Retired bank employee Laura Alvares’s books draw on her experiences of family, work and personal struggles, as well as her reflections on life and starting afresh
CHRISTINE MACHADO
At 72, Laura Alvares had not imagined herself writing a book. By 73, she had published two.
“I grew up in Delhi, studied in Mumbai and Goa and got married in Goa. But I realised that neither my family nor my friends knew me well. I wanted to come out of my shell and write a memoir to tell my grandchildren about myself,” she says.
Having always enjoyed writing, Alvares decided to recount her life in ‘Work in Progress’. The memoir covers her childhood, marriage, motherhood, grandmotherhood, years in banking and retirement, along with her personal and spiritual reflections.
Alvares chose memories that mattered to her rather than working from a prepared list. To avoid interruptions while writing, she switched off her phone and put her home on ‘Do not disturb’ mode.
However, revisiting her past also brought up difficult emotions. “I had quite a turbulent life and I realised that I still carried many emotional wounds. While revisiting those moments brought back pain, it also comforted me,” she says.
Writing helped Alvares understand that although she could not change her past, she could choose how she responded to it. “Perhaps the greatest realisation was that, despite everything I had been through, I had found the strength to keep moving forward,” she adds.
After completing ‘Work in Progress’, Alvares missed writing and began work on her second book, ‘When the Time Was Right at 72’. “This book is about finding the courage to begin again and discovering that it is never too late to explore an unfamiliar path.”
Her books delve into the wisdom that comes with experience and the challenges and joys of different stages of life. Alvares hopes readers will recognise aspects of their own lives in her writing and find moments that make them pause and think, ‘I have been there’.
She hopes her books will resonate, particularly with women. Many people, she states, begin to feel that certain opportunities have passed by once they reach a particular age. “I think it is partly because society conditions us to believe that there is a time for everything, and that certain things are no longer meant for us as we grow older,” she says. Women, in particular, she continues, often spend a large part of their lives looking after their families and putting their own dreams on the back burner.
“By the time they have the freedom to explore their own interests, they may have lost the confidence to take that first step, or may feel that it is too late. I believe the secret is to keep going and remain open to new experiences for as long as we live.”
Looking to the younger generation, Alvares appreciates their independence but cautions against getting caught up in the rat race or losing sight of personal values. “We need to slow down occasionally and appreciate what we have. I hope the present generation holds on to kindness, compassion, family bonds and respect for others,” she says. She also encourages young people to learn from their mistakes and begin again.
Both books are available on Amazon and Flipkart in hardcover and paperback editions. Alvares will keep writing, but is unsure whether she will publish another book. “Publishing is expensive and involves considerable time, effort and energy,” she says. “I would rather continue writing because it gives me fulfilment, without feeling obliged to publish everything I write.”
