This time ...I believe

 Those little diamonds

Fall from sky; melt as they touch

Your beautiful soul

Inside the warmth of

Fire; my heart yearns for you love

Two mugs sit prettily

The winter silence

Whispers ‘make your dreams come true’

I smile and believe

Wait until the spring

When the dreams shall fly their wings

Open in the sky 

                                

P.S: Feels lovely to come back at haiku heights. Hope you all had a great Xmas.:) Wishing you a fabulous 2013 too:) 

Prompt: Snow

Xmas and More...

To an adventurous 2012....

2012….No I won’t complain. Today is a day of blessings, smiles, hopes, lights, and thank God for all the wonderful things that came our way.

 

I happened to visit many places this year. The year started with a fantastic New Year’s party in Bangalore. In my second visit in January and third visit in June, I left a part of me in that city of gardens....( Blore you listening??) 

I travelled to Ludhiana, Amritsar, Ahmadabad, Somnath Temple in Gujarat, and the serene islands of Daman and Diu.

Most importantly I finished my Masters, attended the convocation ceremonies of my Undergrad and Postgrad! Yes, they were lovely and beautiful!

My recent visit included a week’s fabulous trip to the land of Elephants: Sri Lanka ( A work and pleasure one ). On my trip I visited one of the world’s gorgeous universities: University of Perediniya with its lush green and pristine campus. I visited the 7 floor Library which was home to the most classic works you could ask in any field! Kandy was a lovely hilly area with the sun that sparkled at the top. From Kandy I headed to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Sigiriya: Singh ( Lion) + Giriya ( foot). Since it is only the lion’s foot that remains of the massive palace that King Kashyapa had built, it’s called Sigiriya. It’s an adventure in itself to climb the huge rock. 

Sigiriya, as it looks from the entrance 

Behind me on the wall: Fiascos, paintings made by
King Kashyapa

The best deal of climbing the rock is : Every step is worth it. Then I headed to Colombo, a little city with a radius of max 5 kms. So yes, you can cover the place on foot. I however, was busy travelling in a bus and auto!:P The autowalahs are experts at cheating u! So as a traveller one needs to be careful! 

Photo frames

I shopped and shopped from one of the loveliest and not to mention expensive places in Colombo. Here are pictures from Odel, the shopping store: 

wrapping papers and gift boxes

 

My year was nothing less than ad adventure. Oh! Yes a long roller coaster ride loaded with little and some big pleasant surprises on the way. Of course there jerks, good ones too, but well it all turns out good in the end!

So here’s a toast to the smiles, the love, the flowers, the sunshine, the starry sky, the chirping birds, the people who love us no matter how mad we act or how insane we get, the warm lanterns, the blessings and the optimism……..

It’s good to live in the present J A gift!

A delightful December, Merry Xmas and a Great Year ahead to all of you!:) 

Me and my Mum in a mall, Colombo

Taj Samudra, Colombo, all lit for Xmas!

And yes my fav pic.....Have a warm winter......:)

Exotic, Inviting and XMassy all at the same time;)

STOP RAPE NOW!: NO MEANS NO!

I’m enraged beyond any measures. As I seethe with anger, I shudder at the recent incident of a 23 year old girl, a girl of my age, who was pursuing physiotherapy and was gangraped by men to the extent that they ripped her body with blunt tools making it impossible for her to live. The brutality tells me that these men should be penalised with nothing less than a death sentence.

Here I was, till yesterday, cribbing and shedding tears for, now apparently “silly” aspects of life. The fury and the anger on Saumya’s blog at that time didn't make too much of a difference; yet at the same time I could connect. My mind said to me “She has voiced my thoughts. Every word there echoes the rage all us women carry within us over the rampant cases of sexual molestation and rape in Delhi". I say what Government of India has done to make us women feel secure?

