tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841101375407437442024-03-13T11:05:09.667-07:00reejasaysreeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-63242130843585162912015-02-26T04:00:00.000-08:002015-02-27T10:58:57.797-08:00The Old Lady And I<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">Summer was around and everywhere !</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">Bereft of songs, the birds
had made themselves scarce, while dry
and droopy trees stood silent in their misery. The quarrelsome street
dogs lying beneath the shades of parked vehicles seemed unmoved by the flies that circled them. It was mid-afternoon and the roads were almost empty. Those brave enough to venture out moved in slow
motion as though the scorching summer
had cast a spell on them.</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">Year after year the oppressive heat of an
extended summer subjugated me .</span></span><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">I've lived in Chennai all my life yet I couldn’t quite get used to it.However,</span></span> I've learned to suitably cover my desiccated skin , became more respectful of the season and often spoke of it in
hushed tones. I daren’t curse , like
everyone else, for fear of a backlash .</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">Even now, as I bravely walked along a familiar road, I felt the heat tearing at my skin and sweaty
rivulets run down in protest . Bravado soon gave way to weariness as I desperately felt the need for a drink . A familiar sign caught my eye and I found
myself in the cool interiors of an Aavin outlet. With a sigh of immense relief I sat at a table and ordered
the much-touted flavored milk. It arrived soon enough and I began sipping on the cool drink meditatively. Within minutes my eyes cleared and I felt my
blood cells cruising again.The blazing sun was no longer menacing and the world became a much better place . It was at that
moment I saw her walk in.</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">I believed she was in her late sixties. Her saree was
draped in a manner reminiscent of the countryside</span></span><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"> and there was a certain charm
to her
weather-beaten face</span></span>. She went
straight to the counter to speak to the men there and then came to sit at the
table next to mine .It was evident that she knew the men, but they appeared unrelenting. Only money will fetch her
what she wanted, they sneered loudly. She wasn’t going to get anything free
!</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">I had, meanwhile, progressed on to a mango duet and was
savoring the ice cream with much ado. After 15
minutes of waiting her tired eyes lost their twinkle . I caught her eye
and asked if I could be of help. In an instant she was up and by my table. She
was the cleaning woman at Aavin’s and at the adjoining Ayyappa temple, she
informed me, which is why she was sure that they’d
give in to her request. The men, however, remained hard- faced and immune
to her pleas. I reached into my bag,
fished out a ten rupee note and watched as she placed the order . The men at the counter now seemed amused as they enquired about the money.
Without a blink she answered that it was
Lord Ayyappa who gave it to her !</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">She came back to the table with what she wanted –it was
a small glass of warm milk, for rupees five, which seemed barely enough ; but it managed to
restore her and she began
to present pieces of her life before me.After a while,
when I picked up my bag and showed signs of leaving she said,‘ You must come to the temple once. Just
standing by the steps and praying would
bring you blessings.' </span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"> I was impressed with the simplicity of her
faith but what really touched me was the smile that she wore on her face despite not having
enough. I didn’t have the heart to tell
her that this time her Lord had come in the form of a woman who didn’t want to stand
by those steps and pray ! I simply
nodded, smiled at her and left.</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;">Looking back I felt that the time spent with the old lady held a meaning that no words could aptly describe.
I felt like a pawn on the divine chess board waiting for its next move. The sun
had relented, it was evening and the road began to buzz with life again. Looking up at
the pale blue sky I caught a group of birds flying westward; like them, I
too was bound for home ! </span></span></div>
</div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-17350099256012542022015-02-26T03:39:00.002-08:002015-02-26T03:52:05.980-08:00When In Roam<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:RelyOnVML/>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/>
<w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/>
<w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/>
<w:Word11KerningPairs/>
<w:CachedColBalance/>
<w:UseFELayout/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">A holiday poster with the caption ‘Stay Hungry for Travel’
caught my eye recently. I felt drawn <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to
the <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>words on the poster rather than the tropical
blue in the background and longed to get set and go again.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">My traveling experiences, though not wide or varied,
have been immensely awakening. Whenever I travel, I always <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>leave my heart at home where it belongs but
ensure that I carry my senses to savor and soak in the experience. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Traveling has not only been both educating and relaxing
but has also helped me to disconnect from the mundane. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s one thing to go on a ‘no holds barred’
voyage <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to exotic locales or cooler climes
but a totally different thing to drift though the capillaries of an unfamiliar
land and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>imbibe its sights, sounds,
smells and tastes, to revel in its beauty and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to wonder at its weirdness.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Going on those do-it-yourself trips has tapped into my
resourcefulness and taught me to brave unprecedented situations. They forced me
to appreciate things that I always took for granted and were, sometimes, lessons-
in- wraps!</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite the
reality of stranger-danger, interacting with people from different cultures and
watching them go about life in ways that are similar, yet different, have <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>inspired me a great deal. New places and
people have <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>snapped open my curiosity and
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>helped to broaden my mental boundaries.
