Creating the Golu

Golu is traditionally celebrated for nine days, but for many like me the world over, preparations begin many weeks in advance. My trip to Leicester to find more Golu bommai did not end too well and we returned almost as soon as we reached there. So the hunt began locally and after gathering quite a few new dolls for this year, we went about buying other little gifts that made the Golu very special. I started off with a small list of invitees for my Golu, but its grown over 4 times and there were over a dozen families over the Navarathri period. Aditi enjoyed the most I think, decked up in Indian dress and lots of bangles. The little girl is hooked on to fancy bangles now.

I spent the weekends looking for return gifts, found some lovely paper bags to put them in, bought some dry fruits to be put in the tamboolam bag instead of sundal(sundal was to be eaten at home). My neighbour and friend D volunteered to help me arrange the Golu as Prashanth was working nights that weekend. We had a great time - typical girly chats, late night teas and plenty of snacks, giggling away and once managing to wake Aditi up in the process. We started at about 9:30 and finished by 11:45 at night. I had sort of arranged the steps with cardboard boxes and books and D provided feedback, rearranged some of them until both of us were fully satified with the result. Two heads were definitely better than one. Earlier in the week, I had washed and ironed 2 of Prashanth's white veshtis to spread over the golu padis. The steps were just long enough that the border of the veshtis formed a red and green border on either side of the padis. Then began the fun part of actually arranging the dolls on the steps. D & I again rearranged them until we were extremely happy, discarding some away. We had another round of snacks and some photo sessions later and D left. I proceeded to clean up the place, stack the boxes that contained the dolls away, put some lights on and finally went to bed by 2 am.

Last year, I kept the Golu in the study, because I was scared Aditi would pull all the toys down. This year I took a bit of risk and set it up downstairs in our kitchen diner which overlooked the garden and was much bigger than the study. I had told Aditi that night I would be keeping the Golu with D aunty and that she should not touch it, but can see the Golu. I least expected her to remember it. The next morning my little girl wakes up, gives a big smile when she sees that I'm still in bed lying next to her and then tells me - "Amma, u keep Golu, I not touch it, I see it". I was surprised to say the least. The little girl has been so sweet with looking after the Golu, wearing Indian clothes, matching bindis and bangles and being a girly girl really. She does ask for a toy from the Golu, mostly from the park or from the zoo , plays with it for a bit and returns it back to its original position. She's also been extremely happy to hand out the tamboolam bags and take one for herself each time. Thankfully she only wants empty bags, so thats fine by me.

Sunday was Saraswati Pooja, we placed some of our books including Aditi's in front of the Golu and then went over to do the Ayudha pooja. Aditi was super excited to put chandan/kumkum on her bicycle and mine, we then did a little pooja for the car and soon left for an Indian Dasara meet - lunch and fun at a huge community hall. Aditi had total fun playing with balloons and we returned around 7PM exhausted, but happy. On monday morning after a little Vijayadasami pooja and making Aditi read a few lines from her books, we have officially completed the Navarathri. One doll was put to rest at night and I packed off the dolls and sent them to the attic until next year.

Golu 2009

Its been a busy weekend with visitors flowing in and out. Here are some pictures from this year's Golu. Write up will follow shortly.

Aditi's first reaction when she saw the Golu on Saturday morning.

All decked up here to invite guests...

For last year's Golu go here and here.

The bicycle

Remember the times when you would rent a bicycle for an hour for a rupee and beg your parents to help you out on the road?I have had many of them when I was about nine years old. We then moved to Chennai, where my cousin and I would still rent bicycles from the local shop and have fun on the roads. All this stopped when my cousin was gifted a BSA champ bicycle with stabilizers. This became our pride and joy and a ride on this bike was almost always the first thing we did every morning before leaving for school. When I was 12 and my cosuin was 11, we had our own bicycles - a Hercules and a Hero to take to school regularly. For Aditi, the bicycle interest started early on. Every evening over the last month or so, she would be seen sitting on a little bicycle with stabilizers when I went to pick her up in the nursery. There are about half a dozen kids in our estate, who own bikes and go for joy-rides in the evenings. Aditi would normally ask for lollipop, but whenever she saw one of these bicycles, she would stop and stare at them and ask for one. It would go something like - 'Amma, Where is my bicycle?' Thoughts of my own childhood flashed from time to time and we decided to get her one. Two weeks back on the sunday, when Prashanth was at work, I took her to the local bike shop. she was excited to say the least. She got onto a little pink bicycle with stabilizers - a test one and started riding it all over the shop floor. We tried another little yellow and pink one. I explained to her that we could not take one home that day as we did not bring the car. The next evening when Prashanth came to pick us up, we went straight to the bike shop. Aditi rode the little bicycyle again to impress her dad and we brought home a yellow and pink one, fitted with stabilizers. She's got a little red helmet and wears it proudly before every biking session. Her two friends aged six and nine come knocking on our door, if we do not take her out for her bike rides every evening. Overall it has been fun so far, to watch my little princess ride carefully on the road outside our house. It helps that we live in a cul-de-sac inside an estate, for there's hardly any traffic in the evenings. Yesterday, I met a lady with her little daughter, who's moved recently into Sheffield and lives in our estate. Aditi was on her bike riding spree and the lady asked me if I had skipped the tricycle stage. I was astonished - it made me question myself - Should I have bought Aditi a tricycle before moving her onto a bicycle? I know she's ridden or tried to ride a tricycle in her nursery. I ahve seen her on it when she was younger. But what I have seen and learnt is children never RIDE a tricycle. They just move it with their legs on the floor for a long time and by the time they learn to pedal, have almost outgrown the tricycle. The bicyle makes it easier to pedal and the stabilizers do provide the support. The only drawback I can think of is that it can only be used outdoors. Given that we live in an estate that's closed to public traffic, it was easier for me to make the choice. I hope Aditi does not demand pictures of her on a tricycle when she grows up!

Bindis and the litle lady

I love bindis. I wear them everyday - mostly the marron coloured shingar stick bindi, sometimes the small round sticker ones and occasionally fancy bindis. I love them so much that my mother never fails to pack a set of fancy sticker ones each time I leave from Chennai. I am not so fond of earrings or bangles, but bindis - they are a must for me. It seems when I was around 2 years old, I'd allow my dad to leave for work, only if he took me to the shop nearby and bought me a packet of the sticker ones everyday, and then I would proceed to stick them all over my face.
My not so little girl loves them - much more than I do. And one day she ransacked my precious belongings. She wants to wear a new one from a newer packet every day.
Every morning, after her shower, she would wait patiently for me to dress her up and then open my dressing drawer, pick a new bindi and stick it on her face. And when it did not settle in right, she would ask me to put it 'properly' for her. By the time I picked her up from the nursery in the evening, they would no longer be on her face and she would have binned them during the day. I watched with agony as my lovely collection of the red stickers diminished. I was thinking of probably hiding my collection and only leaving a few for her, but I knew that would not work. She would 'demand' for the new packets.
Thankfully, as with all things at her age, the interest only lasted a short while and now, she no longer wants them. Occassionally, she wants the one on my face, but since mine is usually done with the shingar stick, it cant be removed and stuck on hers! One another reason to have(or not have) a daughter..