Beera

Finally the month of December is almost at the end and this year too will be leaving soon. The excitement to decorate homes and to have various celebrations remains year after year.  We had decorations, celebration and performances including carols in our college. How did it go? No idea but the process was wonderful. The board decorations and the practice were fun and it got over today. All dressed in red with our little Santa friend made our day. I realised that we decorate our houses evey Christmas but do we know the meaning of all those symbols we use to decorate our Christmas tree, be it bells, lights, candles, wreath, gifts, or a star. Every decorators has its beautiful meaning that makes it more special. The star represents guide that led the wise men towards the baby. It shown brightly on the sky showing the arrival of a king. The bell represents the proclamation of joy and it tells us that God is watching over us and protecting us at all times. The lights represents the hop...

  A title that attracted me towards the screen, making me curious to know what it was all about, and finally succeeded in taking two hours of my time unexpectedly. I did not plan to watch a movie today but I got curious to know what it meant. The title of the movie is  "The Exorcism of God". Isn't it quite an unusual title, as we all know about demons or spirits being exorcised, but here God is being exorcised, which was unusual and new for me and piqued my curiosity to watch the movie? The movie talks about temptation, sin, guilt, and choices. It made me think how fragile the human heart is when it comes to our loved ones. We know the consequences of our wrong choices but our love on Earth sometimes turns out to be much more greater than our love towards heaven. We tend to be tempted by our desire and, later on, regret it, which remains in our minds with a huge sense of guilt which cannot be erased. It plays in our head like a broken tape recorder again and again which ...

  Is it okay to normalise cold and cough?  A few days back my friend caught a cold and was a bit distracted and when the listener understood she had a cold it was dismissed quickly as if it did not matter. There was a time when even a small cold was the reason for us to take leave but now we need a medical certificate to prove "Yes I am sick". This seemingly tiny illness actually disturbs a person's normal functioning.  A few days when I was in masks being careful so that others won't catch cold. I was funnily asked that "Did you wear mask because of the pollution." My reply was " No, I caught cold." But the reaction I got was so lenient as if it's not a big deal " Acha cold" with a no need for a mask for that look.    Has common cold been so common in just ten years. In school days a slight cough will freak out the teachers and we were send home because we are 'sick' but now "oh you got cold, no problem everyone catches ...

Bus travels are crazy with people pushing and pulling for a spot within the bus just to stand steadily without being carried away by the crowd. In an extreme case, we can even see 'musical chairs' being played on the bus. When I was in school we had small games like musical chairs where if there were even-numbered players, odd-numbered chairs were kept in circles and vice versa. Music is played and when the music stops we have to find a chair and sit if not sat then the player is out. The chairs decrease as the game progresses. I used to wonder where that would even be used and now I understand why we practised that game. Playing musical chairs on the bus is just ordinary and we do not even have a second thought as it is mostly part of our daily life. And the second crazy incident would be trying to get on a full bus because you are late. I always wait for a less crowded bus as it's rare to see an empty bus towards my route, especially in the morning. Even at 7am the bus wo...

A festival of lights celebrated in every households and institutions. It provides an celebratory atmosphere weeks before the actual day. And one such celebratory week was also held for us. It started from last week were all of us were asked to decorate pots and diyas. I was lost as it's been too long since I held paint brushes. It reminded me of primary classes when we were excited about diya decoration with the surroundings exploding with a competitive spirits. Sitting on the floors with all the materials scattered on the ground mainly consisting of paints, glitters, ribbons, glass decorators of different shapes etc. After completed we would look almost the same colour as the diya. This time I wasn't matching with my diya and pot but I found that I still am interested in crafts. Everyone was very much interested and invested during the work. There were smiles, jokes and laughter all around the art room.  This excitement continued during rangoli making competition, where all of...

A day at the dentist is not a pleasant one when you know something is wrong with your teeth. I personally do not like to visit a dentist because it gives me an eerie vibes with all their tiny equipments which seems small but does wonders.  Even though since yesterday I knew about my appointment but still I was unprepared and all nervous about even entering that particular building which made me thinking how did I come and waited all these years, it seemed so far away. Today as I went and sat at the waiting area and realised that I was the second person today my nervousness skyrocketed. The first person took a long time and I could hear the sound of one of his instrument he was using known as dental drill ( I usually call it drilling machine which sounds more terrifying than it actually looks). The sounds reminded me of all those horrifying bgm in those horror movies. As I planned to leave the building my turn came and the receptionist asked me to go inside. The doctor was good and ...

