Italy Saga – Amma and her wishes - a Colosseum day

 My mother loved to travel. She didn’t have the opportunity or means when she was young, but once she was done with her responsibilities, she traveled a lot. With four daughters in four different places, she made up for all the lost time. I know how much she enjoyed not only the travel, but all the stories that came with it.

She was enthusiastic and very curious—that’s why she was the best packing, unpacking, and planning companion. She was always present in all those details, and I miss her the most for these things.

The first trip without her was the hardest, but I’m getting used to it. I’ve gotten better in the last year and a half; I don’t plan much anymore, and packing is no big affair. I’m becoming my husband—pack whatever you can, and everything else is available everywhere.

This trip was one of those long-dreamt trips, but I packed the day before and was busy cleaning the house more than packing, leaving Anand at home and putting things together for him. I could rest only when I was on the flight. In the midst of all that, I felt her void. I wished she had a chance to see this—a traveler daughter she has now.

After the seven-hour flight, there was a huge line at Milan immigration. I always thought having an American passport made life easy, but I learned a European passport is even better in Europe. Early morning, half-asleep and tired, all I saw was the Singapore Airlines crew walking by, and I thought, yes, she is here. Singapore was my mom’s first air travel, and she loved everything about Singapore. I got her the Singapore Airlines uniform tote bag on my first trip home. Later, I bought my sister a dress in that design, and Amma got a tote stitched from it. Then my sister got another bag for her. Seeing those air hostesses passing by made me wonder if it was a sign—my mom traveling with me.

I carried one of my mother’s saree with me, and on the last day, I wore it for an early morning sunrise trip to the Colosseum.

 The Singapore airline crew in Milan

Anand’s story in his own words- Comic Con Saga

 Anand wanted me to write about his adventures — but I wanted him to use his own words.

(Funny as it sounds, when he was little, he would often point or gesture instead of speaking. Worried about his speech delay, I would gently remind him, “Use your words.”)

So he did use his words — only this time, he wrote them for his mom.
Below are Anand’s stories, written by him, pretending to be me.

Hey, what the hell are you doing, interfering with movie and tv show characters?"

"It's Comic-Con, man. It's like a multi-verse.

A…multi…verse? Where does Anand come up with these terms? I don't even know how to say it or what it even means!

If you think costumes are only for Halloween parties, you thought wrong. If you had any costumes you wore for Halloween this year, definitely save them. That's what Anand did after he and I went to a Halloween party hosted by my husband's colleague in Shirley, MA.

Comic-Con has also been another rare event in our family's lives. Far more rare than plays, concerts, and musicals, to name a few. And what would spark interest in Anand to attend Comic-Con? A program called OpenSky, but that's not all. Anand has been watching bits and piettuces of movie scenes at home for reasons he won't share with me. And of those "bits and pieces of movie scenes" happened to be from Ted 2, a 2015 fantasy and comedy movie starring Anand's favorite hero, Mark Wahlberg. Just like the South Arcade concert, I had no idea how serious Anand was about Comic-Con when he put it on the calendar! He also knew what he would expect: large crowds and people in costumes. Comic-Con tickets are so expensive, so I have to thank OpenSky for making a trip like this possible. Most Comic-Con events happen elsewhere in America, preferably in California, Florida, or any state that is hundreds of miles away from where we live. This Comic-Con took place at the Amica Mutual Pavilion and Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, RI, which was less than 50 miles from where we live (Anand and Dad agreed on going to malls that are less than 50 miles).

Anand agreed to take lots of pictures and he got a lot of them with those in costume. He was a little hesitant, worried some would say no, but thankfully, it went smooth for him. While there were a lot of food vendors, they were really expensive and some only take cash, but Anand was able to get some food using his debit card. He could've had something from the food vendors if Anand made some tip money (or side money) at work (when Anand helps customers at work putting groceries into their cars, sometimes they would give him tip money as a way of saying "thank you").

Getting a pic with famous celebrities at Comic-Con was also expensive, but this was all Anand's first experience at Comic-Con, so he didn't know what to expect. Anand could've stayed longer, but felt a lot of sweat from his "Noble Knight" costume, so Dad went to pick him up from Comic-Con. The next evening, I saw him making a poster of his Comic-Con adventure, since he already made a poster about the South Arcade concert he went to in October.

This has been another milestone for Anand, going to Comic-Con in costume, the second milestone after the South Arcade concert. This man is really stepping out of his comfort zone, taking the train to Boston, taking a ferry, attending a concert, and now his first ever Comic-Con experience. Next stop, Anand's first Gala!

A Banarasi for a festival meet

Anand’s Concert Adventure — Mom’s Side of the Story

 There are so many things I do not know about my sons. We get to know things about them randomly. I didn’t even know that a group called South Arcade (from the UK) existed — or that Anand loved them!

On July 12th, Anand decided to buy a ticket for their concert in Cambridge, scheduled for October.
His favorite movies have been on my calendar for months — which is normal, because you see those ads on TV. But this concert? I had no idea how serious he was until he booked the ticket and added the event to our family calendar.

