The GIFT of the ....Mindis????

I am sure most of you have read "The gift of the Magi" by O’Henry. It is certainly one of my favourites. For those of you who do not know the story, here is the synopsis:

Jim and Della are a poor but very loving couple, and on the lookout for a Christmas gift for each other on Christmas Eve. Jim buys her a set of combs with tortoise shells and jewels for her lovely knee length hair by selling his most prized possession, his ancestor's pocket watch, while Della buys him a lovely chain for that watch with the money she gets by chopping off her lovely tresses. Though they cannot use the gifts they have received, they are very happy with their love for each other.

I always wondered whether such love really existed and was gratified that it really does.
Okay, sometimes …….Read on....

We had been on a holiday to Thailand and returned early Tuesday morning at around 3am. Being so used to a sedentary lifestyle, the little sports activities that we indulged ourselves in, gave me a very sore back that hurt like hell each time I walked, or even stood up. My hubby had to be off to work the next morning, as he had a series of meetings lined up for the day, so asking me to get up late, he had his breakfast outside and left for work. Though he offered to get me packed food I said I would make do with milk and cereal.

Now once I wake up, usually there is no stopping me. In spite of the nagging pain, within a matter of hours I set about my chores and finished the unpacking, did the laundry, vacuumed the house and then thought that I would whip up a great meal. Except for the few authentic Thai meals that we had, we were not very happy with the food and our taste buds were craving for their usual fare.

So all the while wishing that he too was home for lunch, I took the pains to make a full meal, deciding that he could have it for dinner anyway. And just as I was sitting down for my rather late lunch at 2 pm, thoroughly exhausted, our driver rang the doorbell and handed me a packed lunch saying that my hubby had sent it for me.

I was quite touched, as I had not expected him to remember my backache at all, given his sleep deprived state and busy schedule for the day. In the evening, he was stunned with the lavish spread that I had whipped up, despite not keeping very well. And while I sat in front of the idiot box, he even got me a hot water bag.

Wowwww! All was so hunk dory at the Mindis and the air SO filled with love that I couldn’t help but remember O Henry's short story once again. Only thing missing was the mistletoe and I made a quick mental note to get that remedied.

But you know why the Henrys and Tolstoys of the world have you going ‘Awwww’ and reaching out for those tissues every time? That's because they stop with just one incident. But tell me friends, isn’t life a serieeeee......s of incidents?

And so, basking in the special glow that comes with unexpected pampering, I tried pushing my luck further. This morning, I sleepily asked him to make the tea, and he answered even more sleepily "Noooo....you know you make the BEST tea in the whole world"

"Okayyyy, the moment has passed. It ain’t happening again" I told myself as I woke up with a start and the song “just another day in paradise" playing in my mind.

We were back to being "The Mindis":cheers