A day kept aside for the community outreach went amazing as we all had a new experience. The practice sessions as preparation for the outreach. As most of us lived far away one of us would always be absent but still in a day or two of practice our play was ready under the title "Swachta Abhiyaan". The most interesting and fun part was the art and crafts work that included chart making. After a long time it felt good to be back to colourful papers, colours, glue and so on.  On the final day we had one more person joining and we managed to include everyone for the play. We went a school along with our teachers and our destination was in a different route where I have never travelled leading me to explore a different place altogether.  As we reached the gates of the school the students were so excited by our arrival.  The students were very enthusiastic as they greeted us "good morning". It reminded me of days at my school when all of us would be curious to know who th...

A chaotic Monday morning after a long relaxing weekend is a struggle for most of us. As I walked towards the bus stop my eyes started burning giving a stinging sensation in the eyes. I waited for a long time to find the bus stop being crowded as time went by. Ah! finally my bus arrived but it was too crowded so I just sat at the bus stop watching people rushing to get on the crowded bus. Again the wait begins, it's interesting to watch people waiting but also engaged in some external task. There was a father dropping his daughter and waiting till she boards the bus. Some people standing with luggage for a distance travel. Some are scrolling through their phones while others are talking to each other. The after effects of the crackers burnt during Dussehra can be seen when the atmosphere looks cloudy and the smell of smoke prevails in the air. It was quite difficult to breath but still the day has to go on. Even though I stood for a long time I finally got my bus to begin my short j...

Happiness cannot be defined as it varies from person to person but this happiness might be an influence from external sources. As we exist in a world of social media we tend to believe and follow what we see and hear. When we were kids movies were an influence as we tend to imitate what we saw, but as time passed the influence source changed but the idea of immitation remains the same. We see lot of short videos claiming happiness lies in success and if we don't take these steps we are left behind, thus leading to the rat race. Is it worth it? I shouldn't answer that as some questions can only be answered as time passes by with ample amount of experiences. Can money buy happiness? Yes to some extent money can, we see around us how people try their best to meet their daily needs. People run to make money to improve their living conditions and once it improves do they stop? No they still continue as it becomes habitual and their to-do list changes.  I happened to ask a few minds ...

As I walked along the road in the sunny afternoon I was reminded of a Shakespearean sonnet titled as "On a sunny afternoon". It was a totally different notion as what I experience while trapped under the sun on some afternoons. While I walk in sunny afternoons the only thing that strikes me would be the scorching heat. No romantic segment appears during that moment. My only desire would be to find shade to hide from the sun or to rush inside my home and sit under the fan to relieve myself from the heat. Walking under the sun makes me melt like an ice cream under extreme heat. Initially it would be bearable but after a short while it's like sun suncking all the energy just like once portrayed in an advertisement that I saw in my childhood. The advertisement seemed ridiculous but true at the same time. It's amazing how a writer makes this terrible bright day into a romantic one to describe his lover. As I read the sonnet I felt the beauty of nature along with the girl s...

My days went on usual and monotonous with a busy schedule. To pass my times I would go back to watch some of my favourite cartoons that I spend most of my time watching. My mom used to always make fun of me with her regular dialog " Ithrem valanitum Shinchan um Doremon um kandond irikuva" or she would say " poth pole valanallo ipozum cartoon kandon irino." These two phrase would mean that I have grown up but still am watching cartoons like Shinchan and Doremon.  I was the only person who watched television at home it still is the same. In my memory phones arrived when I was in ninth class. My brother would be playing games on the phone but I still preferred watching cartoons and listening to radio on TV.  When mom went out for some work she would hide the remote so we will be forced to study. Me being clever would know where the remote was kept so we would wait for ten minutes before searching for the remote and keep it back when we hear her footsteps. On some days ...

