Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Letter Z

It is the last week of the Alphabet with a Twist challenge. The topic for this week is Letter Z – Needs to have the letter Z anywhere in the word or people or animals catching some Zzz’s (sleeping or napping).  It so happened that I chose to take up this challenge today – that is on Valentine’s Day. The whole world is celebrating love and togetherness while we are trying to ease out things for a toddler who’s been quite unwell for the past two days.

My twenty-eight month old has been sick with severe viral infection. My husband and I have barely slept a wink for the past two nights. The toddler has been waking up frequently through the nights. Ever since we have been together, there hasn’t been a single Valentine’s Day where my husband failed to surprise me. This year had been the first where we had to look at the calendar to realize that today is 14th Feb. After rocking my son to sleep for almost 2 hours, when the boy could doze off, we decided to take turns in watching over him.

So here is the picture of a dead tired father trying to catch up on some sleep albeit with the specs on so that if the boy even stirs in his sleep, the father can immediately cater to his need. The toddler chose to sleep beside his Dad, though in the opposite direction while one of legs reached out to touch his father’s blanket. Probably he was looking for the reassurance that his Dad is going to be there for him. My heart wells up at seeing my man and our boy – the two people who are my priorities today.

With the hope that the night will be easier for our son and better for us, here’s wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day. Keep spreading the message of love because that’s what the world desperately needs today.

Author: Sonia Chatterjee

An alumnus of Presidency College (Kolkata), Delhi University, and XIME (Bangalore), Sonia Chatterjee holds two post-graduate degrees in Chemistry and Management and an MFA in creative writing from Writer's Village University. With eight years of experience in the banking sector as a Branch Head, she took a sabbatical from the corporate world to start her blog soniasmusings.com. Her blog consistently featured in the Top Indian Blogs list from 2019 to 2024. Her articles have been published on various digital platforms such as Women's Web, Youth Ki Awaaz, Tuck's Magazine, and Period Magazine. She was invited as a speaker at the Breaking Barriers, Kolkata 2018 event by the Women's Web, at the Women Writer’s Fest, Kolkata, 2020, and the Crime Writers Festival, Kolkata,2025. Sonia has written two detective thrillers titled ‘Deal of Death – Introducing Raya Ray’ (2019) and ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death – A Raya Ray Adventure’ (Vishwakarma Publications, 2024) and a non-fiction book on true crime titled ‘The Sanyasi Who Became a King’ (Sristhi Publishers, 2025). Her book ‘Diary, Deceit, and Death’ was shortlisted for the PVLF Awards 2024-25 in the Best Fiction Category. Sonia lives in Kolkata with her doctor husband and nine-and-a-half-year-old son. View all posts by Sonia Chatterjee