It was Amma’s—Indu Shedde’s—98th birthday last week. Not a lot of people reach that age, and fewer still are healthy. I consider myself extremely lucky that not only is Amma alive, but she is healthy, she can see, hear, recognize. And above all, I love her spirit: she enjoys life to the fullest--she sings, plays music and draws; has literature read aloud every day; and does daily “chair exercises”. When I celebrate Amma, I cherish her for all of us, especially those whose mothers are not with them, or no longer in this world, and I also cherish all those mothers, whose children are not with them, and especially those whose children are with them, yet who barely acknowledge their presence, even when living in the same house.

Amma’s birthday started as a simple, one-day, Sunday celebration, with a fab, traditional Konkani lunch—avrya bendi, beansa ghashshi, val papdi upkari, madgane, chapati, dalitoy-sheet, ambya lonche, papad, fruit salad and Dharwad pedha (as Amma comes from Dharwad). For tea, there was birthday cake, upma, mixed bhajias, wafers, fruit salad, tea and coffee. But it swiftly ballooned into a three-day celebration at Shantikunj Sevashram, the senior citizen’s home in Panvel, where Amma lives. Some family and friends preferred to come on Saturday to wish Amma. So that evening key staff and Amma’s close friends, residents of the home, were also invited. On Sunday, we had a number of guests from Bombay for lunch and tea. Then, on Tuesday, Vishakha Patil, our close family friend, arranged for Swara Sakhi, a group of 10 women singers led by Veena Prabhu, accompanied by harmonium and tabla artists, to perform for all the residents of the home, to celebrate Amma’s birthday. Earlier that day, the Swara Sakhis did a deeply moving, traditional owalna/aarti for Amma--made a ritual circle with an oil lamp on a plate before the idol being worshipped/person being celebrated—singing a melodious Kannada prayer, followed by the jaunty Tum jiyo hazaron saal.