Happy Ganesh Chathurti

The All-rounder

The All-rounder

The room was lit by an old, dusty tube light. The congested table was the source of a combined odor of medicines and fruit. The twins had their gaze sleepily fixed on their mobile phones.

           I was lying on a bed covered with a white sheet, in one of the rooms of a private hospital. It was after a minor accident which left my head and left hand injured. But that was not what bothered me now.

 “How are you feeling now?”

I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I did not notice my mother entering the room.

“I am fine. What about him?”

“He’s got his leg sprained. He is still asleep. I do not know how he will take it. Appu! Ammu! Enough of it! Go to sleep!”

My heart started to bleed.

          My elder brother was always my role model. In fact, he was the role model for many, even my younger siblings, the twins and all my younger cousins. Why wouldn’t he be?

           He was a ‘straight A’ student and most of the time, the topper in his class. He is proficient in both classical music and martial arts. He was head boy in his school days and was studying in one of the best engineering institutes of our country. He had to quit the basketball team of his school to join the National Cadet Corps, and then became a Senior Under Officer in college. He took up engineering just because our parents and his teachers convinced him to do so. After taking up his degree, he planned to join the National Defense Academy.

          His role model was our father. Whenever anyone told him that he reminded them of him, his face would beam with pride, much brighter than any prize he had won. He was tall, with long legs and broad shoulders , and had grey eyes. Like my father, he stood out in every crowd. He had also inherited his deep and clear voice, and when he would recite mantras in the temple, a powerful grace in his voice makes it distinct from others. Our father was a General in the Indian Army and he wanted to follow his footsteps.

        But then, I had never felt comfortable with him. Especially when people compare me with him. I was never like him, nor like my father. But I tried to be like him. I joined every course he joined, and tried to inherit his mannerisms and style, but just ended up as a mere mimic. I shall improve when I am older, my mother would tell me.

       My brother was pretty short tempered. My imperfections did not go along well with my parents, and did not go along with him either. Whenever I fumble in the parade practice or turn up late or if anything did seemed untidy to him, his handsome face would turn red. I have heard a lot of his scolding, but never became immune to them. He would complain that I was clumsy and absent minded. He was a perfectionist, like my father and expected everything in our home in military standards. I would feel relieved when he would leave for his college.

      In one of his visits, he seemed really happy. He was selected for the Republic Day Parade, and it was his long time wish. He made sure that his preparations never lacked perfection.

       The night two days before the Republic Day of that year, he screamed at me for something that I do not remember now. Everyone stood on his side, and I had enough of it. I yelled back and stormed out of the house. I would never go back to that house where I was considered less inferior, I thought then.

       It was when I was walking on the pavement of a busy road, that I heard his voice. His long and fast steps got him closer to me. To avoid him, I decided to cross the road, and in the process, failed to notice a truck approaching me. Then I felt a bright beam of light and a strong pull.

     My elder brother had just saved my life, and in the process, sprained his leg. Those moments also smashed one of the biggest dreams of his life. I was certain that he would never forgive me, but had a strong urge to go to him and apologize.

    I walked into his room and saw our mother with him. He was sobbing hard on her shoulder. I had never seen him sob before. My mother stood up to leave the room, and all I heard her say was “I know you lost something important, but there are far more important things”. I chose to talk to him later.

    I refrained myself from his room later that day. The next day, I visited him. He was awake and looked okay.

  “How’s your hand” he asked me.

“It’s okay” I replied fast.

“The Republic Day’s tomorrow, is it?” he asked, his voice getting shakier, as a precursor to his tears. He wrapped his arms around me andcried softly.

“I…I’m sorry” I said, feeling guilty. He did not respond.

After a while, we talked for a long time about other happy stuff. And that was the first of many long talks we had

Xav Virtuso 2K16- A Grand success

https://www.facebook.com/xavv16/

Happy Independence Day

The stage

The Stage

Arpita could see the seats in the school auditorium slowly being filled. The pandemonium increased with the number of people. There were giggles, guffaws and loud talk, that could be heard distinctly.

