visit.
There are other things for which I wish I had more time. I wish I had more time with my grandparents. I wish they were there with me at an age that I could the love in their actions. I wish I had more time to understand them better.
So Yes, if there was time to spare I would surely want it.
In the first instance of listening the question I would say when I buy new stationary. I get extremely excited when I place an order for a new marker or sticker. The joy of opening that package when it arrives is almost like opening a gift to myself.
However, if I were to think about it for a while about when am I genuinely happy I would have a different answer. I am the most happy when I can stand aside in the background and see the people I love be happy.
I am trying to be better person. The people that I love: my family and my friends they have given me a lot. When I was weak they have supported me in the ways possible by them. I won’t lie they have given a share of hurt but the joy they give is totally worth it.
I love seeing them smile and enjoy life. I wish I could remove all the horrible memories in their life. I know that it is not possible. However, I do hope to give them to enough happy memories that they forget the pain of the horrible ones. I think then I would the happiest i have ever been in my life.
Share a lesson you wish you had learned earlier in life.
All through my childhood I have heard this “Money can’t buy happiness”. When it comes to my parents and sister it definitely holds true. We did not have a rich lifestyle. We had no luxury travels or spa vacations. However, I had the most amazing childhood filled with happiness and the most craziest of memories.
As the years have gone by, my parents have gotten older. I have seen how the so called “relations” have changed the way they treat my parents. Till my parents helped them financial they were respected as elders in the house. Now that they are retired and confined to their small lives they cannot afford to spend much on others. I have seen my parents give up on their desires to make others happy. They limited their happiness to that of their family.
Now that I have grown up I want to at least try to give them some of their desires. To achieve that, I need to make money. Where money needs to to be spent it needs to be spent. And sometimes money can buy happiness. I want to take them on an trip maybe a cruise. It may not be something that they want but I want them to experience the “Luxuries” of life. I want them to have food in a fancy restaurant. I may not be able to remove the pain in their life. However, I want to give them some happy memories. They shouldn’t have to worry about the price tag associated with it.
Word Hues 