Last words

             I opened my eyes to mayhem.It did not shock me.It had been like that since a couple of years.My space,my world wasn't like this, that it is now.I quickly gathered my stuff and went to the basement where I was safe from those people.It was chaos.I didn't know what to do.I had lost my family to this crisis.I had nothing to lose,but I had decided that this is not how I wanted my life to end.My mother made me promise her that I would die with dignity,but lately I had lost hope hearing all these news of people dying,looking at the corpses lying on the roads- unidentified- covered with dust and dried blood.I was too tired to fight,I got out of my basement only to notice that those people had left.I realised that I had no strength or the courage to do so.
           I noticed a crowd, I found it hard to step towards the crowd because I could hear a child crying.It was painful,more painful then watching my family die,more painful then the fearful nights that I had spent in my own house and more fearful then death.I knew something was worst then it ever was because here,in Syria we had seen a lot of terrible things.I peered through the crowd and saw the little kid.
           It felt that somebody had stabbed something in my heart to see a kid that small be in pain.I knew him.He used to play around sometimes when there were no patrolling.I had seen him laugh and fall and kick the ball so hard that it landed near my feet.We had no conversations,but he had a cute smile.I had heard him laugh,but had never heard any words spoken by him.
           People around me had just went bonkers trying to find help and some were trying to make him feel better.I was frozen.It struck me that...what the hell was happening? No one had deserve to die like that,let alone a kid.What had gone so wrong that people were treated like this? People had to live in their own country with so much of fear.Was life so cheap?Was God just watching all this? 
           He was crying so much that it was difficult for him to catch his breath.And then he said,"I am gonna tell god everything". The first.the last,and the only words I heard from that little kids mouth were those.And moments later he died.I hadn't realised that I was crying.But I was happy for the little one that he didn't had to return to the basement where he had to wait for either a miracle or death!


P.S : This a fictional story inspired by a dreadful death of three year old who died in the Syrian crisis.And yes those were his last words.

What happened to "Be nice"?

  I was reading this book recently, The Second Coming by John Niven.

It is a hilarious book on how God takes a vacation for a week or something and when He returns He sees His creation in shambles.And decides to send His beloved son Jesus to go and teach people down there of the basic commandment of "Being nice"

   It's an amazingly written book.But the whole concept of being nice got me thinking of how such a simple and basic thought has vanished from the human community.I mean how difficult is it to be nice to a fellow human? I thought over a series of events that I encountered and joined the dots.

   I was travelling by train  during peak hours and was in a rush to reach home because it was quite late and was already frustrated over the series of phone calls my mother had made to make sure I reach home fast. (I belong to a conservative South-Indian family,what do you expect?) There was this lady who was around 50's and was struggling with four heavy bags.She was literally trembling because of the crowd and the baggage.So I offered to help her,I helped her to get a rickshaw out of the station and then went on my way.I had no thought in my mind.I got a chocolate I was a happy kid.I reached home narrated the story feeling all proud over my good deed.My Appa's expression changed."See,It is good that you helped a stranger,but the world outside is evil People aren't good anymore.You need to be careful." I was amused at his respone.He sensed it and gave me series of examples of how people are tricked and kidnapped.The conversation went from helping someone to women trafficking.

  I couldn't digest these facts and the types of crimes that took place so I went and looked it up on Internet.It was true.The statistics are terrifying.

  It actually explains why people are fearful and not open enough to trust anyone.But is it really that bad out there? The concept of being nice is going to be vanished forever.I really miss the days when The scouts in the school use to get brownie points for conducting a good deed and it stayed forever.The thought process is so infiltrated these days that it's Bizarre.

But I still hope that I could be nice to people without any fear.

I would love to try.

Easy way out!

                                   We are humans!always prone to flaws,I mean seriously I sometimes love the imperfection in people and admire their effort of not hiding them at all.And the best weapon man ever had,have and will have is Excuses.

                                   I know what are you all thinking,Excuses..me..Naaah! *slap yourself* Its the best way out sometimes.Deal with it.Let me list down some things where these are most probably used.

Me for not posting a Blog:

 Umm..well..*scratches her head* Actually..*bites her nail*..the thing was...*stares at the sky for an answer*..I had college work..*slaps herself* SORRY! 

