the culture of motherhood
I try not to label myself or allow identities to define me. But I am what I am. Mother, daughter, writer, public health professional… First generation Indian American. I’ll never forget what it felt like when I read my first Jhumpa Lahiri short story in high school. From bus stop to school lunch hall, I carried Interpreter…
(photo taken in India, my daughter donating school supplies to children of an ashram we love) The summer has slowed down somewhat and the while the sand still makes it way inside our home from beachy days, all this back to school prep has started to get us into gear for the fall. While searching for…
I’m seeing all these articles on breastfeeding as it is World Breastfeeding Week and it reminds me that the last time I breastfed my baby was exactly one year ago today. We had weaned him at a year and a half old; felt too late yet too early all at once. I wasn’t ready to…
A few weeks after I had my first baby, I looked at my new Medela breast pump and cried. I had read every line of the instruction book, but…I was lost. How was that bovine contraption going to take milk out of me? I called my girlfriend Neesha (yes, our Chai Momma!). “Neesh, I don’t…
We don’t talk often. My brother is what many of us late 30-something year olds call a millennial. We are a decade apart, which sometimes feels like a world apart. He doesn’t even have Facebook. He lives in an artist co-op in Brooklyn, yet works for a company that has some sort of technology that…
I grew up with questions about my parents’ cultural beliefs. As a child of liberal parents when I was at our community’s festive dinner parties, I often asked, “Why do men get served dinner first? Why can’t we eat as one and serve one another?” As a teen when I learned about the horrid tradition of…
Here’s the thing with salads and summer…they just go together. When I’m out for lunch in this strong SoCal sun, I usually skip the sandwich and soup bar and opt for the refreshing salad instead. It’s why we love this recipe by Thrive Cuisine for a quick vegan summer salad dressing base because it comes with…