They have transformed, forever, the way I look at the world around.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It takes years to arrive at who we really are and
traveling has been my walking stick on that road to self-discovery. You may
agree with the English writer George Elliot when he said “Adventure is not
outside a man; it’s within!”</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">I would say it’s a bit of both!</span></span></span></div>
</div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-78266911751423110262014-12-26T09:15:00.000-08:002015-02-26T03:45:50.895-08:00SINGULARLY SINGLE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What does it mean to be single in a world where
everything comes in pairs? <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A good part of my early adult years was spent
dodging the incurable ‘match makers’ who believed that everyone above the age 18 must be tied to someone or something, even if it is only to the nearest peepul
tree. They tried to market the ‘supreme settlement’ theory by waxing eloquent
on the marvels of marriage, which ranged from somebody being there to make black coffee when I have the flu to someone
walking with me well into the sunset!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 21px; line-height: 24.5333347320557px;">Some friends constantly advise me to “go and get a life!” I have deduced that this advice stems from a collective mindset which undermines solitary existence and considers it to be as exciting as that of a leech gatherer's.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">When I remained unimpressed, few well meaning members of my family tried to shock me into submission by painting
blood-dripping pictures on my mental canvas- their all-time favorite being that of maggots feasting on my mortal remains. </span><span style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 24.5333347320557px;">Incidentally</span><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;">, I've a congenital
habit of sleeping through horror films, which worked well in my favor, and all
concerted efforts to chill my marrow failed.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">One hassled member of the much- married tribe
accused me point-blank -- “Plain selfish, that’s what you are! Just ‘ME
ME’ all the way!” Translated, it meant
that any person devoid of husband, in laws and a pair of pint-sized horrors (children) is
drop- dead selfish. It might comfort them to know that life spent in the company of ageing,
hearing aid -free parents is no stroll-in-the-park either!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course being single, as with all other forms of
existence, can be happy and crappy in turns! Sometimes, I spend long hours by
myself wondering what makes the rest of the world tick. Other times may be
spent ruminating on unsavory remarks or tactfully asking people if they minded
minding their own business. I’ve also had to suffer the ignominy of people, who
I barely knew, asking me about the ‘issues’ I had!! ‘Oh, you wouldn’t want to
know’ I'd growl inwardly. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But, as with everything else, there’s a sunny side
to the solitary state! Thankfully I am spared the potential trauma of living with a tiresome individual whose habits can shame a sloth , lose peace
over the spouse’s dalliances while I’m away nursing his mom’s broken hip or worry about
his participation, incognito, in the LGBT rainbow parade! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To the gentle and thoughtful souls who have told me
that people who are single do not count, all I want to do is to congratulate them
on their domestic trappings. Meanwhile, I prefer to just drift along with the
barest of fuss –thank you!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-22763017195270962222014-01-05T06:22:00.002-08:002014-01-05T06:31:05.067-08:00All for fun on the world wide web<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">You
may travel wide, you may travel far,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Make
lots of money and spend it all,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">But
there's no fun until you've spun <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Your
tale of adventure on the world wide web !<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">You
may bake a cake or roast a steak,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">For
your sweet heart or your l'il one,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">But
where’s the fun, until you've spun,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">A tale of your venture on
the world wide web ?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Taken
pictures with divas and glam dolls in tow ?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Your
latest Bullet or your new Jersey cow ?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Where
do you stand if the world hasn't glimpsed <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Your
magnificent life on the world wide web ? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">Who
cares if your smile was true or faked <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">While
you staggered thro' parties for ol' times sake?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: large;">There's
plenty of fun, only after you’ve spun, </span></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif";"><span style="background-color: black; font-size: large;">Tales
o dazzle and wonder on the world wide web !</span><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
</div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-76899318558527093092013-12-25T08:05:00.001-08:002014-01-05T06:25:26.267-08:00The Magic of December <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">The magical month of December is always marked by seasonal festivities and the
much-awaited holidays!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">It all began two thousand years ago on a mysterious
night, when a ‘king’ was born in a cattle shed!
It was a night like no other, and the world began to celebrate the difference!
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"> All through my
early years, the first spark of the season was lit at school. The dreaded term exams
would be done away with and every child would wait with
bated breath for December.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Soon carol books would be whisked out and full- </span><span style="line-height: 27px;">throated</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> ‘Joy to the World’ would rent the air following which the season would
be officially declared as ‘arrived’! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">At home, the baking and making would begin in full
gusto. Every neighbor would be greeted by an aroma that hinted at hidden pleasures and
every guest would be offered a slice of ‘baked heaven’ that was forbidden to inmates
of the house until the D-day ! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">Some day before X’mas, a carol party would sneak in
during the wee hours and, with much ado and fanfare, announce the Savior’s
birth to the bleary-eyed! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;">Apparently, all that cheery singing required a great
deal of energy and the choir was watered and fed wherever they went. Robust singing
always cheered me, yet I have often wondered why people were woken in the dead
of night only to be told about something that they already knew! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Winter wonderland and the jolly Santa were confined to
the cards that came my way yet, there was magic and a warm </span><span style="line-height: 27px;">fairy tale</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> glow to
all things around at that time of the year! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Altruism knows no season or reason but, during December
the act of giving gathers unprecedented momentum ! When impelled by greed, generosity snowballs into shameless indulgence.</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> Through ‘buy- or- die’ sloganeering,
the month of December has become a platform for strategized marketing and
out-sized consumerism.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"> Over the years the season has lost its sheen, and
December its magic! There now exists a need to revive the old spark and to
celebrate wisely.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Here's hoping that the magic of December keeps the child in each of us
alive and that it continues to spread cheer all through the year !</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></span></div>
