Tag: Life

MWWP: Once Upon a Time

Hello hope this week has been treating you well. It’s time for Eugi’s Moonwashed Weekly Prompt challenge. The prompt is Either Or. It can be any variation of the prompt or the image (below).

Once Upon a Time

A world of trees
Green, brown and orange
Reaching up to wave at blue
Skies smudged with white
Tall grasses twinkle
With drops of dew
Shielding centipedes, mites,
Leeches, frogs to name a few

Already dark and time for
The football match
Up on the roof
The rats and squirrels
Having a field day
While in the kitchen
Mom plays hockey
with a rat or is it a shrew?

Dad practiced duelling
snakes while Mom had
her dessert under the
Watchful eye of a King cobra
Bees and wasps swirled
bestowing the gift of a plump arm
or a misshapen face just like
rashes from insects and cacti

Exams denounced
Packed off to picnics
Streams swirled around our legs
All through the night
Those dratted parrots pecked at
mangoes and summer vacations
with afternoon shifts
to shoo parrots

Swinging high and higher
Climbing guava trees taking home
Red bites that turned yellow and black
Bleeding gashes wrapped in
Crushed marigold leaves
For a stye in the eye
Seven strokes of mango leaf stem
Did the trick

The nearest town of one shop
A couple of miles away
Never did we ever cross a street
Nor venture to shop or crave to eat
No TV, no phone no internet
All I missed were books
Other than those I had
Read a gazillion times

Would I go back?
Why when the path is ahead
Cocooned in the warm clasp of
Unfearful memories
Bouncing through
Life’s myriad adventures
Much like the fools that rush in
But that is another story…

The photo reminded me of my childhood home (except it wasnt that orange!) and couldn’t help penning a few lines – not quite sure if you can call it a poem. But if you managed to come this far thank you for sticking it out till the end of what is quite a faithful account of my idyllic childhood.

PS: I was unable to format the poem into paragraphs and hence I took the help of colors. Apologies if it is looking weird.

PPS: It was looking even more weird with the alternating colors so used this format (Pullquote). At least the paragraphs are clearly demarcated. Do let me know if you have any suggestions for formats to use. Thank you.

FF: Summer Plans

Hello and welcome to Friday Fictioneer’s party hosted by Rochelle where we all are invited to post a story in 100 words or less based on the photo prompt (with due credit to the contributor). Click here to join or read the other stories on this prompt.

PHOTO PROMPT © Lisa Fox

FF: Summer Plans

Words 100

“How about a long relaxed vacation at a log cabin in the hills?” Dad asked.

“Wow! Will there be any snow?” Rhea asked.

“Yes. If you are willing to trek.”

“Great.” Shreyas lit up.

“Won’t it be crowded in the summer?” Mom was doubtful

“Not at all.” Dad beamed. “It’s far from the madding crowd.”

“Meaning I will have to cook.”

“I will cook. We all will.”

“As if.” Mom snorted. “All of you will sit with your phones….”

“Oh there’s no phone or internet connection there.”

“What? Count me out.” Shreyas stood up.

“Me too.” Rhea said. “Sorry Dad.”

***

So would you be willing to go for a vacation to such a place? Do let me know! Have a super day and week ahead.

FF: Over in a Flash

Here’s my entry to this week’s Friday Fictioneers hosted by Rochelle, a story in 100 words based on the photo prompt. Click here to read other stories for this challenge and add your own story.

PHOTO PROMPT © Rowena Curtin

FF: Over in a Flash

Words 100

“Granny please tell me that story again.”

“That day,” Granny began, “we were all so excited to be meeting up at our beach house. It was a clear day, blue skies with wispy clouds, an inky blue…”

“Who all were coming?”

“Everyone! Your Aunt from India, Uncle from Canada, their children…”

“Why were they coming?”

“There were several reasons. It was my 75th and your 10th birthday, your parents anniversary. Your Uncle’s promotion, your Aunt wanted to introduce her fiancé. Oh, that was such a joyous time with so many things to celebrate!”

“Why did they drop those bombs Granny?”

***

Thanks for visiting. Have a good day.

TankaTuesday #3

Hello! Here’s another tanka for Colleen’s #TankaTuesday challenge where the rules are to to write in any of the 24 syllabic forms of Japanese poetry using a kigo or season word as an inspiration. While there are 24 seasons in Japan, we are allowed to use season words as per our region.

