The View from Above

Journeying upwards, higher and higher 

even as people, buildings, bridges

become smaller and smaller 

to the size of tiny toys 

and I view down from the vantage point 

from up above through the clear blue sky

I notice, see them all 

tiny humans with puffed up egos 

believing the whole world 

revolves around them 

that all else exist for their pleasure 

Other humans plotting and planning 

for success any which way 

be it by spewing hate, massacring others 

anyone and anything seen as a threat  

oblivious to the fact that they themselves

are transient beings, destined to leave 

earth when their time comes...

How interesting this view 

from the vantage point high above 

to see all creatures big and small

maneuvering, striving hard for survival 

yet none so vile as the humans! 

Despite the blessing of intellect 

reasoning and intuition they sadly

are  unable to recognize the oneness

the unity of the universe...

Unable humans are, to live sans conflict 

unable to recognize the truth

that everything is meant to coexist

that all beings, fauna and flora 

are just perfect in their own place! 

NB:  This poem has been included in the anthology "Dream poetry-Restore space" brought out by the Soul Scribers Society during the Yercaud poetry Fest.

Tiny Tot in Thoughts : Book Review

 
"Tiny Tot in Thoughts" is a book of  25 poems written by eleven year old Sannidhi Kulkarni.The foreword of the book is written by author and academic incharge of  Soundrya Central school , Bangalore Ms Sreekala.P. Vijayan and the lovely cover design is by Motivational Strips. A winner of "Grow your Buds Poerty" competition organized by Motivational Strips, Sannidhi has written on diverse subjects including those on which you may not expect a eleven year old to write. 

As for example, her book starts with the poem " Do we really have independence?" and answers  it saying"not everyone has independence". She, interestingly connects independence to the "confidence level" of citizens of a bright future. Sannidhi concludes "few have confidence". Similarly in her poem "Peace", she gives her own interpretation of peace. She says peace is about "having fun, enjoying things, sharing knowledge," Interesting take, yet so true isn't it? Could we have all these things in the absence of peace or when at war, as in the case of Ukraine presently? Sannidhi says peace should be the goal of your life.

She also writes on 'Trust', 'Bigotry', 'Friendship', 'Space', 'Travel in time machine', 'Choice', 'Discrimination' . Other  poems reveal the simplicity and wonder of a child as in  'School', 'A pleasant morning', 'Nature', 'Dancing in the rain', 'Bad dream' 'My new dress'. Thus there is an interesting mix of poems in the book "Tiny Tot in Thoughts". You come across lofty thoughts like "Form of life may be different, but from heart we are the same...." in the poem "Discrimination" and "When the blood color is same, then why bigotry?" in the poem by the same name. 

The poem titled "I am " has a picture below it  with the question "Who am I". I was surprised  on reading the title marvelling at a eleven year old addressing spiritual questions like "Who am I ?". It turned out that the poem was simply about her being a different person to different people- " an astronaut" to her dad, a "helpful person" to family, "shining queen" to sister. An interesting poem in itself.. That then, is the beauty of this book that touches on a wide array of topics of interest to a child as well as adult. Do not be misled by the title. She is no 'tiny tot' in terms of her observation skills and approach to life. The book is testimony to that. 

We can look foward to Sannidhi blossoming into a socially concerned wonderful poet in the days to come! I wish the child poet Sannidhi Kulkarni the very best. It was a pleasure reading and reviewing her book! 

Book Details 

Title:  Tiny Tot In Thoughts 

Publisher: Evincepub Publishing 

ISBN:  978-93-5446-869-8

Price:  INR 140 

One Law you wish to implement and everyone has to follow it!

 

The Blogchatter prompt for this week under their #BlogchatterBlogHop series ,"One Law you wish to implement and everyone has to follow it" sounds in a way strange. One would have thought that when something is law,  "everyone has to follow it." After all it is the basic principle in law that "ignorantia juris non excusat" meaning  ignorance of a law is no excuse or defence. As for example, I cannot go into one way road and say "Sorry, I was not aware of it". Yes, in principle, laws are meant to be jolly well followed! 

However, I suppose the #BlogHop prompt has a point particularly with respect to a country like India. As for example, there is a legislation called the "Dowry prohibition Act 1961". From the way it is observed in the county, it would appear that no such act exists or ever existed. Neither is the groom's family ashamed to ask for dowry nor the bride's family willing to evoke the 'Dowry prevention Act' to penalize them for demanding it.  The Scheduled caste and Scheduled tribe (Prevention of Atrocities Act) 1989 does not deter atrocities being commited, particularly in the rural areas of the country. All this tends to suggest that if the society is not  simultaneously educated and the majority of the citizens do not become aware of the need and importance of the law, no amount of legislation would  make any difference. 

Against this background,  I would like at the outset to place on record a word of caution. The law that "I wish to implement" is unlikely to work on the strength of  arm twisting  or persuasion alone. A lot of education is necessary about the advantages in terms of physical and mental well being of the citizens on the implementation of the law. So much so, the well informed citizens will not have a feeling "I have to follow it", instead they would tell themselves "I want to follow it".  Put simply, the law I wish to implement stipulates that anyone stepping out from his/her residence for the day shall smile for the first fifteen minutes- a warm, sincere smile shall be directed at anyone and everyone whom the citizens come across during the fifteen minutes. This means a smile goes to the person irrespective of him/her being a friend or foe, a rich man or a beggar, an educated person or a simpleton.  

