Firsts.

So yesterday was… a moment. Like, one of those random “I’ll remember this when I’m 30” moments. Because today, ladies and gentlemen, I had my first drink.

A gin mojito.

Before you go all “Ambika’s gone rogue”, relax. It was 15 ml. Barely enough to get a mosquito drunk. But the point isn’t the alcohol. It’s the fact that my parents got it made for me.

Yup. Mum and Dad. The people who made sure I had two spoons of vodka as a 3-4 year old so they could enjoy themselves and avoid dealing with my cranky business. The same people who didn't pull the two breezer bottles out of my mouth when I chugged them both at once! They instead laughed and clicked pictures.

They didn’t freak out, they didn’t give me the “alcohol is bad” speech, cuz well it isn't! They made sure I tried everything and felt comfortable enough to ask them for a drink and talk to them about anything! Yesterday, Dad offered ki why don't you have one too? I was like sure! 

They just smiled, said, “We’ll make it right,” and boom—next thing I know, I’m sipping mint, lime, soda, and the tiniest splash of gin like I’m in some chill Sunday brunch ad. 

See, the thing about my parents is, they’re not the “strict Indian parent” stereotype. They’re just… effortlessly cool. Like, Mum’s the kind of person who’ll roast me for my music taste one second and then start dancing to old Hindi songs with me the next. And Dad? He has this “I’m pretending not to care but I’m actually watching everything” energy that’s weirdly comforting.

These guys are the coolest people in my life! I enjoy more with my parents on a Sunday evening than most of my friends. they've been my bestest buddies through everything and I couldn't ask for anything better in life. 

They’ve never tried to control me, they trust me. And that’s the best kind of parenting. I mean, if you’re going to have your first drink, what’s better than having it with the two people who raised you right enough to know you won’t go wild with it?

It wasn’t about the gin. It was about the vibe. Sitting there with them, laughing, teasing, clinking glasses—me feeling grown up for a second, them pretending I wasn’t.

That’s what made it perfect.

So yeah, yesterday I didn’t just have my first drink. I had one of those rare teenage moments that you know is going to sit in your heart for a long time. The kind that makes you go, “Damn, my parents really are the best.”

They don’t need to try to be cool. They just are.

And honestly? If I end up half as cool as them one day, I think I’ll be doing pretty okay.

Cheers to them. And to the world’s tiniest gin mojito. 🍸

Love you Mumma! Love you Papa! 

BBYEEEEEE!

As Ever,

Ambika