In times like these there are two things that happen. One, that your mind erupts like a volcano blasting of the magma to great heights waiting to kill the victim with your own hands or better still hang them openly in front of the millions of Indian women, some who themselves have been a victim of some kind of sexual assault yet stayed mum and others who are ready to fight back for the freedom they completely deserve as a citizen of India. The other thing that you can experience is 'being numb'. Its like the defense of denial. You are hurt, shocked to the extent that no matter how much you want to detest something or scream at, your brain does not responds for 'it is in shock'. I could not help but write my fury for the cause it stood for.

I apologise if my written English does not follow the norms for my sentences are too long and not neatly packaged as the rules of grammar may prescribe. That’s not the point though.

Few weeks back I found saying to myself “It’s better that I don’t step out of home at late nights, considering the way rape cases are happening in Delhi”. Today, I believe and question “why should we women be forced to stay at home because of some sick minded people who are out on the Delhi street, roaming around like wild hounds, waiting to catch a piece of meat and tear it apart till they reach satiety?” 

We women need that safety and security that many across the world have. What Delhi has done is crumple this ‘sense of freedom’ to the extent that many of us for a number of years had taken ‘unsafe Delhi’ as a fate and something that could not be changed. As I write this today, it hurts to think how I would hide the fact from my postcrosser friends about Delhi being a ‘rape capital’ in the world ( even as I would admire the rich cultural and historical heritage of the city). Of course, as a citizen of the country, the escalating (many under the wraps) statistics on cases of sexual assaults, molestation and rape (for both Indian and foreign women) only encourage foreigners to explore countries that richer, most importantly safer.

I have to say something at this point. I recently visited Sri lanka. It’s a gorgeous country with spectacular landscapes. However what is most dazzling about the city Colombo and other parts of the country is the way men act towards women. I will comment only on the visible, for that is what I came across. No boy or man in the city ogled at a girl. Whether it was a foreigner roaming around in hot pants and spaghetti or a Sri Lankan girl wearing a dress! No lewd remarks made! While there was an instance when two young boys did look for a while at me, the stare was not bad. All it felt was two guys checking on a girl sweetly ( Ha! how it contrasts with men here in Delhi!). This makes me question if this aspect can be attributed to the 100% literacy rate in Sri Lanka or something else? I mean if India were to achieve these statistics, would men become more civilised or still act like ‘filth’?

What’s wrong with Indian men? I wonder if this question is rightly put. A country which for centuries has been venerated for its values, is that what we come down to? How hypocrite can a nation be which prides itself in the so called ‘Indian’ values on one hand and sees a massive rise in torturous cases against women in its own capital city?

I’m done with reading daily incidents of girls and women becoming a victim of rape. I thought of the girl’s boyfriend who still lives with the trauma of the incident. He is unable to empty himself of the guilt for it was he who suggested her to take the bus. The rest as we all know was a ghastly incident.

No, I don’t say all men think cheap. It’s always a few bad apples in the basket which spoil the lot that is good! It’s time we Indians adjured the Government of India to make the country a safer place for women and create measures to make the penalty for rape cases nothing less than a death punishment. The culprits need to be hanged for that is what they deserve!

I have signed the petition “Union Home Ministry, Delhi government: Set up fast-track courts to hear rape/ gangrape cases." with change.org. I urge you to do the same, if you too feel strongly about it!

It’s time we brought a change in our own country!

Lost something

I have been wanting to write something profound for a while. Sigh….it feels that all the creative energies have got lost faded with time.

This year and the months gone by have taught me a great deal about time.

It can take your breath away as much as it can wash your pain away

It can blossom like a flower in a day, as much as it can make a dead leaf glide away

It smashes like a wind, as much as it becomes soft wet sand

Hand in the water and there it goes

It makes you wonder about the self ‘that was’

And makes you wonder of the self ‘you’ve lost’

In all this and between you perplexed ask

“How do they still have me, the reason, the cause?”

As the people step up in life,

You stand there numb

The flushes that would lit your cheeks a while back

Have gone missing, perhaps drained away

Well you only need the light when it's burning low
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow
Only know you've been high when you're feeling low
Only hate the road when you're missing home

Staring at the ceiling in the dark
Same old empty feeling in your heart
'Cause time comes slow and it goes so fast

Well you see your dream when you fall asleep
But never to touch and never to keep
'Cause you are not the same and you dive too deep

Well you only need the light when it's burning low
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow
Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Apologies for sounding like this…..