</div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-79128308146900635612012-09-06T07:33:00.002-07:002013-12-25T08:33:39.083-08:00If I Knew I Wouldn't Fail<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
If i knew I wouldn't fail--<br />
I'd fly so high,<br />
To where the eagles dare,<br />
And be but a blur,<br />
To the world below!<br />
<br />
If I knew i wouldn't fail--<br />
I'd float, tranquil,<br />
On a white swan's back,<br />
Along a meandering stream<br />
On her seaward trail !<br />
<br />
If I knew i wouldn't fail--<br />
On a rainy day, i'd sqeeze my way,<br />
Through a sparrow's nest<br />
Perched high,Swaying,<br />
Yet braving the storm!<br />
<br />
If I knew I wouldn't fail --<br />
I'd brave the cold air<br />
To trek glaciers<br />
And comb forests,<br />
For those time-defying souls !<br />
<br />
If I knew I wouldn't fail --<br />
Like a nomad I'd search,<br />
The whole wide world<br />
For that Entity --<br />
Elusive, exclusive,that can<br />
Make me whole !<br />
<br /></div>
reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-70721948160225930022011-04-28T20:13:00.000-07:002011-05-04T09:24:03.064-07:00Pastes, Pumpkins and Paranoiac Excesses<span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><span style="color:#ff6600;">Caution: This blog is not for the silent, suffering spiritual slaves who are likely to find its contents offensive!! This article reflects my personal views and must not be construed as “anti-religious”!<br /></span></strong><br />Festivals are fun –but it’s also a time when our carefully –crafted world takes a turn for the bizarre!<br />On a certain <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>pooja day</strong></span>, a colleague rushed into my room with a bowl of sandal wood paste and proceeded to smear it on the bookshelves, furniture and other inanimate objects with formidable fervor! Having nearly completed her task she came to my desk, stood menacingly, and was about to resume her smearing when I decided to protest.<br />She gave me a startled look, which soon gave way to a condescending snigger; translated it meant that sometime in the future she would be watching from Heaven while I gnashed my teeth in Hell in retaliation for the <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>sacrilege </strong></span>....!!<br /><br />Another community act that evokes rash behavior is the <span style="color:#cc33cc;">“<strong>pumpkin act</strong>.”</span> It is customary to see innocuous-looking pumpkins being used to ward off the “evil eye” after which they are ceremoniously smashed on the roads outside shops or homes. This has often led to fatal and near-fatal accidents, forcing the cops to ban the “act”! What a sorry state of affairs for a nutritious veggie originally created to serve a far nobler cause..!<br />At this point I need to draw your attention on to a religious sect whose members are constantly on the look -out for <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>lost sheep</strong></span>. Once such a sheep is identified they trail him until he threatens them with dire consequences or, alternatively, decides to enter their fold (for want of anything better to do!!).<br />I happen to live in the same neighborhood where members of this sect meet every week and take immeasurable glee in bringing the roof down with their <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>religious excesses</strong></span>. This went on for a while until tired neighbors with frayed nerves notified the police. Now the decibels have lowered, but the show goes on!<br />Yes, we are a secular land where everyone has freedom to express. But I personally believe that religious ‘expressions’ must <strong><span style="color:#cc33cc;">never spill</span></strong> on to roads, offices or other public places and clog our lives, but must be confined to the precincts of our homes or other allotted premises !<br />Any <strong><span style="color:#cc33cc;">public display</span></strong> of religious emotions, acts, symbols, verbiage or bravado must be strongly condemned. Zealots must be encouraged to practice the irrefutable doctrine of </span></span><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>“mind-your-business-mend-your-soul-first” !<br /></strong></span>Given our current scenario there is no such thing as religious harmony—at best there can be <strong><span style="color:#cc33cc;">religious tolerance</span></strong> which is akin to skating on thin ice!!<br />I am not saying that there should be no public places of worship---all that I’m suggesting is “please make them <strong><span style="color:#cc33cc;">sound-proof</span></strong>”!</span></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-53421325026873828322011-01-24T22:54:00.000-08:002011-01-24T23:26:48.070-08:00A Belated Travelogue<strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I have never been very good at <span style="color:#ffcc66;">chronicling</span> my life, despite being the proud owner of a diary!<br /><br />Even as everyone I knew wrote about their <span style="color:#ffcc66;">new year revelries</span> and produced photographic evidences of the same a fortnight ago , I lazed and sulked around in a mental mire.<br /><br />The need to describe my year- end journey sprouted lately and I decided to lend life to it !<br /><br />Travelling to Kerala is always an enriching experience – the <span style="color:#ffcc66;">bountiful beauty of the Western Ghats</span>, its landscapes and waterscapes, its calmer lifestyles and cleaner surroundings can indeed be a balm to any wearied soul.<br /><br />Outings were fun!<br /><br />A trek was organized to explore the ill-explored regions of a near-by dam. It was infested with <span style="color:#ffcc66;">snakes --</span> we were warned-- but I had dealt with the deadlier, two-legged species earlier and on a comparative note these slithering creatures were slime-free. So we went, my cousins and I …..!<br /><br />Then there was this unusual tryst with an assembly of <span style="color:#ffcc66;">pious and not-so-pious pachyderms</span>-- a hair-raising experience, if any! It was both overwhelming and humbling at the same time!<br /><br />Also went cruising on a lake up until a point where it met the sea. It was then that I felt that <span style="color:#ffcc66;">breath- taking beauty</span> could sting…! There were shades of blue and velvety green all around . We stood out in our reds and blacks--- even wondered if we should be there..!<br /><br />I was traversing a land where <span style="color:#ffcc66;">communism shakes hand with commercialism</span>. There were ayurvedic resorts on small islands, where the rich and the famous could ease their worries and trim their waists by undergoing the pleasurable rigors of ayurveda.I was told it cost 17,000 rupees for a single day. …I swore I’l take to walking, and that too in right earnest!<br /><br />Meeting relatives has always been a down- to- earth experience and I wished I could do it more often.<br /><br />Good things come with a dead line and so it was with my vacation. I had to get back </span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#ffcc66;">home- to Chennai.<br /></span><br />Kerala was to me the land where my parents came from-- the land of my ancestors – and I always observed it through an alien’s eye. It was no different this time too.<br /><br />I can, with ease, comprehend the angst of an <span style="color:#ffcc66;">ABCD</span>, just that the latter’s confusion is compounded by geographical distance and cultural disconnect.<br /><br />Strangely, this time, when I came back home , the sense of belonging was not palpable, although I wouldn’t say it was altogether missing.<br /><br />Was it a kind of <span style="color:#ffcc66;">mental regression</span> or is the <span style="color:#ffcc66;">COSMOS </span>trying to tell me something…??<br /><br />I’m yet to find out……</span></strong>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-10022863785799159202010-09-19T02:23:00.000-07:002010-09-19T02:52:31.939-07:00My Tryst with Facebook: Friendships and Face-offs<span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">I had been leading a strange life lately!<br /><br />It was as if I had stepped out of the confines of a coffin each morning, rushed around to <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">meet –and- greet fellow ghouls</span> </strong>and had hurried back into the box at night, only to repeat the routine next day!!<br /><br />Phew! that was sanguinous, i’m aware....but that’s how life had been for a while. To break the monotony of drudgery, disease and convalescence and to overcome the ‘grief’ of a cancelled trip abroad, I <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">sought refuge on FB</span> </strong>and since then life has never been quite the same.