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| welcome to my home! |
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| my orchids |
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| my bourdoir!! |
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| kitch!! |
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| peace!! |
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| & more peace |
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| cherry chillies |
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| home tweet home!! |
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Monday 13 June 2011
My piece of Heaven on earth !!!
Vintage!
Let me grow lovely, growing old,
So many fine things to do.
Laces and ivory and gold
and the silks need not be new.
There is a healing in old trees,
old streets a glamour hold.
Why may not I, as well as these
Grow lovely growing old?
So many fine things to do.
Laces and ivory and gold
and the silks need not be new.
There is a healing in old trees,
old streets a glamour hold.
Why may not I, as well as these
Grow lovely growing old?
Saturday 11 June 2011
Sorry God!!!
I became an Atheist,. Now a couple of years later am trying to take a softer stance and become Agnostic. The desire to worship something persisted and now i am a Pantheist!!I acknowledge a higher power - Nature.I can say that I follow Hinduism in its oldest form. Do good, feel good, good karma, bad karma!!Everything that happens in our life..luck, love , illness, death are random occurrences which we interpret & analyze in context to our religious beliefs & culture. But it was not always like this!!
As we grow in life we grow away from our roots,our beliefs & traditions. I grew up in a family where a Satyanarayana katha would be organised by my grandfather on the slightest pretext. News of a birth, someone passing an exam, a new job.....anything!!We celebrated Diwali, Ananth Chaturthi, Nava Ratras, Nag Panchami( i used to go with my grandmother to put milk for the snakes in abandoned ant hills!!). The whole family would gather, newborns, sons, daughters, Daughters-in-laws, grandkids, grand parents....so much jashn!!!
What legacy are we leaving for our children?In these jaded times we desperately need such ceremonies.In my anxiety to keep up with the world, I have left mine behind. Will our kids ever hear the word "sowbhagyawati", the blessing given to a happily married woman?I think we all need to invest some time & energy to draw us back into this world of traditions. A family now has no more than 5 members ie. if you count your dog as your child! Its not too late! We need to get back to our roots, where we came from! Religion today has taken a whole new different feeling...its all there in your face with an empty heart within.
As we grow in life we grow away from our roots,our beliefs & traditions. I grew up in a family where a Satyanarayana katha would be organised by my grandfather on the slightest pretext. News of a birth, someone passing an exam, a new job.....anything!!We celebrated Diwali, Ananth Chaturthi, Nava Ratras, Nag Panchami( i used to go with my grandmother to put milk for the snakes in abandoned ant hills!!). The whole family would gather, newborns, sons, daughters, Daughters-in-laws, grandkids, grand parents....so much jashn!!!
What legacy are we leaving for our children?In these jaded times we desperately need such ceremonies.In my anxiety to keep up with the world, I have left mine behind. Will our kids ever hear the word "sowbhagyawati", the blessing given to a happily married woman?I think we all need to invest some time & energy to draw us back into this world of traditions. A family now has no more than 5 members ie. if you count your dog as your child! Its not too late! We need to get back to our roots, where we came from! Religion today has taken a whole new different feeling...its all there in your face with an empty heart within.
Monday 23 May 2011
Mothers Bribe!!!!!
I remember when Samridhi was 6 or 7 yrs old.We were in Chandigarh. Devyani was asleep. Samridhi was as usual watching me get ready....with a sullen face! It always annoyed her when she saw me going out with R. That moment her face was flushed, her tears fresh! She asked me not to go, & yet I went...to a dinner where I would'nt be missed. She was right when she screamed. My staying at home would have mattered- to her & me!!So why did I leave you & go? Because we adults are cowards. We get our priorities wrong. We give undue importance to unimportant things. When R & I got back at midnight, Muniya had put her to bed. She said that Sam had refused dinner. I felt so small & wretched. When I saw her the next morning, I was still feeling awful. But she had forgotten. A big smile & she asked me "can I have ice-cream in my milk"? It stung me more than a slap. I winced. I made a peace offering of her favourite food. It was pretty sly of me coz she was so unsuspecting. But that;s how mother's operate. Any trick for a little peace!! It does'nt always work, but who says we have to stop trying??