The sun comes by, blesses and then goes back too

 And I’m here, trying to rise and encapsulate the rays, shiny and true.

To you and to perseverance

The clouds have drenched off their tears

The garden is wet and green

The droplets from the wire

Show me what I have seen

The birds seek a shelter

As the trees swing heavily

Yes the breeze is cold and chilly

A day when weather goes silly

As I sit here in my blanket

Feeling cold from within

The words you offer, a cup of coffee

My heart hears you, as you are giving

And now I’m warm and soft

Like the dessert we both love

You said all you want is my smile

Here, love, I shall surely offer

Yes, I’m blessed in this life

Blessed shall be the days to come

I shall do all I can this time

Believing in my run

Knowing you are there to cheer

There to hear me loud and out

I shall keep the sacred power

And rejoice happy and loud!

Love

Aakriti

The Rum (n) of Life

The chocolate in my mouth is velvety. As I took a bite, a gooey caramel accentuated the flavors almost flowing like a rapid and churning out the best. Ah! The velvet tastes like rum or some alcohol which I’m not aware of.

My words have been missing me and so has my blog. Yet, not one moment goes by when I think of the times when this blogspace was an active space. Ah! ‘Priorities’ lits up a part of my mind! “ I know, I know” I say, yet this life is to be lived once and I wish to live it my way!

All roads lead to one goal, that which is a dream of mine. For now, that’s all I wish to see. Yes, I’m here already. Amidst the warm bright sun and chilly winter days! Knowledge beckons me to walk ahead and not look back. Having conquered many hearts and made many impressions, there are few more to be made, for my own good!

The rose petals in my urli tell me to become a fragrance that people miss when it’s not around.

The sunshine adjures me to be determined and spread my shine in a place that shall become my haven in few months.

When we have gold coins which we have earned through our efforts, we need to spend them too, right? And since they are not bronze, not silver but gold coins, they need to be spent very wisely. The time has come that gold coins along with certain jumps and wisdom take me to the shore I long for.

Do you have a few rum chocolates which you could gift me? Well, that’s the best way I can have alcohol you see! They’ll give me that chocolaty velvety high. Ah! No qualms from my end if you don’t have them, rather if you ate them all! The finishing line beckons me to run…..

Miles to go before I finish……Yet the rum(n) is FUN!

" I may not be there yet but I'm closer than yesterday" 

When he slept and I looked on........

It’s a lazy morning today. And the sun yawns along with me. He knows that we both need a warm blanket to sleep a little longer. I struggle to get out of my warm blanket. “Yes, darling I’m out of my bed. See there in the corner, my sheets, blanket and pillow are all folded and stacked nicely. But you, honey, don’t feel like getting up today morn.Hmm?” I look up at you, nudging you with my smile, and I whisper from my heart to yours “Won’t you wake up today? It’s late!” I don’t hear a response. His head has popped out from the blanket, yet it’s not the usual shiny bright. I wonder “Is he feeling weak by any chance? Well, seems like that to me!” I eat my breakfast even before brushing my teeth today. His life and wife entices me and I’m comfortably sat on my study chair with the book in my hand lost in a world that was painted by her but now mine to admire in awe. I smile, I live, them.

Sigh. I should bathe now. “It’s mid- day dear and you are still sleeping?” The blankets now have warmed him well just like a puppy snugs in the fur of his mother. I smile to myself. “Alright, sleep all you want to today. But remember even as you sleep I miss you!”

“I don’t know I just am”.  We stare at each other and then Clare smiles and I shrug, and that’s that. But why does it seem as though something impossible almost happened? Why do I feel so relieved?

Perhaps this is one of those days when I smile my widest smile in the mirror knowing a dream, is budding safely and lovingly in its cocoon. As I hung my wet towel on the stand today, there flew a beeg black butterfly, with tiny turquoise dots which she adorned on her wings. She was not the usual shape like the others. She was unique. Perhaps she too knew I didn’t like clichéd things. She came there just for me. Delighted like a kid, I smiled all to myself.

