An Uncommon Day at the Restaurant

The latest weekly prompts of Blogchatter under the Bloghop series for the week 20th to 26th September did not create the required spark in me to write about them. I was wondering what to do when an idea struck me. As I was travelling during Onam festival season, I had missed writing on a prompt ( for 6th to 12 September 2022) that read " You are sitting in a coffee shop, reading a book when....". I asked myself   " Why not write on the said prompt?" So here I am attempting it. It is purely a fictional account of what happens to a retired person on a given day.

One of my routines after retirement has been to leave home after breakfast at around 10 AM  and dash off straight to the public library. I would spend two to three hours and return home for lunch. Occasionally, when in the mood I would enter the "Harry's" restuarant, order coffee and complete a book that I had not finished reading to be able to return it when I visited the library. Sometimes, I just peeped in to see if any old friends were there in the restaurant. If  'yes', I entered to have a chat and reminiscence of old times. Harry's had grown with our town and it is today a grand old landmark . The  business was started in the year 1964 by a couple of youngsters in their twenties. Young people like us at that time used to flock to that place as it was more of a meeting place than eating place. There used to be so much energy in the air! We discussed everything from the movies to politics and social issues. 

With time, the place grew and we continued to visit to meet good old pals. Of course, we were no longer young and our appetite for food had also declined. But the owners had a soft corner for us . They had one hall set aside for use  mostly by the old timers.  When the business changes hands to the next/ younger generation, we cannot hope to enjoy privileges such as order a cup of tea  and sit in the restaurant for as long as we want. But, for now we are making the most of it! 

I remember clearly. It was  a Friday. I had ordered my coffee, opened my book and read a couple of pages, The waiter would come slowly. He knew I was not in a hurry. Then it happened. Gun shots, screaching and screaming from the other side of the restaurant, where the brisk business took place.  The few of us in our part of the restaurant looked at each other in shock. We rushed to the other side to know what happened. The waiter and the manager stopped us mid way and said "Every thing is okay. Please return to your seats, Just then, we could hear the wails of an ambulance rushing to the doorstep of the restaurant. A  police jeep arrived soon after. 

We, the senior citizens reluctantly went back to our side of the restaurant. But this time we did not go back to our individual tables but huddled around a couple of them and spoke in hushed voices. Everyone speculated and shared  their thoughts on what could have happened. One person checked his mobile for any "Breaking news". There were none. After  spending a little while longer, we decided to disperse. One guy said he would hang around and would get to the other side, unnoticed. 

I decided to go back home. I was no longer in the  mood  to visit the library.  When I reached home, my wife opened the front door in a flash and was relieved to see me safe. She knew I visited Harrys often. "It is all over the place in the TV news channels " she said. " Six yougsters including two girls  had  been to Harry's when they had an arguement over one of the girls. One of them was carrying his father's gun and started shooting wildly. A girl and a boy have been seriously injured and rushed to the hospital." I sighed and mumbled "It all happened when I was there, on the other side of the restaurant. A senior citizen can no longer look forward to a quiet retired life...."  

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

Personal Milestone

The weekly prompt of Blogchatter under their Bloghop series was to write either on ( a) Basic aspects of an 'ideal' blog or (b) One personal milestone that you are proud of. I pondered over the choices and felt that the former would mean giving tips for ideal blogging. There is plenty of material already out there giving advice on the subject. I therefore thought I would write about the 'personal milestone'. 

However, on pondering further I realized that an important milestone for me was completing 10 years of consistent blogging - to be alive and engaged in the activity even after so many years. I say this because when I started blogging in 2012, there were many bloggers whose work I got to read, appreciate and admire in the blogger's community, Indiblogger. Yet, today barring a few, their writing is no longer visible in the blogging world. It does no good to "start with a bang and end with a whimper". I see this post  as an opportunity to simply share my journey so that readers can take away whatever they find suitable or appropriate to their situation.  

I first started with a professional blog in prose titled "HRDian Speak" wherein I shared my experiences  working as an HR executive in various roles and areas such as learning and development, industrial relations and corporate policy. This was soon followed by another blog (called Spontaneous Overflow) for creative writing featuring more of poetry and a little of prose ( interviews, short stories and articles). Subsequently, I started a blog for writing exclusively corporate poetry. One matter of satisfaction is that I have been writing consistently. Moving from one blog to another with varied subject matter (switching from prose to poetry and viceversa)  gives me the variety and freedom from monotony.  

One of the guiding thoughts for me in all these years was to write what I enjoy. I was not looking for things to write simply because it is the 'hot cake' subject of the day. It had to be on something that I believed in and  my thoughts are unambiguously expressed irrespective of whether or not it is the current popular view. The material in my blog served as fodder for writing my maiden book " Straight from the Heart- Thoughts and Experiences of an HR Professional". This was followed by the book "Corporate poems- Straight & Simple" which also found ready material in my blogs. Taking part in the A2Z challenge of Blogchatter for two years provided the material for two more books- "Random Thoughts on random words" and "26 Verses and 26 prose notes on 26 lofty topics." 

Consistent blogging for ten years has meant that I can bring out more books as and when I choose to do so. Having said that, I must confess that my focus has been mainly on the writing and not building a solid readership base with SEO and other digital marketing techniques. So much so, readers come and go and I have been happy if I my readers can relate to or benefit from the blog. A reader, Ankit Sharma had written to me thus and I incorporated it in the blurb of my maiden book " At one time, I did not end my day without reading Mr Rajeev's articles in his blog, searching for new topics and concepts in HR. I found him a good motivator and coach, guiding young professionals to excel in their career." To me, it has always been about the relevant people finding and benefiting from my blog rather than having a huge number, giving a thumbs up to a material they haven't cared to read. 

