Contemplations and Ruminations

     So the virus is in town, the corona virus which gives rise to the symptoms termed COVID_19 and we're in lock down mode. The whole world is more or less in the same situation, everybody cooped up at home. I don't know how long it will last... it's not bad, I do my yoga, play shuttlecock in the evenings followed by zumba, cook/ bake something in between, watch documentaries about our universe and black holes and all the massive energy and explosions happening out there where everything is in constant motion; a cauldron of intense activity as compared to the eerily deserted streets on earth today.      I wonder about the people who have no homes or enough food, migrant people caught up in the lock-down, unable to go home or rest anywhere. What about the daily wage earners... I do hope they are getting their due share from the government which has rolled out many PDS (public distribution system, commonly known as ration shops) relief schemes. I don't kn...

         The dawn of another year and there's so much happening in the world, what with the bush fires in Australia, the CAA/NRC protests in India, the Trump and Iran situation; it is good that we stay updated and take an interest in world affairs, that's probably all we can do. We cannot influence such events that take place on a global scale, but we sure can work on the smaller issues that relate directly to us. The other day, I was taking a walk in my locality during the first week of January and I came across a rather sorry sight. My locality is usually clean and people do not throw rubbish everywhere, so I was taken back when I saw a pile of discarded sticks and wild grass (used to construct a Christmas crib) along with a few plastic Christmas stars lying on the road. What a harsh sight it was, a reminder that Christmas was over, and thus all the things that made it a beautiful season have to be dumped right on the road.      How can w...

Another year, 2020, how fast the years roll by... the transition from 2019 to 2020 was fun enough, surrounded by family, friends and  an influx of angels. I saw a paper doily angel online and since then this is what I have been making in December, an army of paper doily angels... To be placed in the crib, a t last count there were about 23 angels in the crib in my hometown... Ah, Christmas is fun even though I couldn't get into the whole giddy Christmas mood this year. I don't know why, I kept listening to Winter Song by Fernando Ortega and My Favourite Time of the Year by The Florin Street Band , to get into the high spirited mood of Christmas... and though that helped a bit, everything was kinda subdued and serene. I guess Christmas as a festival just isn't appealing anymore, but Christmas as a time where love comes to stay in the form of family and friends who travel home for the holidays is more meaningful. Christmas is more than the lights on the tree, ...

Do not, do not, do not! The father in church intoned What, she thought warily Gratify the needs of the flesh, he preached. Why not, she mused, smiling at the one Sitting beside her, oblivious to the sermon It is beautiful to love and be loved. What's there to be scared When love exists deep in your soul No amount of denying can bring peace. So the other day the father in church was talking about how it is a sin to gratify the needs of the flesh. And all I could think about was why, why is he so scared, why does the church seem scared of sexual union. Isn't that how the priest exists, because his parents decided to have sex (unless he was conceived clinically in a petri dish). Why does our society fear sex, why does it have such a bad connotation? Why couldn't the father bring in love, why couldn't he say that if you feel a connection or if you really love the person then it is beautiful, otherwise, it might end in heartache. It's not only the father... ...

This picture was taken circa 1990 when the mountain gods (the western ghats) with their gentle song were all we could see everywhere we looked. Check out the mud bound road and the half-saree clad higher secondary students (akkas then)... life was amazing here, it took me years to realise that. Here I am at one of the mountains thirty years later, just soaking in nature and contemplating how far I've come from that little girl who hated this village and couldn't wait to leave. Life always surprises you in the most beautiful of ways when you learn to go with the flow. You may not get the view you were hoping for, but you will be rendered speechless by the view that awaits you, it will be something you never thought could exist and yet here you are... reveling at how the universe has always got your back.   This is one of the pristine beaches back home... the sun on one side, moon on the other.  I sit here typing all this as the rains fall outside while I sip on warm...

NEVER stop doing your pushups, that is one exercise which gives you upper body strength. Never not love, that means when you feel and do things with love, you're making life beautiful for you and everyone around you. Know that life is good, you may not understand or even figure out what you're supposed to do or be, but with good intentions and the air of positivity surrounding you, life will always be good even when it is troublesome. Eat healthy, you'll feel good in your gut... but don't go overboard with the diet. Over time you'll tend to figure out what suits you, don't define yourself to any diet, it beats the purpose of sharing/breaking of food with family and friends. Read, always read and gather words, you like them. Read the good stuff that makes you gasp in wonder and happy to be alive. Always spend time with children, nothing purer on earth. Learn not to hear things that serve nobody, the acrid bitterness and negativity that builds up in people ca...

The year-end transitions are always the most exciting of times. Family comes down from wherever they are and tickets are booked to travel from one home to another. December is always exciting... and here are a few pictures of 2018 gi ving way to 2019.  The crib in Chennai home... I liked the little waterfalls in the corner and the angel near the falls.  Snowflakes on my door...  Celebrating the spirit of jólabókaflóð... Making wreaths with Jen... Making mulled wine... A Christmas midnight selfie... Haha... dressed up like this pretty angel I fell in love with. Celebrating Christmas with Filter kapi mousse... The crib in Nagercoil... Elephants at the entrance to the crib... A view of baby Jesus... Chocolates... Birthday of the twins... Cauliflower crust pizza... Our new year tradition... spending the last day of the year listening to the waves and playing in the sands that made us. Trying out our photogr...