After staying home for a long time I wanted to go out for some fresh air. Alas! I heard about Nadagam ( drama ) being conducted by Janasamskriti team. The plays are conducted in Malayalam by children as a competition along with the portrayal of the culture and traditions that would not be known by the younger generation. It was a sudden plan decided without much thought involved. I went along with a chechi along with her children. One of them was performing in the play so I was excited to watch him on stage. We started from home by car and since it was Sunday afternoon the roads were clear in most of the places. We occasionally chatted on different topics and listening to the music vibing during the ride. The weather was hot and humid but a nice day for a trip. It was a refreshing ride after a long time. We reached during the interval time when people who came in the morning were having lunch. Inside the auditorium I noticed some familiar faces and a majority of strangers. Everyone was...

As days got closer and closer, the once excited boy started getting nervous. Stepping into a new place, towards a new beginning was exciting as well as nerve racking. A week back my brother, Beartil got a call from college regarding the beginning of his new semester. Initially he was very excited as he had nothing special to do apart from his routine of playing game on the phone or editing videos. Most of his friends have already started going to college and having asking about his progress which made him uncomfortable and upset, leading him wanting to start his classes early. Finally after a long wait the call has arrived requesting him to be present at the end of the month. He started his packing which contained all his necessities required while his stay at the hostel. Being a hostel resident is new to him so he would be asking about my first few days far from home. Now those are wonderful stories that I would like to recall. Initial days made me feel out of place but later it was w...

 In the garden at the end of the street lived a lot of insects. All were busy in search of food for their next meal. Among the busy crowd there were two particular friends one was a caterpillar named Luka and the other was a grasshopper named Timy. Both of them spent most of their time together as they were neighbours.  One day the gardener while checking his plants stepped unknowingly onto their homes making all of them homeless. Timy found a new companion and shared a room with them. Luka wandered all around not knowing what to do and there appeared a dragonfly named Coco, the saviour. Coco invited Luka to his house to dine with his friends. Luka was awkward not knowing what to do but still went ahead clinging onto Coco.  Luka started living there in his cocoon not willing to come out or interact with anyone. As days passed on Coco was worried and tried to reassure him that everything was alright and sometimes it's difficult to accept the outcome but it's not the end th...

Today being Independence day decided to visit my school . Today as I was walking to school my brother was telling about his school days. Lots of my teachers have been retired and now only few old faces are left. The gate towards the entrance has changed and its much more longer than the previous path. The roads have talls trees on the right side and the left side has buildings. As I walked along the path with a slight drizzle making the ground sparkling with tiny droplets of rain. The muddy path was completely damped and brown splashing droplets on the clothes as a I walked forward. Far away I could hear music being played with a patriotic atmosphere lingering in the air. At around 8:00 a.m. the program started with flag hoisted by principal and the chief guest who was an alumina of the school. There were a lot of other programs like group song, mime, dance etc. There was a group of students who stood holding flags the entire time. It was difficult standing there but they still made it...

  "A Rose for Emily" is a gothic short story that deals with loneliness and death. The short story starts with Emily an old lady well known in the neighborhood and all her neighbours being curious about her house in the guise of meeting her. This detachment from the neighbours lead to alienation for someone who lived in the same town for her whole life. The flashback of her life as a young lady provides us much more details about our protagonist. Her major years of life was dominated by her father who even refused potential marriage alliances. She was confined within her premise not knowing anything about the exterior world. Her extreme dependency on the father caused to break down at the death of her father when she was thirty years old. She even refused to cremate her father by making herself believe that her was still alive but at the end she had to accept his death. As soon at the pillar is broken the walls also starts to fall. As days go by she has her eyes set on a youn...

A day authentically to celebrate friendship. I forgot about this day and had to be reminded by a school kid. When I was scrolling through the WhatsApp status I came across, a lot of status that gave heart warming quotes about friendship day. I remember Friendship Day being celebrated during my school days. Girls would be more excited about this particular day than Valentine's Day. The wishes and anticipation starts days before the final day. Everyone would be buying friendship bands and bracelets to exchange to each others. Some even spend time to make one by hand. On the day they would exchange so many bands. Some get a lot and some none. Some who gave me bands do not even have any contacts with me anymore so, how much value does this bands exist. Today a little girl was very excited about the number of friendship bands she got. She was proudly telling the stories about her day at school when the bands were exchanged. Some schools do not allow accessories but this rule does not st...

