During my walk this cold morning, the one thought that filled my mind above all was that time is so valuable. With Milan six years away from going to college and *gasp* , approaching his teenage years this year, I really do want to hold time still some days. If we had a way to look backwards from our old age, what would we change during the course of our life? I would think that quality time spent with our loved ones would seemingly win the majority of us. And since this letter hopefully finds us all in good health, we still have that gift of time with us. The end of a year is neither an end nor a beginning but a way for us to keep moving with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.
Thus, with a nearly a teenager in the house soon, who seems to sometimes think that I am feeding him what he refers to as “glob” ( I call it brain fuel) or with a sassy seven year old who claims the chair in her bedroom is certainly where the dirty laundry belongs or when a ten year old can easily school me on the fun in “rough” play. During all those times, I promise to take a deep breath and do “light” explaining after which I will gladly succumb to spending quality time together.
The new year has certainly bought plenty of changes for us.
Milan started at Buckingham Browne & Nichols School as a 7th grader. He did great at the transition and is thoroughly enjoying the change in pace offered there. The long commute though continues to be a challenge. Either Atul or I usually rush out of the house with him , shoes half on, at 6:50 to make the bus 10 minutes away in Newton. If we miss the bus, we are in for over two hours of commuting time roundtrip. Milan’s biggest benefit comes from the offerings for various level and types of sports. He is doing squash currently at school and absolutely loves it! We are happy to see him enjoying being active. He does complain at limited screen time at home but has somehow figured out how to undo any parental locks. I suppose that’s the power and price of education 😉
Ayush is in his last year at our beloved community school, Fiske Elementary. I hardly ever am sensitive and am feeling quite overwhelmed at seeing him nearing his graduation as a fifth grader. Walking to school and the opportunities for me to volunteer in the class are nearly over. Ayush lives on as our sports loving, kind and completely adorable child. Ayush plays in the band at Fiske and recently had a great performance in which he had to play a small solo percussion. He was nervous but great! His current favorite sports are basketball, football, soccer and cricket. He can be found at any given time reading up on how to improve his skills. He claims playing Madden on the xbox makes him a more tactical player. He is also over the moon at the thought of being remotely related to Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar (like sixth cousins somehow adjoined by same geographic regions).
Avnie is very proud of being a second grader at Fiske. She still claims her favorite subject is recess. She loves art, soccer and as of recently basketball. She loves to write stories that sometimes are hard to decipher without some sort of phonetic language code however she is happy to ready them to us. She cannot sleep without reading to us a book at night. Both Atul and I have “Interrupting Chicken” memorized by now incase you would like for us to recite it next time we meet.
The year has bought Atul lots of quality time with the kids since he was at home taking a break from finance. He started our meal kit venture “Indelish” together with me. Working together, I think did us a world of good as well ( I would like to believe so). It has definitely taught us patience in ways we cannot have imagined. Indelish is a labor of love and as any good thing , it is taking its time . We have not officially been able to launch yet. However, we hope to soon! So, please show your support by subscribing to our website https://indelish.com/. Atul will be returning to the finance field next week. He is excited about this wonderful opportunity and it is a position that is challenging enough to be eager about. It will be difficult for us as a family as it involves commuting from Philadelphia to Boston for Atul. However, we are blessed to be surrounded by the support of a wonderful community of friends.
For me, that means, running Indelish and managing the kids hectic schedules during the week while Atul is away. I am taking time to focus on things that bring me peace , my workouts, nutrition education and on all things related to meal kits. My mornings start with 5:00 AM walks listening to podcasts to help me along on self improvement and business related. If you have any good tips on great podcasts , please post in the comments below! I finally convinced my parents and brother to take a vacation with us this Christmas. I am glad to check that off my “to do” list. I am hoping to make that a tradition as they have never really taken vacations in the past 15 years of running the restaurant in Pittsburgh. It was a nice break in the fast pace they are used to & allowed us to set some goals together as a family.
Wishing you all a year that is filled with journeys that strengthen your goals and desires. May we all always be surrounded with good health and the love of our family and friends.
Happy New Year 2020!
The Varma Family
Manisha, Atul, Milan, Ayush, Avnie
Varma Family Chronicles 