It was a Wednesday evening concert, right in the middle of the week. Anand had no idea how he would get there — he just wanted to go. For things like this, he usually goes to his dad because mom tends to ask too many questions (and might say no!).

Making him independent and having him take public transport had always been on my list. And, somewhere unrelated to this, after a big argument in September — as always — something shifted. Anand became public-transport independent!

I wrote earlier about how he started taking the commuter rail, subway, and even the ferry, exploring the city on his own.

Finally, October arrived. The best part — we didn’t have to drive him to Cambridge for the concert. Anand would take the train!

My husband and I both had to be in the office that Wednesday, each with important meetings. But there was no panic in the house, no arguments, no stress — just a plan. Anand would take the train and go to the city.

He took the local GATRA bus to Franklin Station, the commuter rail to Boston, and then the Red Line to Cambridge. He hung out at the Cambridge Mall, ate somewhere nearby, and settled into the concert venue by 6 p.m.

He kept us updated throughout — his departure, his arrival, everything. We even discussed backup plans in case the concert ran late. The last train would get him to Franklin Station by 1 a.m., and one of us would pick him up.

After 7:30 p.m., pictures started appearing on our phones — his happy face glowing with excitement.

At 9:15 p.m., I got a FaceTime call. He was over the moon, talking about how amazing the concert was. I quickly checked the train schedule and reminded him that there was an earlier train he could take home.

He took the Red Line back to South Station and boarded the Franklin train. He kept sharing his live location, so we knew exactly where he was. We met him at Franklin Station at 11 p.m.

Oh, how happy and excited Anand was! I took a few pictures — the joy on his face was priceless. I couldn’t wait to hear every detail of his evening.

The next morning, he airdropped all the pictures and — to my surprise — asked me to write about it. That was so unlike Anand! I encouraged him to write his own story, but he insisted that I should do it.

That’s how this blog got delayed.

Keep dreaming. Keep pushing. Things do get better.

A few weeks later, there was another concert — one of its own kind.
A mother, who herself has a child on the spectrum and is also a professional singer, decided to organize a concert in a special-needs-friendly way.

Many families from the Desi Moms Network could finally experience something like this because it was designed especially for our community — sensory-friendly, welcoming, and completely free for these families.

For several parents, it was the very first time they could take their kids to a musical event without worry or hesitation. The joy in that room was beyond words.

It was truly one of a kind. She was phenomenal on stage, performing with her amazing crew — creating not just music, but memories and hope for so many families. 

A Tussar silk for the evening

Anand and his concert adventure - in his words

 Anand wanted me to write about his concert outing and I insisted he should. I deliberately delayed So he wrote for his mother.

So here it is — his story, his words, written straight from the heart (and for his mom!).

Please read with extra love…

Concert outings are very rare in our family. Well, I mean, in Anand's point of view. Almost everywhere we go, Anand always has his noise cancelling headphones on, whether it's listening to music, or going to places that are extremely loud, such as movie theaters, party events, or nightclubs, to name a few. But what surprised me the most was when Anand had some exciting news: on July 12th, 2025, Anand purchased tickets to see a pop punk band from the United Kingdom, South Arcade, who were on an American Tour live, performing at the Middle East Restaurant in Cambridge. There was an obstacle that Anand had to address: the day and date that South Arcade would perform was on Wednesday, October 15th, which was a work day for him. Around September, Anand requested time-off on both Wednesday and Thursday, since the concert would start at 6:30pm. Another obstacle was taking a train back home. The last train leaving from South Station to Franklin was at 11:55pm, but neither me or Dad would be awake at that time, so we asked Anand to keep us posted whenever possible. After taking the Green Line to Boston, the Red Line from South Station to Andrew (where Anand walked around South Bay Center), Anand has two plans, one to take the Orange Line to Assembly Row, and another to Wellington (then walk to the Gateway Center and Encore Casino). Anand says he's "spent hours studying roads on Google Maps," and he was right.

The day of the concert finally came, and Anand couldn't stop thinking about it. Dad and I were at work, Ajey was home, but neither of us could drop Anand at the station, so he booked a GATRA ride. Anand kept in touch with us when he was on the train, at South Station, then at the Middle East Restaurant. Anand agreed to take a lot of pictures of the band and the concert, but he also knew what to expect. Loudness, people inadvertently bumping into each other, and huge crowds were, as he said, "totally normal at concerts." When the concert ended at 9:35pm, Anand facetimed me and Dad while we were watching TV, and he was yelling with joy, saying he had a amazing night of his life. Drenched in sweat, Anand improvised and took the Red Line from Central to South Station, then safely boarded a train to Franklin, coming home around 11:32pm.

This has been a huge experience, more so than taking the subway to Boston and boarding a ferry to Hingham Shipyard. Willingly attending a concert by himself at a nightclub became an even BIGGER step forward. Next adventure: first Comic-Con experience in Providence, Rhode Island.

A Banarasi for a Gala at Iconic Boston Library Oct 16th 2025 Posse Foundation