Being nostalgic... not depressed!!!!

Its diwali season again! Two years in NUS and diwali has remained the weirdest festival ever. Coz thats the biggest festival at home and I am not there!!!! I have missed so many things.

I miss the shopping extravaganza that starts one month before diwali! I always buy my birthday clothes along with diwali clothes even though my birthday is 2-3 months after diwali!!!!

I miss the cooking extravaganza that starts a week before diwali! Mom, dad and me sit in the kitchen on a Sunday afternoon and cook sweets and snacks! Well.... THEY do the cooking and the making. I do the minor stuff.... like breaking sev, attempting chakli making (and failing miserably after the first two :P) and mixing the mixture :P :P :P Oh! And laddus, barfi (sometimes) and dad's halwa!

I miss the day before diwali! Everyone is so excited about crackers and new clothes! And the food of course :P

I miss the night before diwali when my mom gets the lamps out (we've got loads of cute little lamps!) and makes wicks for them all. Then I fill them up with oil, go to the two balconies of my house and carefully space them out and decorate the sill. I wish I had a good picture of that to put up here. The house looked magnificent with little diyas all over the balconies and window sills.

I miss getting mad at the breeze for extinguishing my beautifully arranged diyas!

I miss getting up early in the morning (3am or 4am!) on diwali morning and for a change, not feel groggy so early in the morning!

I miss getting into fresh, new clothes!

I miss waking the neighbourhood up with a redfort (couldn't find pictures online)!

I miss the sparklers and flowerpots and chakras that I used to burst till the sun rose!

I miss going to the temple early in the morning!

I miss breakfast after temple! Its usually idli and coconut chutney (yum yum!)

I miss making phone calls and receiving them! Happy diwali to all!

I miss dozing off at around 9am in front of the diwali specials on TV :P (I woke up at 4am ok! Gimme a break!)

I miss resuming bursting crackers all day long. Not the sparkly ones. The loud ones! :D

I miss the feast that was called lunch! On banana leaves!

I miss lighting the diyas again on diwali night!

I miss the sparkly crackers!

I miss winding up the day with a light (yet tasty!) dinner then watch some TV. Maybe a diwali special movie. Mostly tamil movie.

I miss wearing "civilian clothes" (thats what they called it!) to school the day following diwali :P

I miss diwali at home!

But this year, I won't sit and brood. Because this year, its a new type of diwali. A diwali with my family here! My dearest friends.

Thanks for spending the most popular (and important to me!) festival of our culture with me! I am having a rocking time... in the most unconventional way possible! :)

You so totally rock!

Happy Diwali everyone! :D