Thursday 19 May 2011
Come on over!!
Just the other day a host of sunbirds descended upon my pink Ipomeas for a honey fest!! The shining blue-black feathers & their shrill cries made me drag my entire family to view these pretty things. just then a thought struck me , how strange it is , this desire to share a pleasing sight, sound or experience.
The need to share pleasure is inherent in all of us. The baby who points & says ga-ga is calling out to its parent to enjoy what he found intriguing. Similarly a toddler when he cries "look mummy"is trying to include her in the miracle of his discovery. All too often we vaguely reply "yes Darling"without stopping to enjoy his delight! We enjoy laughter more when we share it with someone. Could you imagine watching a comedy with no one to laugh with?
Come to dinner,tea, drinks. Eating is an enjoyment to be shared. When we eat alone we always manage a quick snack or a mug of coffee perched just anywhere. But with just one other person in the house, the table is laid, even the simplest meal is properly prepared & surprise surprise , we enjoy the food more! Perhaps the pleasure of sharing our meal is not fully appreciated till we find ourselves alone . Sharing of the family mealtime is more important than a rigid bedtime.
We often hear our friends say ,"You must come & see our roses, the winter annuals....".This is not with a sense of superiority, but a true sense of pleasure in sharing of those few minutes of communal appreciation! In my family home in Jamshedpur May thru July was a festival of colours, Gulmohars, Jacarandas, Cassias, Amaltas......the stunning annual parade was a sight to behold & No 6 Loyola area was "the place" for chai, nimbu pani & panna ( we didnt call people over for drinks in those days!!!!).
We share constantly with those we love, & when our loved ones leave us it is those little moments, we miss the most! When my Grandfather died , I mourned most.His sense of humour, how he always saw the funny side of life & it was a long time before I stopped making mental notes to show him, to tell hie & to share with him. This moment of sharing is always taken for granted, the importance of it for our mental stability is overlooked.
We all know at least one person, who lives alone, with little oppurtunities, to share small pleasures. Perhaps we might try to find a common sharing ground for those alone people, the benefits from being able to say "Come & Look".
The need to share pleasure is inherent in all of us. The baby who points & says ga-ga is calling out to its parent to enjoy what he found intriguing. Similarly a toddler when he cries "look mummy"is trying to include her in the miracle of his discovery. All too often we vaguely reply "yes Darling"without stopping to enjoy his delight! We enjoy laughter more when we share it with someone. Could you imagine watching a comedy with no one to laugh with?
Come to dinner,tea, drinks. Eating is an enjoyment to be shared. When we eat alone we always manage a quick snack or a mug of coffee perched just anywhere. But with just one other person in the house, the table is laid, even the simplest meal is properly prepared & surprise surprise , we enjoy the food more! Perhaps the pleasure of sharing our meal is not fully appreciated till we find ourselves alone . Sharing of the family mealtime is more important than a rigid bedtime.
We often hear our friends say ,"You must come & see our roses, the winter annuals....".This is not with a sense of superiority, but a true sense of pleasure in sharing of those few minutes of communal appreciation! In my family home in Jamshedpur May thru July was a festival of colours, Gulmohars, Jacarandas, Cassias, Amaltas......the stunning annual parade was a sight to behold & No 6 Loyola area was "the place" for chai, nimbu pani & panna ( we didnt call people over for drinks in those days!!!!).
We share constantly with those we love, & when our loved ones leave us it is those little moments, we miss the most! When my Grandfather died , I mourned most.His sense of humour, how he always saw the funny side of life & it was a long time before I stopped making mental notes to show him, to tell hie & to share with him. This moment of sharing is always taken for granted, the importance of it for our mental stability is overlooked.
We all know at least one person, who lives alone, with little oppurtunities, to share small pleasures. Perhaps we might try to find a common sharing ground for those alone people, the benefits from being able to say "Come & Look".
