Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Time and Little More!

Time is eternal. Time cannot be contained in a clock! Clock ticks for 24 hours and goes back to begin, just like the waves, going back and forth, back and forth tirelessly until one day we humans stop watching. Time is Time!

Time and again I am reminded of the eternity and ever changing continuity of time, and yet i forget. Forget this moment is NOT going to last forever, forget my time on this universe is so ephemeral, forget my kids are not going to be kids forever, forget this cleaning is never going to be done until I am obscure.

Its not philosophy and it is not poetry, but a plain simple understanding of reality. Nothing lasts. So yes, wake up! Add a spring to your step. If you want to do something do not wait until you HAVE to do it. Start now. Like I did. I wanted to write this blog when I read these lines in my own email. If I had waited as I endlessly did all of this past year, this would never have been written!


Friday, November 15, 2013

Yet another random thoughts...

Oh well, here I am sitting with million things to do, and yet on the blog page. One of those random rendezvous that I rarely make these days...life happens. And another year is around the corner. A 2013 calendars make way to the 2014, kids grow, we get older one more year wiser or stupid, and life moves on.
I can count my blessings, yes. But accomplishments? That book I had been sitting on for over two years with a burning desire to publish but with little or no action....that desire to spend a relaxed weekend sprawled on the couch for one whole day with absolutely no chores to do....well I can list two whole pages of such things that can either be accomplishments or simple pleasures, but both elusively eluding me  in day to day conundrum.


Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Random



Agonizing moments of fiery frustrations
Traverses the path of frozen solitude
Tormenting the very being to the core
Lulled at times by the memories of lover’s lore…

Quenching love’s burning desire brings
Random remnants of thirsty longing
Blaring noise of a soothing music
Marks the silent sufferings of a lone lovebird

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Carefree days...

When was the last time I saw my kids enjoying a care free day? In India during summer. Even there we had tons of family visits, doctor visits and temple visits....never let them sleep in.

Why is that the kids are equally, if not more, busy as the parents? Just a typical day - wake up, rush through morning, go to school, do whatever you do there. Get picked up from after school care- eat a quick snack and a carton of milk on the way to the next extra curricular class. Come home. While mommy is busy getting some dinner (mind you mommy is tired, hungry and could definitely use a cup of hot tea and some newspaper time alone for just 15 minutes, and still cooks a healthy meal and gets cranky if the kids don't like it), complete unfinished homework, do the extra work, beg to read a book, eat dinner at the table (OK - some 15 minutes before the bickering begins), rush through shower etc, get the backpack ready for tomorrow and get to bed to clock in sleep time. (Big deep breathe). Wow.

Rewind to some 20 odd years...OK not. rewind 30 years. Wake up, morning chores, eat, get dropped in school. Come back home bright and early right after school. Mommy got yummy evening snack and warm glass of milk. Go out to play. 6 Pm come back in. Do little homework. Eat. Sleep.

Life was so simple for me as a child. Got whatever I wanted with little fuss from my mom. If I wanted Poori for breakfast, yes it was there for me next morning, My kids? Poori has become a delicacy they get only on long weekends. 'Coz this run continues even on weekends - Saturday mornings are as crazy from 9 to 11 AM. 

Can I explain this run to the kids? What kind of competition am I preparing them? Are they having fun on this run? Do I dare asking them?


Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Unsorted

Too  many things keeps my mind heavily occupied, from mass shootings in Nairobi, Navy Yard and to the mundane human behavior. Trying not to hold grudges against those humans that show an indifference, trying to give 100% to my work that I enjoy, and another 100% to my mommy job, another 100% to my wifey job...life sometimes churns out moments of pure bliss, and of course super frustrations. Traversing between the peak and deep cliffs, I just want to hide in a cozy ravine...sometimes.

You know matters that happen keep sending deep ripples from the bottom. When I read the news paper, what I hear on the news instills a deep sense of fear. Fear for the human kind and the fear of the human kind. Fear for the world's new normal - the terrorism that is getting imprinted in everyone's every day life. When you walk out of the house for a run to the grocery store, when you go to the library, drop off etc, the uncertainty of what might happen, who would walk around with a weapon to shoot - gosh. I know this is crazy thought. But it was a reality at a school and a movie theater and a Navy Yard. I keep wondering about the so many freedoms we speak about.

