M - My In-Laws

When I had newly got married, I had thought of writing a post about my in-laws. But I didn't quite write anything back then as it would seem that my experience was clouded by the rose tinted glasses of initial days of marriage. I have always loved my parents and family and used to wonder how my in-laws would be. Will they be genuinely good persons whom I can respect for what they are instead of the relation that they represent, like my parents. I know everyone loves their parents/family and its nothing new, but I respect them more as they are 'good' not just to their families but to everyone. They would never do anything that could hurt others even if its for their own benefit. I have seen many people (as relatives, extended families, acquaintances) who might be good for their families but would not be so for others. I am glad that my in-Laws are even better. Many say that I don't really know as I don't have a sister in law (husband's sister), they supposedly change the equation. However I have seen many families with same set up as mine to know that I am blessed. 

The eldest in my (not exactly new) family is Dadiji (M's grandma). She is 87 now and one of the most cheerful and positive persons that I have met. Her flexibility, acceptance and understanding bowls me over. I am the only working daughter in law in the entire community (extended as well) and she totally gets me. As a marwari married women, you are supposed to do lots of rituals and pujas, however from the beginning she has been telling my MIL "Don't tell her, she is working, how will she do it, we will do it here on her behalf. Just tell her to pray." Most of the pujas that I started doing is coz my mom would tell me about it and then I would ask my MIL. I told her that I liked doing it, so she tells me now but tailors it based on my comfort. :-D. During Pregnancy, Dadiji once told me if I would leave the job once I have a kid, saying we don't really need the money and should take care of the kid. I had agreed saying we would do what's best for the baby. When I was there post my delivery, she never asked me to Quit but instead said what should we plan to do if I wanted to work again. I had already taken a long 10 month leave and when she learnt that the women who used to work at my mom's place for last 15 years has agreed to come with me to Pune, she was satisfied. She is a true Gem of a person! She has struggled a lot to take care of the family (she was a young widow and single handedly brought up her kids) and due to her hard work and attitude, the family is where it is. Everyone in my family loves and respects her a lot. She is the "soul" of our family. 

With the guidance of Dadiji, the entire family has got her nature and attitude. My father in law is a spiritual person who believes in soul consciousness. He is not concerned about things as much as he is about the quality of his relationships. He loves me like his own son. He does have a complaint with me though, that I don't take care of my health. He encourages me to do Pranayam and work on improving my immunity, I try but I hope one day I will be able to make him happy in this department. Regarding my mother in law, I see a lot of myself in her. We are so alike :-) She is a fun loving person and a foodie and a ghoomakad like me. Both my FIL & MIL are loving, giving, kind, super understanding and awesome grandparents. One of the things that I love most about them is their love for each other. They can not stay apart and I like how they let the other one know it and tease about it. It's really sweet!

My brother in law, bhabhi and their 2 kids - Sanskar & Arhcie. Bhaiya and Bhabhi are just perfect in everything that they do. They are concerned about and take care of everyone. You give them a task, they will never forget and ensure it's done. Even with his hectic schedule, bhaiya keeps calling us from time to time and checks on how we are doing. We have had fun vacations together with kids. The kind of fun we have had, they have been more like vacationing with friends than family. ;-) With so many people to show them the right path, its no surprise that the kids are excellent! One of the things that I regret is Shaurya missing out on all that love since we stay so far away. We have this dream of all of us staying together some day (maybe in bhubaneswar) and I wish and hope that the dream turns into reality soon.