Poems & Short Stories

Reading: A Solitary Activity Reading has often been a solitary activity. We read and get hooked by the characters of a story. Then we set off on an adventurous journey, and there is no looking back till the last page. We flip through the pages, analyse texts, parse through the syntax of words written, read between the lines, and form an interpretation from the words unsaid. Silence heaves an inaudible sigh with only rustles of pages making their presence felt. Storytelling: A Precursor to community reading Community reading or reading in a group is a byproduct of storytelling. Storytelling became the driving force to be informed and conscious of our experiences so that it can be regaled with enriching forms of entertainment and dramatic composition in front of an audience later.  Sitting around a storyteller with curious ears gave way to discussion of the stories narrated. Gradually, with more access to written forms of texts and written material, the concept of reading grew ...

       Gratitude is a powerful tool to unlock abundance. Appreciating the aspects around us does not come very easily, especially if you are on a downward spiral; you would find it a herculean effort to unearth the positives. But the moot point is— are we trained to be grateful? The constant chase Fundamentally we all are trained to worry because the survival mindset kicks in every time we are on to something. So even if we have gained something, for example, success, it is hard for us to feel good about it; forget about being grateful. Even before the warmth of the moment mellows, we are on the lookout to chase the next thing and put all our efforts into attaining the unattainable. Every time we achieve something, we are on a next chase. To level up and accomplish more. Pause and reflect We are not taught to pause ourselves, take a moment to feel the joy that our accomplishments have offered us, revel in the moment, and feel grateful for it. This is what i...

“Amma, it feels like you have put on the AC. Air has grown cold”, said my 7-year-old lifting up her beady eyes from her maths homework. A cheery hurray followed. I shook the clothes firmly and filed them neatly on the cloth stand. Yes, indeed. There was a light nip in the air. Not due to AC. And, certainly no change in the temperature. It was still a blazing 38 degrees outside. I smiled and was whisked off to my childhood days. To my nondescript haven that would have looked more picturesque in a child’s sketchbook than in reality. A chawl which housed 14 flats adjacent to each other, spaced out at an arm’s length. A place where people were knitted closely together regardless of what social standing they were in. A place where we children had not one but many houses at our perusal to watch television, eat lunch, sleep under the warm covers and take refuge from the angry monsoon spells. A place where aimless wanderings were honoured but not bothered by ruthless meanderings of the rou...

  You cannot run from positive affirmations even if you think you have run out of them.   They will come, looking for you. All you have to do is keep your eyes wide open and graciously receive them with warmth and care. They can come to you at any moment and from any quarter perhaps, while running errands like when the momentum has picked up in you to array the disarray in your child’s wardrobe. When that happens, you treat them as a little note, an epiphany or a sacred sign from the universe and insert them as a key that locks itself into your mind with an audible click, only to unlock a change in you and get reflected in every journey you embark. When your little one’s Tees mouth affirmations, you cannot just run away without glancing at it. Start small, dream big, repeat – Starting small and repeating them with consistency is so underrated these days. So much of today’s world is rooted in instant gratifications and making it big in a wink of time. Small, incremental progr...

  I just finished reading the beautiful book ‘Tathastu’– the lovely short stories that are more like reminders, the motivating sentiments that one has forgotten and should be mindful of. First of all, I found it hard to believe that it is the debut work of the author and she has made a write-up that is an extension to her blog. One is because of the words, the articulation, and the anecdotes linking to the messages she needs to pass on to the readers. The second thing is the clarity of her thought process. All these stories are quite catchy, not too long and worth reading aloud to your friends and family. I cannot tear apart one story and say it is my favourite as I loved all of them. Some stories are rich in sentiments, some have resplendent settings, and some fit in as positive affirmations that will set you up or propel you to move forward with confidence. The characters in the stories are quite relatable. It is like you know these people and in some or other way, have come in...

  Though there are self-care practitioners, influencers and life coach who practice and encourage people to practice self-care, we don’t practice it ourselves until there is a severe push or introspection. The precursor to start a habit is always our own willingness to practice it. We should fully be consumed with the idea to be able to produce it in full force. You must have heard buy first, pay later. Here also you need to buy the idea of the habit first but the difference is once the habit is formed and sustains in your routine, you are getting paid by its multi-fold benefits. My cousin and I had a conversation just recently when he was in India. A chance question sent me on the lane of introspection. I was absently gazing at nothingness when he asked me mainly because I was not able to produce a suitable reply. Firstly, I stared in disbelief for the question was unusual and secondly that made me go inward to seek answer and put forth as a justified reply. A simple question ...