I know my butterfly will be unique. When she’ll fly, she’ll spread her gorgeous wings in all her splendor  She’ll fly with all her might!

As you are still asleep, I wait for you to awake. There is this air, green grass and blue sky we need to paint on our wall. Remember?

I'll be your slave

I dedicate this one to a very very special friend of mine. Away by distance but very close to heart. Dear darling Moong dal da Halwa......This one is for you

Today...I'll be your slave

Servile in the sweetest possible way,

Ask me what you want

And you'll be gifted my friend

For no its not mean job

To being a smile and make a tear end

Today....I'll be your slave

Servile in the sweetest possible way

I'll melt the sun in honey

And treasure the dew drops of the morn

Save a lady bird or two

To have them on your palm

Wish all you want my dear

Till they fly far away

Chasing dreams and coloring them

For future to smile all way

Today.....I'll be your slave

Servile in the sweetest possible way

You see the heavy rains

The grey clouds near the bay

I asked Lord to gift a rainbow

He said “That’s the only way!”

I accepted it with pleasure

For the rainbow will be as bright as you

Till then my hug I offer

I hope it’s a haven for you

Let the tears drain

Let the pain get washed away

Today.....I'll be your slave

Servile in the sweetest possible way

Ask me all you wish

Take my smiles away

For the gleam I see in your eyes

Is a star that twinkles all night and day

Today.....I'll be your slave

Servile in the sweetest possible way

For a charming girl, a piece of Art as gorgeous as You!<3: td="td">

Oceans full of love and tonnes of kisses
Aakriti

Free- dome

They say free-dome comes

With restrictions; true as it

May be, yet I think

If I’m free in

My boundaries, why don’t my

Wings rejoice in me?

My eyes as they rise

The firmament looks at me

 “You’ll fly and shine”

Echoes the charged voice

Sun’s rays reach this heart, kindles

The dying warm flame

Credits: Ananya  Bhandari

Been a while since I wrote a haiku....feels good to re-connect at Haiku Heights.
Stay Blessed
Aakriti

P.S.: Ah...the link is closed ( my haik gets no entry) ...yet it's alright....all this mind needs energy and spirit to work!

Welcoming Autumn

Picture taken from : Here

This Autumn is not

As arid as we call it

The whiff of cold air

Makes me feel loved, as

The leaves too regale at this

Change of days and night

And here in this land

Barren for a while, a ray

 Of hope shines and smiles

The waters far there

Were muddy when I went; in

Time I think my Dear

It will clear like the

Ring of a beloved bell

Kindle my waiting heart

Kindle my wings to

Rise; smile and work I believe

Shall make worth a flight!

Can't get enough of Pinterest: Sharing some delights:

The above two pictures and the like can be seen here

Love

Aakriti 

Greatful...as always...

Greatful for…..

Surprises: This week as much as I was surprised by a sudden low, I was amazed at how that very low a day before brought a sense of beatitude within. It  was like regaining my lost spirit.

My family: Strong, funny, loving and caring as ever. I love the moments when all of us sit together and share our life stories and discuss, smile and laugh over events. It makes for a perfect frame.

My best friends : Even as many days pass by without me acknowledging their value, I truly know that this heart of mine wishes the best for them in every passing second of the day. I value them and I only hope these friendships last for a life time to come.

Maths: I’m back to doing school maths again coz I’m preparing for an exam. Maths gifts you these lil moments of delight when you get the answers right! And sure, it only makes you work harder when you get them wrong:P

Love: This love of mine has been a strong support, been there through thick and thin, always attempting to send a few smiles my way when the heart was feeling blue. J Ah….the knowledge that love shall make things bearable sounds soothing.

My Inner Voice: Off late I have begun to talk to myself when the moments around seem nothing but bleak. It feels good to know that the fire within is still alive ready to charge my down spirits. Yes, I love myself, Do you?

