We would affectionately call her "Sarojini Doddama" (mom's sister). Last week was the saddest moment of my life as our Doddama passed away. She wasn't keeping well for a long time. The last time I met her there wasn't much meat on her body, she was so skinny that one could almost see her bones. She was suffering from an enlarged heart and a damaged liver.
From my childhood after my mom, she was like another mother to me. I loved her sense of humour, the way she used to poke fun at me. At times I was a bit annoyed when she used to shout at me however in a few moments she would show her tender side. I later realized that beyond her scoldings my Doddama had a heart of gold. Tracing the family tree, Doddama was one of the six sisters apart from a brother. My mom was the youngest of the siblings. Doddama even with her fragile body was a very active woman. She used to do all the household chores, tend the garden, graze the cows apart from being an amazing cook.
Sarojini Doddama's personal life was a mix of tragedy and a painful journey. She lost her husband in her prime, had to single handedly raise her son and also had to battle the social stigma of being a widow. She would work selflessly and would without a murmur even take care of her sibling's children's food, clothing and their essential needs but once their job was done, people were so ungrateful that they wouldn't even thank her.
For me, my brother, sis and mom going to our ancestral village in Padubidri was associated with meeting Doddamma. As we were far away from village, there was not much of a connection with Padubidri except during vacations. Whenever we would visit Padubidri, we knew Sarojini Doddama would always welcome us with open arms. We didn't have any emotional bonding with mom's other siblings when compared to Dodddama.
When I first heard the news on the phone, I couldn't imagine a world without her. Her dream was to see my sister getting married and she was adamant that the bride would leave from her place to the marriage hall. Tears welled up in my eyes and that night, I cried a lot. I didn't even cry when my sister got married. The tragedy is that I couldn't even see her last rites, one of the downsides of being away from home. It's an enormous personal loss for us as we feel we have lost our connection to Padubidri. Going to Padubidri now will never be the same.
With a heavy heart, we hope and pray that her soul rests in peace. We will miss you Sarojini Doddama :(
