Stay Strong

“Reshma! For God's sake where are you?” shouted Raunak at the top of his voice.
“Coming,” she replied hastily and rushed to the door.
Raunak was ringing the doorbell for a long time.
“What on earth were you doing? I am so tired after today's work and you take your own sweet time to open the door,” he rushed in the house and went to change.
Reshma rushed to make tea for her husband. Even though she was exhausted to the core, she ignored the pain and went into the kitchen.
Making the tea carefully, she poured herself some and set the cup aside, and took the hot tea for Raunak.
Raunak had washed and changed into comfortable clothes and sat to watch TV.
As Reshma gave the tea, Raunak asked her, “Did you call the technician? Have they repaired the UPS?”
“I called him, the technician said he will come later today and had asked me to check if the UPS is making weird noise or if it has become extremely hot. If so, I had to simply disconnect it,” she went on.
“Oh cut the crap! So, what happened finally? Just tell me the gist, I don't have time for your leisure stories.”
Reshma simply went in to have some tea, and relax. The UPS needed a lot of cleaning and she was dead busy with it when Raunak arrived from work. Her arms and feet ached due to standing on the ladder for long hours to clean the UPS, which was high-up in the attic.
She had her almost cold tea in the kitchen and went into the bedroom. She lied down and did not realise she had fallen asleep.
Raunak was shouting at her when she woke.
“What did you do all day? You haven't even cooked anything yet, and are sleeping for an hour now. I checked your temperature. You are fine. Why are you sleeping at this hour? I need to go for my evening walk and thanks to you it will be a night walk now in the chilling cold weather.”
“I am sorry, I had body pains because of cleaning the UPS, did not realise I fell asleep.”
“Oh is it? I am so sorry I taunted you. I was so mean to you. There was some tension at the workplace and I like a fool took it all out on you. I am sorry dear. How do I make it up to you?”
“Hey! It is ok, I am fine now.”
“Let's do one thing, we will go out for dinner and take a walk in the moonlight. That would be great.”
“Really!”Reshma's eyes brightened. She loved watching the night sky.
That night, after they returned home, Reshma was wide awake even though Raunak was snoring like a child.
She remembered how emotional she had become when Raunak said Cut the crap.
Suddenly she had a strange urge to write her feelings in a paper.


A tale of life and of a muse,
To make you anxious and also amuse.
So is she always taken for granted,
When will she ever be missed and wanted?
Oh Yes, terribly missed and wanted!
A tale of Misery as you see,
The world has turned upside down for She
Still goes strong and caring as always be.
With a smile that never wanes ever thee,
Even if she is hollow inside as can be.
Oh, Let the life fill her with happiness,
The way she nurtures everything with calm and stillness.
Oh Yes, she is a wonder.
A wonder of nature, and of God.
A Muse, A Beauty and A woman Strong.
That is what you and I are all along.
Let's Stay Strong, Let's Stay Strong.

Creativity -A Boon or A Bane

“Who keeps all this junk at home? This place is a mess.” shouted Varun.
“It might come in handy for some school project dear. Do you remember I made our daughter jewellery for her fancy dress competition from the chocolate box papers? These shiny things, can be useful for any project.” said Kala.
“Do you know what is junk? The things that you keep for decades and throw them a week before you need them. That's what it is. So, throw them away will you?”
“Hey! Please, I may need this. Or, maybe I will simply make something to accommodate the so-called junk.”
“You and your reusing madness will make this house a junk dealer shop. Throw them away for once, you will be doing me a great favour.”
“I will see what things need disposing of.”
Varun shrugged and walked out of the room.

“Mommy, my bag strap is broken please do something,” said Ajith her son.
“Oh my! It's almost time for the pickup van to arrive. I had this car cover's clasp which can serve the purpose, let me find it now.”
She hurried to open her shelf and searched frantically. “There was this clasp I had saved from the car cover. I am unable to find it on such short notice. Let's see if I have something for a makeshift clasp.”
She had an idea, she picked a metal bangle from the unused bangle box and cut it using a cutting player. Moulded it into the shape of the clasp. Taping it thickly so that there are no sharp edges, Kala proceeded to fasten the clasp to the strap of the school bag and secured the ends with knots. She heard the pickup van honking and hurriedly put everything in the bag and promised to find the spare clasp by the time Ajith returns from school.

