Mother may I ?

[Thinking]

As my beloved husband was driving me home last night after dinner and a drink...

I gazed at all the sights of my immediate neighborhood.

I live in a predominantly middle class area of the city...

Where children openly found with few clothes rather dirty....sitting carelessly on the footpath with each other.

The beggars parade marches right next to my apartment building every evening where they have a loud speaker through which even we sitting in our apartment can hear their screech.

Nearby stores openly sell second hand toys, clothes and plastic crockery.

There are also trendy little shops and outdoor cafes from which I am habitual of taking tea and parathas.

So the vibe is a bit yuppie...not very liberal and a tad risque.

I really like my neighborhood. Where ever my beloved husband has landed his ship I accompany him and tried my level best to make that place My Home.

Then I remembered...my mom mentioned visiting me some time with my sister.

My mom....my status conscious mother...would be visiting my neighborhood. I know my mom has worked so hard for all of us and she thinks that we should be somehow at least one level higher from where she had started her life....

But not all of us are that lucky....hmmm....

How do I pull that off?

My apartment building is next to a hair salon called "Good Head" and a palm reader called "Qismat".

The vision of men holding hands of a lady and stores with used clothes and toys would probably not bode well with the status conscious people.

I think her head would literally explode.

I contemplated putting blinders on her and will take her hand and lead her to my apartment?

Maybe give her a news paper to distract her while we walk from the side street where I will park her car to my apartment?

Any other ideas.....hmm...????

[hillwalker]

Thank you for sharing another glimpse of your life with us.....

If your mother loves you as much as you say she must then she will be happy that you have set up home where your husband 'has landed his ship' (a beautiful expression).

Of course, you could always ask her what her first home was like (and how she felt when her mother first paid a visit). The chances are she felt like you do, and will tell you that your apartment is ten times better than her first one.

Or, if you have generous friends (rich yuppies, of course) you could 'borrow' their much more expensive flat and tell your mother you are having to live in such poverty because your own home is being modernised - or even trick her into thinking this is your new home.

BUT I think honesty is the better policy. She will be paying more attention to how happy you are in your new married home than in the bricks and mortar of the building. Besides, all the best apartments are located in those more exotic neighbourhoods (think of London, New York or LA).

And you could always speak to your sister beforehand and obtain her moral support during the visit - two against one, your mother doesn't stand a chance.

Good luck


...oh, and btw..... 'I am habitual of' should really be written as 'I am in the habit of'

Best wishes as always, H

[dafydd manton]

None of us start off at the top of the tree, and not many of us get there anyway. Don't let it worry you. Some of the nicest people live in deprived areas, and some of the least pleasant liven in so-called "posh" areas. People are far more important that material possessions, and anyway, who are we to judge others for their life-style?