First the tanka and then the explanatory note. Perhaps, some of you may not need the note 🙂

freshly showered

leaves wave to the blue skies

-Durga Puja celebrations

jeans don’t button up

even upon lying down

I have used Durga Puja as the kigo word. Like I mentioned in my earlier post, Navratri (or nine nights) festival in honor of Goddess Durga is being celebrated this year from 15th to 24 October. During this period, Hindu devotees worship Goddess Durga but the manner of celebration is diverse and unique in different parts of the country. This includes, but is not restricted, to dandiya, kanyapujan (little girls are worshipped as the Goddess) and Durga Puja. Durga Puja is a socio-religious celebrations that is mostly undertaken as a community but may also be done individually. It is associated with not only religious activities but also a platform for showcasing art, culture, and new clothes, cars, TVs and what have you while gorging on a variety of mouth-watering delicacies, including those served free. You may read more about Durga Puja here.

Perhaps, even ‘freshly showered’ could be considered the kigo word. Unlike the West, here in India, this is not the fall season. In fact, this is a time that is right after the monsoons which is a boon to the trees wilting in the scorching summer heat. They are now at their cleanest, greenest and happiest. With the monsoons withdrawing, the skies are blue (for once – Touch wood!!!) the breeze cool, and a palpable sense of excitement in the air. Even Mother Nature is celebrating the imminent arrival of the Mother Goddess (Durga Puja) in her inimitable way.

Did this work? Did you need the explanatory note? Looking forward to reading your reactions. Have a super day.

FOL: A Leafy Collection

Hello and welcome to Dawn’s Festival of Leaves challenge. Anything to do with trees, as you perhaps may know by now, I simply cannot resist 🙂

Let’s see what I can find, this week:

This was in the cacti section. I had never seen leaves of this color before. Have you?

“They tell you to turn into a new leaf and then complain about your faded colour.” – Nitya Prakash

I would have never thought a combination of pink and green would look good but they gel well don’t they?

“Let your life lightly dance on the edges of time like dew on the tip of a leaf.” – Rabindranath Tagore

There are even brown leaves – who would have thought!

“Art is the flower. Life the green leaf.”- Charles Rennie MacKintosh

with red stems! These are really eye-catching aren’t they. Not quite sure what they are called. Do you know?

“Open the bloom of your heart and become a gift of beauty to the world.”– Bryant McGill

Monstrous leaves, aren’t they? Dont miss the bright yellow stems, almost as if they are mocking the traditional plants 😀

“Flowers always make people better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.” – Luther Burbank

Don’t they look like flowers? The purple leaves were actually bluish in color, when seen with the naked eye. Their shape is also so unique.

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.”– Frances Hodgson Burnett

Brown pink and green! I can’t help but wonder how they manage photosynthesis and why the need for such colorful leaves. I did a little bit of research, and as I remembered (ahem) only the green part can do photosynthesis. The tiny green porton is enough for its sustenance. But what about the other leaves and the bare trees? Apparently sunlight penetrates the thin outer bark it can be enough for photosynthesis. You can read more here. I am not very convinced, but perhaps you can tell me more 🙂

“Life is a party; dress like it, dance like it, and make every moment count.” Audrey Hepburn

I found these leaves to be very interesting. It wasnt very clear if it was a creeper or part of the tree

“Why not show off if you’ve got something to show?” J Jones

Well, what do you think? Can you make out?

“It is better to aim high and miss than to aim low and hit.” Les Brown

And this is the showstopper. I couldn’t take a pic initially, then I waited to click it on the return journey. Isn’t it precious? Just like life.

“It ain’t over till it’s over” Yogi Berra

Have a super day. Cheers

MWWP: The Magical Village

Hello and good day to you. Today I am participating in Eugi’s Moonwashed Weekly Prompt. The prompt is Magical Village. It can be any variation of the prompt or the image (below).

The photo is rather magical and made me throw caution to the wind and attempt a free verse. Actually, I am not even sure, if that’s what it is – anyway, here goes.

The World of Trees

Fireflies line the path

Magical village

Hiding in plain sight

A lush rustling village

No wants and little needs

Strife there was none.



Oblivious of taunts, curses

and betrayals

Partners for life with

ample space for young’uns

Once they grew roots

they too stayed put.



Some were short, some tall

some colorful, some shy

The naked and the  bedecked

together, no bite in their bark

Phoenix rising from the ashes,

They were that magical.



Passing travellers stop by

Catch a break, 

have a stretch, grab a bite,

Scratch an itch or build a home

They leave without even

A hug, a pat or a backward glance



Once in a while

When the weather is fine,

a light wind blowing

they nod and

wave to each other

going about their daily chores



Day in and day out, these

voiceless master chefs concoct

magic out of thin air

Some make tea, some coffee

Offering children of their heart

an arm, a leg, their whole being


With no expectations

the tireless village plods on

in pursuit of its

Endless thankless task

-- Feed and sustain

20 quintillion lives and counting

***

Thanks for visiting and your kind comments and suggestions. Have a super weekend.

Note (8/10/23): I changed the title of the poem as I felt that otherwise the poem was very obscure for most readers. Do let me know your thoughts. Thanks

FF: Spinning a Yarn

Hello! Hope you are having a super day. Here’s my attempt to participate in the weekly flash fiction party hosted by Rochelle where everyone is welcome to join. Click here to read the other stories inspired by the photo prompt below.