“Do you have any idea about what the topic could be about?”

This startled her. She had realized that she had lapsed into blank thought, pretty comforting blank thought, that had relieved her from the stress of her English Elocution competition.

“Have you any idea about the topic?” Siya repeated her question.

“ Umm…..dunno!” she replied in the quickest way possible.

“What is in the news today?”

“I have not read the newspaper. I woke up a bit too late and had to get ready fast”

“Okay” said Siya.

Arpitha looked at her fellow contestants. Among the ambitious crowd, those known to her included her classmates, Bhagya and Gautham. They were more  experienced and had won several times before in previous competitions

Arpita remembered her father, who convinced her to participate in the competition.

“ It is very important for an I.A.S aspirant to develop the art of public speaking”

“I know that, but… I shall participate later, Papa”

“Later participation, later success” her father concluded.

The competition began. The topic was given to the contestants.

“Dreams”

Okay, dreams, she thought. It gave her some more confidence. As the competition proceeded, she found out that she had enough time to prepare, she was the twenty fourth in line.

“Use quotes of famous people” she thought “And put something of my own as fillers”

But as each contestant before her completed their task, she felt a certain sort of grip tighten around her. Then she thought for herself

“My parents must have reached. I must perform well”

“Chest number twenty four”

Arpita felt the crispness of her well ironed uniform and set her neatly braided hair. Then she slowly climbed on to the stage.

That was then a sudden wave of fear engulfed her. Almost every seat was occupied, and all eyes fixed on her.

“They are not bored yet” she thought for herself .

The judges, with a pensive look on their faces kept looking at her. But even more keen was the gaze of her parents, who sat in the center of the third row.

“Dreams….” She started, but later realized that her head was completely blank. Her shaking and drying lips displayed her helplessness. It was complete silence, both in the hall and in her mind.

“Close your eyes” she thought “ Take a deep breath”

That was what her mother used to tell her, when any stressful event approaches you. A deep breath before exams, before checking any result and now for the first time, giving out a speech in public.

It helped her though. Arpita did not remember any quote that she had planned to say, but she did say what she really thought about dreams. But after her speech, she was not able to remember anything she said on stage.

She left the stage, still able to hear the loud applause and take it in her troubled mind. She was crestfallen and felt that she could have done better. But somehow, the stage had seemed to limit her abilities.

“Nice speech” her father said, patting on her back.

“No, it was bad!” Arpita exclaimed “I had a nervous breakdown on stage. I forgot what I should have said”

“It was pretty good for a first timer” her mother comforted her “We did not expect so much from you”

“Really” Arpita gave out a short lived expression of happiness “But look, this ‘elocution’ thing does not suit me. I could not even expect to give a speech as good as Bhagya or Gautham”

“Well, that is not what you should be worried about now” her father said “Yesterday, you were a shy twelve year old who had not entered a stage in her life. Today you are a budding orator”

“A budding orator!”

“Yes, this is how you begin. Then, as you keep performing, you shall sharpen your skills Face fear to overcome fear”

The results were announced. Arpita did not win the competition, but now had the zeal to improve.   

Only the best

Only the best

Like a dandelion in the wind

You carry me, throughout my life

From inception to the end

Through happiness and strife

It may not be what I wanted

It may not be as desired

But this to me you have granted

Like everything else you have inspired

It may be much different

And strange to my thoughts

But much to my benefit

Only the best I have got

When one door closes

Another is found

And every door opens

To their own heaven unbound

Happy Birthday eXpressions!

