The Daughter’s 18th Year Poem

I have been writing limericks for a while now. However, for my daughter’s 18th year I did get a bit emotional and ended up writing a long poem. many of the verses are contextual and refer to specific instances over the past few years. The daughter and other family members did seem to like – er, love – what I composed.

Was it not just the other day

I was hoping it were a girl 

N god gave us the little pearl 

Thinking, a smile’s come my way 

Ten hours we waited in anticipation 

For that shrill cry to rend the air 

Did you hear me say “this is not fair”

As I ponder about your next destination

You, our little darling fresh as a rose

Staring at all of us with purposeful eyes

The wife and I nodded, what a prize

As I look around the time is getting close 

And when it was time to crawl

All you did was roll and roll 

Wonder was being a rebel the goal?

I look at you now, standing so tall!

To make you eat was quite a feat 

There was none without a frown  

How could we get you to gulp down

I know now you’ll love the treat 

Growing up with Barbie you were as delicate

Did I see signs – or hope – of a tomboy  

Be it that, you were always coy 

When I look up the one I see is a sophisticate 

The question arose what would you want to be

A designer, photographer? Was it fine 

Said we follow your heart and you’ll shine 

It’s the age, the urge to go out and be free 

My dear daughter you’ve reached that age

When  the world calls you an adult 

Surely, it is a time to exult 

Proud we are as you get to the big stage 

Eighteen years, they just rolled by 

It does seem the time is but flat

For it was yesterday we gave you a gentle pat 

As you laze the countdown’s begun  for you to fly 

My dearie, I know it is now your time under the sun  

Knowing one day you’ll be able to cross the road

And, Of course, you will be able to handle the load 

Sweet girl, go out, cross the sea, have loads of fun

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Srinivas Nidugondi

was wondering how to describe myself and the first thing that came to mind is that I am caught up in a time warp and while the body has moved forward the heart says that the needle is stuck in the 30s! When I look back over the years I have only gratitude at where I am and what I have got in life. Of course. Once in a while I do yearn for more but most of the time I do see the positive side of life. On the professional front, with over 25 years under the belt, I never imagined that I would be deeply intertwined with the evolution of tech and digital and be part of many transformative initiatives across the Globe. Clearly a journey that began by default now reflects a tapestry that has been beautifully woven. Having been involved in launching and scaling financial products and services that have touched the lives of over a billion people it does give me immense satisfaction. What with these initiatives touching 13 of the 17 UN SDGs I do hope we will, one day, see us move from financial inclusion to wealth inclusion. Further, being part of the evolution of digital banking in India I helped launch the first mobile banking app, first digital only banking product, helping build a financial inclusion IT network and conceptualising and launching IMPS - IMPS and UPI have transformed the payments landscape in India. Starting off in the Smart Card industry, I worked on product concepts and help take them to scale and these include some of the largest ID card projects in the World. Of course, in this journey, there have been enough failures and these learnings have taught me much more. What keeps me going is change and the fascination for the new and so I thrive in anything transformational – be it business, product, process or people. I believe in tech for real development and as an angel investor look for sustainable growth ventures which, hopefully, will drive India’s growth story forward. As an avid reader I have a deep interest in philosophy, politics, public policy, international relations, history and spy thrillers. I am fascinated with limericks and penning them down is a great stress buster. Finally, the love for travel and food is something that gets me going. I do hope I will be able to write on some if not all of the above topics.

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