PHOTO PROMPT © Ted Strutz

Spinning a Yarn

Words 100

“I want my order on the 15th,” the customer said.

“But Madam,” Rekha pleaded, “30th was the agreed date. Chikankari* is handmade, it’s time-consuming and back-breaking ….”

“I can pay extra.”

“They’re award winning artisans, one can’t just order…”

“How about 30% extra?”

“I‘ll request them.”

 “So darn hot!” Rekha moaned at her artisan’s makeshift shop, a mat, under the banyan tree.

The wizened woman looked up from her embroidery.

“When will my order be ready?”

“Another 10 days.”

“5 days.”

“Sorry Madamji. My son isn’t well and my…”

“Not my business. For each day’s delay, I will deduct 10%.

***

A/N * Chikankari is the technique of creation of a chikan work, which is a delicate hand embroidery on a variety of textile fabrics. Traditional chikankari is white floral embroidery on soft pastel shades of light muslin and cotton. You may visit this link for more information

Thanks for visiting. Would love to know your thoughts. Have a great day 🙂

TankaTuesday #2

Good day! Another attempt to write tanka while participating in Colleen’s #TankaTuesday challenge where the rules are to to write in any of the 24 syllabic forms of Japanese poetry using a kigo or season word as an inspiration. While there are 24 seasons in Japan, we are allowed to use season words as per our region.

I am trying out a tanka and have used ‘Dandiya’ as the kigo word here. Dandiya Raas is a folk dance of western India mostly in the states of Gujarat and Rajasthan. This popular socio-religious dance is performed during the Navaratri (literally – Nine Nights) festival in honor of Goddess Durga who is believed to visit her home on Earth along with her children and their unique animal companions, (but that’s another story for another day, perhaps). This festival usually occurs in the period of late September to late October with the actual dates varying from year to year. Dandiya is performed in memory of Goddess Durga’s victory over Mahishasura (literally – buffalo demon) and the colorful sticks (called dandia) used in the dance represent her sword.

I took this image from this site just to give you a better idea. I hope the kigo word is acceptable?

And the tanka is

trees

swaying in the breeze

dandiya practice

he joins up unaware

of her fracture

Initially I thought of going for just the haiku (the first 3 lines) then felt it could be a tanka as well. Also the explanation seemed a bit disproportionate to the kigo description. Still is actually 😀

That’s it folks. Do let me know your thoughts, comments and tips. Have a great day and thank you Colleen for the challenge.

One-to-Three PPC Challenge #2

Hello to you 🙂 Venturing into the domain of photography I am participating in XingfuMama’s photo challenge. The challenge is simple: take one photo and get creative with it by processing it three different ways.

Here goes:

This is the original. This was taken last month at Kochi harbor in Kerala, India. It was a cloudy cool morning and it was such a treat to watch her grow bigger and bigger as she floated back home. I took it on my Samsung Z fold 2 phone camera. No particular setting.

Err, I can’t help but also post a haiku, or attempt at one, inspired by this image. Haiku, as you may know, captures one or two moments  by using clear and vivid images. A haiku, consisting of a phrase and a fragment, is an unfinished poem – the readers interpret what it means by putting the images together. Do share your thoughts and interpretations 🙂

she returns

after a long journey

sigh

This is the Pen and Wash style availabe in the phone itself.

This is the Watercolor style. Earlier we used to attempt watercolors (not that I ever could!) based on photos and now its the reverse. Fascinating stuff.

For this one, instead of the Styles function, I tried to play around with contrast, exposure, shadow, sharpness etc.

On second thoughts, the version one and two look quite similar, don’t they?

So, what’s the verdict? Suggestions? Tips?

Thanks for visiting. Have a super day.

MWWP: Haiku#1

Hello and a very good day to you. I am attempting to participate in Eugi’s Moonwashed Musings Weekly Prompt – Velvety. It can be any variation of the prompt or the image (below).

Today I am attempting a haiku inspired by this image.

About haiku

Haiku, a Japanese form of poetry, in English, is of three lines with a total of 17 syllables (preferably less). Composed of a phrase and a fragment, it captures one or two moments  by using clear and vivid images. A haiku is an unfinished poem – the readers interpret what it means by putting the images together.

A reader should be able to read the haiku and “see” the images from the words. Haiku usually have an “Aha” moment, which portray a spontaneous moment through the juxtaposition of two sharp images, with a reveal or insight or contrast or leap or pun.

Here’s my attempt:

yellow moon

knocks on the balcony window

I bring in the laundry

Well, did it work? Did it create images and a sudden switch? Comments and suggestions welcome.

Thanks for visiting. Have a super weekend.