Later that day, Kala chose a big box from the cartons accumulated via online shopping. It took a long time to segregate the junk which she thought may be useful in future. Everything seemed to be useful. After an hour of thinking, she had separated the useless CDs, a bunch of ice cream sticks which had been used for a project. She had an idea to make a decorative piece from these things. She simply put everything back into the box and set about searching the older boxes. It was her habit to store reusable things like strap clasps, buttons, trendy zip liners. Even if she had to throw a worn out bag, she would cut all the handles, strap clasps, pockets and many things which seem useful to her.
She opened the older box and set about searching for a clasp to sew for Ajith's bag. An hour's labour finally yielded a positive result.

That evening, when Varun returned home, he instinctively checked the shelf for the junk and was happy to see that it was all gone. Kala was busy sewing the clasp to the strap and overlooking Ajith's homework.
Varun set to clean his two-wheeler. He was searching for his toolbox. While asking Kala about his toolbox, he went in to check in the attic shelf. Continuous sounds of heavy loads falling and a yelp from Varun made Kala rush into the room.
Varun lay there sprawling but safe. Strewn all over the room were her boxes of “junk”. As soon as their eyes met, both started laughing loudly. Kala sat beside Varun and said, “I guess I will need your help this time. Will you make a video of the craft I make? I may also sell it to someone if they like the craft.”
“What else can I say? Do I have a choice?” He winked at her and said. “Now is the chance to mouth your favourite liner from that movie.”

saying so, Varun started nodding his head and repeated continuously “అంతెగా... అంతెగా....”

Do You Practice What you Preach?

“If we do not wake up now, it will be too late to do anything later. Think of the next generation, Do you want to give them such an abused planet replete of natural resources? I think it is time we all begin to use the newer greener gadgets which save on energy and protect our Earth.” said Krutika, the CEO of the non-profit organisation which initiated lake cleaning drives.
“We have installed solar-powered gadgets for small time needs. Cutting on the exhaustible resources and using the abundant inexhaustible resources will surely make a difference. Going black is the new way to go green,” she winked at the ladies and wiped her mouth with a tissue.
“Now what does going black mean?” asked Suneetha.
“She means the solar panels, have you noticed they are black? She has simply coined a small yet meaningful phrase to put through her idea,” said Kala eyeing the pile of tissue papers the CEO was using and throwing. She wiped her mouth using her own cloth napkin and asked the waiter to serve the juice and bring the bill thereafter.
Kritika asked the waiter for another chilled mineral water bottle.
“Let's hurry I have to address a gathering at an event to promote cleanliness and greenery. Kala you may have to help me here regarding the waste management. Kindly go through my speech and Okay it, will you? ”
Kala nodded a yes. Smitha was silently observing the conversation and whispering to Suneetha. Both were seen giggling like school children. Kala stole a glance at them while she was going through the speech.
Krutika asked the ladies to finish the water and crush the bottle after use. Kala refused gently and finished checking the speech.
“In the conclusion, if you add that majority of wet waste can be cattle feed while some of it can be used for organic manure, and ask people to be responsible towards waste disposal, it will make an effective piece.”
“You are right, but you see firstly, people are not interested in segregating the waste, I don't think they will take interest in feeding cattle. Honestly, who has time for it? If I advise them what to do with the waste, chances are they may not even listen to me, but initiatives, like cleaning the surroundings and cleaning lakes, have more takers.” said Krutika.
“You mean, people who throw waste are the ones who come forward to clean the lakes? You are mistaken my dear, there are all kinds of people. Some of them do not listen to any advice and are not interested in the cleaning drives. It is the few environment-conscious people who come forward and do what it takes. I guess if you add that piece of advice, there is no harm. People will not leave the hall midway and go.” giggled Kala along with Suneetha and Smitha.
“Okay, you are the expert when it comes to efficient waste management, and do I have a choice. Here, add the lines yourself dear,” said Krutika giving the pen. She crushed the mineral water bottle and threw it on the pile of tissue papers.
Kala was eyeing the pile of dry waste which the waiter may not be segregating while cleaning. Smitha and Suneetha read her mind.
“So how do you think Krutika is going to take initiative towards her role in efficient waste disposal?” asked Suneetha, with a glint of naughtiness in her eyes.
Krutika rolled her eyes and coughed in reply.
“We are waiting for your reply madam,” said Smitha looking at Krutika.
“Ok, sorry ladies, My bad, I should not have used so many tissues nor should I have ordered use and throw plastic container unnecessarily. I will make a mental note to avoid these things when I am at a restaurant.”
“Well spoken CEO madam, you will then set a good example for people to follow and take you seriously. You should lead by example. Dharmo Dharmaha Rakshitaha." replied Kala.

