My grandmother ‘Katy’, officially known as Catherine Abreo, and I shared a room growing up. So I picked up a lot of my skills, such as stitching, from her. The dress in the photo is one I fashioned out of Katy’s sari.

The intricate handmade, pearl-and-glass bead purse I am carrying was a wedding gift from her husband when she was 18. She kept it intact in the box it came in. It ended up in a drawer we shared and I purposely packed it along when I was leaving home many years ago. I like the nostalgia that emanates when you open the purse. Inside, there is a perfumed handkerchief that smells of yesteryears, a double-sided mirror, and a religious relic.

Katy died last year, but the memories—mostly food-related—live on. For instance, come December, she would take it upon herself to make large batches of Mangalorean kuswar (Christmas goodies) and distribute them among family, neighbours and friends. But what I miss most was how she enjoyed my cooking, and food in general. She lived to eat and feed others. That’s another thing I got from her!

—Priyanka Rego, 30, Mysuru

Photo: Priyanka Rego
Featured in Harmony — Celebrate Age Magazine
September 2017

• Legacy of love

• Crafted with devotion

• True love points North

• When time stands still

• Wrapped in love

• Threads of memory

• Silver lining

• Sharing her ‘mettle’

• Pocketful of love

• The family jewel

• The whole kit