How does it feel when a finger is stuck to the door? Ah! It's painful and it's not recommended at all for others from my personal experience. If I am asked to recall from an experience I won't be able to recall the pain but I would be very careful while standing near the door. I think I should strike off the careful part because for a split moment, my clumsy self emerged and my finger caught stuck between the door. Starting from the beginning will give a better idea of what happened.  Today was a very humid day, I was sweating as if a bucket of water was poured over my head. The clothes are all sticky with sweat and it was very irritating to even communicate with others. Unfortunately, we are social beings who are forced to interact with others. At the end of the tiring day, my dad gave me a task to complete and it involved me opening a door to pick something that I forgot to take. As I tried opening the door I mistakenly stuck my finger between the door so that it could op...

  Teenager Today" was one of my favourite magazines that I cherished during my school days. It was initially only available in the school library but later on we were given a copy each, every month. I remember waiting in anticipation for a new edition with a lot of new ideas. During library hour the librarian would collect lot of other magazines similar to "Teenager Today" and keep it at my desk as he remembers me pestering for some of my favourite books or magazines. Today as I was going through my old books as I cleaned after a long time I stumbled upon the magazine of July edition from last year (2023). It was given to my brother but I highly doubt that he read the entire magazine. And when I asked I was totally right he only went through the last page that is "funny bone". A slight change that I noticed was the cover page that have become a bit childish which is not to my taste at all but the contents is in a similar pattern as I remember with a few additio...

 "After all life goes on" this is a common phrase we all give to eachother but today its different for me. I haven't read any books over a couple of days, apart from reading a few short articles that I don't consider much of a productive reading. I was feeling guilty for neglecting my routine do to some novel reading but then let's keep it a secret. I wanted to read some simple story so I went to those online e-books that can be read in just one day. Its pretty impressive that some of the online anonymous writers write a better plot than some famous best sellers. As I further scrolled in search of a captivating waiting story while going through the description. I finally ended up choosing a novel with a title that gave a gist of the entire story in the title itself but still i went ahead to read.  Hmmm . . . . Let's see what the story says. This tiny 35 chapter novel of about an Indian woman who is forced into an arranged marriage to which she was happy but as...

Badarpur to Noida is so far away and takes a long time to reach but if I start early before rush hour I should be reaching early right? Nope, it doesn't work that way when everything is jumbled up in my memory. I was lucky to get a bus as soon as I reached the bus stop . I boarded a bus numbered 8 which goes to Botanical garden. The bus looks good from outside but it was in a worse condition with the air conditioner not working properly and melting inside the bus but since it was free for ladies I have no complaints. After reaching Botanical Garden I walked all the way searching for a bus stop but as soon as I went there I was told that the bus stood in the opposite direction. Uff ! Now I have to walk all the way back to the start. After roaming around I did not get the bus I was looking for so I got on a substitute bus that dropped me off at Knowledge park II instead of Knowledge park III. This bus was different from Delhi bus that I travelled and its interior also differs as it b...

As the day began it seemed like every other ordinary day that included boarding bus as well as auto on time and reach before time. But unfortunately today did not seem very supportive. We all have that one day in a month where everything is wrong. I would like to share about the chaotic day where everything was not right. I started from home quite early so as to board my regular bus which usually comes very often but today unfortunately it was very late and I stood there waiting for a long time. Aah! finally the vehicle arrived after the long wait of thirty minutes. After reaching halfway I was supposed to board an auto that is commonly called as "Savari"  auto among the local people including me, which basically means a share auto. I walked for some distance and sat inside an auto but the driver was waiting for other passengers to fill the vehicle. Me being a patient person also waited  with the driver but then it was too long and I lost my patience to wait for others so I...

