From the Seeds

I never did really talk about the actual 50th anniversary thing of Mama and Papa... we're from the generation that will be lucky to make it to 25 years... But their generation truly rocked... Because they didn't really get to choose who they married and somehow it always worked out... I guess they made that extra effort because they believed that what God has put together, no man should put asunder... my grandparents are living testimony to that... they are traditional conservative Malayalee Roman Catholics... and yet, they've lived through so much and lived in so many different places and cultures that they've grown and evolved with the rest of the world and can quite comfortably ask their 23 year old granddaughter if she's ever had sex and talk about homosexuality with their 14 year old grandson and through all this, they've just grown closer and closer that you can never imagine a life in which they hadn't been together... I still recall various times in their lives where Papa had to travel the world on his numerous FAO projects and Mama couldn't always accompany him because of commitments to her beloved daughters and their families... I have been lucky enough to witness a few of their reunions after such gaps in their togetherness... it still brings tears to my eyes to remember them... my Mama and Papa are truly special people... as human beings, as God-fearing Catholics, as parents, as grandparents, as friends, as relatives... I feel I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that "I've got the best grandparents in the whole world"...

There's so much more to say about them... memories of sitting between them in Papa's oh-so-cool Mercedes singing "Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens"... Papa making me leather boots for my Barbie dolls and Mama stitching them clothes... I remember this one time when my Dad was in hospital for his by-pass surgery and I chose that extremely inopportune time to fall sick myself and I felt absolutely miserable because I couldn't be near my Dad because of my propensity to spread the infection and my Mom and sister couldn't be around either because they were looking after my Dad... so it was Papa who came and took me to the doctor everyday... Papa who made me feel safe... And then when Mom fell sick and R died, I thought I was going to have an emotional breakdown... I couldn't cope on my own... The minute I heard Mama was coming, I felt so relieved... I knew that once she arrived, I wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore... she would take care of me and my Mom and sister and Dad... and she did just that... that was the last time I saw her until a few weeks ago... Mama's tears... I feel so bad when she cries and yet, I know that that's her way of telling me she loves me...

And so I had the incredible pleasure of watching them celebrate 50 years together... it was so surreal and so right... I would've given up the world to be there and I am so glad that I was there... through all the celebrations and gifts and jokes and laughter, I know that what they were most grateful for was the fact that they had all their children together again, old and young... I can hardly wait to see them again... I hope its really soon!

We just wanted to say "we love you",
But in truth, we didn't know where to start,
So we thought we'd share a few feelings,
And give you some words, straight from the heart.

Firstly, we'd like to begin by looking skywards,
And thanking those in the heavens above,
Because we know we've been blessed to have shared you,
We know that we've been blessed with your love.

You've both come a long way from Kerala, you gathered
Letters (CLRI, FAO) as you traveled the world, and
You've both been superb role models for all of us, and
As you can see, we've now got our wings truly unfurled.

You've been outstanding parents to your daughters,
And My! Just look how your mighty oak has grown,
Because you're simply unmatchable as grandparents,
We're all very grateful for the love that you've shown.

You've dedicated 16 years to raising M and M,
And we can all count on you as our pillars of
strength, and in truth, you have so many wonderful virtues,
We could go on about them (and at great length).

So, it's Chicago and Virginia, India and Australia,
See how the seeds of your mighty oak have spread,
And we're all so glad you had the good sense to get
Married, as on May 2nd 1955, "I do" were the finest words ever said.

We wanted to say "you're wonderful", in truth, we've
Never said just how wonderful you are, but if our love
For you were a distance, then it would be further than
The furthest star.

We also wanted to say Happy 50th Anniversary,
I guess that's really what these words are for,
Here's to you Mom and Dad, you're truly wonderful,
And here's to your everlasting love, for evermore.