Your favourite blog eXpressions-am.blogspot.com is turning five today!
Send your birthday wishes to expressions.am@gmail.com
Photo of cake taken from bellissimocakes.blogspot.com

Happy New Year

Merry Christmas

Happy Diwali

keralapiravi

Vijayadashmi- October 23

Vijayadashmi an important Hindu festival, is celebrated all over India, and also in many other countries. This festival, also known as Dussehra is celebrated on the tenth day of Navarathri , a period of nine nights and ten days in the month of Ashvin. This period is dedicated to worship the three important Hindu goddesses, Goddess Parvati,Goddess Lakshmi, and Goddess Saraswati.

Ganesh Chathurti Celebrations

Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Ganesha, the destroyer of obstacles. This year Ganesh Chaturthi was celebrated on 17th September, 2015. 

The procession began in the morning after Ganapathy Homam and morning pujas with Majestic elephants decorated with Gold plated Forehead ornament (Nettipattom) and further adorned with bells and necklaces, with temple priest holing Ganesh vigraha and temple volunters who held silk parasols (muthukuda) and sway large while yak tail whisks (Venchamaram) and large peacock feather fans(Aalavatom) along with the rhythm of the Panchavadyam.

Thepparadhotsavam was a treat to watch. The illumination of the temple, and Grand fire works in the night was spectacular.

Read : Before the exam

Before the Exam
Three hours before the exam:
You're at home. Dressed up, glancing through the pages of your textbook, and trying to memorize the facts in your textbook. The book stays in your hand and your eyes stay stuck to it, as you eat breakfast, as you tie your shoes etc.You give your book the love and attention you should have given throughout the year.Your parents try to motivate and advise you. They tell you to feel calm, though they wear a rather tensed face. Your relatives from distant places call you to wish you their 'All the best'. You pray, and so does your family, so that you may come back home with a smiling face.

Two hours before the exam:
You're in your vehicle, on the way to your centre of exam. Your eyes are still fixed on the book.
For a while, you try to memorize the facts you just read. If you'd remembered it, good. It must have made you feel better. You turn the page.

One hour before the exam:
You've reached the centre of exam. You see your classmates, in the same situation as you are in, preparing to fight a great war. The only difference is that they wield a pen of blue ink, and that too in a proper manner, so that it might not be struck by the examiner's weapon, the pen of red ink.

Thirty minutes before the exam:
Okay, now you're done. You are well prepared for your exam. You try to be calm, but the tense surrounding does not allow you to do so. Then you get into discussing the topics with your friends.

ten minutes before the exam:
You've cleared your doubts. You've done everything you needed for that exam., but still... that impending fear.....
Then someone asks you "What is watt-less current?"
You realize that you've forgotten it.

Ten seconds before the exam:
You are sitting in the seat allotted to you. You hear your heart beating fast. You feel your sweat trickling down your face and down your pen. Then you look up and say"Bhagavane! Help me out with this!"
The invigilator gives you the paper.

Read : Eating out

Eating Out

A square shaped room of a pizzeria. On the left was the kitchen, where about a dozen staff members, all in red and yellow uniform do the cooking and three staff member take orders. On the other side are tables and chairs, kept in a disorder manner, some occupied and three tables vacant. A group of teenagers enter the room.

