Memories from 2018 – Recap series (Feb & March)


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The first post of Recap series had featured my most precious picture from January this year. Moving on to the memories created in the next two months, I realized that both these pictures had a feeling of a homecoming for me.

FEBRUARY

The remnants of the past at Balia
The remnants of the past at Balia

The month of February saw us visiting my father’s ancestral home in a small village called Balia in Bengal. My father had spent ten years of his childhood in this village before moving out to a town for higher studies. He finished his graduation from a college in the same town and then shifted to Calcutta for his post-graduation. After becoming the University topper, he chose to return back to the same small town and join as a Lecturer at his alma mater. I have never seen a man so content to give up lucrative offers and opportunities to stay close to his family in a place which gave him a sense of belonging. Even today at the age of 70, he ensures to visit his ancestral home at least once a month to meet his eldest sis-in-law and my cousin brothers. This February, we decided to take our toddler to Balia to let him have a feel of the emotions that define his maternal grandfather. It was a delight to see him enjoy and explore the place which still retains some memories of the bygone era.

MARCH

Celebrating the festival of colors.jpg
Celebrating the festival of colors

Staying away from home for sixteen long years had made me give up on some festivals while yearning for a return back home during the others. The last decade saw me shuttle between Bangalore and Mysore. Somewhere in between,  Holi – the festival of colors had lost significance in my life during this period. But this year, when I had consciously made a decision to introduce my then two and a half-year-old to a lot of traditions and festivals that I have grown up celebrating, Holi couldn’t have been left behind. The organic colors managed to bring a huge smile on his face as we united as a family to soak in the happiness and savor the delicacies.

I hope that you are enjoying this recap series as I bring out these selective slices of my life. Stay tuned to know why I call April 2018 as one of the most special months in my next post on 16th Dec.

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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.

23 thoughts on “Memories from 2018 – Recap series (Feb & March)”

  1. I am enjoying your recap series. Keep them coming. Balia is a place I have heard often as my husband’s pishi used to live there. I have never visited though. Holi is one festival I have a love-hate relationship. I like few things about it but hate the messy part.

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  4. It must definitely have been pleasurable to see your little one visiting his roots. Getting to know the roots is as much important as flying away to glory. Similarly, introducing your son to the festivals and watching him enjoying them must be utmost satisfying. 2018 was the first year for me as well in terms of playing Holi after 2 decades and I enjoyed it like never before. I had stopped the colour play after 1994.

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