Its a serious responsibility to teach our young generation so ingrained with the internet era that there were certain things in the world that they might want to think about to retain their sanity. Privacy. Respect. Honesty. Responsibility. Freedom - a freedom that ends where your neighbor's nose begins. You do not have to share everything from when you slept and when you ate - then everything in-between and some.

Are we heading towards anarchy where all values are lost?

Such are my thoughts....

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Happy Mother's Day!

It's fun
It's pain
It's laughter
It's tears
It's hope
it's fear
It's love
It's hate

We know it all
We brave it all
Day by day
Pretty smiles
Warm hugs
Gentle looks
Mad rushes
Quiet reflections...

That's us, my friends...
That's MOM!

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Why?

Certain things grip the heart with intense sadness…a fear creeps into the very center of my being, unaware. I cannot help but read or listen to the news about an eight year old life, brutally taken away from this world, for no known reason. It is unfair. It is cruel. It is mindless. It is a lot of things I cannot find the right word to express or explain. One day, my child asked, “Would someone hurt a child, mom?” that questions echoes and reverberates the contours of my very being…

Is a second coming at hand? I try taking a refuge in WB Yeats…and automatically open this page…how aptly these lines depict the anarchy?

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity…

And Blake…

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? What dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

Countless other poems…but these do not bring peace to parents that lost the child. The child lost the life forever, but the fear this instills in the parents…boundless.

Why?

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Life

In a constant buzz of churning
Memories at times burning -
It’s a burning that evaporates
No smoke and ashes elaborate

The building vacuum widens
In future path that’s mostly hidden
Though seems right there bright ahead
It’s yet, completely unknown

Is it the heart? Is it the mind?
Where feelings unwind?
Know not how, know not where
Breathing…thinking and so still here.

Friday, March 15, 2013

On the run...

In the blink of an eye
Flies life with not even a bye
Not knowing how, where and when
Moments vanish within the spin
I am always on the run
Sometimes think its fun-
Not at all a bad life
Don't have any long strife
On the contrary for sure
But the longing for a moonlit walk
And a care free gentle talk...

Were memories of days that are none...



Monday, February 18, 2013

Tamil Ini...(short film)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufvA_VNj--M

So I watched this short film again. Here is my take…ahem…well… in English. I believe this will be the case for most Indian languages, not only our own ancient, rich, literature dense Tamil. I am always amazed at the zeal with which people from all parts of the world living in America tend to speak in their mother tongue among themselves and within their circle of friends. And I also am amazed that we, people from the Indian sub-continent, tend to do the opposite with the same zeal. We feel ‘kind of proud’ that our kids cannot speak Tamil, do not like Indian food, do not like to go to India, do not like to wear Indian cloths etc. etc. Whoever coined the term ABCD, hats off. But it should mean not just those born here but those who immigrated here as well. Why? This movie too had captured that in one brief scene where the mother and child talk in Chinese and our ‘grandpa’ hero expresses it with one look. Very powerful moment indeed.

Well here we are, many of us, living far away from our roots, spreading our branches in multiple directions, trying to reach what our ancestor could not. So how far can we stretch our branches? As far as our roots can hold them or even further and disengage the branches from the roots? In this strange case of disengagement, it’s the root that is slotted for death and not the branches. Sadly. Root, our language, culture and so on. What makes us speak in English at home? Why do we do it? I am as guilty as any of you and this short film was a strong slap on the face. Yes, we do send our kids to the language school. They learn to read and write. I intend to introduce the books I enjoyed in Tamil to my kids one day, in Tamil. I want them to read and enjoy the beauty and nuances of Tamil expression in native Tamil. But would my kids do the same to their kids? I have a feeling they might not. But I strongly wish they do.

What’s happening Tamilnadu is even more painful to watch. I know a lot of people from Tamilnadu, people of Tamil origin, don’t flinch before saying “I can’t read Tamil” or “I can’t write, understand, speak Tamil” etc. Well speaking in Tamil was/is still “considered” not very fashionable in Tamilnadu as well…not just by those living elsewhere. And current generation takes pride in taking French, Sanskrit and Hindi as second and third languages in school as opposed to learning Tamil. We need to learn other languages of course. I understand it is important to learn Hindi and other languages. But that does not mean giving up Tamil to learn the others. We can assimilate other languages while still nurturing our language. Literature, life and culture lives only through languages.

Will this be the generation that is going to witness the demise of a language with thousands of years of history? What is bad about speaking, learning and sustaining a language? We don’t know what we are giving up when we start aping the popular culture. Just like the popular movie music, fashion, food etc…is the language going away? Scary….

