gulabo

that's what i happen to call my rose plant and this is my first rose plant ever! i do not remember us having one in our previous garden either. gulabo bloomed after a good 2-3 weeks in the month of april this year and i could not resist myself from capturing its pristine beauty :-) and as if THAT was not exciting enough, Suranga m'am managed to surprise me with yet another lovely interpretation in form of words :-))

here are two shots of my gulabo in full-bloom on the terrace along with the verse penned by the versatile poet.

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both the photographs taken by me

Wet aromas of mud,
potting, eggshell powder
and concentric channels in soil
holding water,
as the mud,
seeing and knowing a good thing ,
rushes to pile itself up at the roots.

The obsession with color,
and the desperation
to emerge beautifully bright.

It's only when the sun shines
on it,
that it is clear, that
despite the charms of color,
whether your mind inside,
is black or white,
or even a grey,
depends on how well
you mix with
a neutral society
around you.

- Suranga Date

You can access the original post described more vividly here :-)

:-))

and oh coming back to dates, it has been exactly 1 whole year today of survival, strength, weaknesses, independence, responsibilities, happy revelations, sad findings, self-discoveries, getting bitten by various 'bugs', freedom, liberties coming with a lot of self-control/discipline, happiness, heartbreak, celebrations, fresh beginnings and some unfortunate endings, detachments and new attachments, tests (medical and the other kinds), medications, conquering old fears and battling new ones too, pride, possessions, separations, forging of some unexpected bonds, dreaming new dreams and fading away of a few, loneliness, expectations and acceptances, choices made willingly and some unwillingly, sense of loss and elsewhere belonging, overwhelming and reassuring love n support from all my loyal sweethearts :-)

could not think of a better way to end this post. so here's one gem of a poem (penned by a blogger friend Satyanshu Singh! the poem, story, script, lyrics, music, performances, the film 'Udaan' released in the year 2010 remain eternally precious to me).

छोटी-छोटी छितराई यादें

बिछी हुई हैं लम्हों की लॉन पे
नंगे पैर, उनपर चलते चलते इतनी दूर आ गए हैं,
कि भूल गए हैं जूते कहाँ उतारे थे ...

एड़ी कोमल थी जब आये थे
थोड़ी-सी नाज़ुक है अब भी
और नाज़ुक ही रहेगी  
इन खट्टी मीठी यादों की शरारत
जब तक इन्हें गुदगुदाती रहे
सच..भूल गए हैं कि जूते कहाँ उतारे थे
पर लगता है अब इनकी ज़रुरत नहीं ...

an Ode to my 'Sandals'!

all of today my mind kept wandering. sensing something amiss. maybe someone's birthday or anniversary or wedding or due date or launch or...phew! checked both my phones, my online diary. even logged onto FB after a week almost just so that i get some clue as to know why exactly this date seemed to linger on. nothing rushed to my rescue. then read an unexpected line in an unexpected mail from an unexpected sender and it all fell in place magically. "dimaag ki batti jal gayi" moment happened! :-)

i love 5th may just as much i love 10th april just as much i love hundred other dates etched in my memory for all sorts of reasons. one of those 'perfect' days full of 'perfect' moments. (not that the perfectness of it matters to me much. i love imperfections as much more often than not in people, places, preferences, situations. it keeps my interest alive! ;-) 

one of the several perfectly magical moments i was blessed with that day is posted below. i cherish this pic a lot would surely be an 'understatement'!

photograph by Parag Mahale (May'09)

one of my adorable blogger friends - Mrs. Suranga Date, spotted this one on my profile more than a month back and penned a soulful ode to my sandals. the satire on her blog is something i look forward to always for all the tongue-in-cheek humour and insight she unfailingly provides with every post. you can't imagine just HOW surprised and full of glee i was when i read the verse :-) :-) have a look pretty please!

Some sandals 
stick to the owner
everywhere,
absorbing every cut,
pokey stone,
lash of cow dung
and wet mud,
but
keeping the feet
clean,
unfeeling,
and the person
devoid of nerves...

But some,
like a good friend,
share the heat of the road
on a summer afternoon,
the stumble across
an innocent pebble,
inadvertent puddle thumps,
the little scratches
of stuff in the sand,
and stand
patiently aside,
encouraging and waiting,
as you decide to get your feet wet
in some new waters
once again...
And when a
particularly big wave
of something arrives,
and you run back,
they remain,
overcome by the foam,
but bravely facing up,
faithfully waiting for you....
- Suranga Date 

and here's the link to it on her blog of poems. all of them are inspired by a broad spectrum of moments captured by different people. hope you enjoy them as much as i do! :-)