Abhay goes swimming ............again!

I cant help the dejavu feeling, when it comes to Abhay’s ‘swimming class’ phobia! After years of prodding (Gosh! I make it sound like he’s over 30 years old…but it does feel like forever!)….he now enjoys himself in the swimming pool… provided it is minus the perceived rigours of a swimming class and instructions of a swim coach!!!! So the minute there’s talk about enrolling him into summer swimming classes, he goes from from an acquaphile to an acquaphobic……from a fish in water to a fish out of water!!! It’s probably his sixth swimming class in three years……..with a forced hiatus last year owing to non-access to swimming pool along with certain logistics issues (which we promptly justified as not wanting to push our then six year old into something he doesn’t want to join!). To be fair, he does get more comfortable during the course of a three week class. So much so that towards the end, he acts as if he was born to swim (our very own Ripley’s Believe it or not)! But once there’s a gap …… it all goes back to square one! Well… one cant have first time jitters forever…can one??

We’ve read many books on swimming and fear thereof, it seemed quite pointless to down that tide again….but a random Google search yielded a link of a hilarious book that simply deserved a mention on Onestoryaday! “Clem Always could” by Sarah Watts is a wonderful book on guiding your little one to try out new things, even if it seems scary the first time! Little Clem could do a lot of things – make bat-ball out of anything as he always loved sport, could dress himself as he always had style, could jump, run faster than waves, do a puzzle, make friend and so on so forth. But if there was one thing that Clem couldn’t get himself to do was swimming. So when his mom took him to the swimming pool, Clem just wasn’t keen. None of mom’s usual strategies like reasoning out, bribery, pleading, physical force, seemed to work. So Clem’s mom let Clem do what Abhay’s mom finds it hard to do – just sit by, watch and leave! :-) At home, as Clem goes about his usual routine of finishing up his drink or using the toilet, mom tried to explain to Clem that he in fact had to learn to do many such things…to which Clem shot back saying that he always knew how to drink or use the toilet! Mom persists on and reminds Clem of the time he had to learn to brush or bathe or write but Clem feels that he could always do those things. Pointing out how Clem is to learn many new things as he grows up, mom takes him to the swimming pool the following week. But Clem is adamant and thinks of  everything from invisible sharks and crocodiles to laughing bystanders to prevent him from getting into the pool! Finally Clem meets his friend Grace who jumps into the swimming pool without a fuss when Clem is emboldened to follow suit. What happens thereafter is something I’m hoping to see happen with Abhay too!! Once Clem's in………….it feels like he always could!! A great book to help your little one cope with the first-time jitters …..every time!!:-)

Winners never quit!

Over the last weekend, we had Abhay participate in a music/singing competition at the instance of his music teacher. Organized by the Swananda Balaganapathi Temple Trust, this was an annual event for children of all ages to display their talents in the field of art, music and dance. Well, we had no idea that such a Trust or such an event even existed until we landed there on a quiet Sunday afternoon for the singing contest. Had we known about the painting/colouring contest held earlier that morning, we would have spent our entire Sunday at the contest venue (According to my husband, ignorance is bliss!) Anyway, we drove to Kuchalambal Marriage hall in Jayanagar (the venue) and found over a hundred kids waiting along with their parents to register for the contest!  So there we were waiting in line at the Class I & II category (as Abhay is in class II), only to be let in to the performance room just when it was Abhay’s turn to sing, as if it were auditions for Indian Idol junior! :-) If I was feeling guilty for being what I call an over-enthusiastic parent, I could take heart as there were a whole lot of them, and what’s more, they were worse off! More than the participants, parents seemed edgy and restless. Despite being given a token number, it was the parents who thronged the entrance thereby blocking the other participants whose turn it actually was! We almost missed ours as we couldn’t hear the organizer call out “No.11”!  Anyway, Abhay was allowed in with one parent and he did sing his bhajan on Lord Ganesha well, though I felt he could have been a little louder. Once he was done, Abhay felt good about singing to a group of unknown people with fairly appreciative smiles! Well, the results came out the next day by mail and Abhay didn't make the final cut. I admit, I was a bit disappointed as I have always believed Abhay to be a good singer. That said, it was indeed a great start for Abhay who had never participated in any event like this before. It may sound like sour grapes, but I guess there are times when it doesn’t matter whether your little one has won or lost, as winning is not everything and the sooner we parents acknowledge the same, it is better for them! 

