The Scroll Opened

A day before the wedding, the bride's father handed a letter to his future son-in-law.

Dear S,

I am so happy my daughter has chosen you as her life partner. In you she has always found someone who gives her space and time and shares the common love for Potternama and Comicathon. So, as I hand  her over to you tomorrow, let me tell you that she is not perfect.

She is not perfect. For when it comes to her work, she is almost fanatical and neither a lollipop here nor a stick there will ever be of any use. If she has to do it, she will do it. Just because there are friends over at home, that will never deter her from going to attend a patient in need. She has given up all the joys of youth to follow the path she has chosen and even though she loves the company of friends, going shopping and movie hopping, her commitment to her work may not seem normal to most. I will not blame you to find this strange but would want you to give her the understanding and show respect for the work she is doing.

She is not perfect for she will never hide her true feelings. She will never fake it. She will always be real and that could at times be a point of disagreement. At times she will appear disinterested and bored and then, at other times, she will seem over enthusiastic and excited. The good thing is that what she likes and who she loves, she will give anything and go to any extreme to make them matter and make them happy. You will have to live with these extremities of a real person by your side for years to come.

Another imperfection is that my darling cannot cook and somehow all my wife’s efforts to inculcate in her the love for cooking has not been very successful, to put it very mildly. She just does not show any desire to step into the ‘sanctum sanctorum’ and do what most girls do. Her culinary skills go to baking cakes, making rice and khichadi and eggs sunny side up. For everything else she has the Apps like Swiggy, Zomato on her fingertips and funnily she never orders dal chawal or roti...it is always exotic dishes like Hawaiian Salad and Boo Phat Pong Karee.

For twenty eight years my L’ll Angel has been the centre of our constellation. From the time she opened her eyes she brought in joy and more joy into our lives. She made us proud, not just in academics, but much more. While the mother has preserved her mark sheets, certificates, medals and trophies from nursery to post-doctoral days, I have with me so many of her craft work and summer project workbooks which never stop to amaze me with the breadth of her creativity. She will never tell anyone of her achievements and gets upset when we start rattling as I am doing today. She will make you and your family proud and I will be so happy to see the joy on your faces.

M was always very different from a lot of children for she would never throw any tantrums. We have seen many kids screaming and ranting whenever parents said no to their demands of a balloon or a toy. She has never asked us for anything. During her school days, all she ever lost was one pencil box and nothing else. To add to it, we never had to pay for her studies post her school. She will never tell you to go out and buy her a dress or an expensive piece of jewellery. She did not demand anything special for her wedding too. Her mom and I made all the lists of things to buy and do for the shaadi and she made no fuss about accepting the same.…except of course her desire to wear a gown, which thankfully, is fulfilled today. So her ‘maintenance cost’ will be either self-funded or what you give her out of love, never will she demand an ounce more.

She has a heart of gold where there is an abundance of compassion. At times we are worried, for in the profession she is in, heartbreaks of death and failures are not uncommon. She gets close to patients, especially when it comes to children and, at times, gets sad when things do not turn out the way they ought to. She, however, goes back the very next moment to the next case and makes sure she gives everything to make it right. She handles kids very well so if you also act like one, you are in luck…you’re in the best possible hands.

M loves her friends and defends them stoutly, for her friends can do no wrong. She craves to be with friends and goes crazy in their company. So, your friends will always be welcome with her around and if she were to get time off from work, she would love to go out in the open singing Pagla Hawar Badol Diney, Pagol Amar Mon Jegey Othey…Movies, music, magic, masti are a few of her favourite things.

My loving daughter will take good care and show utmost respect for your parents and your extended family. That’s the way we have brought her up and that is how she shall remain forever. She is human after all. The good and the bad live together in all of us. So when she falters, you can scold her and be tough and she will come around. Fight, you must, for that is quite normal, but get back together fast. Please don’t make her cry for long for that will make us sad. Like all parents we want the best for our child and happiness at her new home is one such desire.

So Son, please take good care of my Precious Imperfectly Perfect Girl.

Stay Blessed Son. Stay Happy Son.

Keep My Darling Baby Happy.

Love & Blessings,

S

Mumbai

15^th February 2020