My brother Gautam

We all love him, Gautam. And a lot of us say Gautam is a great guy, happy, maybe not too matured, not too organized. All of it is true, especially his un-preparedness till only 3 days before his marriage day but for the intervention of my dear Jiju & hubby. I thank you all for standing by him in his ‘event’ in life – marriage.

Mind you, he is thankful too (almost grateful) and has gone away on his honeymoon thinking ‘yeh sab nahin hotey to kuch nahin hota … I am lucky to have such a family of cousins, jijus, sisters & friends, etc’. You bet he’s lucky.

Having spent such a variety of emotions towards my brother, I thought I’ll spend a few moments thanking and feeling lucky too.
Ø Thank you, Gautam
Ø Thank you, for the selfless times, almost obsessively,(‘quality time’) that you spent through the week(s), every weekend with Ria & Kris being their doting, loving Mama.
Ø Thank you for finding time to remember that our childhood winter holidays were incomplete without picnics and eat-outs and doing likewise for Ria & Kris (barely 2 weekends before your special day) during theirs.
Ø Thank you, for being there for my young sister and listening to her through her upheavals, patiently, quietly, never judgmental and practically working out ways with her to get on with life.
Ø Thank you, for allowing my sister the comfort of your four-wheels during the some of the coldest days this season, while you unblinkingly traveled on your bike. I saw how ‘smitten with cold’ you would return from work after midnight on the days I was there. I’m not sure if I would have done the same.
Ø Thank you, for intuitively deciding to relinquish ‘your’ space for my young sister and her kids. You need a 'real' brother to be so intuitive and empathetic.
Ø Thank you, for being genuine, generous, and thoughtful in your gestures, expressions and actions to my old father, my tired mother.
Ø Thank you, for being a loving, giving, earnest groom in trying to make your bride’s ‘marriage ceremony wishes’ come alive. I don’t know anyone who can take on so much just to make that happen
Ø Thank You, for a lot many more gestures that are impossible to articulate and only possible to feel.
It’s no wonder that you get so much love, almost unadulterated, from the sweetest to the most askance of cousins, from the genuine to the most weird of relatives, from the wellwisher to the jealous neighbor, from the cynical to the most indulgent of parents, sisters, bros, jijus, nieces & nephews.
We all love you.

Don't stop being Gautam, my brother.