A Nightmare to Jolt you Awake

I have a vague memory of hitting the bed at midnight after staying up late for the new year party. The memory of the drive back home gives me some hazy figures and a lot of noise.
“Happy new year Krish,” was the only audible thing I heard before they started bursting crackers. The loud crackers, people shouting about and screaming everywhere is where my recollection of yesterday night ends.
I woke up in a surrounding which was completely new to me. I have never been here. This baffled me. More so, because it was still dark outside.
Now, did I sleep through the first day of my new year? Is it night again?
I should find my phone.
Getting up with difficulty I checked my jeans pocket for my phone. But I was not wearing jeans at all. I had a grey shorts with grey Tee. This surprised me greatly. I had no remembrance of changing when I reached my apartment. Trying to recall how and when I reached my apartment yesterday gave me a headache. How strange? I can't remember a thing about reaching my room yesterday.
I surveyed my surroundings. It was like a dungeon with no door.
Oh my God, Am I kidnapped? Or is somebody playing a prank?
“Hello, is somebody there? If you are playing a prank please stop it, I have a splitting headache and I need some rest in my room.”

There was no reply.
“Oh please, come forward guys and say it was all a joke. I am running out of patience now.”
There was no sound at all. The silence scared me. Where am I?
There was no window but the air was cold and a dull light was emerging from the ceiling, it resembled a halo. It then struck me I must be in the cellar.
But, whose cellar? My apartment did not have a cellar.
My abductors might be out of hearing range. Because the ceiling is high I definitely cannot make an escape and hence they are not even guarding the cellar door. But what kind of a cellar does not have stairs? Or maybe it has a drop downstairs which can be removed soon after.
Whatever the case, sooner or later the abductors will have to show themselves up unless they plan to starve me to death.

So, mustering patience, I waited confidently for the ceiling door to open up shortly. I had no watch, so there was no way to know the time. I could not even say if it was a day or night. If only I had my phone with me. Even after what seemed like ages, there was nobody at the door. I did shout once in a while to check if anybody responds but none responded. I did not know if an hour had passed or half a day had gone by. It is like I am in a limbo. Waiting for someone to rescue me.
Just when I was dozing off to sleep out of tiredness, I observed the ceiling door opening but then, my senses became too numb. I was losing consciousness. This can't be happening. At the crucial moment of knowing who are my abductors, I am falling asleep. I fought the closing blackness which engulfed me. Soon I came out of the blackness and saw a frightening figure leaning over my face and checking for my breathing. He wore a black face mask and resembled a poorly dressed Darth Vader. I tried to speak but could not.
Even though he had the mask, I could sense he was staring right into my eyes. And out of the blue, I hear a voice in my head. “You are now my pet. Since you cannot look after yourself or your home well, we have decided to take over what we gave you.”

This seemed strange, I struggled to speak but then realised thinking about a reply would suffice for when I thought “What nonsense!” the voice in my head replied,
“This is not nonsense, you were given this planet Earth because your ancestors pledged to safeguard it. You have broken the promise of trust, which is why we have returned.”
I must be mad because I am seeing strange things and hearing voices in my mind. Maybe yesterday at the party someone doped my drink. Yes, maybe I am hallucinating.
“Soon the truth will dawn on you.” said the voice before going silent and I was engulfed in blackness again.
I woke up again I do not know when for it was dark in the cellar.

Is there any truth in what the strange thing was telling me? It cannot be. I must be hallucinating. But, how the can drug cause hallucinations even after 24 hours have passed? Or has the day not ended? Is it still the new year's eve or the next day?