Legendary is the love that withstands rejection. It will be free of anger and ego.

Legendary is the commitment that withstands humiliation. It will be one- pointed and will reach the goal.

Legendary is the wisdom that withstands turbulence. It will be integrated into life.

Legendary is the faith that withstands a million chances of doubt. It will bring perfection- siddhis.

Legendary are the events that withstand time. They will become morals for the millions

~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Pictures that brought a smile at my end:)    I love fab party ideas. So here are some:) 

check out more at this link : party ideas:)

Li'l Seeds of Hope

Let's ground these little seeds of hope,
For a sunshine tomorrow, nice and bright,
For days filled with Delight,
For everything is but temporary,
Following nights which are dark,
Are days filled with honey!

‘Raat din gardish mein hain saat asmaan, ho rahega kuch na kuch ghabrayein kya.’ – Ghalib

 ‘The seven heavens are active every day and night, something new will emerge, then why this anxiety?’

Love for the Strings

For old time’s sake

The string rusted with shine

For gold time’s sake

My heart sings divine

The uplifting breeze

The moments filled with grandeur

For old time’s sake,

The strings gets blurred

With moments vivid and hazy

Moments broken, some mended and cured

The reverberation

The everlasting echo

For old time’s sake, I pluck the string,

Like a stream of water

Like those awakening wings

My heart lifts of sadness

Old smiles it brings

For  bronze time’s sake

The melody clings

To the rustic aridness of the pains of life

And then the many strings

Strung together

Like a weave of life

Play a broken tune

To live and to strive

For the sake of colors

For the sake of my eyes

A sun shines bright

In the fields of a land so old

The rays warm the strings

The love reaches my soul

Oh! strings you are life

As much as you are old!

P.S: The constant guitar in Mumford and Sons' songs inspired me to write this. Have always loved acoustic guitar and the aliveness it brings. Ah! Finally found the music I was in search for!

P.P.S: I would like to thank Zeba from Zebra Talk for her wonderful post and sharing the music which immediately uplifted me:)

Break the Chains…if YOU don’t they’ll break you!

Anguish. Pain. Desolate. Melancholy.Lachrymose. Despondent. Dejected. A thread flows through these words; all of them being synonymous to each other. My words flow out today not because my heart is saddened and in pain but this thought cringes me every time it comes to consciousness. 

Consider this:

She is young, bright, intelligent, beautiful, charming, loving, caring, giving, forgiving, smart and the list goes on. In short: A girl belonging to today’s generation having every quality a guy might dream of. (Oh! yes she is slim too…for those who see it first (smirk))

Sigh….But the guy who has been a part of her life for some good years has taken that lustre away from this girl I know very well. Her sheen has been oxidised in a way that I can do nothing to get back. My words fall flat and her non-porous heart in no way absorbs them. My heart aches every time I hear her shed tears when she shares; more so when she is hurt, suffers and doesn’t share.

I’ve learnt many things from her. One of them being that no matter if things are going wrong in a relationship, a wise girl won’t share it with her besties and let time, mind and heart heal them on their own. I truly respect that. As I write these words, one word reverberates in my mind: ABUSE!

Abuse, no matter of any kind leaves the person broken. Like an iron left open in the air soon gets rusted and obsolete, similarly the faculties of emotions, body and mind if abused for long, over a period of time, lose all their vigour, vitality and spirit they had to function. Over use of anything wears away even the ‘some’ thing that that anything had! Exploitation and abuse of a person kills them of life. At the moment I wish to talk only about women.

It is well known that women have this quality to stretch their capacities to maximum if a given situation calls for it. I ask what if the water level has raised much above its mark? In other words, the abuse has become so much a part of her life that she sees no way out of it? The man continues to attack her with his vituperative and acerbic words. It hurts her once, twice, thrice……..the twentieth time it all becomes a part of the mundane routine. Those words which once would pierce though her heart and shiver her entire body for the poison they would spread, now no more seem dangerous. ( in fact, she waits for it to happen!)

Through her amazing capacity she converts those words, the blue scars on her body into a balm which shall from now on be a part of her being.