I enjoyed that one dialog where the girl says “he really likes my ravioli”. That statement is so packed and meaningful, I can’t but write about it here, today. Watch short film people. And do a little, speak in Tamil at home with children and with friends who speak Tamil.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Love Journey

The magical musical fountain of life
Flows not only in harmony, but in strife
Making brick and frames a home
Seeing though hard times and fame
Locking energies in the center
Letting not any intruders to enter
Yet, thriving and flourishing in community
Unfolding in the beauty of unity.

Together, two souls not one
Yet, in thinking and love union
Conquering, not the differences
Limiting nothing but offences
It’s not only love at first sight
It’s the love that strengthens with every fight
Continues the train -
On two tracks but one.

Friday, February 8, 2013

The flip side

The thermometer says 102.4. Cold and windy. Got a child that has the same temperature. And another one at home already on medication. Apparently one parent stay home to take care of the recovering one. So you start driving. You are feeling the chills, dizzy, cough and runny nose. It is a classic case of flu. Your prescription hasn’t arrived yet. But your kid got the same symptoms. Well leave the rest to God and you drive to the doctor’s office. Long wait. Gets confirmation on flu for the child.

Drive to pharmacy. Your stomach rumbles. But oh well, got to pick up the medicine. Pharmacy wait time is another 40 minutes. Get the medicine. Come home. The recovering one had thrown up and dad’s time went on cleaning and change her. No lunch ready. Fortunately your friends have given rasam. Rice??? Start the cooker. 30 mnts. Wash the sheets, change the sheets. Kids hungry. You hungry. You are sick. Kids are sick. That moment…God just terrible.

That too passed, last week. Looking back is not going to help…but, Wow! life’s flip side is not so much fun.

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

I am thinking on those lines of violence

And my thoughts just rush through making a huge mess of thoughts – something like mixing up all basic colors of clay to make one big clay ball, that keeps changing colors as you knead or roll. Getting more confused, more integrated, until the ball becomes one dirty colored mess of a ball. From the outside, if you are taking the first look, you cannot imagine that mushy, browny clay ball was made out beautiful distinct colors. Such are my thoughts. A big mess of a mess. Let me throw that out in the garbage. Messy thoughts never make any clear sense. It messes up writing, and as a result, the understanding of the readers. Not that I have a throbbing readership that I am writing for. If one or two souls read what I write here, I consider myself lucky ( I know you do truself, Thank you!).

Now Violence. Violence kills people. Literally and figuratively. The literal violence is the violence that is out there, words, actions, deeds as part of the our primitive nature. Thinking back, I cannot pin any time in history and say that violence was not part of the society. But in the 20th century and beyond, violence has taken a new meaning. A new life. A new life toward destruction. Now I wish to categorize violence into two broader groups. Community violence. Domestic violence.

What is violence in the community? People getting mad and hurting each other. Hurting total strangers. Killing unknown strangers. Hurting people belonging to something different other that what the killer believes in. Oh God – think about the multitude of unknown cruelties directed towards fellow human beings? Again I am afraid my thoughts are churning so fast from the gag rape in India to the mass shooting in New Town, not missing the obvious war in Afghanistan. Why? We all carry death with us. We never know when that is going to take over the life we live. Then why hurt another life, another soul and what responsibility gave you the right to hurt? Again the mysteries of death, why people turn violent is another million dollar question. Are we feeding the primates in us? Whatever happened to us as a society of living beings? Let’s not bring in “cultured”. I don’t want to call today’s society a cultured one.

I realize this violence is slowly creeping in to the society in the form of entertainment. Look at the movies 60 years ago. Was there this much bloodshed? As science and technology developed, movies started showing lot of “real” blood, shooting and in essence violence. What was entertainment for children 40 or 50 years ago? Playing in the back yard? Board games? Some such thing right? Now look how much their pass time is immersed in violence. The number of games, levels and addictions. I don’t know about it a lot to write. But I do know its out there and kids are addicted like crazy. So again science and technology on the one end being so positively productive, on the other side, feeding the primitive blood thirsty violence hidden in the human nature.

Is there a one solution to end all this nonsense? I am afraid not. No one action can put an end to the killings and deaths. We must have a social conscience as a whole to go through a metamorphosis. Is that possible? I don’t know. Perhaps this is the end that Mayan calendar predicted? An end to values, life and culture? So slowly everyone kills everyone and world comes to an end? Not on one day as expected, but slowly as the century ceases to be the world ceases to be as well? Well it is confusing and scary.

