Six Pence None the Richer

Writing my first post after becoming a mother! Phew..

Government of India is kind enough to give six months of maternity leave now. Mine got over today. I cannot even think of joining back as of now but many others in my place do.

In fact, dad the other day asked me about when do I plan to join back. I vociferously told him that I'd probably take a year off to which he commented that you do have to think about your career and that he wonders why do women complain about not reaching the top!

They say Government's work is God's work. The same, I believe, is true for household work. I used to look down upon the same long time back until I realized that our home is like a machine.. you have to constantly work at it to get the required output i.e., clean clothes, clean utensils, edible food and of course a clean house. I have immense respect for all the home makers out there. I, for one, haven't had the opportunity to adorn the role of a complete home maker (thanks to domestic help galore) so far but have had the pleasure of doing everything for my son. As fulfilling as that has been, there has always been a hidden feeling.. a calling if you may, towards my profession. Not to forget that tussle between office and home is a given for any working woman. Balancing act my husband preaches is the key.

So, for the past six months, the scale was tipped in one direction. On the final day of my maternity leave, the news that I have got a huge reward was really unexpected. I kidded that the last thing I deserved while staying at home for six months was 6L as reward. To this my sister said something that really touched a nerve. She reasoned that I deserved every bit of it for all the hard work done with the baby!