“ Order what you like” said Sid “But get me something vegetarian”
"You came here all the way to eat vegetarian?" Jose exclaimed.
"You know, we are not permitted to eat non veg. Well, I don't see how that would affect you guys"
"Let him have  what he wants, Jose" Alok said " A medium sized veg pizza and a medium sized chicken pizza, please"
"A medium sized veg pizza and a medium sized chicken pizza" One of the staff typed "Is that all?"
"Yes"
"That will cost you 650 rupees, sir"
Sid, Jose, Vishal and Riya handed over their money to Alok. He took a 100 rupee note out of his purse and paid the bill.
"Wait!" exclaimed Rishabh "We  shall have chicken wings, four pieces.A piece of pizza would not fill my stomach."
A bottle of juice, please" Gauri ordered.
The group then puts together two tables and arranges eight chairs around it. Sid heads to the restroom.When he came back to his place, he noticed that his friends had already started eating. Vishal smiled at him.
"Where were you?"
"I was trying to be hygenic" Sid replied.
He sat down and took a piece of the vegetarian pizza.He saw Jose devour a chicken wing and lick its bone. His face turned pale. Alok noticed it.
" Ignore it Siddharth. Just sit back and enjoy the music"
"What kind of music is this?" exclaimed a voice "Do you seriously like it?"
It was from a middle aged man, seated two tables away, with his wife and son, a boy of about twelve or thirteen.
"Well, I like the the beats" whispered Alok, slowly and took a bite of his piece of pizza.
"You know, Sid" said Vishal, biting into a chicken wing "It's bad to kill innocent, harmless animals just to satisfy our hunger"
"Yes" Sid agreed "How do you manage to eat these stuff?"
"Like you manage to hog on idli-vada- sambar" Jose said " Pure vegetarian rice stuff!"
Sid was not paying attention to what Jose said. Instead, what bothered him was what the family discussed about.
"I was not very keen on having pizza today" the man said "But just because it's your birthday, Amey..."
"So, Satish, what shall we order?" his wife asked, trying desperately to change the topic.
"A medium sized mushroom pizza"
"Shall I have some cake too?" Amey asked his father. Satish frowned and whispered loudly to the boy "how fatter could you get?"
The boy got disappointed, and Sid felt sorry for him.
"Hey, Sid" Gauri patted him "Haven't you started eating yet? Rishabh, how can you be taking selfies while you eat! It's gross!"
"It's worse than this" Riya said "The next thing he would do is to post this in facebook"
Sid nibbled on his piece of pizza.
After the group finished eating, Sid headed to the wash basin. Satish was standing there, crumpling loads of tissue paper to clean his hands.
"Satish etta" Sid said "You could've taken your son somewhere else"
Satish was taken aback.
"It's lack of manners that caused you to eavesdrop"
"You brought your family here to celebrate your son's birthday. Then you cribbed all the time. You gave all of us, including your son an unpleasant experience. Now isn't that lack of manners?"
Satish pondered on what he for a while. Then he walked out of the washroom. His son stared at them.
After some time, the family was seated again on the table.
"Okay, which cake do you want?"
Amey turned back at Sid and smiled at him.

Read : Brother

Brother

“Bye Papa! Bye Mama! Love you both!”

She switched off her cell phone and looked at the evening sky. Lavender, she thought. Yesterday, it was a pinkish red. Perhaps it may be purple tomorrow.

“Hi!” came a voice.

“You came!”

“Well, its obvious. It’s my sister’s birthday, and…”

“They let you live! I thought they were quite strict about letting boys of your age enter”

“Such boys eventually grow up. Nobody is ever going to remain as the same age as he is today. I have come here to visit you, like any other visitor who comes here to visit. Okay now, what’s the matter?”

“Oh, nothing. Okay fine, its about…..”                                             

“It’s about what?” he asked.

“Well, remember our previous birthday? We were home with our parents, happy with a cheerful cake”

“Syrup soaked, splashed with a layer of cream, embedded with dark chocolate, with it we had mama’s warm and delicious payasam and sweets…”

“Okay now, it was far better than today, I’m sure. I don’t mind parties, or cake, but..”

“Parties!” he exclaimed “Who needs parties for being sixteen! We didn’t have a party last year!”

“That’s not my point. It’s our first birthday without our parents and….” She burst into tears.

He held her hand.

“And there you go again! You cry more often than a character in a soap opera! I wouldn’t like my baby sister to cry on our birthday!”

She wiped her cheeks with her palm and looked at her brother. He was tanned, and had the same curly hair and brown eyes as she had.

“Oh, besides, happy birthday!” she exclaimed and gave him a handmade card.

Then his face fell

“Oh, I’m sorry sis. I forgot about the gift”

“Never mind, you came here and that is more than enough for me”

Then they the bell ring, and she gave out a sigh “Oh, it’s time to study!”