It has been said that "Your smile is the most important thing you wear".  You have heard the Joe Goodwin lyric  "When you are smiling, the whole world smiles with you!"  Further, it has been said tht it takes 43 muscles to frown while you only need 17 muscles to smile. Therefore, with less effort you have and generate happiness as against the negative experience caused by frowning that requires more effort.

This law that I am contemplating could lead to making more friends, even amongst total strangers! There would be no awkwardness; after all it is the law of the land. Smiles touch the many cells of our body in a beneficial way meaning physical and mental well being. Smiling provides a mood boost and helps our body to release cortisol and endorphins leading to lower blood pressure, enhanced endurance, reduced pain & stress, and strengthened immune system.

 So then what are we waiting for? Are our leaders willing to take the challenge of educating the common man ?  Are our legislators listening? Oh, I guess they will pay attention only and when the treasury and opposition benches stop seeing each other as enemies and perceive the nation as the first priority. This again could happen only after they are done with howling and shouting at each other to their heart's content in the "temples of democracy". 

• NB: This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop www.theblogchatter.com   

My interview by Rashi Roy : Razzmatazz with Rashi season 4

The distinguished You tuber Rashi Roy who has done a good deal of interviews of authors in her You tube channel interviewed me to elicit more about my E book "26 verses and 26 prose notes on 26 lofty topics" published by Blogchatter.

Link to the interview is given below:

Do watch, comment and subscribe to her channel which has some very interesting and valuable content. Would appreciate the readers penning a couple of lines about the interview on You tube.

Tribute to a Shero

Indians today breathe fresh air 

the fresh air of independence 

on the sacrifices of millions 

including that of many brave women

some known, some less known

yet others, unrecorded, unsung

lost to the annals of history!   

Let's celebrate one such Shero

a true patriot, "Nagamma Patil" of Hubli

18 months in Hindalga jail, Belgaum

during quit India movement, in Yerwadi jail 

she bore it all, fighting for our independence 

Fighting shoulder to shoulder 

with spouse Veeranna Gowder 

Nagamma responded to the call of the Mahatma 

to join the freedom movement 

Running hostels for women of weaker sections 

founding the Mahila Vidya Peetha 

serving society till her last breath

till the ripe old age of 97

was this brave daughter of India 

a true patriot, leaving a great legacy

Nagamma Patil of Hubli, India!  

If you could change into your favourite character which would be it?

The Blogchatter prompt for this week under their #BlogchatterBlogHop series was to write on your favourite character. When I look back to my childhood, it is evident that after the initial "love for the comics", it was Enid Blyton books that attracted my attention. Amongst her many types of books for children, it was specifically the mystery series featuring the 'Five find outers' which was my favourite. Infact, some of her books for smaller children featuring creatures like elves, gnomes, goblins etc, came to my notice only after I had discovered the 'Five find outers'. Later I got to know of other characters like in the adventurous "Famous Five" and secretive "Secret seven" series. Yet, for me it was the five find outers who were the best!

The five find outers are Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pit, Bets and the dog Buster. The character I loved most was that of Fatty. Now, there must have been an additional reason for my love of the leader of the five find outers, the key brain instrumental in solving many cases like the "Mystery of the disappearing cat" and "Mystery of the strange bundle." As a child I was on the plump side and tended to be a butt of jokes amongst classmates at school and remarks at home. Yet, here was Fatty, a hero who was looked up to with admiration by his entire team of find outers! His body, rather than being a handicap was an advantage when he wanted to disguise himself as a beggar or older person.

Changing into my favourite character would mean going back to the carefree days of childhood. It would also mean engaging in some exciting activities of investigation. Unlike an adventure series, the find outers are required to solve mysteries by looking for clues and using the grey matter a lot. It also involves getting into some tough, at times dangerous situations as well. This can be thrilling and exciting! We would be looking forward fondly to our summer holidays for reunion, bonding and another mystery to solve. We would also enjoy the mouth watering food that Enid Blyton described so eloquently- pies, sausages,chocolates, jam tarts, ginger beer and many more!

Slipping into the character of Fatty would give me an opportunity to play leader and develop leadership skills. It would be fun to plan, taking inputs from each member of the team including that of Bets who tends to be bypassed by others as she is the youngest. I would love to disguise myself as many interesting personalities while on an investigative journey. Yes, the character that I would love to change into if that would be possible is that of Frederick Algernon "Fatty" Trotteville! I would love to give the village policeman Mr Goon a run for his money one more time!  

• NB: This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop www.theblogchatter.com    
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In Search of Utopia

 

All of us would like an Utopian world 

Mostly, our idea  of an utopian world

yet, no one wants the responsibilty to make or build  it. 

who then will bell the cat? 

what if one mans's utopia is another's  dystopia?  

Most people would want their Utopia

to house  only people whom they like 

how about, one in which different views can be heard

where we can agree to disagee without being disagreeable?  

An utopia where everyone  has oppotunities to live, thrive 

where there is no need for anger, worry 

everyone living in an attitude of gratitude, in abundance 

everyone earning their bread honestly, having compassion for all

showing love and respect for every living being...

Now, wouldn't that world be a grand utopian world? 

• NB: This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop www.theblogchatter.com