CB&W: Curve of the Matter

Hola people! I am terribly excited to be participating once again in Cee’s photo challenges. I didnt know how much I had missed them until now πŸ˜€ Thank you Cee! This one is a black and white challenge on the topic of circles and curves. Scroll down to see what I dug out from my archives – up to you to find the curves and circles. πŸ˜‰

Mask

Starting with a demon mask to ward off any evil eye πŸ˜‰

Moving dayMoving in on a stationary bike πŸ˜€

GuitarSome shiny musical curves

BackA choosy guitarist, surely you can find a couple of curves?

DuckShow off!

20180929_173858.jpgAn English breakfast spread (from Dublin courtesy my lil sister and our friend)

MealA traditional Indian (more specifically Bengali) fishy meal served on a massive brass plate.

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And here’s the original version at Rupali’s request! Did it help or worsen your craving? πŸ˜€

 

CakeAnd end it with a finger-licking scrumptious butterscotch cake

Thank you for visiting! Do let me know which was your favorite shot. Have a super weekend.

 

COB: A Perfect Circle

Just a couple of weeks ago when temperatures were touching 46o C a dust storm came up to settle scores with the blazing Sun (and my sinuses πŸ˜‰ ).

20180613_174615It was quite a sight to catch a glimpse of a Sun as cool as the Moon, only rounder and unblemished just before it retired hurt for the day.

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The banana tree bows in homage to their Sustainer and Provider.

20180613_174537Or does it have ambitions of swallowing it up while it is down and out?

Hope you enjoyed these shots of the summer sun. I am happy to be able to contribute something to one of Cee’s photo challenges after a long time πŸ™‚

Three things cannot be hidden long: the sun, the moon and the truth – Buddha

WPC: Twisted Nature

This week’s photo challenge is about showing something twisted. So let’s see how twisted one can get…

20170804_112521Twisted metal rods that dot the rural landscape

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Fed up with the twisted eyesores, nature takes things into her hands – when you can’t beat them, join them!

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β€œJust a single cord is enough to be tangled” ― Munia Khan

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“The reality of the other person is not in what he reveals to you, but in what he cannot reveal to you. Therefore, if you would understand him, listen not to what he says but rather to what he does not say.” Khalil Gibran

 

IMG_0145Once upon a time, I lived my life in this ‘green room’. Only the bed is missing.

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“Man struggles to find life outside himself, unaware that the life he is seeking is within him.” Khalil Gibran

 

Rose

“The snow and the storm destroy the flower; but its seed they cannot kill.” Khalil Gibran

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“You may chain my hands, you may shackle my feet; you may even throw me into a dark prison; but you shall not enslave my thinking, because it is free!” Khalil Gibran

WPC: Life Lines

The Daily Post’s Weekly Photo Challenge this week is Lines. And guess what suddenly all I can see are lines πŸ˜€ I had to draw a line at the number of photos I dumped on unsuspecting visitors πŸ˜‰

Let’s start on a high note okay?

20180420_202221Lines of wine bottles and delicacies to soothe the sugar cravings

20180418_200814Night lights and lines in a typical Indian Metro city. Any guesses as to exactly which city? Nope not Mumbai or Delhi πŸ˜‰

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Petals lined up in a neat circular pattern. That reminds me, enough of interiors! Let’s get hot and dirty.

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The bare branched of the Plumeria or the Frangipani trees draw intricate lines in the hot summer sun.

 

20180413_065405One such tree though not of the trees which whiled away the time drawing lines πŸ˜‰ This one is busy shooting lines at impossible angles that are in the process of being smothered by a green rash πŸ˜€

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These Canna leaves have such interesting lines and am enjoying watching them blossom and grow with each watering.

20180425_065002This caladium leaf could easily be mistaken for playing host to a giant pink spider. Don’t you think so too?

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Not just in life but in death too the leaves leave messages for us. What do you think it’s trying to say?