<br /><br /><strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">Facebook</span> </strong>has been beckoning for sometime, but it was not until four months ago that I succumbed to its reckoning force.<br /><br />It didn’t take long before the curtains were drawn to <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">reveal a world</span> </strong>of intrigue, jealousy, lust, romance, wealth and power. I watched spell- bound as conquests, connections, donations, dogs and husbands were proudly flashed before the public eye.<br /><br />I was amused to find bandwagons running amuck on FB and people following a fond one around with the faithfulness and ferocity of a love-sick terrier. You may chose to hop on to the <span style="color:#ffcc00;"><strong>raunchiest or the jolliest bandwagon</strong>,</span> as you may find suitable. As a die-hard Gemini I hop from one to another, to savor the best of both!<br /><br />It was then that I chanced upon folks who tried to use my space to <span style="color:#ffcc00;"><strong>promote their ‘causes’</strong>.</span> First the friend- request arrived, which I initially ignored. As I was lauding myself on having done the right thing, another arrived and I succumbed to its irresistible persuasiveness.<br /><br />The nightmare began when I found my wall being plastered with <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">slogans drawing attention to the plight </span>of</strong> delinquent ducks or, persuading me to participate in a <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">candle –lit vigil</span> </strong>for aberrant cats that have stopped mewing and are crooning instead! I managed to hit the de-friend button in time to save my sanity!!<br /><br />And just when I thought that things can’t get any worse I found my wall being used for a <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">smear campaign</span></strong>. Although the attack was meant for another, the viciousness hit ME on the face before I lunged for the de-friend button!<br /><br />The power of FB is overwhelming. I’ve made a <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">few friends</span> </strong>and, if a bunch of us met after two decades it was thanks to FB!But it has also made me feel that Big Bro is watching. It <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">gave me the creeps</span> </strong>when friend- requests arrived from people whom I had, earlier, wanted to be packed off to Planet Pluto, without fresh water supply!<br /><br />I discovered a few ‘friends’ who <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">sat on my wall</span> </strong>and watched the proceedings as if it were a racket game.Their presence baffled me.....why were they there? I didn’t know and after a while I didn’t want to know. I simply knocked them off my wall!<br /><br />All said- and- done, <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">FB is awesome</span></strong>! It allows one to share (or brag) in style!<br /><br />It is a <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">splendid platform</span></strong> where thinkers, achievers, potential lovers, megalomaniacs, incurable flirts, compulsive liars, sports enthusiasts, dog lovers and connoisseurs of women and w(h)ine freely mingle with social wannabes, page 3 folks, experts and has-beens from all walks of life..!<br /><br />Now if that is not fun....what is? </span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-53652829961249075972010-05-30T21:00:00.000-07:002010-05-31T20:11:06.497-07:00Why Friends are Roses<span style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Hindsight, they say, gives a rare insight and it is on this strength that I set the ball rolling!<br /><br />As a <span style="color:#ffcc33;"><strong>single child</strong></span>, growing up in the conventional settings of the late sixties and seventies, it didn’t take long before friends replaced pacifiers in my life.<br /><br />Single children were a rarity those days and most of my friends were blessed with a natural set of play mates – Siblings! This meant that I was more dependant on them than they would ever be on me and, ever since, I have been a witness to the many <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">face(t)s of friendship!<br /></span></strong><br />Let me begin with my ‘little’ friends (from those far- off days) who <span style="color:#ffcc33;"><span style="color:#ffcc33;">dominated</span> </span>me because I was desperate for their company to play silly games such as ‘London Bridge’ or ‘Hide-and-Seek’! Despite my size let me say that I know how the Lilliputs must have felt when they had to deal with Gulliver!<br /><br />Years rolled on, friends came and went....<br /><br />In the meantime there were many who used my services as an <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">Agony Aunt</span></strong>, when I had to spend hours listening to unabated whining. Needless to say these ‘friends’ would simply vanish on the first sign of so much as a whimper from me!<br /><br />Soon there came a time when my utility as a <span style="color:#ffcc33;"><strong>‘soft toy’</strong></span> was put to good use-- when I was required to hold hands, lend a shoulder or make soothing noises, according to the need of the hour, and frantically hope that it works!<br /><br />How can I forget my ‘<strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">special’ friends</span></strong> who loved to update me on issues such as girlfriend number 34 from half way across the globe? I must say their calls were more frequent, and also lasted longer, whenever the ‘flavor of the season’ lost its fragrance.<br /><br />Then there were those pals who ensured that I have been supplied with all the details of the <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">magnificent, awe- inspiring lives</span></strong> that they have been lucky to lead! Special mention must be made of those who personally hand- picked me to reveal the juicy details of their mind-blowing escapades.<br /><br />A big ‘thank you’ to all of them! What would have been my life without such ‘mouth -watering’ disclosures?!<br /><br />There were friends who treated me well until the day I ‘invaded’ their comfort zone. There were others who feigned friendship only to use it as an excuse to enter the ‘no trespassing’ areas -- it did not take them long to fiddle with the ‘privacy settings,’ make <span style="color:#ffcc33;"><strong>off –the- cuff remarks</strong></span> and divulge my personal details to anyone who cared to hear!<br /><br />With some friends I’ve entered a ‘you-scratch-my-back-and –I’ll –scratch-yours’ pact. It can be tiring at times, but it does work!<br /><br />Some well -connected friends participate half -heartedly in this glorious game of friendship, possibly because they are anxious that a whole- hearted involvement might prompt me to seek favors!!!..<br />I say folks, don’t we pass this way but once?<br /><br />I’m eternally grateful to the <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">‘I’ll be there for you’</span></strong> category –the best type of FRIENDS -- -just that I wish I knew where ‘there’ is!!<br /><br />It is not that I am an updated version of Damon or Pythias. Even as I write this I <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">don’t stand in judgment of anyone,</span></strong> for each one of my friends has helped to fill- in emotional black holes and are the <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>roses in my garden of friendship</strong></span>!<br /><br />I say <strong><span style="color:#cc33cc;">roses </span></strong>because friends sustain the beauty of life. Nevertheless roses are special in that they come with <span style="color:#cc33cc;"><strong>thorns.</strong></span> Unless one is careful, one is left to bleed!</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-65496917971094401312010-02-28T23:08:00.000-08:002010-03-08T22:22:03.494-08:00Did You Say Jesus Was Gay?<span style="font-size:130%;">There is nothing that prevents a musician from musing, but when he belches out banalities at regular intervals it is time for him to stop at what he does best and leave the thinking to rational minds.<br /><br />When <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">Elton John</span></strong> recently expressed his conviction that <span style="color:#990000;"><span style="color:#ffcc33;"><strong>Jesus Christ was a super intelligent</strong>, <strong>compassionate gay individual</strong></span> </span>he surely didn’t mean to demean —being an ‘open’ gay himself. But I would say that his choice of method to remain in the limelight is in bad taste.