As I dream of my son becoming a...

really good carnatic music vocalist, I see the Gods lining up against me and having their share of fun. KB loves music - like all children love music when exposed to it, he does too. He used to bring me CDs from our CD rack and ask me to play particular CDs that he chose for that moment. But for the last couple of months or so, he has learned to open up the CD case carefully, insert his index finger in the center of the CD and put in a new CD very carefully without touching the edges of the CD. So now I feel safe in telling him to just pick a CD and put it in himself.

And there lies the problem too. He decides what CD and puts it in himself - but this choice never includes carnatic music! I see that the more I pine to see my son, who seems to have keen music sense, showing promise of being a good singer, more likely it is that he will probably go completely in the western track and only that. Or may be he is just teasing me - which is very likely knowing him. He can identify a ton of CDs by their case now. He opens his eyes bright and wide and says "Mamma, am going to play Thelesio Monk" (for Thelonious Monk). That CD gets over and he keeps track of it while doing something else and tells me "CD mudinj peth" (CD over). He runs back to the CD rack and brings "The Moody blues" and turns that on. That's done and he brings "Tchaikovsky". And then "Leonard Cohen" his ultimate favorite. I hear him hum "Every body knows that the dice are loaded". He talks to his Periamma and sings this to her!

After a round of random selections of all non carnatic music CDs by him, I tell him hopelessly, "KB please can you play mamma's favorite CD - kurai onrum illai"? He looks at me like he is the older one looking at a child and says "Yen daa kurai onrum illai'ye poda maatengre?" (Why don't you want to put "Kurai Onrum Illai" CD?). And then says, "Mamma sad". I tell him, "Amam Kanna...Mamma very sad. Can you pleaaase put Kurain onrum illai? Mamma is very sad that you don't play it". He pauses. Looks at me intently for a second. And says "Mamma Mamma don't be sad...I'll give mamma a hug".

KB runs to me and hugs my legs while I continue cutting vegetables.

"KB so are you going to put Kurai onrum illai now?"

"Noooouu....I am going to put "Dire Straits".

Save for the fact that he really enjoys carnatic music when I sing it to him, I would have completely given up all hope of him singing it for me. I enjoy all the other music, but if I dream of him singing for me, I dream of him singing carnatic music, not playing electric guitar for me. Don't live your dreams through your children, Noon, I tell myself. I think to myself "Well, at least he loves music as much as I do...thank God for that". After nearly two months of this sort of discussion between me and KB, this morning he very decidedly went to the CD rack, picked up a CD and went and played it. It looks like he does like to tease me. He did not play "Kurai Onrum Illai" after all. But I was over joyed to hear M.S.Subbulakshmi singing "Mudakaratha modakam". Again this is a song he knows quite well because I sing it to him very often. Well, at least he finally gave in and played one carnatic CD for me after all these days! I can't tell you how happy I was at this trivial thing he did for me!