By Saachi D’Souza

There are two precious images from when I was a toddler. In one, I’m holding my father’s hand; our backs are facing the camera, and he’s walking me into the sea. I like to believe these were some of my first steps in this world. We would visit Goa, our ancestral homeland, and Dad would hold me as I learnt how to walk (no, wade) through water. I don’t know the real story of my first steps, but it’s nicer to imagine them in water. In the second image, I’m settled in my mother’s lap