This Friday we ditched routine and ventured out for a morning at the beach.
Sid enjoyed the yo-yo with the husband while Little Princess rolled around in the sand, the calm and clear waters revealing starfishes basking in the morning sun, building sand castles while filling her pocket with treasure (shells, rock and lots of sand) as her tiny fingers toiled hard on digging into the wet sand getting more sand on herself (and me) than the castle itself.
At the fringes of the shore stood a young mother and her little daughter watching us while hiding their faces, gleaming under layers of sunscreen (surely an SPF 1700), under the shade of a big umbrella cautiously avoiding the sun, the cool waters and the sand.
The mother, an obvious germophobe, squirmed at the sight of Little Princess – who was still reeling from days of making her way around my in-laws’ garden (back in the India) chasing butterflies on her bare feet, her tiny fingers squashing the life out of centipedes (until they all convened and went into an emergency hibernation to prevent their extinction from the area) and catching dragon flies that joyfully flitted about – now heading to get her sandy hands on a star fish that had washed ashore.
Her antics, that I labeled cute, had not impressed the mother, for in apparent shock she quickly cleaned her daughter’s hands with a thick dab of sanitizer (as if to sanitize the mere memory of what had just convened before them) before quickly threading their way out of the shores balancing her umbrella that was designed to block every ray of the pleasant morning sun.
I wondered if she indulged in an occasional shot of sanitizer to clean off the friendly bacteria that resided in her gut.
But the mother obviously cared, like I did with my first born for the first few months of his life competing with the slim, attractive and ever-smiling concerned mother in the disinfectant advertisement in soaking every object that came into his contact with the white pungent liquid, only to see him fall sick at the drop of a hat.
Cleanliness is close to craziness in a world where being extra sanitized and absolutely germ-free with anti-bacterial soaps, alcohol-based sanitizers and perfumed hand washes has become a fad with the industries that thrive in this new high feverishly raising their researching standards for more ‘attractive’ solutions to kill germs and bacteria, that actually benefit and strengthen our immune systems.
This has, in turn, benefited the rising pharmaceutical industry and doctors (with degrees longer than their name) treat strange allergies that have made an appearance among our children.
It is time we give our children a childhood that they deserve , a few friendly germs and all, while you relive the joys of being a child once again!
Gm Pranitha! Yet again a thought provoking article from your reportorie. While basic sanitization is necessary, to deny the children the pleasure of playing in the mud is wrong. They should be allowed to experience nature during their playtime which is a great teacher for a healthy development of a child.
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Absolutely, Radhika. What is childhood without a little dirt and mess….and ‘ clean’ finds its way back to basics.
Happy Sunday, Radhika
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You have raised an important issue ..indeed it was a pleasure to read your post ..great thought !!!
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Thank you, Faree! You being in the health sector will surely have a better understanding of it
Good day, Faree!
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Yea its a obsessive compulsive disorder in medical terms
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Haha. I bet that Mom wouldn’t expect a post written about her. 😉
Hygiene and sanitation is good, but I feel bad bacteria conspire to attack the germophobe category with much gusto than they do with the unhassled carefree people like us. Small joys make up for pleasant childhood memories. (I would join her in picking up the starfish too. ;-))
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Hey Varsha… how have you been.
Yes, all thanks to her ‘germophobe’ ways, I managed a post this morning 😉
My first thought was did the mom- daughter duo come on a sight- seeing tour to the beach, an rational thought with umbrella and phobia and all.
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Hey Perfy! I’m good. How’ve you been? I mentioned you in my 500th post. Did you miss it?
Imagine being wary of sand on a beach! The duo should’ve stayed in theie sanitised room instead. 😋
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Me good, Varsha. No I am yet to check your space, will read right away and get bk. Was on a nice long vacation with parents and in laws, had a super duper time with friends and family. Spent the last week reading all that I have missed and I have kept the best for the last.
Hey congratulations on your 500th post, that’s amazing
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We did pick up the star fish btw.. it was fun
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Yes? Took pics? Share!
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Actually I ditched the phone that morning as I was mentally made up to just spend time with her and not bother clicking pics… but the husband did.. will share wat I have on Instagram soon
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you couldn’t have put it better! yes, people these days need some challenges(what we guys call antigens to wake up our hibernating immune systems to once again produce those proteins(what we guys call antibodies) to keep ourselves free from all those diseases, which were fought against most effortlessly by our ancestors who were well-stocked with antibodies to ward off any antigen that came their way.have no doubt your little princess will go a long long way. take it from me.Let her dabble in that sand and sun, and pick up her treasures, and frolic with those starfish; give her a childhood worth remembering and antigens to keep her healthy into her longevity!
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Thank you so much, Doctor. Your feedback gives my words more clarity, coming from a doctor.
I hope all over zealous super-protective germophobes are listening.
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let’s hope. probably the leader of the pack of Germophobes are right here with me-my mom!
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Haha😂
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Relevant post.loved it.
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Thank you, Sunith!
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Love how you wrote the piece, sheer observation and quirky humor resembling a Sunday newspaper column. So true, how rules limit the very young and somehow this happiness of drenching the hands minus sanitization is missing. Something that every should read.
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Thank you, Vishal for the encouragement. Coming from an experienced journo as you are, I am truly humbled.