<br /><br />It amuses me to think that Sir John has cleverly conjoined traits such as intelligence and compassion with homosexuality, thereby making a veiled attempt at praising himself and the members of his jolly gay bandwagon!<br /><br />It was not too long ago that <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">Dan Brown</span></strong> , in an effort to debunk the myth surrounding Christ, projected Him as a married person in the <strong><span style="color:#ffcc33;">‘Da Vinci Code’</span></strong> and even went on to describe His present- day descendants!!<br /><br />I confess to wondering at the plight of Sir John had he dared to pass ‘out-of-the-box’ comments on a certain <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">bearded, long-robed members</span></strong> of the human species .<br /><br />He would only have to stop speaking, for a <strong><span style="color:#990000;">‘</span><span style="color:#ffcc00;">fatwa’</span></strong> to be issued against him, and the world would have witnessed the music maestro hopping between continents, crawling between caves (with his gigolo in tow) in a desperate attempt to stay alive!<br />Or he would have had to seek refuge in an obscure nation, like <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">MF Hussein</span></strong>, whose artistic expressions (founded on <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">Hindu Goddesses</span></strong>) made the saffron brigade see red!<br /><br />It is overwhelming to realize that <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">Jesus Christ</span></strong> continues to command attention even after 20 centuries, but He certainly does not need distorted versions of His short existence to promote His causes! Remember, He is already famous and continues to overshadow all those who came before and after Him!<br /><br />Why is it that these blasphemers, posing as thinkers, fail to realize that there is a middle ground between homosexuality and leading a married life?<br /><br />We’ve all heard of people who have breathed and lived for a cause. As far as I understand, JC was a revolutionary, and a teacher, who came to challenge and change a populace that was steeped in bigotry and injustice! Given the time and place that He was around, it certainly was no mean task!<br /><br />He knew His time was short (33 yrs) and was, therefore, focused on completing His mission, the result of which is evident even today!<br /><br />To commit a <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">slur against the icon</span></strong> of the (still) most popular religion of the world (which does not endorse homosexuality), and to continue to remain alive, speaks volumes about the concepts of compassion and forgiveness that <strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">the Great Master</span></strong> has passed on to His followers.<br /><br /><strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">BTW, Sir Elton, you really suck (pun intended)!!</span></strong></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-48585449084508612752010-02-21T11:47:00.000-08:002010-03-02T05:37:22.809-08:00Mother…..or Father’s Other?<span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>Recently, a photograph of American <span style="color:#ffcc00;">Brad Fister</span> kissing his 23-day old baby daughter, born in Hyderabad to a surrogate mother, caught my attention. It was a picture meant to warm the cockles of every heart worth its beat!<br /><br />But there was a blot on this perfect picture. The baby’s mom was missing! Delving into details revealed the dynamics of a <span style="color:#ffcc00;">modern day ( but –very- gay)</span> couple, in a stable relationship.<br /><br />Brad Fister and his gay partner Michael wanted a baby. Fister would donate the sperm but they also needed a female’s egg . They decided to go for <span style="color:#ffcc00;">egg donation and surrogacy</span> – and the baby was finally born.<br /><br />The story of gamete donation and surrogacy is all too familiar to many. But in Fister’s case, the concept of motherhood is shrunk into a single cell immersed in a canister of liquid nitrogen!<br /><br />Being gay is fine….if u have to be! I am not for, or against, same- sex couples. However, it is bewildering to know that there now exist sizeable numbers of what was once considered a “fringe group”. They seem to be peeping out of every cupboard and crevice, with their <span style="color:#ffcc00;">burgeoning demands</span> and requirements.<br /><br />Yes, they were marginalized (for reasons little understood) but I don’t understand the hiss, fuss and rant associated with them. For example, there are writers and gay writers, singers and gay singers and every other day someone is going public with his ‘true sexual identity’!!<br /><br />Recently I read an article by a ‘<span style="color:#ffcc00;">gay writer and poet’</span> who froths at the mouth at anything he sees as a slight on gays. This writer was waxing galore on the 12 <span style="color:#ffcc00;">dalliances</span> that he was concurrently engaged in and about the possible 12 more in the waiting! Even as I salivate at the columnist’s enviable existence, I hate the pomposity with which he throws his audacious coquetry at the general public.<br /><br />Give us a break, dudes, get on with your lives and don’t try to bulldoze us with your ‘sex-life and sensibilities’.<br /><br />Sorry for meandering away……<br /><br />Coming back to Brad and Michael …their daughter has a dad, alright, but what about a mother? This child, who would probably be <span style="color:#ffcc00;">breast- fed</span> till her surrogate’s contract expires, has been deliberately denied a mother for all her life.<br /><br />The same parental denial would apply to kids of <span style="color:#ffcc00;">lesbian couples</span> who would have to live their life without a father .<br /><br />Now you can drown me with your arguments….yes I know there is a lot of imperfection in many heterosexual families but do we really need to add to the existing mayhem within the </strong></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><span style="color:#ffcc00;">diaspora of family prototypes</span>?<br /><br /></strong></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><strong>Everyone talks of rights –the gay lobby has been one of the most perseverant the world over ! But what about the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">rights of the unborn</span> and the just- born?<br /><br /></strong></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><strong><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffcc00;">Don’t they deserve a mother ( I mean a regular mother) or is it just a life with the “father’s other???”</span><br /></strong></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-53712477991359178872010-02-13T10:59:00.000-08:002010-03-02T05:29:00.172-08:00Apartheid On Valentine’s Day<span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Today is Valentine’s Day!<br /><br />It is that time of the year when the world witnesses apartheid of a different sort-- when people get divided into <span style="color:#ffcc00;">‘the loved’</span> and ‘<span style="color:#ffcc00;">the not-so-loved’</span></span></strong></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:#ffcc00;">!<br /></span>We all love to be loved! But the rush for the V-Day trappings, often fueled by compulsion, sets me wondering as to what the fuss is all about and why there is this scramble for cards, roses and gifts to please a potential partner, on a particular day!<br /><br />It would sound boring and clichéd if I say that those who truly love do not wait for the V-day to go for the ‘kill’. Again, it is not my business to talk about those who need a Valentine’s Day to remind them of that special someone.<br /><br />This day, my heart goes out to those unloved souls, the world over and, to those who found love only to forgo it.<br /><br />It is all very well to celebrate love but do people have to be gluttonous about it? Is it right to indulge in such brazen display in the name of love?<br /><br />Do the frenzied couples even fleetingly think that there could be millions out there whose lives could be transformed by a <span style="color:#ffcc00;">single gesture of love</span>?<br /><br />Don’t get me wrong! I don’t hero worship Muthalik, neither do I belong to the Ram Sena. But a look at the statistics show that the holiday season records the maximum numbers of depression cases and suicides the world over. It is winter, no doubt, when SAD sufferers go through their worst episodes, but it is also a time for family bonding, for loving and for being loved--- a time when loners get truly hit.