To My Supreme Power

source: clipart-library

 

You first came into my life fifteen years ago. I remember it quite well. We had just moved to a new city and I was devastated. The recognition, the friends, the confidence I’d built in my previous school was all going to be naught here. I had to start over from scratch, and it was the scariest thing.

 

And then my dad introduced you to me. I didn’t think much of you at first. I mean sure, I would spend some time with you now and then, casually telling you about my uninteresting daily life. But that was all the importance you had. I used to hold back from telling you too much, lest you turned out to be a snitch.

Choosing your Grey

src: vecteezy.com

In the chilling darkness of the theatre hall, we wait in suspense as the hero floats in the air before an unknown looming figure. We hold our breaths as the camera turns to reveal this figure, this gigantic, holy apparition of Lord Hanuman towering over our tiny hero, exuding a blinding light of brilliance.

I’m cocking my head, assessing the animation skills put into this apparition, when suddenly someone behind me screams out the most terrifying phrase I’ve heard in a while –

Just Another Speck in the Cosmos

src: pixabay

Hey you,

This may have been the quickest year we’ve had yet. It feels like only yesterday when I packed a year’s worth of life into five cartons and moved to a new city. It’s hard to believe that was twelve months ago. Moving places is always a romantic affair, don’t you think? The idea of leaving something behind and exploring something anew.

I’m not so sure what I’ve left behind. Maybe the crowd and the frenzy that came with it. Maybe even a bit of loneliness and hurt from my circle back there. But I do know what I’ve gained. A sense of calm. It’s only when the water is still that you get to see clearly.

Fainting into a Consciousness

Src: pixabay

Everything is blurry. There's a bright point of light in front of me. I stare at it blankly for a while, unable to form a coherent thought. There are drops of water sprinkled on my face, but I don't question it. It doesn't seem odd. Nothing seems odd, not even the dark blobs popping into my view, blocking the harsh rays of light. Blobs that look like heads. Like faces.

On a Curtained Balcony

 

Hey you,

It’s been almost a year since we moved away from home. Almost a year since I put up those red curtains for my balcony doors. That was all the decoration I could manage for my room, except for the aloe vera sulking at me from my table. I know I forget about its existence most of the time, but it pretty much takes care of itself. That was why I agreed to bring it over in the first place, mom was adamant.

Cherished and Forgotten

Source: pixabay.com

Vemödalen. 

The fear that everything has already been done. 

When I first came across this word I nodded it off, not giving it a second thought. Today it tails every thought in my mind, pulling back each one that wishes to break through and live a life of its own. It crushes them half-baked before I can put a sense to them, before I can give them space to grow into themselves. It mocks every feeble effort of theirs to be unique, to simply be their own self. It sniggers enough to deafen the little voice in them, wishing meekly to be heard.

A Mountain's Call

 

src: nicepng

On a freezing night, 6000 ft above the sea, our flashlights moved haphazardly from the tent. My numb fingers fumbled for the sleeping bag, craving its promised warmth. My tent-mate’s uneven breathing alternated with my own. For a moment her headlamp flashed on my face. I winced.

“Why are we doing this again?” she asks.

To Love

src: favpng.com

"So?" 

I ask him, feigning impatience. Inside me is a racing heart ready to burst at any moment. I wonder if it's my excitement or just the fear of getting caught by the PT teacher.

"You know what I'm going to say." he says. I almost roll my eyes. 

"Are you going to say something or not?" 

He shuffles his feet awkwardly, unsure what to do in this situation. We're at the corner of the playground, trying to be discreet in the middle of noise and hustle. 

"Okay." he says, breaking into a grin. "I love you."

The Time of Confrontation

src: freeimagesandillustrations

It had been too long since the indoors took over. There was no point in waiting anymore, it being well established that the normal we had known wouldn't be restored for quite some time. And so, coupled with the inefficient handling of semester finals and hurried online evaluations came the inadequate goodbyes of my final year. 

Living in Limbo

Source: hiclipart

Do you ever feel stuck in time? On a routine that goes on in a loop with no change whatsoever? You have these things you want to do but you put them off for later. You don't really do anything to get there at present. Or maybe you do and the routine is a part of it. Either way, you're waiting. Waiting to get there. Somewhere. 

Abstraction

src: dreamstine

It's a brand new day with no agenda. Chores, reading, chores, a movie, and more chores. Not that there are that many of them, but they tend to be the highlight of an otherwise sedentary lifestyle. I browse the internet and find this rotating cube at the bottom of news websites. Flashing numbers. Numbers that represent confirmed cases and deaths. But mere numbers all the same. 10 million. 15 million...a sigh of despair. Almost forced at this point. 

