Most of the time when women are pregnant they have their family around. Their mom around them. I underestimated the comfort in that. As someone who is inherently independent, I never thought that with the start of 2022, what I will crave most is care. Home cooked food and adaar-chaa (ginger tea).
Some people are born caring and some not. My mother is the opposite of motherliness. She isn’t someone I can count on for support – perhaps a major contributor to my own independence. So even when I asked her to fly down to me for a few days, her stand was – “sorry, travelling is stressful, won’t leave Calcutta during COVID.” Truth be told, it wouldn’t be of much help even if she did come to stay with me for a while – I would end up being stressed.
So yes, this morning it made me think – giving birth doesn’t make someone a mother. It is their nature that makes them one.
ANTHROPOLOGY OF LOVE 