With all the opposing and contradicting rules, buying a gift for Lata had been a grueling task.

“Just pick out something womanly,” Nick suggested. “Works for my aunt who hates my mother’s guts. I just buy her perfume every year for Christmas and she’s happy.”

I explained to him that it was not quite that simple. I was buying my mother a bottle of perfume along with other assorted gifts. Ma had specifically asked me to get her some perfume and that was why I couldn’t buy Lata perfume, too. I had to buy her something that I hadn’t given my mother but it also should be something that my mother would not want.

“This doesn’t sound like buying gifts but more like a diplomatic mission to the Mideast. I’m very confused,” Nick confessed, and I agreed wholeheartedly with him.

I handed a gift-wrapped box to Lata. “For you.”

She looked at the box and took it with a negligent shrug. “You didn’t have to bring me anything,” she remarked. “My brother who lives in Los Angeles gets me whatever I want.”

My mother’s jaw tightened and she glared at Lata. “If you don’t like it, Priya can take it back,” she retorted smoothly.

I gave Ma a warning look and put on my most winsome smile for Lata. “I couldn’t not buy you something. I spent a lot of time looking for the right thing… Now if you don’t open it, I will feel bad.”

Lata opened the box and I could see surprise and pleasure glimmer in her eyes. She pulled out shimmering silk-a delicately embroidered shawl of Navajo design. “It is beautiful,” she murmured.

Ma seemed to agree but wasn’t too happy about it. “It is just like the one she sent me last year,” she said peevishly.

I didn’t argue and moved on to the next batch of goodies.

“I also got something for Apoorva and Shalini,” I told Lata, and gave her two gift-wrapped boxes for her daughters. “I got them identical things-don’t want them to fight over whose is better.”