All the questions made my head ache badly. Even though sleeping would have done me good, I started exercising just to stay alert. I must not become so weak the next time the thing comes to me. I was hopeful he would definitely come, for now, I am his pet.
The next time the ceiling door opened I did not black out, I was able to look at the strange thing. That's when I heard the voice in the head again.
"You seemed to have gained mental strength fast enough. I chose you because you were almost blocking our thoughts and communications with you. I have now tamed you to communicate with me."
“But, why? What have I done to you?”
“It is not you alone, the whole human race is now a slave and pet to our superior race.”
“Who are you?”
“We are the ones who loaned you a home.”
“But, it can't be, this was our home for ages.”
“The realisation will soon dawn upon you.”
After this, he picked me up and flew to the ceiling out into another room which resembled a prison.
While I was being chained to the wall, I asked the thing “What are you doing now?” But there was no reply.

Soon it took out what resembled a huge nail and marked it on one of my palms and began hammering. The pain was unbearable, I struggled a great deal and was twisting and kicking him. All of a sudden I fell down and opened my eyes.
I was sweating all over. I observed I was in the jeans and Tee I wore for the new year eve. I looked around it was clear daylight and the apartment was mine.
It was just a nightmare!
I heaved a sigh of relief.
After half an hour I was soaking in the atmosphere with a hot cup of coffee in hand and watching the blazing hot sun and children playing around outside. I gave a serious thought about the strange dream. Aren't we spoiling our planet with toxic pollutants? Although this was a dream, I felt guilty of not taking care of the Earth.
That day, I resolved to work towards conserving nature. I got enrolled myself for the Clean Your Lake initiative. After all, a new year calls for a new beginning.

Is Mother Earth Your Home?

Reema felt it was Herculean task to stay awake. She was dozing away in between the lecture. Being seated in the last row of seats aided her sleeping spells. Her partner was snoring on the writing desk. Reema cleared her head and woke her partner.

“Hey! Get up, it is about to end soon.”
“Has the language class ended?” asked Vinay yawning.
“Not yet, but it will end in a few minutes. Just revise all the debate points now. This way we can be ready for the debate in the next session.”
“Right,” said Vinay and opened his research workbook to summarise the points to talk.
The bell rang and the language lecturer left the hall. Everyone murmured a “Thank you, Sir,” and thumped head-on over the writing desk.
Reema and Vinay were busy preparing for the next session.
The teacher for Social Studies entered the classroom and cleared his throat to announce his arrival. Everyone woke up disoriented and mumbled, “Good afternoon Sir.”
“Good afternoon. So, are we all prepared to have this discussion? Let's get going then, the students who are talking in support of India's endeavours regarding manned space mission, come to my right. The students talking against this mission to come to my left side. I want the audience to be interactive,” he clapped twice to shake them out of the sleepy stupor.
Slowly, four students gathered around the teacher.
“Let's begin. First I want the students who are talking in support of the mission to speak about it.”
Vineeta and Rubin came forward. Vineeta began with an introduction about the successful space missions of our country at length. She concluded by summarising about the future plans for the space missions.
Rubin continued with the visions of the former ISRO Chairman Udupi Ramachandra Rao and the efforts our country has been putting into realising his vision.
At this point, Sir interrupted and asked the audience a question. “So, don't you think we should explore the space and set up colonies to aid in our research.”
A student raised her hand, “Yes sir, indeed, space is for everyone to explore and whoever finds something first will get rights overusing it. So, we should focus on finding resources in space as soon as possible. This is the only way we can evolve further. Moreover as predicted by the ISRO Chairman China has built its space station on the moon and is testing the atmosphere. Gaganyaan is a huge step forward for India in the space mission.”
All the students clapped for her to show their support.
It was now Vinay and Reema's turn to speak against the mission.
Reema cleared her throat and began
“While it is true that we should aim higher shouldn't our endeavours be sustainable? If we are leaving a trail of ruination while on the path of evolution, can we really call it evolution? Our Mother Earth is now almost replete of mineral resources. If you call Mother Earth your home, would you not try and mend things at home rather than abandon it?”
Vinay continued, “I admit that our geographical location gives the advantage of launching space missions cost effectively. India is now trying to be self-sufficient for space machinery, this might still be a huge cost. Working in collaboration with other countries may reduce the cost greatly but, given the requirement for advanced machinery for setting up colonies on Mars, the project may become redundant because everything depends on the possibility that we may find a useful resource in Space.”
He then spoke about focusing on more pressing matters at hand in Earth. He spoke at length about how everyone should unite to conserve our natural resources and thrive to give the future generation a cleaner and greener Earth.
A student in the audience raised his hand.
“Let us agree with what Reema says. Mother Earth is our home, and we have run out of resources. Now, if you run out of groceries, would you starve to death or go out and buy some. Here, in this case, we have to go in search of a resource. It is just like hunting the space for resources. If you do not make an effort you will simply perish and not evolve on the planet Earth.”
Reema smiled confidently and began talking.
“Now, when you are buying grocery how can you buy with no or little money. How much can the grocery shop owner loan you? You say it's like hunting but will you ever go on a hunt if you are unsure of making a kill. All this research hangs on a theory that other planets may have abundant resources which we can make use. But, what is the use of a resource if the planet is uninhabitable? You cannot possibly teleport the resource to Earth, Can you? So, you will have to build machinery which makes the planet habitable. So, in a way you are simply abandoning Mother Earth and using your intelligence to make another planet your home.”
Everybody clapped for Reema. She had a valid point.
Reema continued, “In my opinion spending crores of rupees, intellectual treasure and technical knowledge over building manned space crafts or probe crafts for exploring, or building technical tools to make a planet habitable, should never go waste. Instead, why do we not focus on reviving our planet? Can't we revive our water bodies? Why not work in collaboration to devise a tool which can control the weather? A tool that can help purify our air quality would be a welcome change. The real evolution according to me is to modify the conditions on our planet instead of searching for a habitable planet.”
The class fell silent at this. Not a single question.
The only sound that rang through the place was the school bell ringing.