Sarah, a biblical character considered an ideal model for married woman or an engaged woman waiting to start a life of marriage. When I try to recall all the gospels I heard about this particular character from the Bible, she was depicted with qualities of a saint with perfection. My curious mind led me to read more about her and it came out to be a totally different perspective of what I believed for quite a long time showing her strength and weakness that she possessed.  Sarah's original name was Sarai and according to the Bible God changed her name from Sarai to Sarah meaning princess or noblewoman. She was able to experience God's promise first hand. The promise of child in her barren womb. Sarah couldn't bear child so she was quite depressed but God said that she would bear child during old-age which is unbelievable leading to her doubt like any other person. Even though she doubted God's word for a moment the faith she had was strong leading to the fulfillment of ...

As the day progressed a small guest entered our life. It was a tiny little bird. They are very cute, fun and interesting to observe.  When I think of birds a particular crow from Kerala comes to my memory. It was a crow who came flying from far as it was tired and weak. The first time when the bird came to our place my dad fed him water and some food. He started to come regularly and for one month every morning and will be present at a tree near kitchen and will be crowing. We were in Kerala for a month and took care of it during the time period. After we returned back to Delhi we heard that the crow will peck and make a lot of noise if a stranger enters the house. It was a huge surprise to know how a crow became a part of family by taking  responsibility to protect the house in our absense. Today my brother found a little injured bird and he brought the tiny creature home. When he brought the bird it was not moving at all even after we gave water the bird remained still, late...

  Today I spent sometime observing little children. There were three children seated together in a very serious discussion, two of them were busy among themselves and the third child was watching them both play.  They stayed quite for few minutes but after sometime they lost their patience and started talking amongst themselves. When the conversation started its like a group discussion where all of them start talking at the same time and I felt lost as I couldn't grasp what they were talking about.  After few minutes they took out there handkerchief all fluffy and soft adorned with two different colours of blue and pink. They started making different shapes with that single piece of cloth and got excited to show their handmade house, swing, boat and gun as per their creativity. They were teaching each other and got very excited to display their art at works to whoever pass by their side. It was very fascinating to watch them work so seriously on something we pay very leas...

  Today as I was thinking about a topic to write I felt stuck. That's when I remembered an incident when I was studying in Chennai. It was one beautiful experience that would remind me of a person whom I surely would like to visit when I travel to Chennai. A lady in saree with hair tied up with wrinkles around her eyes portraying a sign of a smily face. Every time I see her her smiling eyes would welcome me from afar and then her beautiful voice calls  out to me by asking "Nalla irikingala" ("How are you ?") Those few words are enough to feel better in a crowd full of unknown people. I stood at a corner watching people interact with each other. The feeling of escape would be at its peak and her few words would calm me down. When I look back a very peculiar incident came to my mind that took place when she helped me reach the railway station. I was waiting for the 20 number bus as I was only familiar with that particular bus route. I was hesitant to ask help but ...

 As I was traveling through the pages I came across a very short poem. This poem by E.E. Cummings is all about thanking God. Thanking God is a small gesture that we often overlook or just ignore altogether. We often forget God altogether when we are at peace. During problems, we run to God and pray for hours but we forget to thank God for the things we have. We see a new day which is a blessing a lot of people do not get. We have family or parents or a sibling where a lot of people remain all alone in this vast debt of sea.  What we believe to be an end is the beginning of something new. We have been trained to follow a certain path without a second thought making it a blind ritual that we follow because we have to not because we want to.  There are a lot of moments when I feel lost and go searching in various places and I end up caught in circles of scams and lies. I somehow reach somewhere else hoping this is the right choice. These choices were never forced but a lesso...

  As I look back to my summer vacation, the trip to Kerala is a must to do schedule which was sadly skipped this year. It wasn't the most exciting segment to cancel the plan as it was very hot in Delhi. Not just the weather but also it was very dull during these days. My parents went to the hometown as planned and informed us about the changes that took place in the past year which wasn't much but still, it's a loss not to see. I remember a pond in front of our house that has lilies floating on the surface and the fishes swims all around. Tall mountains could be seen from our terrace and a sky full of stars at night was truly an amazing sight, a completely different view compared to the foggy sky in Delhi. When I was asked to go I became quite lethargic and refused but now when I think I should have gone. A tree that we planted years ago finally bore jackfruits and two of them were shared among themselves. One jackfruit was not fully ripe yet, so my mom packed it to bring i...

