They have passed away....

and yet each time i remember them....they appear .... a vision...talking, moving, laughing, smiling... my mother-in-law - at the stove,  sweat pouring down her brow.. basking in the pride of being the eldest of the house, leading a team...i see her.. ....sometimes in her finery...sometimes in her sweaty cotton saree..

the father-in-law...smiling now, engaged in a deep debate with his cousins....

the brother in law...being teased

another - teasing

they have been gone for months, some for years.... but they appear in front of my eyes... like an apparition...wispy..gossamer like.... yet very very real..

i feel my father's presence as i cook. as i am being  untidy, unorganized......talking to me,...reprimanding me..sometimes, laughing with me....

and   i realize some day... not very far from today, my children might feel the same..... see a vision of me...wispy... gossamer like... and i hope they remember me with a smile on their face...my memory bringing a smile on their face..the tear will soon follow... I know.....

 inevitable it is!  both!