‘I’m a candle, igniting others but dark within’,  I borrow these words spoken by a friend in deep pain for some other reason; yet I feel they fit here perfectly.

This very lady would care for her husband, toil day and night, cook food, clean her home, nourish the baby even as her spirit left her body years before. This kind of living is akin to a baby suffering from ‘dead mother complex’. This term was given by British Psychoanalyst Andre Green. I have come to an understanding that as an infant when the mother fails ‘to mother’ her child in an alive fashion, the child soon comes to ‘decathect’ himself from her which means that he/she tries to take back the energy he invested in his mother and uses that to substitute ‘mimicry’ of her so as to compensate for the injury caused by her. Thus the aim of the imitation of the mother is to become the object by him/herself in the process, for the object can no longer be possessed.

(Understand the word ‘decathect’ in terms of ‘de-investing’ what was invested earlier)

The word ‘dead mother complex’ may sound too horrific and drenched with despair, yet from all that I have read and sensed personally I feel that perhaps it is not that bad when compared to a person who has lost his being to an abused relationship.

Why do I say that?

I say this because a baby having experienced rejection ( no matter how painful) in the very first hours or days of being born perhaps unconsciously learns and says to himself ‘Alright, if this is how my mother is, I’ll do all I can to self soothe myself’. In doing so he takes back the energy he had invested/ cathected in her only to recreate that ‘fantasised’ mother who nurtures him. If the baby is lucky enough, s/he may even find one good person in the whole wide world who will care for him/ her and make him feel that the world is not a very bad place to live in as much as it is still bad.

Much in contrast is an adult, who is far stronger, healthier, wiser and rational. This adult lady has seen life take myriad of its forms and colors. She has experienced events from very close. Suffered and endured some, and others she simply cured. But life changes and the spirit evaporates when she falls prey ( read: in love) to a person who initially loves her but then the love escalates to use and in no time the use becomes ab-use!

She told me “it was love”

I thought “This is madness”

I spoke, I heard but I wonder

If I truly listened!

                                                 

Today as I write this post, there is an upsurge of desperateness that makes me want to know the reason why women continue to stay for years long in an abusive relationship ; not being able to break the chains which in all the years of entanglement have only made them numb and lifeless. Even as I understand that married women see moving out of an abusive relationship as a daunting task among other factors. I fail to realise why it takes them years to rise and shine?

I’m all ears for your words. You have research papers, share! You've come across such women and their experiences, share again! More so, I wish to know how we as friends can help and counsel them. My words have failed and I’m deeply sad to see her carry on.

Greatful for A platter full of taste

This week I’m greatful for a plenty of things that happened in this Amazing August!

Greatful for Love..

From the emotion, to the expression

From learning to feeling,

From reading to talking,

Love sure is all that we have read…..and so much more.

A bounty full of joy expressed,

It gives smiles to whom you serveJ

Greatful for Pain….

And I’ll say it with Gibran

“Much of your pain is self chosen. It is the bitter potion by which the physician within you heals your sick self.”~ Kahlil Gibran

Greatful for…Soothing Self

I realised today that at the end of the day, no one but you your ‘self’ alone have the capacity to rise above the shambles that you think your life has offered to you. A friend, a well wisher may show you how wonderful and diligent a person, a worker you are, but no thing works until your inner voice drives to shut the loud self deprecating voices and dance joyously to the achievements you have had in the past. The past smiles have their rewards to offer and say : I’ll come to you when the moment is right, and alone you deserve all the praise!:)

Dear Life,

My tryst with you is that of a life time, so well as well as you have understood me, I’m not far behind!

I’ll go above, go under or go through, but one thing I swear I’ll never do….and that is I’ll Never Give Up!!

Greatful for friendship

It is said we realise the value of something often when we lose it and so goes for a precious friend. I’m so glad I have her, my best well wisher from school time. Way too precious, way too great!:)

Have a blessed Weekend and a Superb September!;)

Aakriti

Linking up with Maxabella who always has many things to be grateful for:)