Durban businessman Sadha Naidoo
FOR Durban businessman Sadha Naidoo, fatherhood has brought back all those simple pleasures he had long forgotten. He shares his experiences:
My life has been a challenging but successful one. In my journey, nothing has eclipsed one singular experience – fatherhood.
This October, my daughter, Keyuri, will reach the tender age of 2, and it has been a truly amazing experience. I have been fortunate in having my nephews and nieces growing up around me and providing the pleasures of being a father.
That moment when I have retired from work for the day, and as I walk through the door, my daughter will flash me a big smile and crawl over to me. While sleep has been scarce, it is always pleasant to be awakened in the morning because your daughter is playing with your face. And as you open your eyes, the first thing you see is a big toothless smile peering at you. Sometimes I am awakened in the middle of the night as my daughter has sleepily walked across the bed and found a nice sleeping spot under my armpit.
When you have a daughter you start to realise she is just as strong as everyone else in the house, a force to be reckoned with, a soul on fire with the same life and gifts and passions as any man. Fatherhood has brought me back to all those simple pleasures I had long forgotten.
Watching Keyuri reach her milestones, flipping over, crawling, babbling, walking, has been a joy. Seeing the little things finally take shape is truly spectacular.
One of the most poignant lines I have heard, commonly attributed to John Lennon, points out that “life is what happens while we are making other plans”. If you are a new father, you may not have yet sensed the quickening acceleration, but it is inevitable and unavoidable as sunrise. Do not let time pass you by, enjoy every moment as your child grows.
I still dream of so many things: of travelling, of living to a ripe old and healthy age with my family.
But every phase of my own life has been vastly enriched by the one gift that eclipses all others: having helped bring a great person into the world, and together with my wife, Theagie, family and friends, shaping her into a beautiful soul.
My simple message to all parents and children as we celebrate Father’s Day – enjoy the moment, and let us continue to embrace one another with love, affection and the virtues instilled in us over the years.