A Mother's Birthday

“Happy Birthday amma,” I beamed pleasantly on phone.
“Thank you, dear, So are you dropping by here for lunch or anything?” asked my mother.
“Amma, today Suresh can't take leave from office, shall I come this weekend? All of us will eat out”
“You are welcome any day dear, but why to eat out, I will prepare something at home.” replied the mother.
“Oh! amma, you are always working in the kitchen whenever I come to stay or for lunch. We need to sit, talk and enjoy, so I suggest we all go out for lunch.”
“No dear, it is fine, I love cooking for my family, it is no work for me.”
We chatted for some time and I cut the call.
I realised that cooking is work for me, a chore which I do mechanically. Even though I love cooking for my family, it is always a chore to be completed before a certain time.
I then realised that modern-day woman has complicated her life by creating hourly and daily deadlines for simple things like cooking, cleaning or even caring for the plants.
I remembered how my mother used to enjoy the process of cooking, caring for the plants, and attending to my little needs when I was small. She did it without sulking or writing down a deadline for it. There were no To-Do lists for her.
So, why are we getting anxious to finish a certain task within a stipulated hour? Have we lost the humane touch which our mothers incorporated into everything they did?
Or, have we become too materialistic that we seem to separate chores from enjoyment.
I decided to drop by today at mom's place and observe her from a new angle. To observe and learn the way she cooks. I had to buy a present yet. Thinking I would be going this weekend, I had stalled the gift selection to Friday.
What did mom love so much? I set about thinking. I suddenly remembered mother used to sketch a great deal when I was small. Eventually, she stopped doing it, but she loved to visit art galleries and take in all the new forms of art.
Why not buy her a ticket for an art exhibition nearby? But this is nothing special. I dismissed this idea.
On googling I found quite a few books which help one learn the nuances of sketching. I decided that sketching kit with books and required pencils would be the best gift to mother.
With this in mind, I went to a bookstore nearby planning to finish my task before lunch and reach mom's place. Before that, I called my spouse and told him about my plan. As he was quite busy with the day's schedule he asked me to carry on. So, I called mother and told her about my visit hurriedly.
It took a long time to choose all the gifts and get them packed. I was late by few minutes for lunch but amma and appa were waiting for me eagerly.
I hugged amma and gave her the present. She simply put it aside and asked me to have lunch.
“You must be starving, have lunch first, we can talk everything after lunch.”
“That's my mamma, always knows when I'm hungry. Give me anything to eat, I barely had any breakfast today”
“Silly girl, why didn't you eat?” she chided me.
Soon after lunch, I asked her to open the gift. She opened it reluctantly and was surprised at the things. She said, “I am too old for sketching now dear”
“Age is just a number amma, get sketching, I am sure you will start loving it.”
Although she seemed reluctant, I observed a small glint of joy in her eyes. I was happy I chose this gift. Soon, my mother will be very busy with her own piece of art.

