With god as the centre and faith as the radius
Draw the circle of life, focus on the eternal
Tune in to listen to the whispers of the divine
Introspection reveals a connect
The waves of euphoria reach a crescendo
Mind is enveloped by spiritual ecstasy!
Sometimes a good match is so good, that it becomes an almost perfect match! Isn’t it?
Yes, you guessed it right. I am an envelope, the carrier of messages across the world.
A simple sheet of paper and some adhesive is all that is required to create me. But I am glad that from my insipid and dull persona, people have given me a makeover. I now feel so colourful and attractive. I am basking in all the attention my looks are able to garner ❤ !
I am the bearer of the news to people across different countries. I travel the globe, even to the remotest corner of the world, without a passport. Ain’t I lucky ;-).
I have had the privilege to deliver the good and the bad news.
Many a smile I have brought to their faces, when I arrive with pleasant stories and news. The birth of a young one, a promotion order, a cheque enclosed, an invitation, a holiday itinerary, and son returning home and so on.
But when I am the harbinger of sad news, my tender shoulders hurt carrying the emotional burden sealed within me. I am not allowed to share it with any of my other mates too. I dread to face the scenes of gloom with tears overflowing generously from the heart broken souls.
These days, thanks to the rapid development of technology, I am getting a lot of rest. My travel has reduced tremendously. They are mostly official trips. Since I have also reached a ripe old age, this suits me fine. Also the emotional burden off my shoulders is a huge relief, as people use the mobiles to convey the unpleasant news.
Just a few more years of life in me. Then you all will pay your tributes for the wonderful work I did all my life. Maybe an obituary in the Newspaper as a mark of respect for my selfless service.” R. I. P – The envelope”
Lets open the doors
Bury animosity
Foster true friendship
Between people and nations.
Peace and brotherhood prevail.
In response to Colleen’s weekly tanka #22, Door and Friend
Welcome to the last task. This one is pretty easy!
“Happiness is … ”
Complete the sentence and grow it. Keep it a maximum of five hundred words or less.
For more on the challenge, click here.
When do we feel most happy? When we get a good grade at school or college, a promotion, new phone or when we are on a vacation? And what happens when the euphoria of all this wears away? The grade is forgotten, we have a new academic year yet again to prove ourselves, the challenge after the promotion again becomes routine, just a few months now and the new phone is already throwing tantrums, after a great holiday, life again settles into a mundane pattern. Now, are we still happy or again on the lookout for something exciting to make us happy?
A sense of void returns to our life because the key to happiness is not related to any external stimuli. Happiness is a state of mind. The moment it gets linked to the happening or non-happening of an event, it is short lived and fleeting. Happiness is a conscious choice not an automatic response.
“Success is not the key to happiness, happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. “Albert Schweitzer
When one is happy from within he/she doesn’t need the support of external aids to feel happy. The journey to explore within oneself to reach a state of “Ananda” or eternal bliss is a long one.
Gazing around me I discovered a plethora of little things in our everyday life which help us tread this fascinating journey of life with a happy frame of mind, as it is rightly said, “Happiness is a journey, not a destination!”
Being amid nature, listening to music, a random act of kindness, curling up with a great book, cooking a meal and enjoying it with family, a baby’s laughter, bringing smile to someone’s face, baking aroma wafting from my oven, an empty parking place in a busy area, sleeping on my mother’s lap, the smell of the first raindrops on the parched earth, learning something out of my comfort zone……….oh! The list is endless!
I had a great time in participating in this challenge. Hope you all enjoyed it as well <3!
Image courtesy : http://www.google.com
As a part of the IBMC challenge, the penultimate of the series:
As a baby everything around is new to them. They slowly learn things by keenly observing how each and everything is done. It’s a pleasure to watch a baby learn new things. They learn that they need to cry to get something. They learn that they need to put forward their hands to reach out for something. Many such slow incremental things accumulate in order.
Now the task is if you were to see something with a fresh new perspective, what would be it? Give a baby step to something and explore this new perception and dimension with your engaging thoughts. You can give a fresh meaning to a new word, sentence, concept or anything weird or meaningful.
For more on the challenge click here.
My take on the challenge:
Welcome to the world of babies. A world where everything around them is so pure and divine, nothing eclipsed as yet by the defiled adult behaviour. With an implicit faith that they will be taken care of, tended to and loved, they observe, imitate, learn and grow. They are a bundle of curiosity, so affectionate, ever smiling, bubbling with energy, without any malice in their hearts and the word fear absent from their dictionary. During the metamorphosis from a dependent to an independent, is when their innocence and sincerity loses its sheen, primarily due to excessive adult interference.
In this journey of a child to an adult, we let go of most of our “baby qualities” due to various adulterated influence, in varying degrees. We gradually befriend ego, competitiveness, manipulative behaviour, jealousy, fear, anxiety, stress and many other diluted traits. All of this were unknown to us as babies.
