Wedding Week

So my little sis Peevee got married last week. In the days preceding the wedding, I would look at her and get sepia-tinted flashbacks of this energetic, impatient, wide-eyed child, and then a diffident, self-conscious teenager, and then I would look at this smart, confident young woman and shake my head and think, "Is this the same person? And she's getting married!!"

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I had heard a lot about Peevee's husband D from Peevee herself, from my parents who met him when they had been to the US for Peevee's graduation, and from S~ who had met D and Peevee when in the US last month on an official visit. I had interacted with D on mail and phone too. So it just didn't feel like I was meeting him for the first time a day before the wedding. We spent a fair amount of time together after the wedding too, and I got to know my new brother in law a bit. But they are here on a flying visit, and they have already left Bangalore for Mumbai, and so further acquaintance must wait.

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My aunt Anu had gone back to the UK from India just this August, and so her coming down to India again for the wedding was a big question mark for a while. She thendecided that she wouldn't want to miss it, and made it after all. But her visit was kept a secret from Peevee. Only a very few of us knew about it and we went through great pains to ensure that it doesn't get to Peevee in any way. It was the most elaborate conspiracy ever carried out in the family. And all the tension and the efforts were rewarded. You should have seen the look on Peevee's face when she saw Anu!! We have it captured on camera, and so if you want to see it, just drop me a mail. :D

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I had shown Puttachi Peevee's snaps much before Peevee landed, and so Puttachi had no problem recognizing her Pupushi (Peevee Mausi). She loved the stuffed giraffe that her Pupushi got for her too, and she was just warming up to Peevee, when Peevee went and got Mehndi done on her hands. After that, in spite of Peevee's desperate efforts, Puttachi refused to go to her. Poor Peevee. Next time, Peevee. I'll ensure that she follows you around like a shadow!

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It was an Arya Samaj wedding. I had never witnessed one before. It was very interesting, with every mantra and every ritual being explained in detail. The general opinion in the married members of the gathering was that if they had known what those mantras and rituals meant when they were getting married, they wouldn't have got married at all!

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Puttachi, who is in her element in large gatherings of people, specially if it is an admiring gathering, decided to go on strike on the day of the wedding. Though I intended to wake her up at the last possible moment that morning, she awoke at dawn, disturbed by the flurry of activity. She remained sleepy and cranky for the rest of the day, and spent half the morning sleeping in my mom-in-law's arms. The more the guests spoke to her, the louder she cried (which is unusual in her case), and she came back to her normal self after the majority of the guests had left!

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That's that. Back to work!