fℓσωєяѕ fσя уσυ 💐 | Ongoing 🟣

Lilacs

Lilacs are an 8th wedding anniversary flower and their botanical term is named after a nymph named Syringe. It is a state flower of New Hampshire, which symbolizes the hardy character of Granite state's citizens. Lilacs signify the first emotions of love, and white lilacs symbolize youthful innocence. Lilacs also stand for confidence and pride.

— — —

"You're going to do well, Prisha. Don't worry," Lopa, her mother, said as she squeezed her hand. Prisha was laying on the bed and ready to give birth to her baby daughter. Her long, black hair was tied into a messy bun while some stray baby hairs stuck to her forehead due to sweat.
She was nervous as this was her first birth, and she didn't want anything to go wrong. Especially since everyone was ready to perform the Jata Karma or Medha Janana as soon as the baby was born. The pain was bearable in a sense as the contractions continued whilst the doctor urged her to push on time. After several more pushes, the head made an appearance, and soon, the little one emerged into the world.
     Her covering was removed, and she was thoroughly cleaned before Ishwar, her father, spoke. "Do not cut the umbilical cord and do not give the breast milk." He did a quick bath then recited prayers to Guru and Vishnu Smaranam. Once that had been done, a Vaishnava scholar who was on standby grounded rice and barley into a powder on a washed stone slab using an unused stone.
As Prisha lay in fatigue, she watched her husband take the powder using his thumb and ring finger of his right hand then said, "Here is the order. Here is rice. Here is long life. Here is ghee." He then proceeded to place the powder and some ghee onto their daughter's tongue using a golden spoon. She squirmed in reaction and cried out a little.
"May Madhava, Vamana, and Hari give you intelligence. May Acyuta and Ananta, wearing lotus garlands, bestow intelligence to you." Once again, he gave her ghee. "At this place, I have attained the most precious boon, intelligence for understanding Krishna."
After doing so, he gave permission to the doctor to cut her cord by saying, "Cut the cord and give milk." The doctor did as told and cut it in the right place after tying it then Lopa washed the baby before handing her over to Prisha. She stared into her daughter's bright eyes as she smiled lightly.
'I can finally hold you. . .' she thought. She held onto her tightly as she allowed the child to feed on her breast milk.
Lopa sat down beside them and said, "You did well, Prisha."
     She brushed her daughter's hair back with a proud expression. "Where is Ishwar?" Prisha asked.
"He is taking a bath now to end the ceremony," she replied. "Everything went well today. We will have Namakarana Sanskar in eleven days to give her a name. Have you thought of one?"
"Her official or Namkaran name?"
"Both," Lopa answered.
"Well, I want to name her Hemangini, and Ishwar has no problem with it. For her religious name, Ishwar tried to see what it would be according to her horoscope, but we decided to just leave it to the family priest."
"Oh, yes, why did I even ask? That should be done accordingly."
"Mrs. Kumari, your husband is looking for you," a nurse came in and said to Lopa.
"Ah, thank you for letting me know," she responded then turned to Prisha. "Ishwar should be back soon. I'll see you later." She kissed her head and headed out.
     A few seconds later, Ishwar returned with a small smile dancing on his lips as he took in the image of his wife and newborn daughter. "How are you doing, Prisha?" he asked as he sat down and caressed their daughter's face gently.
"I'm fine, just tired," she replied.
"She's a cute one, isn't she?" She nodded with a smile.
"I think she has your nose."
"Mine? But mine is big. She's better off with yours."
"Maybe. . ." She lightly rubbed the baby's nose with her finger. "Did the priest agree to do the ceremony at our house?"
"Yeah, you don't have to worry. Just stay with her in your room until then."
"Alright then." He smiled once more and petted her head slowly.