It is sad that the parents find it in their right to kill the joys of childhood with care gone a bit too far. It saddened me to see that child while mine was busy with an unfortunate star fish that had all her attention
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It makes me so sad and how beautiful for your young one admiring the star fish. I’d argue that got a long way to go as a journalist and hope to work in a big city like Mumbai as a journo or columnist. Let’ see. Parents shouldn’t kill this innocence in the name of discipline and cleanliness.
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Absolutely, Vishal. Sending in wishes too that you find your dream job in the dream city of Mumbai
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And thank you for the share. Happy Sunday!
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Pleasure 🙂
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😃
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This is a very good post ! Some people are too cautious to have fun!
Thanks for sharing and kind regards,
Nahla
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Thank you, Nahla… so glad that you agree.
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Very true , pranitha. I agree in Toto. I know a mother who was so paranoid about her daughter’s health, that she sterilized the glass each time before giving her water. The daughter later on went on to confess to her mom, that she licked the benches in school. 😓 Extreme care in any situation, only dampens the growth of a child.
A very thought provoking article and a requirement in today’s world.
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😳I can imagine that mother’s feelings when her daughter confessed… so much for all her efforts.
We led happy childhood sans sanitizers and disinfectants. The only place I saw a bottle of Dettol is at our local doctor ‘s dressing room or its miniature version in mother’s cupboard which made a show only to sting your painful knee or ankle after a fall.
Thank you, Deepika
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☺️
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Is our society ad-driven? Many of us are trying to emulate the ‘slim’ home makers seen in ads 🙂 🙂
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Oh I’m guilty of it… 😌… but it’s time we wake up from the fantasy world of fad- ads and see and accept reality
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How have you been, Indira?
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I am good 😊
Just posted a blog, an hour back.
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Will chk that, Indira!
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Bring back dirty hands!!!!! Our kids need dirt as much for their mental health as their physical health!! 😉
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Absolutely, She-Ra!
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Such true words there! Happy to see that there are others who share my thoughts. Mud & mess are such an integral part of childhood, one without it seems a tad boring to me.
You write so well Pranitha , the article makes for a wonderful read sprinkled with that hint of humour. You weave profound thoughts with humour in such a balanced manner… I’m a fan❤️
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How did I miss this sweet feedback. Divya, thank you! It warms my heart to read your feedback. So glad that you liked it and agree with my thoughts.
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“I wondered if she indulged in an occasional shot of sanitizer to clean off the friendly bacteria that resided in her gut.”
Ha! What a hilarious image! I can totally picture this insanely cautious woman ingesting hand sanitizer for internal cleansing. Perhaps she sprays the people around her with Lysol disinfectant, too. 😜
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Hahah 😉 Well the way it looked, I will not be surprised if she used on us that morning.
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Totally agree! I take my baby boy out to play and for sometime let him get his hands dirty and all. In fact I read one article recently which said decent exposure boosts kids immunity.
Cheers, Charu
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Glad you agree, Charu. Controlled exposure is surely the idea to naturally immunize your child from the gems and bacteria while they still enjoy their childhood.
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It’s always a pleasure to come across your posts on my feed and this one has left me smiling (yet again!) and wanting to make tracks to the beach! I’m glad you had a perfectly lovely and beautifully messy day!!
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Thank you so much, Kim. I hope that you really did make those tracks on the beach and enjoyed the play of water on your feet.
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Every person experience childhood only once in their lifetime. We’ve been there before, even exposed ourselves to every kind of grime, dirt, bacteria and viruses and guess what, here we are today! So alive and kicking! Haha.
I understand we can’t be too careless nowadays because bacterias and viruses have evolved upon realizing that they’ve been unsuccessful in taking us down before; now they’re off for revenge to our children.
Be that as it may, our children may have also evolved tougher than us 😆
Just let them be. Enjoy their childhood while it lasts.
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Not sure how I missed your feedback here. Glad that you agree, Andrei. Three cheers to tougher children and weaker bacteria.
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Oh, no worries Pranitha 🙂 Cheers! Haha
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I would rather say we are in an era of an extreme hygiene hangover. I pity those friendly endangered microbes. While there is little more affecting than a child who doesn’t know how to play outside, the child’s fear of getting dirty is also a health issue. If children are not exposed to low levels of bacteria in their early years, their immune system does not develop properly. Playing in the dirt, living with animals and interacting with lots of other children is not just fun, it is good for them. Filthy fingernails have always been a favorite fashion accessory of mine. 😉
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…and it is a favorite fashion accessory of my Son too. My daughter manages to bring the park or the beach with her – a fistfull on her head and the rest tucked into her pockets, shoes and fingernails!
But what is childhood without the fun of dirt and grime.
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Sheri aanu. Pandollavarkk okke nalla immunity ond. Ippo in this chase for cleaner and more hygienic environments, we are essentially rendering ourselves more prone to bacterial attacks! Very well written, my dear. ❤
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Thank you, Shweta!😍 our super clean ways are truely playing havoc with our immune systems
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Ohh, they sure are!
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Thoughtful. Such acts would also make them strong as they evolve and breaking them away from being delicate. But guess there shud be a balance too as immunity is subjective to each person.
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Absolutely, Ravisidula, balance is the key always. Thank you for stopping by.
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