“Well then, see you later, and yes happy birthday!” He smiled as he left.

She sat down, and glanced at the numerous and thick books piled on her desk. The day was in its last hours and, like any other day, meant to end in the same monotonous manner. Then her friend approached her

“Hey there, are you done with Botany?”

Then she looked at the card and read the text written with glittering blue ink

“Happy Birthday, dear brother… You had a brother?”

A story of kindness, and sincere devotion

Finding Lord Krishna

After a seemingly long journey from his school, Madhavan poured some water on his feet from a kindi , and entered his home. His grandmother, who was busy reading The Bhagvad Gita.

“How was your exam?”

“Amma, I’m hungry”

It was easy for his mother to understand. Madhavan had his terminal exams, and that day, it was Mathematics,. It was not one of his favorite subjects, and that day too, the experience was unpleasant.

“ You must not get used to your exams being tough” said his mother “That is a bad sign”

“ What can I do, Amma? They always do this to us”

Madhavan’s  younger brother Mukundan was busy munching some appams.

“Kannan’s exam was easy” his mother said.

Madhavan looked at his younger brother again. Multiplication and division was still easy for him.

“How was it for your classmates?”

“It was tough for them too”

“Did you ask Shankar and Rahul?”

He expected that question. Shankar and Rahul were the toppers of his class. He actually used to ask them about their exam. They would tell him that it was tough, and then end up with some ninety five percent and above.

“Kutta? Will you accompany me to the temple?” Madhavan’s grandmother asked.

“I’m coming!” he replied, to avoid further quizzing by his mother. They went to the temple where his father worked as a priest. He was busy with his pujas.

“Bhagavane ! “ Madhavan prayed “I still do not understand how it would do any harm to me if the paper had been easier. And all that was asked were to ‘ integrate this’, ‘integrate that’!. I just hope that the evaluators show mercy while correcting our papers”

As he kept complaining about the exam, he noticed a frail, boy of about six or seven years old, praying. The innocence on the boy’s face gave it a pleasant glow, and then, Madhavan felt his voice being audible.

“Bhagavane! Bless the kind people who come here to pray. It is because of them that I got to pay my school fees”

Madhavan kept staring at the boy, who walked away in a slow, quiet manner.

As they stepped out of the temple, he saw his grandmother place a 100 rupee note in the palm of an old woman.

“Isn’t  100 rupees a bit too much to be given as alms?”

“Kutta, what do we have for dinner everyday?”

“Well, sometimes rice, and otherwise chappathis”

“Would it cost more than 100 rupees to buy rice, spices and vegetables altogether?”

“Well… yes”

“Then 100 rupees is very less. I’ve seen financially sound people give such small amount of money, like 50 paise, or one or two rupees as alms, as if they’d done a great work of charity, and then they go and buy useless trinkets. Moreover, that poor old lady has a grandson to feed”

That night, Madhavan’s thoughts were about the boy he saw at the temple. Paying his school fees was such a problem for him. Well, he did not know himself how much his father would pay for his studies every month. Then he brushed aside these thoughts, and lay down on his bed. The holidays have arrived, and it was such a relief.

But on the following days also, he saw the boy. As he helped his father with some work in the temple, he got to know more about him, who was orphaned when he was a toddler. The boy and his grandmother lived in a space between four dilapidated walls, which they called, their ‘home’.

But then, he noticed that the boy’s grandmother had not come to beg near the temple for a couple of days. What must have happened to her? Was she not well? The boy still visited the temple regularly.

He saw the boy again, one morning, as he poured payasam in small packets. The devotees would get a receipt for it and then receive it as their prasadam. The boy looked much weaker than usual, but still, his mind seemed to be much immersed in God.

Then, as though by some instincts, Madhavan got a receipt written for him and paid for it himself. Then he went closer to the boy and patted him.

“Come with me” he said.