Friday 13 May 2011
Memories!!
Time flies and how!!It all seems just yesterday,I still remember my Father exhorting me , without looking at any watch, to hurry up for school even as Saigal's metifluous voice from the old Philips radio reverberated in our house.And the clock would strike 8 in no time!!
Saigal holds a lot of fond memories for me. A part of my childhood has a lot of Saigal in it. My grandfather made a big handsome house for my grandmother & would render"" ëk bangla bane nyara"!! Later on my dad followed the same route & would hum ""do naina matware tihare"'when my mom sulked!! I have hummed "so ja rajkumari"' to my daughters giggles at my rendition with a deliberate nasal tone!!This explains why he is a household name!
I have heard him since my infancy & still admire his songs being on the wrong side of 40!. His songs are like a soothing balm in this hurly burly of MTV & Channel V.Even now in one of my nostagic childhood memories I see the time & if it's 7.55 am I remember Saigal & Sri Lanka Broadcasting Society a la Purane filmon ke sangeet!!All the memories of my grand dad singing in his deep resonant voice "babul mora naihar chooto hi jai!!"""brings a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye!! Ah the simple pleasures of childhood!!!
Saigal holds a lot of fond memories for me. A part of my childhood has a lot of Saigal in it. My grandfather made a big handsome house for my grandmother & would render"" ëk bangla bane nyara"!! Later on my dad followed the same route & would hum ""do naina matware tihare"'when my mom sulked!! I have hummed "so ja rajkumari"' to my daughters giggles at my rendition with a deliberate nasal tone!!This explains why he is a household name!
I have heard him since my infancy & still admire his songs being on the wrong side of 40!. His songs are like a soothing balm in this hurly burly of MTV & Channel V.Even now in one of my nostagic childhood memories I see the time & if it's 7.55 am I remember Saigal & Sri Lanka Broadcasting Society a la Purane filmon ke sangeet!!All the memories of my grand dad singing in his deep resonant voice "babul mora naihar chooto hi jai!!"""brings a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye!! Ah the simple pleasures of childhood!!!
Much Ado About Nothing!!!!
I am a person of infinite leisure.I watch the world go by and do nothing about it. Till a couple of years back,I had this crushing desire to be one of the immortal ones. I too wished to leave footprints on the sands of time. But apart from a college degree, a very successful marriage and bringing up two wonderful girls, I cannot think of any achievement which can be recorded for posterity.I have a couple of fetishes. I keep a spotlessly clean home, I am not a gourmet cook ,neither am I a good eater but I can whip up a complete meal in a jiffy! Much as I cannot sing(unless I croon after a couple of beers ),I like to listen to music.I love plants & my pets & the only singing I have done is to them. They have taken to it most kindly since they are blooming in all their glory!!I love reading & books are my best friends
This inactive lifestyle for questions like how do you pass your time. I do not do anything nor do I feel guilty about it! Most people are doing things not because they want to but because they have to. I am doing nothing because I chose not to. But I have managed my time very well.All my work is carried out with clockwork precision. This habitual ritual & routine encompasses my day & I also indulge in daydreaming...my favourite pastime I do armchair travels(oh & do I get tired & weary like all travellers!!),write a novel..yet it all seems in third person.I seem to be having no problems with my life. it is my life after all!!I am quite happy ...thank you!!. If you think there is a problem, it is your view - not mine!!!!
This inactive lifestyle for questions like how do you pass your time. I do not do anything nor do I feel guilty about it! Most people are doing things not because they want to but because they have to. I am doing nothing because I chose not to. But I have managed my time very well.All my work is carried out with clockwork precision. This habitual ritual & routine encompasses my day & I also indulge in daydreaming...my favourite pastime I do armchair travels(oh & do I get tired & weary like all travellers!!),write a novel..yet it all seems in third person.I seem to be having no problems with my life. it is my life after all!!I am quite happy ...thank you!!. If you think there is a problem, it is your view - not mine!!!!
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