 

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I think it is saying C you Soon πŸ™‚

Have a wonderful weekend unmarred by any lines on your brow πŸ˜€

View From the Top

This week, I have this really tall one for Becca’s Sunday Trees

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the young uns

rustle and strain

eager to also

brush shoulders

with the sky

 

buffeted by winds

engulfed

in icy silence

bare branches

send a whisper

on a leaf

 

the sky

is just as far

from here

as from there

Β 

it is not about

how high you are

it is about how

deep you are.

Hark! She Speaks

This week for Becca’s Sunday Trees I bring one that has probably witnessed history that continues to hold significance today – from the precincts of the famous Chittor fort. I have previously shared several visuals from this place earlier as well but this particular tree overlooks the Sati sthal on one side and Jauhar kund on the other. I could not bear to take photos of the place where women burnt themselves along with the dead bodies of their husbands or jumped into it for fear of rape and slavery by plunderers and victors of wars.

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Hark! She Speaks

I can tell you

tales of brave

helpless women

Sending off their men

to wage battles

of honor and pride

Fasting and praying

for his victory

and

his long life

They were but

One soul,

one body.

If he died, she would

burn with him

if he lost, it was Jauhar,

for her

and her children

As the spoils of war

it behooved her

to embrace death

to protect her

dignity and honor

and

save them

the dishonor

of failing to protecting her.

Times have changed

The world has progressed

They educate her

indulge her

pamper her and

cheer for her as she shatters

One glass ceiling after another

But under the sheen

lurks a beast

that seeks to

subjugate her with

attitudes and mentalities

that are passed off

as our culture and

sanskriti

All said and done

it is still her duty

to uphold their honor

And his right to defile hers

it is her duty to bear it silently

to shield their bestiality

so that they can continue to

hold up their heads in society

She is still blamed

and shamed

Be silent

Or be silenced

remains the

unsaid mantra

Since the beginning of time

they have

hacked my branches

stripped me bare

And with cruel knives

carved out love notes

on my body

over and over

again

but did I die?

Did I hide nakedness?

Did I hide my face?

Why do you?

 

Silent

unyielding

unflinching

unapologetic

existence

is my DNA

 

What is yours?

 

The Joy of Little Things

For a long time now, perhaps since 2005 that I have begun to click pics with my phone. Yes, you guessed right, of trees πŸ˜€ They had begun to work their magic on me and I just had to capture them, keep them with me so to speak.Β  I often wished I had someway of documenting them, cataloguing them so that I could browse at leisure. Just a pipe dream, a waste of time. Time passed, I focused on home, career, academics until fan fiction happened. Blogging was the next logical step for my stories and yet some guiding prescient hand named my blog Stories and more.

And now after two years, the more bit often gives me greater happiness than the stories πŸ˜€ Anyhow to cut a long story short, this week I target two of my favorite photo challenges – Cee’s Happy themed fun foto challenge and the Daily Post’s Smile challenge. Let’s see if I can spark a bit of happiness and bring a smile to your face with my selection:

20160617_142550Good food can bring back the spark to the dullest of days and lives doesn’t it? Like my son declared some years ago “It’s almost impossible to be angry on a full stomach.” Since then I have noticed, it is harder to be upset after food – the next time someone at home is cranky you know what to do right? πŸ˜‰

Boating
Photo courtesy nephew

Then there’s nothing like some precious chillax time with friends while riding out the upheavals of academic pressures and life in general. This is one of those times when nothing matters but now πŸ™‚

Anda7A beautiful sunset at the end of a less than idyllic day. A new day awaits and hope surges things can only be better.

Pondy beach

You are just fooling around, clueless and untrained – something clicks and you have the near perfect shot, good enough to please even your own nitpicking self. The wonder of learning something new can give quite an unparalleled high, don’t you think?

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When a little boy shows off his Tarzanic genes πŸ˜€

20180127_123003While his elders (and little girls!) prefer to take the more sedate route and dress up like their ancestors did.

