Hello Friends, 

And so Halloween is is upon us! The streets will soon be filled with fairies, princesses, super heroes, cartoon characters, ghouls & ghosts of all ages! Oooh! Spooky exciting! Every year, we come up with a family strategy to achieve the goal of ‘colossal candy collection’! Every year it’s a different one and somehow, we always manage to collect just about the same amount of candy. Or as we’ve fondly named it “our annual supply of guaranteed cavities”!! Whatever your tradition or family strategy is, have a Spooktacular Halloween! 

Diwali, or Deepavali as its known in the south, is also around the corner. My favorite festival growing up in India- the Festival of Lights! The Triumph of Good over Evil! I sincerely wish each and every one of you a very happy, festive and prosperous Diwali! 

I leave you with a wonderful picture of the First Lady celebrating Diwali in the White House. 

Until next issue…

Warm regards,

Anu Kurian

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Dear friends, 

Happy 70th year of lndian Independence to all! PM Narendra Modi in his speech quotes “Today on this special day, I convey my greetings to 125 crore Indians and the Indian community living overseas. May this energy guide the nation to scale newer heights of progress in the years to come.”

Olympics fever is at its peak. Our family is glued to the TV, as I’m sure is yours. But at least this time the purpose is to be inspired and believe in the fruit of your ‘sweat & blood’. Hardwork, determination and craftsmanship at its best! 

We wish all our kids a very energetic, enriching and happy back to school experience. And good luck to all parents as well! 

On July 22nd we experienced the very painful and untimely demise of a very valuable member of our COMA family, Salil Nair. I have had the privilege of compiling beautiful memoirs that his friends have contributed in his honor. This newsletter is dedicated to his memory. Special thanks to Smitha and Nish Nishant for helping me reach out to Salil’s near and dear ones. 

Furthermore, you will find details of the COMA 2016 Onam celebration. We hope to see all of you and your families join us for this quintessential Malayalee festival. Details of upcoming Malayalam classes are also included. 

Until next issue…

Onashamsakkal,

Anu Kurian

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Hello friends,

May has been a rather busy month. And as we head into June, the weeks seem to get busier and busier. Those with school holidays around the corner know what I mean. 

We lost music legend Prince who lived by his famous words, “A strong spirit transcends rules”. 

May and June also heralds Graduation season. I’m sure we all know a few graduates moving on from their safe zones into the exciting world of college. We look at them thinking, where has time flown? 

So I take this opportunity to congratulate all the 2016 graduates among us and share with you some wonderful words by Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook in her commencement speech at University of California, Berkeley. 

“You will be defined not just by what you achieve, but by how you survive. It is the greatest irony of my life that losing my husband helped me find deeper gratitude- gratitude for the kindness of my friends, the love of my family and the laughter of my children. My hope is that you can find gratitude- not just on the good days like today, but on the hard ones when you will really need it.”

“We can each define ambition and progress for ourselves. The goal is to work toward a world where expectations are not set by the stereotypes that hold us back, but by our personal passion, talents and interests. “

Until next issue…

Warm regards

Anu Kurian

Hi friends,

It’s April, the month of Vishu! Vishu is a quintessentially Malayali festival, which will be celebrated in Kerala on 14th April this year. The most important event in Vishu is the Vishukanni, which literally means ‘the first thing seen on the day of Vishu after waking up’. Homes are painstakingly decorated with auspicious articles that signify prosperity with the intent to please Lord Krishna. Hindu’s all over Kerala flock to ‘ambalams’ to celebrate this most auspicious festival.

 Vishu is traditionally celebrated with great pomp and grandeur, with nilavilakkus and fireworks display (Vishupdakkam). Other exciting customs at Vishu include buying new clothes (Puthukodi), giving of money (Vishukkaineetum) and a gastronomic feast to go with it (Vishu Sadhya).

Another famous 200 year old tradition, Thrissur Pooram will be celebrated on April 17th. One of India’s most spectacular festivals, it involves 30+ colorfully costumed elephants parading through town on their way to the Vadakkunnathan temple. 

In light of the recent catastrophe in Kollam, I hope that this year’s celebrations remain safe. In any case, I wish all of you a very happy and prosperous Vishu! 

Until next issue…

Stay Warm

Anu Kurian