Wouldn’t it be a great idea to unlearn these existing qualities within us and re learn those original ones that we possessed as babies?
To be happy without a reason
To forget the squabble and have a clean slate the very next moment
To let go the fear of failure
To never allow religion to come between people
To not judge others
To learn to unleash our creative imagination
To have a zest for life.
Definitely easier said than done. But we were blissful as babies without the negative qualities, which we now posses isn’t it? Why not take baby steps to learn the qualities of a baby ?
Today’s task for the challenge is:
You are going to enjoy this. You will pick a nursery rhyme and make a new interpretation of it. You are free to make edits to that rhyme and then give an interpretation. The only ultimate restriction is that there has to be rhyme and a new context to it. Let your imaginations flow.
For more details on the challenge click here.
The original rhyme I chose:
Chubby cheeks, dimple chin
Rosy lips, teeth within
Curly hair, very fair
Eyes so blue, lovely too
Teacher’s pet, is that you?
YES, YES, YES!
My version:
Facebook posts, Whats app messages,
Selfie pouts, tweet within,
Instagram pictures, you-tube videos
Eyes so glued, hands too,
People’s pet, is that you?
YES, YES, YES!
Here comes challenge #7 –
You are going to pick up a news paper article. Either online or take a snapshot from the hard copy paper. Use appropriate reference for the article you have used. You need to debate and discuss your view points on the selected article. How best can you do? You can pick up any category like general, politics, entertainment, etc. Even guest columns are very much appreciated.
For more details, click here.
Swim Vs Skim
An interesting article I chanced upon to read in The Hindu, a National Daily, last weekend. Titled “The Reading Philosophy “the writer Shruti Rao, shares her experiences with the type of reader she is, and different types of readers, that she has come across. Some who swim through a book from cover to cover, some who skim through it while others skip parts of it, yet complete reading the book. She poses the same question to us. “What type of a reader are you?”
Unlike today where we buy books by a dozen or simply read e books on kindle, buying books during my childhood days was very rare. I was allowed to join a library only during summer vacations. I made sure to join the library on the first day of holidays and continue till the last day. I devoured books, sitting all night, reading them.
Different types of readers I have come across are, series junkies ( my daughter is a huge fan of series), literary loyalists, polygamist reader, the re readers (my son qualifies under this category 😉 ), fiction fanatics, partial reader and so on.
I can relate to the writer’s question. As a book lover, I love reading fiction but do enjoy other genres as well. I generally like to finish the book I’ve picked up. But yes, I plead guilty on a few occasions, of skipping through a few paragraphs and in some cases not being able to progress beyond a few pages of the book. Maybe I couldn’t connect with the authors view or it was at a level beyond my limited comprehension. But most times, I enjoy to swim through the book cover to cover which leaves me refreshed.
What type of a reader are you?
For more details on the challenge click here.
Today’s task is:
You are given a poem, picture and a word. You will combine all and write a post. All the three have to be interlinked in your post. They can be used in any context.
The poem:
In,
search of skin,
color no matter,
brighter or darker,
tell no one,
I will take someone,
Ssssshhhhh!
– ghost, me!
The Picture:
Word:
Telephone
Here is my attempt:
I came across the lake one evening at the hill station I was visiting. The twilight painted an exquisite picture across the horizon. The shades of azure, crimson and pink that splashed across the sky made it look surreal. The magical evening captivated me and I sat by the lone tree mesmerised by its beauty. I took out my diary to compose a poem on the twilight sky. Engrossed in the world of my words, suddenly I heard a rustle of leaves. I looked around but could not spot anything unusual. Thinking it must have been the wind, I continued. I heard the rustle once again. This time it was more deliberate and clearer. I looked around but again no one in sight. I now began to feel a bit uneasy. My attraction to the place was so strong that I forgot to notice, in spite of being such a scenic place, it was totally desolate. My fear got better of me, and I stood up to leave the place at once. All of a sudden something brushed past me, and I heard an eerie voice say,
In
search of skin,
color no matter,
brighter or darker,
tell no one,
I will take someone,
Ssssshhhhh!
– ghost, me!
Ashen and panic stricken, I tried to call out for help. To my surprise no voice came out of my mouth, no matter how hard I tried. Trying to run out of that place, I felt a hand on my shoulder. Fright completely paralysing me, I collapsed there.
The shrill ringing of the telephone jolted me out. I found myself on my bed in the comfort of my room. Heaving a sigh of relief, glad that it was a nightmare, I went to attend the telephone call!
Melancholic moods
On cold snowy winter morn
Fog blankets a veil
The winds of change shall blow soon
Ushering warmth of sunshine!
In response to Colleen’s Weekly Tanka challenge #21, Fog & Change
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