The Gold Medal

Was going through old files and found this. This was written in 2008, when I wasn’t working:


My daughter ran fast towards the end of the race, her face gleaming with excitement. As the anticipation built, my heart thumped within my chest and mother’s pride swelled within. I kept cheering long after the race had ended and she had won the gold medal.

She walked confidently with a smile on her face and happiness in her eyes and stood proudly on the dais as the gold medal was put around her neck. There stood my six-year old daughter, the winner of Monkey Race on the dais. Who wouldn’t be proud?

My daughter enriches my life. I don’t think I can ever fully explain what her presence in my life has done to me but my life is better thanks to her.

Today, as I look back, I think of all the people who told me that it would be difficult for me to follow my career after having a baby; that my life will change irrevocably and I might not like it. Yes, my life has changed but for better.

I left my job about two years back to be a full-time mom and haven’t regretted my decision even for a single day. Sure, there have been times when I have wondered if I have taken the right decision or not and whether I will regret it at some point in my life.

Without knowing my daughter has struggled with me as I went about establishing myself as a freelance journalist. Traveling with me to small cities and towns and sitting in one corner while I conducted interviews. People would tell me I shouldn’t travel with a small kid, but I hardly had any option. There was no caretaker at home. Sometimes I would be close to frustration, tired of her incessant questions about how long the interview will take and what is she going to get in return for her favor of sitting quietly. There have also been times when she has patiently sat outside the room for almost an hour waiting for me to finish interview. She has sat with me patiently drawing or coloring while I researched for my stories.

It was difficult but also fun. After conducting an interview mostly I would take her to the nearest McDonalds, where both of us would devour our favorite chicken burger with extra cheese and French fries. The gluttony trip would continue with an ice cream or chocolate pastry. This was usually the right location for quizzing session, with her asking me innumerable questions about the person just interviewed, why I had to interview him/her and whether I got what I wanted, would I need to meet him again. Sometimes she would especially like the person being interviewed and would make friends, thanks to his/her offering of a candy or cold drink to her. Many a times, I found myself wondering if I was doing the right thing and whether thanks to this on-the-job training she was going to be journalist when she grew up.

Gold medal is in fact, incidental. I know I am blessed to have her in my life. Today, as she gives me a toothy smile and hugs me, I know I wouldn’t trade it for anything else.