Thursday, January 19, 2012

Amusement Park

Two families went to an amusement park in Chennai. The group consisted of three under 10s and four around/over 40s. The latter was above (read: too scared, too sick) to take most of the rides. The under 10s couldn't go to many, or were dragged away because the elders didn't want to accompany.

Cut to a week later, one of the adults rides her bike on city roads and wonders why we have amusement parks. The bumpy roads give enough jolts befitting a dragon train. The vehicles around simulate dashing cars and Arabian Nights ride where the cups and saucers manage to miss each other by a hair's breadth. The heart is always in the throat as we navigate through these chaotic roads.

The only thing missing is the enjoyment factor. If we can convince ourselves that being dropped down from the skies is fun, then why not this! It's all in the mind, baby!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Anubavangal: Chasing Her Shadow - Literary Fiction Novel - love...


Chasing Her Shadow - Literary Fiction Novel -  on modern complexities of human relationships. My official debut novel, which my friends liked and encouraged me to write more. Only now woke up to the fact that I can share this on blog too...

Awaiting your feedback

Friday, January 13, 2012

From the Babe's Mouth: Part IV

There were many things I wanted to write on. But this one took the cake!

As I was driving down tonight with the kids in the backseat, a bike insisted on honking me out to my left by trying to travel down the narrow path between my car and the median.

So I ranted a bit and told my kids never to ride like this once they grew up. "He is not only endangering himself, but also me!" I complained of the bike rider.

"You must say the other way - he is not only putting you in danger, but also himself." - said my daughter.

"No, what I mean is - if he wishes to meet with an accident, that's his problem. But by driving like this, he is also careless about the risk to others," I explained.

"Yes, and because he is making a mistake, god will punish him," my daughter replied. "But if he hits us, then it is also because we are being punished for something we did many days ago..." Then she thought. "So god has to remember all the mistakes we make and haven't been punished for." Then the realisation, "How will he remember the mistakes of all the people done at different times! So he has to do us good for the good we did and remember all our mistakes and punish us for that too."

We just laughed and she said, "He really must have heads in all directions."

Well, she is thinking quite a lot!




Monday, January 9, 2012

The Competition

The two stood
Poised on the brink
One to take off
One to sink

The judges watched
Equally tense
Neither a favourite
Neither any less

Just a point
Between the two
Will decide now
On the winner who

Will take the trophy
And walk away
With a smile broad
Back all the way

The other dissolves
In tears salty
A dam bursting
Within his heart

Why not me
Just for a moment
Hold that cup
The trophy of the event?

All alone
In that moment
Not any word
Can reach the depths

The hard work
The skills
The enthusiasm
Positive thinking

All to a naught
Now life seems fraught
A long stretch of loneliness
With the tag of a loser

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Small Joys

As I waited for my daughter to finish practicing yesterday for a music program this Saturday, another waiting mother informed me, "There is practice on Saturday morning too. I cannot bring my son. In any case, there are 40 children singing. What difference will one voice make?"

Hmmm... I thought. Why do I have to, too? Don't I have enough on my plate already?

So when I was driving back with my eight-year-old daughter, she mentioned something about the program and I casually remarked, "Forty kids. How does it matter if one sings or not."

She replied, "No ma! See we get to sing in such places, and practice! Can we call the grandparents?"

I was chastised immediately and said lamely, "That's the right attitude."

This morning, she chirped around the house happily, "I am so excited. I get selected in all music related things. I am in choir (there is a school choir, which is how she ended up in this program), I am in this program, and I am in the school music programs too!"

They are all by the same teacher... But why spoil her fun, when it makes her eyes shine so!

Am I glad she sometimes does not listen to me!

Monday, January 2, 2012

Exclusive Amusement

The cyclone whipped up a wind, and the stink from the nearby dump swept over us strongly. But even that couldn't deter us from watching the swallows and the crows from enjoying the wind.

The tiny swallows would fly up, be caught in the wind, and be swept back. They would spread their wings, stop their flight, and then allow the winds to carry them behind.

Suddenly, the crows joined in the fun. Even their larger bodies enjoyed the effortless reverse flight that the winds afforded them...

Their own private amusement park?

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Welcoming New Year

The bursting of crackers woke her sleeping husband up. "Happy new year," she whispered. She went to the window to see the fireworks lighting up the sky. The nearby terrace had a crowd of people screaming 'happy new year.' She smiled to herself.

They had been in the party circuit when they were newly married. But somehow... somewhere along the line... it hadn't seemed as exciting. It seemed to take too much effort to talk over the loud music, to be excited about the dinner so late... to think that the people at the party were so close that one HAD to welcome the new year with them.

She slipped into the bed. Her husband put an arm around her. They smiled at each other in the darkness and kissed gently. "Happy new year," she whispered again. He merely smiled. She chuckled, knowing his theories about these 'special days'.

She heard a message alert. It was her colleague. Must have just finished the midnight mass in the church, which she never failed to attend on new year's eve. Like her sister, who never missed going to the temple first thing in the morning. She replied to her colleague and greeted her sister. Her husband chuckled reading a message on his mobile. "That was mom..." She smiled. Her mother-in-law had only recently learnt to send messages. She found the gesture sweet.

As the crackers fell silent, she strained her ears to discern the sound of the workers in the nearby land. A metro station was coming up there, and for the last few days, she had heard them work through the night. A demolishing vehicle would go up and down, incessantly, guided by men on the ground. The felling of trees was the most heart-wrenching.

But today, it was silent. She was glad that the workers had been given time off to welcome the new year too...

She closed her eyes and prayed, 'May the new year bring peace and happiness.'




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