<br /><br />One can understand teenage revelry on V-day! But as adults it would be more responsible, and even nice, if people could be subtler and did their bit to make others feel less lonely. Of course this is just a thought-- –no apologies tendered!<br /><br />Love, they say, keeps the world going…..<span style="color:#ffcc00;">Never stop loving</span>, instead, on this Valentine’s Day make a pact to love differently . Let each of us include one more person in our circle of love so that there is enough love in the air to keep the world going round !</span></strong></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-8646223182038836422009-12-06T22:37:00.000-08:002010-03-02T05:31:42.246-08:00War of the Pseudo Drs<span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;"><strong>There was a report in the papers about an ongoing war between the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">physio ‘doctors’, the medical ‘doctors</span>’ and the government.<br />Apparently the physiotherapists have been riding high on the prefix ‘Dr’ and it mattered not in the least to them if the rest of the world accepted it or not.<br /><br />This, of course has peeved the medical ‘doctors’-- the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">supreme sovereign</span> in the realm of health.<br /><br />The government backs the latter with the contention that the physios’ claim to the prefix would confuse the public as to who the real doctors are!!<br /><br />But I say, hold your horses people,…… and take a minute to observe the pathos. Would it be a trifle too much if I point out that the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">‘real’ doctors</span> have been taken out of the equation?<br /><br />In those ancient days the word ‘doctor’ was a reference to a very <span style="color:#ffcc00;">learned person </span>who was held in high esteem for his knowledge. So we deduce that a man who burned a lot of midnight oil striving to understand, evaluate and analyse, in order to gain knowledge, was the original assignee for the word ‘doctor’.<br /><br />The present day claimants ---such as the medical, ayurvedic, homeo, aroma, physio, energy, pranic ( have I left out any?)--- have plenty to prove before using the word !!<br /><br />Some spend 4 and a half to 5 years, after school, to learn a trade and stake a claim on the prefix ‘dr’!! Some unabashedly claim after a mere 2-6 months diploma !<br /><br />Common sense demands that the term doctor be best left to those <span style="color:#ffcc00;">‘silent sufferers’</span> –the original doctors –the ones with a doctorate. What say you, folks? Simple logic, isn’t it?<br /><br />The rest may best be <span style="color:#ffcc00;">referred by their trade name</span> – physicians, medical practitioners or medical consultants or more specifically cardiologists, urologists, neonatologists ……and the rest as dentists, pathologists, physiotherapists, aroma therapists, ayur physicians, pranic or energy healers and so on and on…<br /><br />One can never forget the way in which the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">simple white lab coat</span>, that once signified perseverance and hardwork, has been reduced to a symbol of false prestige and inflated pride to be flaunted by all and sundry . Today the fact that the driver, the cook and the bakery man wears a white coat has helped to demystify it… a bit!<br /><br />Please leave the prefix ‘Dr’ to the ones to whom it originally belongs . (Here I do not include the honorary types, heavily favored by favoritism, or, the ones who have acquired a degree through questionable means).<br /><br />Otherwise we will have the <span style="color:#ffcc00;">charlatans and the quacks</span> misusing the word and disrobing its glory.<br /><br />Now we do not want that ….do we?</strong></span>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-32805533820969294632009-10-13T22:29:00.000-07:002009-10-13T23:37:44.538-07:00LOST WISHYet another birthday scurried past,<br />I was in no hurry -- time was!<br />Your muteness i had learned to accept,<br />I could've stayed younger-- had you called!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-55893216914327756202009-10-08T20:59:00.000-07:002009-10-09T01:41:22.765-07:00MAYAThe best thing about writing blogs merely for pleasure, is that it does not promote forced writing.<br /><br />Having abstained from my pet past time for a while, I felt the itch to blog again which is when I thought about something a friend once mentioned -- that what we experience in this life, or, what we perceive to be our experiences in this life, including the emotions that wade through us, is ‘ Maya’ !<br /><br />I was informed that life is transient ( I have heard this before) and that life events are mere illusions (how I wish!!).<br /><br />Maya, I believe, is for those few among us who have ‘evolved’ beyond the ordinary after a lifetime pursuit of unworldliness! To an ordinary mortal like me, this our pulsating existence is very real.<br /><br />Let me explain with a parallel. Man evolved from <strong>apes</strong> but it would be foolish to say that the various facets of the apes’ life is illusionary merely because the comparatively less- evolved creatures failed to reach their full potential.<br /><br />Our existence today is linked to the time when life first stirred on earth. We remain baffled by the <strong>‘African Eve’</strong>; we respectfully acknowledge and study the lives of our <strong>caveman ancestors</strong> whose saga is not illusionary, but continues to illuminate our lives, millions of years later, albeit in a remote way.They were the super heroes( the original kind -without sound effects), who honed their instincts to leave an indelible impression on the human brain, who instilled in mankind the everlasting truth that brain power is superior to muscle power and that survival is the ultimate goal.<br /><br />Every life, with its wealth of experience, is a page that will go down in the collective history of the universe. Each <strong>tombstone</strong> speaks a story with a moral for those who would care to listen; it does not represent an illusion- but is a symbol of grounded reality !<br /><br />Belief in Maya prompted the mystics to probe life. The concept of Maya provides solace to escapists - to a logical mind the dynamics of this life are achingly real!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-42428446166822860552009-07-20T22:15:00.000-07:002009-07-20T22:25:26.367-07:00An Ode to the Odd OneLike most people of my generation I too was saddened by the untimely demise of <strong>Michael Jackson</strong> .I belonged to an era when the defiance in MJ’s songs was endearing.<br /><br />But when he metamorphosed regressively from a cute Black guy into a ghoul many of his admirers, including me, backed off ( If readers detect ridicule it is entirely evoked by the subject himself).<br /><br />Of course MJ had issues possibly like no one else had. With a control freak for a father who was constantly jibing at his nose it was easy to understand why he channelized his angst onto this ridiculed anatomical component reducing it to a pint-sized triangle.<br /><br />It was pretty much evident that Jackson was uncomfortable in his body- he perceived an ugliness that did not exist ( this condition is clinically referred to as <strong>Body Dismorphic Disorder</strong>).<br /><br />There was no looking back once the surgeons began to steadily chip away……..now a chin implant, now new cheek bones, lip fillers another time, not to mention depigmentation of a kind never seen before. However, when the final picture emerged it was as if the local anatomy students were at work.<br /><br />Michael Jackson’s lip stick shades would give his long- term friend<strong> Liz Taylor</strong> a run for her money. His saucer- shaped eyes and permanently tattooed eyeliner earned him the dubious distinction -–as <strong>Sashi Tharoor</strong> puts it- -of being ‘distinctly odd’. Now we know that Tharoor is a diplomat/politician, and odd is a gentle word.<br /><br />I tried to obliterate MJ from my memory believing that ‘this too shall pass’…but the mystery continued to deepen.<br /><br />MJ’s demise has actually taken the world on a tour of the dark alleys of the glamour world – perhaps not for the first time. It revealed yet again that <strong>the cries of misery cannot be silenced by the chimes of success.<br /></strong><br />Somebody referred to MJ as ‘low life’…now who is to judge how low is ‘low’ ? I am not equating him to the <strong>Dalai Lama</strong> but what I do know is that low lives do not impact the world the way MJ did--by breaking geographical and cultural barriers.<br /><br />One question that remains is ‘what went wrong?’-was oddity in his genes or was it the ‘enviornment’ (courtesy his dad and his own debilitating diseases)?