The boy, startled, kept following him. Then Madhavan handed over a packet of payasam to the boy.

“But  Cheta, I haven’t paid for it”

“It’s paid already. Take it home”

The boy stared at Madhavan, with moist eyes. He walked away slowly, and on the way, turned back to look at him.

Poor boy, Madhavan thought. He must not have eaten for days, as his grandmother had not come begging for days. But, was a packet of payasam  enough for them?

He followed the boy quietly as he walked to his home.

“Ammama” he said “We’ve got something to eat”

“Who gave you this?” she asked.

“A boy in the temple” he replied “He gave this to me, and I did not have to pay for this”

He paused for a while

“Ammama, you tell me everyday that God would listen to our prayers, and help us in need.

I am sure, that it was Bhagvan himself who gave this to me. I found him today! I found our Bhagvan today.

Madhavan felt deeply touched by what he heard. Slowly, Madhavan smiled through the window, and knowing that he was far from their attention, quietly walked away.

the painting

The Painting

A painting of a lady, one among

The others pinned to the wall

Encased, trapped in glass, frames of

Old oak and silver around them all

And I, a lad, a young poet

Finding ways to while away

Boring hours of a summer holiday

While others of my age would work and play

I sit and think about all day

To find something for my eager quill

Stained with the ink of my thoughts that spill

And found this picture, among the rest

Wondered why, I found it the best

Her hair had the flow of a river, disturbed

And in such mayhem, but a lock

So pale, might have cared less to paint

And yet had the radiant glow

Blazed like the golden sphere of the sky

But, caught me, those dark eyes

Of the lifeless, still Aphrodite

Caused the blood in my heart to rush

Feel it was more than strokes of brush

And then, there was life in every line

Touched the beating heart of mine

“Time’s up!” said the guard

And the illusion shattered hard

I looked back for a last glance, to the wall

At the painted lady on a piece of card

friendship

They may be similar or different from you,
In thoughts, habits and dreams 
you may know them from early childhood
or just as recent as yesterday
But they may be just as close to you
as anyone in your family
They do anything it takes
to keep you happy
and bring sunshine
in the most cloudiest moments
They are your friends

Dedicated to all my friends.......

Hope

A RAY OF HOPE

A ray of hope

Was what you were for us

When we, far from home

Wished we were near

To those who were to us, dear

And when we got to taste

The bitter-sweet world

A tempest beyond our harbour

You were our solace

When theories like boulders

Were kept on our shoulders,

Those used only to stones

And complaints about us,

Fell upon you like an avalanche

Of us being incompetent, naughty

You tried to correct us instead

Gave us a smile, made us feel special

Made us feel like stars

Made us feel like winners

And thus, you were for us

A ray of hope

New year greetings

A new year message

A year of hope

What is left of this year,

Memories, sweet and sour,

Records of losses and gains,

And lessons learned.

Images, those deleted,

Or laminated and framed.

Names, written in sand,

Or engraved on stone.

This year had been a furnace

That produced pure steel.

This year had blossomed

The reward for years of toil.

The year approaching, the one of hope

Must chisel away one’s false,

And make one a master piece.

The year approaching, with promises

To bloom roses, among thorns of life,

And cut diamonds out of stones.

The coming year is just a sheet

Of plain white paper,

But you have with you, the permanent ink,

And the right to inscribe.

So, may it be the best of your own will

For you have the power to succeed.

Merry Christmas- From Arathi Menon

May the ringing bells of christmas fill ur life with music of happiness and
prosperity

Tooba : Great Initiative from St. Joseph's AIGHSS to showcase the bonding of Children with Nature

 Tooba: Great Initiative to showcase bonding of Children and Nature

Mangalyaan - Mars-craft -Mars Orbiter Mission - MOM

Mangalyaan- Mars-craft- Mars Orbiter Mission

MOM is Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) First interplanetary mission to Mars.