 

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Then there are other things that are guaranteed to bring a smile to my heart – chancing upon the white blossoms (or are they leaves?) of an unknown tree

DSC00382A prefect green circle in the midst of a chaotic entangled bushy jungle

20180126_121120When life clings on and persists in the unlikeliest of places.

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Photos courtesy the niece in Nice err Lyon

How the internet allows us to be there while sitting here – be it at the fag end of a day

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or the beginning of a new day.

IMG-20180221-WA0020Of trees that perk up after long cold dreary overcast days and engage in a bit of arm wrestling under a perfect and gorgeously blue sky – from all the way from Dublin, Ireland.

 

ToysDo you find joy and happiness in the little things of life? Did anything here make you smile? Do let me know!

But before I go, just in case these pics didn’t strike a chord, I must share this little piece to make up for taking up so much of your time:

β€œNo sight so sad as that of a naughty child,” he began, “especially a naughty little girl. Do you know where the wicked go after death?”

“They go to hell,” was my ready and orthodox answer.

“And what is hell? Can you tell me that?”

“A pit full of fire.”

“And should you like to fall into that pit, and to be burning there for ever?”

“No, sir.”

“What must you do to avoid it?”

I deliberated a moment: my answer, when it did come was objectionable: “I must keep in good health and not die.”                                                       ― Charlotte BrontΓ«, Jane Eyre

May you all keep in good health and not die – at least not a moment before one has to!

Life and Death

As I come out of my shell and explore my surroundings I can’t help but notice a unique seasonal feature around these parts. Spring and fall seem to coexist. Leaves carpet the roads and mounds of leaves dot the sides of the roads until they are carted off to their final resting place. And yet gardens are abloom with a riot of colors – pink purple yellow and magenta. The peepal tree outside my office is a case in point. It is almost bare with a few green leaves determinedly hanging on until they turn yellow and reluctantly make their way down to whence they grew to such dizzying heights. And yet whilst this tussle is on, a new unruly batch has already sprung up gung-ho and eager to make their mark in this world. I have been feeling too inhibited to click this particule tree but I did mix and match some photos in an earlier post – Peepal in Spring.

For this post I have captured a few contrasting images from the world around me. Come scroll with me…

20180331_102923Clutching at straws

20180330_101305Brilliant and defiant in death.

20180330_101433Life towers over and mocks at death – it is not for me!

20180330_101500Yet some die before their time

20180330_101451While others bloom despite all odds

20180401_081112Even when there appears to be no hope or escape

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Only when we accept that ups and downs, life and death will happen can we move on and live life as she deserves to be led – wholly completely, entirely and unabashedly.

Wish you all a wonderful day.

The Journey Within

I missed Becca’s Sunday Trees but here I am on Tuesday. Have a wonderful day people!

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Skipping along the dirt road

she stopped to

stare and ponder

Poor old tree

No respite

No escape

Imprisoned

Forever and ever

The tree swayed with gentle laughter

A single curled leaf

Twirled its way down upon her head

Little one

Not all journeys are without

If you would

but look within

Peepal in Spring

The Peepal tree or the Ficus religiosa (sacred fig) is a common tree and I seem to see one no matter where I go. Except when I want to photograph one 😦

But this time I got lucky or rather created a bit with some mix and match πŸ˜‰

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Can you see the massive windblown and rather harassed looking tree in the background? That was taken just under 3 weeks ago.

20180325_094029.jpgAnd look at it now – it is as if it had never been bare.

20180324_100346.jpgI also managed to snap some lovely fresh colorful leaves growing at the roots of a massive dour staid Peepal πŸ˜€

And one more, simply because I couldn’t resist – purple leaves too! And to think I spent all my life around them. What on earth have I been doing all these years?!!!

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Sometimes,

a cleansing wash

is not enough

and one must

shed the old

and

start anew