<br /><br />He ‘fathered’ children without ever growing up himself.<br /><br />Despite the ‘odds’ I cannot help but acknowledge the man-child and thank him silently for the magical moments he gave the world.<br /><br /><strong>RIP MJ!</strong>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-41396967525413181392009-06-04T05:08:00.000-07:002009-06-04T05:15:38.509-07:00Curry Bashing, Down Under<strong><br /></strong><br /><br />Sometimes late in the evening when I return home it is the smell of my mother’s cooking that greets me at the stairway. The customary aroma of spices, expertly blended, has never ever failed to revive my dulled senses. What is life without the curry?<br /><br />But to my profound horror, I realized that there are many across the globe who disagree—some mildly, some condescendingly, even as others were belligerent and mocking!<br /><br />As Indian TV channels whipped up mass sympathy for the Indians who continue to be attacked in Oz, my thoughts went to my friend and family, in <strong>Melbourne and Sydney</strong> respectively.<br /><br />After several hours of bleary-eyed TV gazing I decided to scan the net to get to the pit of the matter. What emerged left me disgusted and dazed.<br /><br />It looks like the Curry has stirred up a storm world -wide leaving several ‘almost dead’ in its wake. It has been described by many in a ‘less-than- becoming’ manner, and has been accused of generating a race of ‘<strong>Smelly Indians’</strong> who reek of spices that emanate from their pores!<br /> As if that is not enough these smelly Indians, having favorably partaken of the Curry, exhibit disgusting habits that a decent blogger cannot list. One notably infuriating trait is the persistent hollering in their <strong>native Hindi,</strong> which is like ‘Mary calling the cattle home’! It goes without saying that their hygiene leaves much to be desired. All this thanks to the heat, the dust the grime and of course---the Curry!<br /><br />Now if only they would resort to face -saving tactics such as washing themselves in a basin of water or aesthetically tissue-wipe their rears ((which is clearly a sign of the civilized)) they would be less smelly. If that is not possible, the least that these stinking Indians could do is to take a leaf out of the civilized world and drown their BO in dollops of deo !<br /><br /> If these things cannot be done they may take to eating rare steak soaked in blood (O yes… the best way sir!) or , like the far- east fellows, consume crawling reptiles for breakfast, lunch and dinner and snack on locusts for tea! They could follow the African model and eat buffalo or elephant meat --dehydrated and dried in the sanctity of the living room.<br /><br />Instead what do they do? They concoct spices and stir a curry, the stench of which has the potential to bring <strong>OB Laden</strong> crawling out of his hiding hole! Vermins!<br /><br />What do you think, my countrymen? Were we not a civilization long, long before the criminals set up home in Australia? Not many know that people in the southern tip of India were actually reading the Bible when the ancestors of these civilized <strong>curry bashers and dot busters</strong> were, possibly, swinging between trees!<br /><br />Although it is no excuse for our de-glamorized image the world over, let us never forget that the uncivilized West de-civilized us, ruined us as a race and brought indignity and shame to our people. And the scars still remain! Regaining lost glory may be Herculean, but we need to try!<br /><br /><strong>PS-By the way, the Aussies find our numbers overwhelming! Wonder why their number is dwindling? Perhaps the Curry could help!?<br /><br /></strong>reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-2599698142316172932009-04-16T03:04:00.000-07:002009-04-16T07:47:10.057-07:00THE ART OF MOVING ONIf there is a single phrase that can define the pulse of today’s upwardly mobile generation it is ‘move on’!<br /><br />These words are often flung indiscriminately at folks who are duped by fraudsters or tricked into non-existent love, who receive pink slips or those bereaving a loved one’s loss.<br /><br />It seems that the passion of the present times is to ‘move on’ …a quality that is believed to denote a higher emotional quotient (EQ)<br /><br />Everyone is in a tearing hurry to give the past a shove and plunge into the future ;there is no time to mull over a slight or to bemoan a tragedy . This trend of fast - forwarding emotions is a sign of denial and decadence and helps to create a society that is insensitive to need -- where words such as ‘integrity’ is outdated.<br /><br />But this carefully -crafted art of ‘moving on’ has several devout executioners who adopt it as an excuse to shrug off obligations or turn a blind eye towards a commitment.<br /><br />The ease with which people ‘move on’ chills me to the marrow.<br />As for me I prefer to ‘evolve’…. to permit the winds of change to gently work on the past ….. there is no upheaval here but a slow transition, from one to another, necessitated by the forces that heal !reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-41057201038106167012009-03-22T11:32:00.000-07:002009-03-22T11:39:11.644-07:00Good Bye Jade!Jade Goody has been in the news for all sorts of reasons but when she finally bowed out after her battle with cancer, she went without so much as a whimper.<br /><br />Jade turned out to be quite a drama queen during the Big Brother show when her caustic tongue made many a visage to turn violet. Athough she was made to eat crow for being a bully she ‘kissed and made up’ with her nemesis Shilpa ‘Pappadom’ Shetty.<br /><br />But by then we had got a glimpse of the real Jade- hissing and spiteful - who made a fool of herself by mocking a very cultured and sophisticated Shilpa simply because she came from another culture that Jade little understood .<br /><br />There are a few things that the Jade Goody episode taught me —<br /><br /># Your life may be a soap opera but it does not take long for the bubbles to burst.<br /><br />#Spite is a virtue—public display of spite reveals the chinks in your armor .Such a display may initially win you enemies but once they know how honest you are with your expressions they will love you well enough to start a fan club.<br /><br /># The more you wait for your turn with the ‘Grim Reaper’ the greater is the macabre drama that unfolds around you.<br />Whenwilljadegoodydie.com is a Holland -based website that encouraged people to predict the day and time of Goody’s death. This can only be more outlandish than Goody’s own efforts to romanticize and make a spectacle of her exit, for gain.<br /><br />#’Never say die’- Jade’s fight with the big C reveals her true grit . She bared her fangs at death, withstood several surgeries and desperately tried everything to keep death away -- from trusting faith healers to eating curries!<br />And when she was sure that her end was round the corner she married her husband-in-waiting Jack Tweed, got christened and even planned her funeral in style……..Way to go ,lady!<br /><br />Jade Goody’s greatest contribution was perhaps to the public health domain. Thanks to the ‘Jade Goody Effect’, screening for cervical cancer soared to an all time high in the UK. The humble Pap smear has come of age and has found its place in the annals of medical history! Cervical cancer, which is more or less lifestyle –related, can be easily treated and possibly cured if detected early. The recently discovered vaccine for cervical cancer comes as God -sent to all women!<br /><br />At one time Jade Goody was welcome to my resent although she was of little consequence to my daily life. But as tragic scenes of this former reality star flashed on the TV screen a sense of remorse filled me as the fragility of my own existence was vehemently driven home. Goodbye Jade and thanks for those lessons!<br /><br /><br />Key words- Jade Goody, reality star, big brother, Shilpa Shetty, Pap smear, cervical cancer, cervical cancer screening, Jack Tweed, Jade Goody Effect,reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-31567652393221111882009-03-16T06:05:00.000-07:002009-03-16T07:52:39.523-07:00Are gay men misogynists?Recently I read that Elton John in all his English Correctness had referred to the Americans as ‘misogynists’ because they did not care about Hillary C in a way that they should be caring.<br /><br />For a man who is a renowned gay he certainly knew how to speak his mind without being deterred by thoughts such as ‘how can I”? Whether the Americans are misogynists or not is a topic for another day!<br /><br />In the past , when I was still waiting for my enlightenment, I had harbored this thought that gay men are misogynists or women haters…I mean if a guy cannot bear to make love to a woman ( which I, in all my ignorant asininity, thought to be the most natural thing in the world) then he has to be a misogynist----at least that’s what I thought!!