Matrudin-Pithori Amavasya

On 28th it was raining heavily the whole day. In fact it was raining since 26th and rained till yesterday ie.29th. So on Sunday the 28th my Aai (my mother) said, 'it is Pithori Amavasya today' or also called Divyachi Amavasya. I paid little attention while watching Anna Hajareji on TV. Then she said, 'it is also Matrudin'....!!!

I instantly did pranams to her which i do everyday but this was special. She is the main Inspiration in my life, a pillar of strength. There are so many  reminiscences where it was only due to her that i could survive.

When i decided to join Vivekananda Kendra, all my friends, office colleagues would call her to say we are coming to meet. She would tell them if you want to discourage her then don't come, come only if you want to support. She stood strong even when my father was angry and would not let me come.

She made me go alone to VT station to do train reservation. I had never done this before, but she said you have to do your own booking and you have to go alone to Kanyakumari. If you can take such a big decision of joining VK then you must be strong enough to travel alone.

She is a very intelligent woman. Her name is still put up in the school at Mahad as the most brilliant student. Once our CA called me to ask her bank account no. and some of her transactions. He thought a woman in her seventies wouldn't know ... i told him to call her immediately as, she knows all her bank account nos. by heart and she can do all her hisaab orally without using a calculator.

She is very composed and patient. We all some or other time say - i am bored, i am tired, etc. But in all these years i have never heard this word from her mouth. When she was in 11th ie. inter, she participated in a Extempore elocution competition in a national youth convention. She got a topic "Sui ki nok mein se oont bhi jaa sakta hai" means - You can undergo a difficult task if you decide. You know she came first in Mumbai University - a simple village girl stood first..!!! She later went to New Delhi and got prize from Pandit Nehru. We still have the photograph. Incidentally, her Hindi is excellent and she is born on Hindi Diwas i.e. 14th September.

My niece works with a Art NGO in Bangaluru. They had a workshop where many prominent personalities from Film and theatre were present. Every body had to tell about an inspiring personality in their life- no phone calls to ask anything personal from their life... She told about my mother Aruna Madhavrao Tipnis then and now Smt. Aruna Prakash Patil.

Friends, this is my tribute to her. Am sure you all must be having such great mother...my Pranams to each one of them.