Sometimes doing something without a plan can bring so much joy.. .

Today was not one of my free days.. but somehow decided to make savoury sweets something traditional which we make during our festivals. And somehow, getting gifted with Sweet potatoes,  I was looking at what to do it with and bang came a very good and warm memory of cold winter nights of Shillong, Bihu time and mom and her sisters along with mini me getting together to make sweets and savouries.. what we in Assam call Pitha. My aunts would be coming to visit us for Bihu.

It would be a co-ordinated effort of who will make the dough of sweet potatoes, channa dal, and so on.. , the sisters would sit around the heater in the cold kitchen room after dinner and arrange everything and cajole me to help them.. I would be responsible for making the pockets where stuffings would be placed. I was taught how to get it right while my mom fried them.. and various other steps would be performed as we went around and soon it would be a rhythm and between laughter, jokes and some warm gossip, we would have made quite a variety of sweets.. and I would not realise where time went..

Today looking at the sweet potatoes.. I was transported into those times, quickly called my aunt for the proportion and recipe and actuall for the first time made everything from scratch and it turned out pretty well.. I was happy and I thought to myself happily : This I dedicate to you Ma.. since you made it a ritual and you loved doing this..   a happy dedication..

Its so interesting how warm memories can remove day time or busyness aside and makes a complex task so simple.. just because this task was associated not only with happiness but a sense of belonging and security … deep down inside.. so mundane, yet so deep..

What memory of yours can you associate with to brighten up doing some silly or mundane tasks.. Have you thought about it ?? Life becomes so much more content..