Swings of a rhapsodic mind

 "Do you remember when did you click your first photo?", I asked him this morning. "Well probably in my 11th standard", he mused. "When did you click yours?", he enquired. "Well this is going to be a long story!", I added sheepishly. I was in eighth standard when my parents took me on a trip to Kolkata. On a sultry July afternoon as we were sitting in the lawn overlooking the Victoria Memorial, I suddenly had the urge of freezing that moment. My father back then was a proud owner of a camera that none dared to touch. When I asked him to let me click a snap, he hesitated a great deal but couldn't possibly say no.I could feel my heart beating aloud as I pressed that tiny silver button. My mother's pastel saree complemented the towering presence of the monument at the backdrop. My father's furrowed glance clearly suggested that my intrusion was unwelcomed. But, that very day I had realised that photographs had the power of transforming t...

I have been in the close company of a human these past months. The title of this blog post would keep you thinking what exactly is 0-10. Well, this special friend of mine has a habit of asking for ratings about almost everything on Earth. "On a scale of 0-10, how happy are you?", quipped he. " Well, 8.. ,9… wait.. er!", I fumbled. I hadn't realised how difficult it grows to quantify your responses. This game of ratings has become our personal favorite. It not only helps to estimate what the other person has in mind but also gives you a fair sense of estimation about yourself. I am yet to find proper answers to many of such questions but I realise that this game would keep on being his and mine personal favorite. As we sat by the sea, trying to figure out ratings. I marveled at the endless possibilities that the sea held. All ratings couldn't suffice that evening by that sea. That salt pepper breath of the sea hitting our faces, the calm and serenity that eve...

The Secret of Plants in the Environment by Rishikesh Upadhyay As a kid, my grandfather had instilled in me the belief that plants were one of us. We were not allowed to disturb them at night or in the wee hours of morning, as that was their time of rest just like ours. I always thought they understood our language so allowed us to pluck fruits and flowers but I wondered when I could learn theirs. You all probably must be wondering what made me talk about plants out of the blue! Well, it was in the month of October when I came across this book The SECRET OF PLANTS IN THE ENVIRONMENT by Dr. Rishikesh Upadhyay. The book talks about the language of the plant world: their inner workings, their structure, and the way they operate in the environment and a lot more. To someone like me, who doesn't belong to the Sciences, this book served as a handbook to explore the plant world and it's inter-dependency with the environment? It not only made me aware regarding how human intervention im...

As I seal these words in ink, I can see you brooding over pesky grays: unwelcomed and too many! I know, I know you are a planner, That you like to hide, And hate to take risks Yet, can't you just let go? I know life has been tough Growing up sucks, Adulting gives you cringes. But, girl, dance in your pyjamas When you still can. Don't brood at the worldly ways Your blanket shields you from all the hurt. Your books accept you with warmth, Life is more about you and less about the world. Let them run after all the sparkle, I know you find peace in your dim lit corners. Summers fun for ice-creams, Winters for a piping cup of coffee. So what if you still are a kid trapped in an adult's world You still are you and that is what it takes. So, dear, breathe while you still can The 20s won't last forever, The 30s would be real bother, Mellowing 40s would be wiser. But right now, as I write this I want you to enjoy all the cosiness You deserve and reserve for yourself! I want you ...

As a kid, I was fascinated by the world of grown ups. They seemed pretty cool to my eyes. They could ply their vehicles, move around without seeking permissions and get anything they wanted as they had money in their pockets. On the contrary, there I was struggling to choose jelly over butter for breakfast. Well, well maybe I still am a kid trapped in a grown ups body. The last couple of months have been tough, I have had dealt with unseen situations. I tried to fare it well but probably I wasn't taught the requisites to come out strong. I have  abided by a rule book all of my life. Rather than being in a story I had always opted to stay at the periphery. I have lived more anticipating a future rather thank making amends with my present. The past though a lost chapter somehow never leaves my thought process because all of it makes me who I am today and I don't regret any of it. These past months were filled with self revelation. I have finally realised how I have always tried...

 I need time for what seems obvious Why? Well, there's no obvious answer. I need time for what seems easy breezy to you , but sigh not to me. Between letting go and holding on, I need time: every time. I try to look at the world like I am supposed to do I try to fit in my parents shoe But as I ponder, I cry out "I need time". To bloom and to return to dust, I need time. Irony being , probably I am running out of time. I know, I become cranky I know, I say "I can't, give me some time" And yet, time that passes begets more time Irony has a disdaining laugh For i chase time to run out of it. But, for now, I am learning to slow down I am learning to unlearn whatever I was fed I am learning to not chase time Probably, I will put it to rest for some time. Next time, probably I won't need more time.

It was during my initial year of graduation when I took notice of this word in the small preety wall bulletin near Mohapatra Sir's cabin. I almost had knocked Sir's cabin, I wanted to know the meaning of the word and I didn't have a smart phone nor an internet connection back then to bring home a world of dot coms. But, I being the hesitant girl I was, I retraced back to class carrying that word in my head. I quietly jotted down the word in the last page of my notebook, it has stayed there till today. I won't tell you the literal meaning for it would miss my context. I would often run to that preety board to see what it held for the day, there would be interesting bits of write ups, fun facts and comic sketches from the students. One mundane day, sir caught me looking intensely at the board and told me the story behind it. I being the story monger, lit up at the idea. Sir, is a world traveller, he has been to remote and distant places. He being the person he is, ...