Then there is the figurative violence. The passive violence that kills an individual’s natural flow of life. I would always connect this with the domestic violence. How many women and men live thorough this kind of domestic violence. God, it is totally unbelievably real. I personally know women who go through this type of violence. It’s like living in R.L. Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde story. When the man or woman shows a very polite and fine face to the world and shows only a rotten ugly face at the home front. So when the other spouse who lives though this mess, for reasons as stupid as fear – because the other may threaten suicide if ever truth is spoken, or submission and in a larger sense, social stigma. Especially in India if a woman decides to free herself from the clutches of pain, she thinks the society might stigmatize her. What utterly senseless suffering? These things make me very upset and angry at the person that lets this happen to themselves.

Again we are here, so we live is true. Also respecting the other individual, being happy and letting the other person to be happy is also necessary for harmony in life. Torturing, belittling anyone is not acceptable. Why do you have to subject yourself to such pain? Stay away. Stop that in the beginning. I am really enraged to see such nonsense going on in highly educated, employed, so called elite families in India. Ah here I am caught red handed. Angry, enraged…these are what cause violence. Breath. Relax. Pray. And Pray again that all violence should dwindle down and not exist in the world that we leave behind for our children.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Fear

She came in. And hunkered under the curtain. Dragged me with her. And said “shhhh…don’t make a noise”. Then they came in. Called for us. She didn’t let me talk. I was amused at my little one’s hide and seek with us on the Friday evening. So I played along. Then they figured where we were. Lifted the curtains.

Then she screamed. “Mom they are going to shoot at us, we are going to die”. All of us stopped on track. “What??, what are you saying?”. She said, “oh mamma, we are practicing code red. In school when it is code red our teacher gets us to hide. Then those bad guys come in. We should not make a noise. Then officers will come in to save us. If we make a noise bad guys will find us and they will shoot at us.”


Agreed my older one with a more neutral story.

I could not clear the crowded memory since last Friday. All those parents that lost their children, families that lost a loved one in all these years, the pain, anguish, question, dilemma, of these lost dreams and lost lives perform an action replay in slow motion most of the time in my mind. They are not my personal experience but a result of cumulative readership and understanding mixed with parental intuition and understanding.

We send kids to school. We go to places we go to, work, movies, shopping and all other every day errands. And we set out planning to return. And when that doesn’t happen many a times, what to expect of life here? Why take out individual anger and disillusionment on an unsuspecting society? And yes, we do need to learn disaster preparedness. Prepare ourselves for earth quakes, tsunamis, storms, fires etc. But how do we prepare ourselves for bullets?

Go out anticipating that we will not return? Every day? That is living in fear. Living in fear and the American Dream are two entirely opposite things. I don’t want to live in fear, but still fear lingers in my heart.

Truth

There is truth. Then there is what they say as truth. And then, there is what you believe as truth. Yet again, there is what stays as truth.

The personality of truth changes based on perspectives. Essentially there are as many facets of truth as the number of people and perspectives. What you believe to be true may entirely be false in reality.

What makes me so philosophical today? Just day to day life matters.

So here is a little story. A knows B for a long time. A goes to a place X and B joins X after a while. Then A leaves X for Y. The after a while it so happens B also moves from Place X to place Y. A didn’t have anything to do with B’s decision to move. It was B’s at will choice. But B’s boss is not amused by the move. So is finding comfort in character assassination. No direct confrontation with A. No fact finding. But talks to everyone that A is taking B to the same place!!

Dude this is Silicon Valley! And we live in a free country, corporate America!  People move around all the time! Wake up and realize that. On top of all this, every one has a life beyond places X and Y. Its a busy life and A or anyone else does not have time to do such political math! If they did, they would not be where they are right now! If you want to beleive in what you think, all I can do is, to repeat my little one, and say "ha ha ...very funny!!!"

Human nature is so amusing. When we think everything is on track, something goes off track, we don’t want to examine why the off track happened. We seldom look at the issue at hand objectively. We just want someone to blame. This seems to be the universal attitude. How does blaming help to advance? How proactive is that?

Approaching any truth directly to get the close to the real picture will help in moving on. But again truth does have many facets! What is true to me may not be true to you. So believe in what you believe and I do the same! Life rolls on :)