Do Our Dreams Matter?

As I parked my car and locked it in the parking lot, I was evident of the ache in my head.
I will go straight to bed, I thought and walked towards the elevator. As I came out of the lift and entered my house, a loud shout from my daughter made me turn in anger. Any other day, this would have made me take her in my arms and cuddle her a bit. But not today, I am exhausted to the core. Having used up all my energies in the board meetings and project release party I had no ounce of patience left in me. “Preethi, Pappa had a very tiring day today. Please leave pappa alone,” I tried to restrain my anger and sound as normal as possible.
“Oh Pappa!, she pouted, I wanted to tell you something which happened at school today,” Not today sweety, said I, and moved towards the bedroom. Without any more delay, I changed and lied on the bed wanting to sleep like a child. But, sleep eluded me. I could hear everything that was going around. Preethi was now talking to her grandmother for want of company. She was animatedly talking about the discussion that happened at school.
“Do you know granny, Likhith in my class wants to be a doctor, How can anybody be a doctor? I hate them, they simply make us cry by giving us injections, and this Likhith wants to be a doctor. I told him I will not be friends with him anymore.”
I could not suppress my grin after hearing the childish talk. I started listening to her baby talk. I could not help wondering how a five-year-old perceives the world.
“So, did you also tell what will you become once you grow up?” my mother proceeded to ask her.
“Yes Granny, I want to drive a Rocket and go travel around the space.” My mother laughed at it and said, “Did you know, your father used to tell a similar thing when asked what would he become?”
It then occurred to me that I had dreams of becoming an astronaut. I went back in the memory lane and wandered around my old little school in my village. The school structure was not very elaborate or accommodating but the playground was very huge and it was the only thing that mattered to me and my friends. We played cricket with whatever we could assemble and substitute appropriate play accessories required for our play. A flattened log of wood would work well as a bat for us. Even without gloves I never missed a catch and was a popular wicket-keeper in my school. Those were the golden times of my life, I thought to myself.
“My teacher was very happy that I wanted to go to space. She gave me a star for telling this. Look at the star granny. She used my favourite blue colour.” said Preethi in her excited voice.
I was feeling a lot calmer and refreshed after walking down the memory lane. I called Preethi softly and asked her to narrate to me about what happened at school.
She feigned anger and said, “I won't tell you now. I have to go and sleep its already getting late and I have to get up early tomorrow for school. My teacher says, early to bed and early to rise is a good habit.” I took her in my arms and said, “OK then, maybe you could simply give Pappa a good night kiss.”
She kissed me gently and I let her go. My reminiscence continued. I was once again in my classroom and laughing along with my friends and making a pandemonium before our headmaster entered the classroom. We all stood in silence. It was then our headmaster asked the question just to make us silent. Everyone had a different dream. One wanted to be a doctor, one wanted to play cricket for the Indian team, another wanted to become the president of India, but I had only one thing in mind. I wanted to ride the rocket. When the headmaster asked me the same question, I said proudly, “I want to make my own rocket and ride it.”
The headmaster looked at me in a surprised sort of way.
He proceeded to ask me, “Why do you want to ride a rocket? It is of no use to our country.”
I replied without fear,
“But going to space will definitely make India proud.”
“It is but a useless thing to do. Don't you think improving our India by becoming an able citizen who will contribute to the country will be the right thing to do.”
I had simply nodded and kept quiet.
Now that I think of it, am I contributing to the country's growth?