— — —

Prisha got up from her bed and walked over to her daughter who was cooing in her crib. "Are you ready, Hemangini?" She picked her up carefully and rocked her lightly. "You're getting your name today. How exciting is that?" She grinned at her, and Hemangini giggled in her arms.
Someone knocked on the door and asked, "Prisha, are you ready?"
"Yes, mother." Lopa opened the door for her to exit with the main guest of the ceremony. They walked into the garden where a table was set up with the essentials and the priest standing behind it. Mister and Missus Kumari started the Namkaran ritual off with pranayama, prayers, and mantra chanting in front of the priest.
Afterward, the priest performed the ritual with prayers to the Gods, Agni, the God of fire, the elements, and the spirits of the ancestors. The family astrologer checked Hemangini's horoscope or her Nakshatra based on her birth date, time, and place.
     He nodded as he looked at the result. "Yes, her name is very auspicious. . ." He told Ishwar who wrote the name on a bronze thali with rice grains spread across it using a gold stick while chanting God's name.
Then, he walked over to his wife with Hemangini in her arms and whispered the name into their daughter's right ear, repeating it four times along with a prayer. The rest of the family repeated a few words after the priest to formally accept her name, Kusumita, which meant flowers in bloom. Once that had been done, the elders of the families gave their blessings to Kusumita along with their gifts.
     Prisha's aunt, Yami, came forward with a gold bracelet and a wide smile across her face. "Kusumita, what a wonderful name, Hemangini. I pray that she grows up to properly embody the name she is given."
"Thank you, Aunt Yami," Prisha responded.
     Next, her grandfather walked up slowly with an amulet. "May all our Gods guide her through life and make easy her endeavors." He opened Hemangini's little hand and placed the amulet inside to which she held onto it tightly with a giggle as she looked up at him with twinkling eyes.
"Thank you, grandpa Samesh." He smiled and patted her head before strolling away. Needless to say, Hemangini received a lot of presents from everybody. A feast with family and friends followed after to end the ritual.
After dinner, everybody made conversation around the table while Prisha excused herself to feed her daughter. She walked inside the house and stood by a window overlooking the garden with the curtains drawn a little to give her privacy. Her newborn fed on her whilst she watched the happy expressions of her family members; this made her feel like she had finally done something right as a young adult.
For most of her life, she felt as if she wasn't doing enough as the only daughter of the Kumari household, but when marriage came up, she jumped at it with a goal in mind. She wanted to do her role and get married off to the Makavan family who was a long-time friend of her parents, and that she did, but even then she didn't think it was enough.
Therefore, she rushed her pregnancy without really getting to know Ishwar; however, so far, he seemed like a really nice guy. She could only hope it would stay that way, for they had only been together for a year.
"Prisha," Ishwar called out as he walked up to her, and she turned to look at him. "Are you feeding Hemangini?" She nodded, and he smiled a smile that made her heart jump. Ishwar was honestly handsome considering the fair share of guys she had seen during her teenage years. He was a few years older than her, and he was very studious. "I'm sorry this happened so quickly," he apologized, and she snapped out of her daze.
"Why are you apologizing?" She looked at him in confusion. She was truly confused because she was the one who pressed the pregnancy matter onto him when he was still focused on finishing his studies. He had promised to graduate and move to another country with better opportunities with her, which was nice to hear.
"I should've said no when you kept asking to get a baby. Now, you'll have to take care of the baby without me."
"It's fine as long as you still come home at the end of the day."
"But I don't want to miss anything."
"You won't, Ishwar. It's not like she'll grow up without you." He pursed his lips and nodded a little in acceptance.
"You're right. I was worried for nothing. I'll make sure to make time when I come home. I heard from some friends in America that it's important for babies to have the presence of both parents."
"Really?" she asked curiously, and he nodded. "Do they have experience though?"
"Yes, a few of them." Hemangini pushed away from Prisha's chest as she smacked her small lips with blotches of breast milk on them. "Looks like she's full." He used his finger to gently wipe her lips, and she grabbed at him with a cute smile, embodying the youthful innocence of newborns. "Kusumita really suits her. She looks pretty as a flower, like a Bakain. Maybe her English name should be Lilac when we move to America. Her friends would find Hemangini difficult to say, wouldn't they?"
He looked at Prisha, and she nodded with a small smile then he returned his attention to their daughter. Prisha watched her husband for some time and decided that it was worth it to accept marriage with him and have his children.