As a kid I never valued what my grandmother or mother ever cooked . It was mundane and boring I whined. I always thought how difficult is it to cook a new dish everyday ? Why do they plan and discuss ? What’s the big deal ? I always found it silly though this happened for months and years . Unconsciously I never respected what they did . From cleaning to mopping to cooking to washing . I felt that was easier than studying or working . I thought it was the easiest to be a house wife( now the polished word is home maker) . Especially later when my friends who had kids always mentioned they don’t have time to breathe , I never understood but nodded . I never connected with that, I did try to explain them how they could manage time but they never understood me neither did I understand them . It went on like this until I decided to take a break from work and do nothing for a while. I have been working from the time I joined college so I felt I deserved the break . And then realisation struck . What to cook for lunch ? How about dinner ? And breakfast was a question I juggled with . When I had hired a cook , I told him decision is yours and then when he wasn’t around again it’s a vicious cycle for days and then years . Then it dawned upon me how much value our parents/my friends added to their families . I realised how tiring and stressful their life is compared to a corporate life where after all that one does there might be an appreciation , an appraisal and there “will “be a salary 🙂 . And being a home maker is a thankless job as we take them for granted , day in and day out .