IRSO released the first picture of Mars taken by its onboard Mars colour Camera. The picture was taken from a height of 7300 kms
ISRO's Twitter handle relased the pic with a comment saying 'the view is nice up here'.



Launched in Nov 2013
Mars Orbit in Sep 2014
Orbital period 3.16 days
Travel: 372 x 80,000 kms
Pictures by: ISRO

Happy Onam 2014

Your Mind is a Garden
Your Thoughts are the Seeds
Let's cultivate Positive Thoughts.
Happy Onam
- Arathi Menon, expressions-am.blogspot.com

a sibling

 If I had a sibling

If I had a sibling

the one with who I’ll be

I will tell them stories

explain to them, what is that they see
I’ll tell them “I’m your elder

you can always count on me”

I will let them wrap

their little fingers around mine

And step by step, they will

walk by my side
Thrilled will I be, when they speak out

names of papa, mama and mine

My toys will be theirs

and I’ll take them out to play

Together we’ll see the sun shine

and dance in the rain
I will be the one with whom they can

share their pleasure and pain

To my friends, about my siblings

i will talk most of the time
But oh, I do not have any

I’m the only child

My parents dote me

although I’m pampered and wild
I have all their love and care

I have all the books and toys

And I have no one else to share it with

Or fight for it and make noise
At moments, when I’m lonely

I wish to hear a voice

that of a sibling, who would ask

“Shall we go out and play

I want to hear your stories

And talk to you all day”
If you wish you were the only one

Then those who are will say

“How I wish I had a sibling

To keep loneliness at bay

For when you tell me about yours

i would wish for one again.

The Tree

The Tree

Aeons   ago, I emerged

Stretched myself to the world

Clutched on, with my fragile roots

As I felt the whiteness melt away

Then, I remember, the young Earth

My mother, and I the infant sap

I embraced the amiable breeze

And basked in the glory of the radiant

Wondered how, with eloquent ease

Flowed the water, with its clear grace

Nourished my roots, and strengthened

If I had eyes, I would have seen

How, emerged forms of life

Of various sorts, of various sizes

And many others of my kind

Holding fast and breathing out

Sustaining life

The breeze would tell me

All what he saw

The tales of east and lore of west

And yes, about the creature best

Set him apart from all the beasts

The species, destined to conquer the world

Though fragile, is  gifted

But alas, their greed and thoughtlessness

And some sadist fancy induced the kind

To turn against their kith and kin

Do what they themselves call ‘sin’

The breeze himself, of chemical woe

Blurted out the terrible truth

Of how they turned out a foe

To us, who fed them, sheltered them

And from us, made a home

I hear the mourns of birds and beasts

And for our kind, a massacre

To build themselves

They say , a home

Of concrete and of stone

My kind, felled, one by one

Gasped through the grip of death

That with a sharp, gleaming axe

Piercing a slow, painful end

I see that nightmare, but still, hold on

And hope, a day, that they would see

And then, would come back to me

And I will keep waiting, day and night

With my wooden arms stretched wide.

The Lighthouse

The Lighthouse

It was a fine, sunny morning, if you would call ’11 ‘o’ clock’ morning. Yeah, that’s the time when I usually wake up, during the holidays. But today, I had planned to sleep for some more time, but then, Amma woke me up.

“Amma, it’s a holiday”

“But Ravi, holidays are not meant to be spent sleeping. Get up now!”

“Let him sleep, Aunty“ I heard Maya say “My uncle had actually planned to take both of us to the lighthouse. But if Ravi insists on sleeping…….”

I sprang up. “Are we actually going to the lighthouse?”

“But you don’t want to. Now go to sleep!”

“Of course I do! Amma, are my clothes kept ready?”

“Mone, get them yourself. I’ll prepare breakfast”

I leaped into my clothes and ate my sandwiches with haste.

“Will you be here for lunch?”

