For a very special father..mine

She looked out of the window, and heard the familiar sound of his scooter. She waited patiently as she heard the footsteps come towards the door, rushed to open it, and greet him with the widest and best smile she had. He hugged her, patted her hair and  took her in his arms. This is what heaven felt like, she thought. And then after a while, he got her down and walked over tot he kitchen to talk to his wife. She wondered, is it the wife's beautiful sarees that he likes so much, is it her big bindi that he loves so much that he has to bring her down and go to see her after reaching home. She tried peering into the mirror to see how would a bindi look on her, but being all of 4 she could barely reach the mirror.

Thats how i felt everytime baba would walk in to the house after office, play a little with me and head over to sit at the dinning table, sipping his tea, taking off his shoes, as Ma would fry some samosas, or simply serve a little bhujia sev in a round steel plate for baba. I wanted baba for myself though, all for myself, not to be shared even my mother because i was his daughter, his only child and he was the worlds most powerful man. he could open the seal of a medicine bottle with one twist of his hand, he never needed a bandaid if he scratched his hand playing cricket, he would walk in the dark at night, he could carry 3 heavy bags filled with vegetables and fruits every sunday he went to the bazaar, he would take a bath in cold water in winters, he would shoo away stray dogs if they came near me and most important, how could she forget he dint even wink an eyelid when we all got the Hepatitis B shots at the hospital. Baba was a hero, her hero and she dint like his attention divided.

Today at 29 i see a different man, i see someone with grey hair, some wrinkles on the face, a man who keeps a small bag of his everyday medicines, a man who counts on the his sugar intake everyday and most importantly a man who waits for me to get back from office so he can talk to me. Baba has changed as a person, i dont see the adrenaline rush in him to go walking even with 4 degree temperature outside, i dont see the short temper in him which made him punch some guy who tried following me from school, i dont see the impatience in him as Ma gets ready to go out somewhere in the evening, but yes i see the same father in him who loves his child more than anything in this whole world. Today as i type this, i see a  man, sitting across me on the sofa , waiting for me to finish my "work" on the laptop so we can talk a little. Although our conversations are usually on how i need to save more, eat less junk, be careful while travelling, eat responsible, be a good and supportive wife, i know some of the topics are oft repeated but i cherish them all. I see a man who wants me to live life big, never bend down in front of wrong, always speak my mind, never hurt someone knowingly, always speak the truth, be strong and balance my mind and heart.

I see my father sitting on the sofa, checking his cell phone if there were any calls because i know once i am done with my laptop, he is going to as me to check if some friend of his has sent an SMS,and honestly i miss doing this for him everyday, cuz usually ma does this for him at home.

I dont know what is it about fathers, the stronger they appear, the more you feel like protecting them and keeping them safe. Sometimes i wonder, how did God bless me with two such wonderful men to make my world, my father and G.

I love you baba, i know you would not be reading this, and i am too shy to say this to you, but you are my hero and no man, can ever ever take your place in my life...