As a blogger, my priority is to post my work in my blog. When you send your poems/writing to anthologies, there could be a delay of months between the creation and the actual publication as time is required for compilation and completing the process of publication. Therefore, I choose the few anthologies to which to contribute in a year. The USP in all my writing, be it professional  prose articles or poetry, is to keep it simple. Using a lot of jargons may give an impression of the writer being a knowledgeable intellectual. I prefer though to sacrifice that for clarity and easy understanding of my readers. 

Looking back, I have a sense of satifaction based not necessarily on the popular or societal criteria but my own criteria of success- After all, it is no mean matter to write consistently for a decade and have readers who can relate to what you have to say...  

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

Guidance for the Ultimate Destination

On a given day, someone or the other

is happy with you or annoyed with you

for what you did or didn't do...

 

Looking to others for approval

all the time, to determine your state of happiness 

is so Yo Yo, -  such a draining experience! 

Letting the internal signals, rather than the outside

 provide feedback on our contentment, well being 

letting them be the guiding light, for way forward 

makes life so simple, uncomplicated..

All else can be misleading 

too much effort for a mirage  

when love, peace of mind 

was always there, inside of us 

quietly waiting to be discovered...

:NB This poem has been included in the international anthology "Kaleidoscope" published by International culture center, Kolkatta.

Huge wholesome Dream

I dream, you dream,

we all dream 

yet our dreams so different

some so narrow- dreams for just

self and immediate environs 

Other dreams a little wider

encompassing welfare of the village

state, nation or region

when will the dreams though 

merge so as to encompass everyone

and not be in conflict with one another?  

When will all dreams 

of the entire world

be in harmony 

when dream of one does not mean 

disaster for another..?

Like when a country attacks another 

for territory, establish superiority

to cause physical destruction 

and loss of  precious lives 

dream of one fulfilled at the expense

of shattered dreams of million others!  

How about a huge wholesome dream 

encompassing dreams, aspirations of everyone 

when, even when you dream 

and do things for your benefit 

it benefits other people as well 

Like a realized dream of scientific invention

bringing fame to you, relief to mankind

fulfilled entrepreneur dream 

 providing  accomplishment to you

 and jobs to many 

wholesome dreams, not in conflict

 but complementing each other

May the humans of future, live lives

they were meant to live 

may they have wholesome dreams

be happy and merge into the happiness

of all living beings...

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.

Mysterious box in the Garden

My name is Nithin . This happened five years ago when I was twelve years old and studying in the eighth standard  in the Maharishi public school in Mysore. My father works for the state electricity board. We have been living in our traditional ancestral home for generations. School students were having summer vacation at that time. I was sitting on the doorstep in front of our house reading a new adventure book written by Enid Blyton. Although most of my friends loved Harry Porter, I somehow liked the Enid Blyton books to which my father had introduced me.   

Then it happened. Timmy, our desi mongrel started barking excitedly. He was scratching at a freshly dug pit. Perhaps the gardener who visits us once a week had not completed his work, when he left the prevous sunday. I kept my book aside and ran to Tim. He continued with his excitement and pulled out part of  what looked like a medium sized box. Mother was busy in the kitchen, father had gone to work and sister to visit her friend. I was the only one around. I picked up the box which had already attracted my interest due to the intricate design on the top that glowed through the mud all over. As I opened the box, I was blinded by the gleaming jewels that included beautiful stones like gems, rubies, daimonds apart from gold! 

It took me a while to get over the shock and surprise. I decided to put it back in the pit and cover it with some waste materials. I would need to consult father as to what to do next. I went back to my place at the door step and picked up the book again. But now, I was not able to concentrate. My mind was racing away with all kinds of thoughts. I was wondering to myself. Our ancestral house has  existed for long, with years of history. Perhaps it was previously a part of the huge palace grounds of yore. I tried to imagine what the owner of this lovely jewel box looked like. 

My mind soon travelled to the interiors of the palace and the chamber of a 20 year old young, delicate princess. There she was standing before the mirror trying out various combinations of her dazzling jewelry. Oh how lovely she looked! She was admiring her own beauty and lovliness in the mirror when a masked man entered the room . He had a scarf which he used to quickly cover her face from behind. It all happened in split seconds. The princess was smothered and roughly pushed on to the bed. The masked man quickly picked up the box and ran outside. 

In his hurry and excitement, he seems to have stumbled attracting the attention of the guards. The guards noticed and started chasing the masked man who fled with a fluency as if he was familiar with the turf of the palace. He quickly disappeared at a curve and resurfaced at the corner of the huge garden. Perhaps, he had planned it in advance. He quickly dropped the box, covered it unnoticed and ran to the posterior side of the palace. He has run backside! Get him! Get him, Get him! my mind screamed to the guards. 

"Being holidays I have been letting you sleep a little longer. But 9.30 in the morning and still sleeping!" I heard my mother's chiding voice from far away and felt the pain of the cane on my body. "Go brush your teeth. Everyone has had their breakfast and left for the day" she said.    

• NB: This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop www.theblogchatter.com . The prompt was "You found a mysterious jewel box while gardening".