  The short story "Good morning, Miss Done" seemed very ordinary and confusing but as I read further the plot was captivating that talks about a school teacher who was not admired by students. She is described as a very strict and calm person who rarely used words for intimidation but was able to command attention through her eyes. The story often skipped to the past where it goes back to her time with a different batch of students. She remembers these students who are now scattered in different places during the war. She often hallucinates them where she is very vulnerable and no longer the "terrible Miss Dove" as named by her students. Her given title does not reduce the affection and memory printed in the minds of her old students who still remember her. We learn this through a letter read aloud by the brother of one of her students.  Frances tried to bring out the beautiful relationship between a teacher and a student. When her student Jincey cries she felt lost...

Today as the day began it was very gloomy despite the sunny weather outside. I was feeling very low making me very lazy and depressed. Somehow I pushed forward to go to church as a regular.  After the service, I was invited to a home for lunch and that was what changed my day from gloomy to a much more exciting day.  A day without mobile phones in hand is very rare. I realised that I too could spend a day without a phone. I remember that usually I spend my whole day on the phone either watching a movie or reading an e-book but today we spend the whole day playing offline games. Having a day with children makes you forget about the gadgets that I used to spend my whole day playing at giving a sense of loss at the end of the day.  These little games including UNO and Monopoly were fun entertainment changing my mood completely to a much more relaxed person. I did not expect such change which was a relief and made me realise that a day can be made better in various other ways...

  "How they brought good news from Ghent to Aix" is a narrative poem by Robert Browning that tells the story of a journey from Ghent to Aix, where three men are assigned to deliver the good news.  Three horsemen start their journey where they experience a lot of hurdles before they reach their destination. Over the poem we find them sincerely dedicated to complete their duty. We find their endurance and strength when they fight off the obstacles. Some of the obstacles are pertaining to their past which remained persistent in the present trying to set them back from their responsibility. We can see the poet using imagery to give a beautiful description of the landscapes and the physical body reacting to the journey. The time duration of the journey is connected to the place and the celestial journey like " Twas moonset at starting; but while we drew near Lokeren, the cocks crew and twilight dawned clear" and " At Aerschot, up leaped the sudden sun". Since t...

Today as I sat down reading a novel, I was able to relate very deeply. The incidents may differ but the process were quite relatable. "Days at the Morisaki Bookshop" by Satoshi Yagisawa is my latest read. As the title suggest the entire novel revolves around a second hand bookshop. The protagonist Takako, a person who was forced to quit her current life somehow ends up in her uncle's bookshop. I found myself in a very similar situation as the protagonist, she discovers herself through reading. She did not read initially but to move her days quicker she started reading which became her second nature. The words used to describe her feelings while she read was very beautiful. " I really was like a butterfly waiting patiently to come out of his chrysalis." It was beautifully described the way she felt herself immersed in the books.  The description of the place also seem so beautiful where I would like to spend my time. The whole street had both sides aligned with s...

A s I sat doing nothing I had an inspiration to keep myself busy. It's too boring to stay at home idly sitting and always on the phone. I thought of reading but it didn't absorb me for too long hmm pretty boring. T oday being a dull day I cannot go out as it's hot as usual but unexpectedly I got a message from a friend as she shared her joy. T oday it rained at Cannaught place, where she worked. It's quite far from here but still with lots of excitement I ran to the door but tadaaaa.. no rain just a sky absent of sun. I was a bit sad as rain is very much needed to cool the place down. In the middle of the month the heat is gonna rise, not a good sign.  E very year when I was in Delhi during the month of May and June I would go to Kerala as it's  once a year opportunity. Unfortunately this year I couldn't get tickets so I had to stay back. N ot only me but a lot of other people are looking forward to the heavy rain. Hoping it will happen soon to escape from...

Unseen and overlooked, Shadowed power, Unspoken truth, A mystery yet unsolved. Words stuck, Eyes bulged, Shocked to the core, Yet remained unmoved. Is there a solution, To this unexpected moment, An unapproachable task, But there too was a result. Smiles and joy, A little bit of hope, Lack of understanding, Till when it shall last. Let's look forward, To these little surprises, Not with lots of hope, But with heart full of wonder.