HOW MY MOTHER AND I BECAME LIKE A GRUMPY OLD COUPLE!!!!!!

  Image Courtesy: www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk

Ever wondered what would happen if two head strong and stubborn people are made to live together, with just one exception; despite everything, they just couldn’t live without each other. Let me tell you, eventually, they’ll become highly irritable and grumpy beyond words. A combination you’d find only in couples that have spent an eternity together and have practically become like two siblings trying hard to get things done their way. As serious as it may sound, believe me, somewhere in such relationships there’s always that little hint of humor hidden.

Never once did it cross my mind that one day I too would have a relationship like that and I would be writing about it. No, I am not an 80 something woman nor have I been married for over half a century On the contrary, I am a young 30 something girl (I prefer to call my self a girl as it makes me feel young) married for 10 years now and this post is about my relationship with a woman – a woman who happened to have given birth to me: My Mother.

Well in almost 9 years, for the first time, my stay with mum is way longer than it normally is. Mum, I must say has changed a lot after my father’s passing away three years ago and I don’t blame her for it. Anyone in her position would do that; it’s not easy to see your partner for 40 years go away. I, on the other hand, with an impulsive nature, am a difficult person to live with. Having said all of that, initially it was like a fairy tale romance between us, where mum would make my favourite dishes and make sure that I don’t do anything. But as all good things must come to an end, so did that “Honeymoon Period”.

So like all pampered husbands found sitting on the couch farting away, I too got used to getting things on the bed and not lifting a finger. Then one fine day, mother walked into my room fuming and without giving any notice, said, “This has to STOP. High time you got off your ass and did some work around.” Before I could put my case forward or even say a word, she stormed out. I was left feeling like this small, lost puppy getting wet in the rain, the only thing lacking in my case was the whimpering. Without wasting any more time, I jumped off my feet and started finding things to do around the house.

Following that, our little tiffs began increasing where she would nag me like an old woman fed up of her lazy couch potato husband and I would sulk like a child who had been denied her favourite sweets and at times like a grumpy old man tired of being told that he is too lazy to do anything except watch telly, drink beer and pass gas. The only sane person who was always called to help us deal with our issues was my younger sister. Like a marriage counsellor, she would sit both us down, hear us out and give her verdict, many a times in favour of mum (I think so).

    mum, my sister and I

The two or more months that I stayed with mother were like a Grand Slam Tennis match between Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, with the exception that instead of a real tennis match it was a match of words and instead of the two great tennis stars it was mum and I and both of us kept hitting hard, trying to score a match point. For audience we had the maid who would look at us as if she was seeing a bunch of loonies instead of two perfectly normal people in a perfectly normal relationship, well that’s what we thought and believed. One Sunday, when she found me sitting alone, she somehow managed to gather some guts and say to me, “You guys fight like an old couple tired of each other, even I don’t fight that much with my husband.” For a minute I did not know how to react and on an honest note, it felt like a tight slap on my face.

Her revelation of what our relationship looked like came as a horrifying shock to me. It put me on a back foot and made me think what was I doing? Here I was, doing what I had been dreaming of for past 9 years – Living with mum, getting enough time to spend with her, create memories that I would cherish after she’s gone and instead of making the most of it, I was ruining it by constantly arguing or sulking with her. I was very ashamed of myself and promised to change from that very moment, but little did I know that promises are hard to keep. I have been trying hard to control my impulses and be happy, but what’s the fun in playing a match in which you don’t score even one Match Point. The game’s still on and this time we’re at Love All.