“Most probably, not. My uncle promised to take us out for lunch”

Then Maya and I bid Amma goodbye and hasted towards the car. Maya’s uncle was waiting for us.

The lighthouse had always fascinated me when I was young. Some nights, when Maya and I do ‘sky watching’ a ray of light would emerge from the lighthouse. We used to have a fancy that it was a signal from extraterrestrial beings, a way of greeting the earthlings. Then we grew up, got enough sense to understand its source. But in us, remained a longing to know more about this light and to know how it would feel being in its source.

We ate our lunch from a restaurant. It was a vegetarian dish with a weird name and all I know of it was that it must have got sweated off on the way to the top of the lighthouse.

“My uncle says that he could see paradise up there” said Maya.

“But we could see it only after we die, isn’t it?”

“No, we wouldn’t need to die for it”

Finally, we reached it. It was a magnificent tower of red brick. Maya’s uncle explained to us the history of the lighthouse and how it would guide ships to the harbor. Then we insisted on climbing to the top of the lighthouse.

               Soon, we found out that we had to climb a high flight of winding stairs. The very sight of it got us exhausted. Maya’s uncle noted our expressions.

“How else do you think we’d go up? By an elevator?”

Then we held up our spirits and started climbing. After about fifteen minutes, Maya and I found ourselves panting, while her uncle sped past us.

“How does he do that?” I asked her “Is this how he stays fit?”

“Perhaps” she said “Don’t you feel thirsty?”

“Of course I do. In fact, I have some water with me”

“Oh, thank you! Let’s sit down for a while”

We took some rest and got to climbing again. We took some intervals between the climbing, and then we were so tired that we thought all the energy in us was drained, we found that our food supplies were over. But still, the strain seemed endless.

“Well, Ravi” said Maya, sitting down “Now that we have no supplies left, should we consider………….”

“Never!” I exclaimed “Well…. Perhaps. But your uncle would be waiting for us, right?”

“I guess he expected. He even told me that he wasn’t sure about us, getting to the top of the lighthouse. But if we climb again…. It’s okay for you, having a store of lipid, but me, I may faint, or even, dissolve!”

We reclined for a while. I thought as I looked up and down the winding stairs. The way upward seemed endless, and would have definitely given us too much of strain, enough to keep us in our beds for at least two days, but to climb down, would make us more than tired.

“I say, let’s have a race”

“Oh Ravi….”

“A race, up the stairs. Just for this once, please?”

“Okay fine!”

We used up all our remaining energy and pushed ourselves for a few more steps. Maya, as usual was ahead of me and then, at a point;

“Ravi! Look!”

I caught up with her, dragging my legs. And then, I saw her pointing at a faint ray of light.

           Then we climbed, or literally, crawled up the stairs. Our path grew brighter and brighter and we felt the breeze wiping our sweat. After the last relieving step, was one of the most memorable moments of my life. There was wind, blowing on our faces and through our hair, and the evening sky in the most loveliest shade of blue.

“It is for this, that I come here” said Maya’s uncle, patting my back “This is paradise!”

“I thought I’d see the other end of the sea” said Maya, smiling.

“You may, perhaps” said her uncle “When you go higher”

My happiness had camouflaged my hunger, but still, I helped myself with a dozen sandwiches, which were kept in store for us. Then the lamp of the lighthouse was lit. I wiped the sweat off my forehead and looked at my palm. The salty liquid now looked like diamonds to me.

                              Later, we climbed down the lighthouse, but with memories of a fulfilled wish.

Merry Christmas

My Teacher, My Guiding Star

You opened to us

The window of the world

You taught us

The meaning of life

You showed us

The wonders of science

And the magic of math

You made us understand

The depth of language

And the soul of music.

We, your students throughout our lives

Think of you with gratitude

You identified in us

The talents we had

Taught us to embrace the good

And abandon the bad.

You are our guiding star

The beacon of wisdom

‘The portal of success

The catalyst of skill

And lead us to the creator of the World.