By Purvi Maniar P’27
On Friday, October 21, the MICDS Parents Association Passport Series once again welcomed parents, faculty, and staff to an in-person celebration of the Indian Festival of Lights, Diwali, which is celebrated by millions of Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs worldwide. During the five-day festival of Diwali, friends and family gather to celebrate good fortune, both earthly and spiritual, the new year, and each other. Diwali is marked by an abundance of “mithai” (sweets), “diyas” (Indian tea lights), sparklers and other firecrackers, and “rangoli” (a welcome mat at the front door created with powdered colors or flowers).
The Olson Hall Presentation Room was transformed into a “passage to India” with colorful saris, sparkly Rajasthani parasols, and, of course, twinkling lights to mark the Festival of Lights. Parents enjoyed a presentation by 2022 Diwali Chair Purvi Maniar P’27, Passport Series Co-Chairs Ayumi Cullen P’25 and Sona Kamat P’18, ’24, ’25, and Diwali program, food, and decorations chairs Sarina Handa P’23 ’26, Hiroo Motwani P’21 ’23, and Shalini Malhotra P’25 ’28. They then mingled and explored the flavors of India through food, snacks, henna tattoos, and MICDS bookmarks handwritten with their names in Hindi.
Many thanks to the school and the MICDS Parents Association for supporting this wonderful event, as well as all of the volunteers who helped make it a beautiful and enjoyable event for all.
The Passport Series Committee believes that our diversity is truly celebrated when we learn more about each other’s culture, heritage, and roots. The co-chairs of the Passport Series, Ayumi Cullen and Sona Kamat, encourage parents and guardians to join the upcoming Passport events to broaden their knowledge of more cultures.
Sona and Ayumi would love to have more events through the Passport Series to represent the rich diversity at MICDS, and welcome any and all ideas. Our Passport Series events are only made possible by the parents’ volunteerism—and we thank you all!
To join the Passport series listserv or if you have an idea for an event, please email Passportseries@micds.org.
Happy Diwali!