Abhay was a tad disappointed that he didn’t win any prizes at the competition but soon forgot about it as he got on with his other activities for the day. Hoping he wouldn’t be discouraged by this, I looked up the internet for some books that may inspire him to keep at it. Of course, if there was an American public library in the vicinity, all I had to do was a catalogue search and place a request. For people who do not have ready access to all American publications, it’s Youtube to the rescue! Ideally I would have loved to read ‘Song of middle C” by Alison Mcghee, a story about a little girl’s piano recital not going as expected, but I couldn’t find an online version of the same. But I found a digital link for nice little book titled “Winners never quit” by Mia Hamm.  Mia loved basketball and baseball, but most of all, she loved to play soccer with her brother and sister. She was thrilled when people cheered as she scored a goal but when there was no goal, there was no cheering. On one occasion, when she couldn’t score a goal, she feels dejected and decides to quit soccer altogether earning the title of “quitter” amongst her siblings. When everyone continues to play without her, Mia can’t resist joining in when her brother is skeptical of taking in players who cant learn to lose. But finally when Mia gets chosen to play and kicks the ball right into the goalie’s hands, everyone expects her quit. Mia who hates losing, realizes that she doesn’t hate losing as much as she loves playing. Mia continues to kick the ball hard and whether she did score a goal or she did not, she was playing which was more important than winning or losing!  So Abhay...dont worry about winning or losing as long as you continue what you love and enjoy doing! A wonderful book to teach your little one about courage and sportsmanship!

Say cheese.....!

Yesterday was Abhay’s class photo-op at school and I couldn’t help but get nostalgic about our class photos back when we were in school! Standing on a four level set up assembled with our class benches and desks, we were a giggly bunch of girls posing for a photo every year and every time I happen to catch a glimpse of any of my class photos, they never fail to bring back memories of those carefree days! Class photos that appear frozen in time are an important facet of a student life as they foster a sense of belongingness and loyalty towards one's Alma Mater. So despite a mild fever and cold, Abhay was sent to school nevertheless as we don’t want him to wonder whyhe  wasn’t  in his Class I photo when someone uploads the same on Facebook twenty years later!

So today I looked up the youtube version of “Say Cheese”, part of the Charlie and Lola series by Lauren Child, since the library book had already been taken, as always…just when you need it! Lola is excited about getting her first school photo taken. But Charlie is skeptical about whether Lola could remain  a whole day without getting dirt on her shirt, or hair all tousled or shoes muddy like she did for other vacation photos. But Lola seems determined to prove her brother wrong and tries to demonstrate that she too can stay tidy and clean for the school photo and say cheese! So Lola she may wear her best outfit for the D-day, but cant resist splashing the innumerable puddles on the way to school and finger painting all over her dress, and finally her brother figures out a way to make her picture a special one despite all the mess and that saves the day! So here’s hoping Abhay put on his best smile when it was time for him to say cheese! When asked if he did  ….Abhay replied that no one in India says "cheese"! J

Farewell to Geetha-atte......

Over the last weekend we bade farewell to our beloved aunt Geetha, my father-in-law’s sister who was ailing for quite some time now. Geetha-atte as she was fondly called, was a sixty year special child with an amazing zest for life. With a mind of a five year old, Geetha-atte charmed everyone with her free-wheeling spirit, including Abhay who was extremely fond of her. Geetha-atte was in may ways Abhay's nanny rocking him  to sleep when he was an infant, an in-house play-mate, a peer to pretend play, boss over and and rival with - all rolled into one!  As she breathed her last on Sunday, I was quite anxious as to how Abhay would take the sight of everyone grieving over her death. But Abhay seemed quite composed as he watched his beloved Geetha-atte’s  body being taken away for cremation. He had one question though, “Which God will Geetha-atte go to – Vishnu, Shiva or Hanuman?”

 

Geetha-atte during healthier and happier times!

Since Abhay is a little too young to witness death on such close quarters, I was looking for some books on bereavement and landed this link of a famous book that reassures children that no matter what they will always be loved. "No matter what" by Debi Gliori  is a story of a young child named Small who is feeling grim and grumpy that no one loves him at all. Then Large, a character representative of a parent assures him that grim or not, no matter what, he will always be loved. Small then asks what he is a grizzly bear, or turns into a bug or becomes a crocodile, would he still be loved to which Large answers in the affirmative. Finally Small wonders aloud “What about when we’re dead and gone…would you still love me then, does love go on?” Large takes him to the window and asks him to gaze at the night sky full of bright and shining stars, some of them having died a long time ago and yet  continue to shine in the evening skies and thus finally concluding with a reassuring note that love like starlight never dies. So no matter what Abhay….you will always be loved by your loved ones. Similarly, Geetha-atte though no more…but her child-like enthusiasm and unconditional love will always live on!  Rest in peace …Geetha Karanth!