<br /><br />Years later feed backs from friends who happened to interact closely with a few ‘rear door entrants’ assured me that they were not women- haters….just that they cannot bear to have sex with women just as how sane women cannot bear to go to bed with opossums!!<br /><br />But having watched the Hindi movie ‘Fashion’ I realized that men and women of different sexual preferences could co- exist in holy matrimony.<br /><br />Allow me to illustrate-- If, for example Billuram had a long -term intimate relationship with young pappu he surely cannot marry pappu and shock his mother into a stupor from which she is unlikely to recover . So what does he do? He takes home a wife who already knows (she is among the exceptions) about his same- sex dalliance. She says ‘I do’ because she is a sweet girl who really likes him and also finds his money useful ! Believe me they lived happily ever after…. Billuram, his wife and young pappu! All’s well that ends well.<br /><br />As I was saying gay men are no misogynists. Some of them even 'honor' women by marrying them!!<br /><br />Take care!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-73513551523630242262009-03-12T23:05:00.000-07:002009-03-12T23:52:29.214-07:00Belated Women’s Day MusingsEvery year on March 8th the world wakes up to the International Women’s Day! On this day women are lauded, poetries are recited from specially- erected podiums , the various chores that women engage in are proudly listed and their ability to juggle tasks ( as if they had a choice!) is vehemently applauded —-overall a woman's ability to sally forth in this mad, bad world, without losing her marbles, receives a patting on the back.<br /><br />But on the very next day the podiums are dismantled, the curtains are drawn, the act is over and the world goes back to doing what it has been doing since the Great Ape metamorphosed into man----Woman Bashing!<br /><br />It took almost a week after Women’s Day for me to wake up from the inertia that consumes me from time to time. The world refers to my ‘reverie’ as sulking but to me it is quality time, spent in getting a grip on the self.<br /><br />On Women’s Day I received salutations (for being a women ,I guess) - mostly in the form of text messages and e-mails. One respect-dripping , awe-filled message came from a male acquaintance who loves to relax by watching live, nude women dance for a living !<br /><br />However, it did strike me that most of the messages were from women friends( the decently married and ‘happily’ settled variety )who were perhaps making a feeble attempt at rising from the ashes and keeping the flame of dignity alive. Their joy at being a woman, if present, was not palpable. It was a mere rhetoric being conveyed from one to another……like a candle march without a flame!<br /><br />As for me….I am pretty glad I am a woman. To think that my blueprint could have been encrypted otherwise scares me blue! To me this is , perhaps, a time to muse on a few friends in the company of whom I have spent some of the most cherished moments of my life. This post is just a ‘thank you’ note--- to you girls--- for the bonding that we share and for perfectly accepting this imperfect ‘me’!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-57745129403498768992009-03-05T18:24:00.000-08:002009-03-05T18:31:48.378-08:00Terror, Terror Everywhere!<strong><br /></strong><br />The attack on the <strong>Sri Lankan cricket team</strong> in Pakistan got me worrying. It exposed a new face of terror unseen until now and it left me wondering as to how long it was until it foraged through the frontiers of our peace- loving Chennai!<br /><br />Srilanka and Pakistan have a political affinity that dates back to several years. Nevertheless it is difficult to understand what prompted SL to indulge in this ‘dare’ of sending their team to visit Pakistan when England and India have categorically refused and, when several other cricketing nations were wondering why they should also not refuse! After all the situation in Pakistan is so volatile that it could put Mt. Vesuvius to shame!!<br /><br />The politically -motivated move proved too costly for the SL cricketers who, by a strange twist of providence, managed to escape in one piece. But they are a shattered lot, despite the absence of grave injuries, and it will be awhile before they recuperate and talk/play cricket. It is a possibility that some in the team would suffer from ‘<strong>post traumatic stress disorder’</strong> a condition that has the ability to impact the victim both physically and psychologically.<br /><br />The attack has left India struggling to come to terms with the situation. Words of bravado and right-on –the –face bureaucratic exchanges cannot replace whole- hearted measures to counter terror at our doorstep.<br /><br />The terror attack has brought the game to a grinding halt in Pakistan .But the saga continues unabated on various <strong>TV channels</strong>. On the day the cricketers were attacked some channels repeatedly showed terror footages all through the day…..an action that would depress even the most cheerful among viewers. I wonder why these channels use the same method that is used in the terror camps…..brain washing!<br /><br />As a nation whose people collectively suffer from amnesia in general, and indifference –prompted complacence in particular, and whose limpid expressions of protests revolve around <strong>pink ‘chaddis’,</strong> this is perhaps the only way to ensure that we don’t forget what could be in store!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-584110137540743744.post-64425729234008047952009-03-01T02:45:00.000-08:002009-03-01T02:51:53.344-08:00SMILE PINKI SMILEHi !<br /><br />I have been wanting to start my own blog for a long, long time and finally I have done it!<br /><br />There were lot of events that unfolded which gave me the itch to put pen to paper. First there was the Mangalore pub incident…… but so much has been said, written and done (or not done) about it that I prefer to write about the ‘Oscars’!<br /><br /> I have not seen most of the films that gained entry into the Oscars, but, like many curious fellow Indians, I too saw ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. No wonder they say curiosity kills! It killed any future curiosity that I might have developed over an ‘Indian’ film made by anyone beyond the Indus! Now that we know what they think about us, why bother? And, like everyone else who saw SDM I too have an opinion about the film …..<br /><br />The film has won the Oscars for reasons beyond layman comprehension. But it must be said that it helped to reinstate the clichéd portrayal of India. I have had friends, in the Uk, who told me that they had the misfortune to watch ‘Slumdog’ with fellow audiences who generated noises reflecting dismay, disgust or disapproval in turns! Apparently, there was one man, among the movie-watchers, who even declared that he would never ever want to visit India! So much for Danny Boyle’s Oscar speech of dedicating the Oscar to Mumbai! But thanks to Boyle there is a mad rush, among foreign tourists of course, to imbibe the essence of the slums in Daravi, in Mumbai, where the film was shot!<br /><br /> ‘Slumdog’ pretends to have exposed the grotesque underbelly of the most -happening nation in the world today ……..and guess what ? they have actually won an Oscar for it!! Earlier India was , in the eyes of the West, the land of snake charmers, pot -bellied children with runny noses, Gandhi, slums, yoga and the Himalayas! Now, defunct toilets, beggar mafia and Hindu-Muslim riots have been added to the dismal list!<br /><br /> Of course , the fact that A R Rahman, the ‘Mozart of Madras’, competed with some of the World’s best to win the Oscar is a cause for celebration!<br /><br />Meanwhile, basking quietly in the spotlight of new-found glory was the India-based, true life documentary film ‘Smile Pinki’, which won an Oscar in the short film category. The protagonist of the film, Pinki Sonkar, whose life transformed magically from being an outcast with a cleft lip to a sought after child, symbolizes hope in futuristic India.<br /><br /> The charitable organization, ‘The Smile Train’, which has brought smiles on the faces of thousands of poor Indian children suffering from a cleft lip or a cleft palate has vowed to wipe out the deformity from India. <br />As long as the smile train keeps chugging there is reason for children like Pinki to smile.<br /><br />Good going Pinky! And keep smiling!reeja tharuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18268854820948640253noreply@blogger.com4