From a Virtual Recluse

src: vecteezy

Dear Social Media,

I got to know about you at a pretty young age. I'd sit next to my sister and read her chats in Yahoo Messenger. It was entertaining even though I didn't always understand her conversations. I was ten when she made an account for me on Orkut. I don't remember if I was particularly excited about it; none of my friends really knew about Orkut then. But I would still log into my account and embellish my profile occasionally. 

The Day of the Lasts

It was the day of many lasts. I wanted it to be special, something for all of us to look back and smile about. I wanted us to give each other the tightest of hugs and take the best of photos. So when I went up to that podium to give my farewell speech, I was all set for the audience to start tearing up. I stood there before my batchmates in that moment, waiting for the commotion to die down. Waiting and waiting some more. Until it was awkward to wait any longer and I started speaking amidst the noise anyway.

The Cheeseburst Arranged Marriage - A Review

Growing up, I always told myself that I wouldn't agree for an arranged marriage. The thought of spending your life with a complete stranger was simply revolting. But times have changed and today's manner of arranged marriage has become more acceptable to me now. Matrimonial sites are nothing but a family-approved-tinder, after all. So when I stumbled upon The Cheeseburst Arranged Marriage in the Blogchatter E-Book library, I was drawn to it. 

This book is the story of 24-year-old Ira falling in love with the man she was arranged to marry. Right from the beginning when she nods her way nonchalantly into this life-long commitment, she doesn't realize what she's signing up for. 

My Favourite Feelings

src: vhvrs

Have you ever wanted to get on a random train and go wherever it takes you? 

Sitting inside the car at the parking lot, I was playing with an idea in my head. Mom was going to take a while, and it wasn't everyday that I got the car for myself back then. Oh what the hell, this may be my only chance. So thinking, I pulled the car out of the parking space and drove away from the building. Out in the road, I took every turning that seemed to have lesser traffic, no destination in mind. With the music in high volume, I was singing with joy, speeding my way ahead. Over a bridge I rode, then another, and yet another one, all along with this new sense of power for being the one in control. This was what freedom felt like. This was pure bliss. Until a khaki-sleeved hand blocked the way a few metres before me...

Heroes of Kindness - A Review

It's been a while since a virus has brought humankind to its knees. Our thoughts have evolved from concern and bewilderment to despair. And yet we've tried to look at the bright side and revel in nature's recovery. As for me, I revelled in finding uplifting news on acts of humanity during these dire times. But the golden time was short-lived. The dark side of humans found its way back to the news pretty soon. And I found myself drowning in despair. 

But here's someone set out to tell anyone who would listen that the world is not a bad place. How could it be, when he holds the proof to the immense kindness we humans are capable of? True, there may be enough of negativity out there to leave us with little hope, but there is also much positivity that goes unnoticed. 

In his very own words, "Why hold onto burning coal when you have diamonds around you?"

Musings from Autumn Shadows

src: flyclipart

"We want every action of ours to have a meaning and purpose. We want the universe to be meaningful to us.  But the unmitigated truth is that there is no such meaning, no purpose in the universe." 

- Tomichan Matheikal, Autumn Shadows: Memoir

Dreaming about what purpose I hold in this universe used to be a favourite pastime for me. I would imagine myself out there in action, doing my bit of duty to this world I was born into. Except that I didn't know what that duty was. I always assumed I'd know it when I grew up. But as years went by and thoughts were recycled, it only seemed clearer that everything around me was unclear. There weren't any 'signs' directing me to my roads of meant-to-be. Because there was no such thing.

Milestones that Matter

src: pinclipart.com

Hands joined and eyes closed, I stood nervously behind the podium. The crowd before me had parted from their seats respectfully. They stood waiting for a holy prayer to commence the auspicious ceremony. Poor them. They definitely weren't ready for the cacophony that was coming. My voice may just have sucked the auspiciousness out of the ceremony.

On Mothers and Chores

src: wikiclipart

It's close to midnight. My mom slumps down on the bed, visibly exhausted. I'm lying down next to her, massaging my eyes after having spent my whole day before the laptop. I'm still wide awake, sleep eluding me yet again. My mom is moments away from a deep slumber, but a few words escape her before she dozes off. Something about the lockdown making little difference to stay-at-home moms.

Corona Chronicles - The Face of Humanity

src: Dreamstime

The colleges are shut down. Families are locked in. Streets are swept free of traffic. Hugs are more threatening than soothing. Social media has more tasks than Bigg Boss. Patience is being tested in households rather than traffic jams. Sanitizers have become more valuable than oil.