Me for reaching late in a lecture:               

-"Ma'am the trains were late".(works well in Bombay during Monsoon)

-"Ma'am I was waiting for my friend". (Don't use it.Both of y'all are refrained from entering the class)

-"Ma'am I forgot my Project so had to go back home to get it. (Legit.Highly Recommended)

Me for Not going to college:

- "Mom,the lecture is cancelled"

-"Dad,the professor met with an accident"

-"We have a weekly off"

-"My head/stomach/leg/body hurts" (Whatever suits you)

-"It's raining too much,the trains will be late"

Me for not submitting a project:

- "My Laptop crashed'

- "There was no current at my place"

- "I forgot"

- "I need more time to make it better"

                            These are like basic ones.The list goes on forever.It sometimes works,Sometimes it does not. Well you could always try!

Tell me if it does!

Things my Mom never told me about Love.

                                        So,Yes! It is one of those posts related to Love.I know I am not Nicholas Sparks.But I know a thing or two about love.I always have these discussions with my mother and her definition of love is something different.It's about after effects."Find a mature guy"she says."Amma,mature guys aren't fun",I argued. "All guys are fun" ,she came up with this I don't know how. And don't get my Amma (mother) wrong, she married for love.She found love when she was 18.And thus got married! And after 25 years of ups and downs,they are still going strong.Moving on,I am still single and here I am writing about it.And yes my life is sad! Not really proud of it. *Smug face*
                                       Everybody has this different perception on love.People with broken hearts,old married couples,teen-lovers and singles.Different perceptions of love and different types of love.When you talk or debate about it with somebody there is no end to it.But these perceptions can be generalised somewhere,Like categorised between good looking people and the average looking ones,rich and well...middle class!etc. But seldom you find a thought so pure that it makes your heart sob.
                                     I once had this project whose description is not important.I went to Kamathipura (Mumbai's biggest red light area) *yes I am cool* and interviewed a transgender .When I got her comfortable into having a proper conversation.I asked her about the hardships she faced into her day to day life.She listed down a couple of regular things that we already knew.People being completely inhuman to them! Which were heart-wrenching to hear. But then I asked her about her love life. She blushed and ironically her name was Rose I was amused at her expression. Rose,then narrated her story to me,How she fell in love with a customer and how he accepted her as a partner.The way she described her love towards the man,how he spoke,what he laughed at,what he loved about her and how they spent their time.I was put to shame being a girl.But some months later she found out that he was already married and had a kid with his wife.She was broken.Still he talked her into being her lover,and she agreed to it. I was confused."Why?" I asked her."Love is never selfish,you never ever forget your first love no matter how much you deny it.It happens only once,whatever happens later are just adjustments and replacements.Even though I knew he lied to me,but his love for me was never a lie.Once you give some one your heart,You accept that person with all the flaws.It is just that way it is.",She smiled."Always remember this". "I will" I smiled back. I sensed her genuineness.
 I really had a lot of thoughts in my mind that day! But at the end of the day I made peace with the fact that,
It is the way it is. :)
                                

Just Like Shobha!

                                                Strolling around have always been one of my favorite things to do when I have some me time! And there’s a park near my locality where I go for a walk during the evenings to watch the sunset. One fine evening I was just sitting in my spot wired up in my thoughts, Staring at the orange sky. This man just came and sat on the bench! His face was wrinkled, He was around 65 years old with silver hair and mustache, but had this flushed face of a much younger man! He said, “It’s beautiful isn’t it?” I agreed and shook my head in agreement!

                               “So what do you do beta?”,He asked. “I am a student studying Journalism” I answered.  “Oh that is impressive”, he smiled back.  I remembered my grandpa’s face when I had told him that I wanted to be a Journalist. He had the similar expression. “My Laxmi also writes well..But she doesn’t appreciate her own talent. I have read her stories! I really liked them!” He laughed with a tad bit of innocence. “So what does she do?’ ,I queried. “She teaches, she is an excellent teacher .She just joined this international school in Thane.” I was confused because I didn’t know who he was talking about his daughter or someone else. “Uncle, Laxmi is your? “ He figured the conundrum from my facial expression. “Oh she is my grand- daughter!  “Oh I thought…” He didn’t let me complete. His face dropped. His smile faded away. Maybe I had struck a wrong chord. But I didn’t know how to react. We just sat there in complete silence.”He turned and spoke “Laxmi is my grand-daughter I raised her after my daughter and son-in-law died during the floods in Bombay..She was a toddler when we got this news..She waited near the window of their Colaba apartment for her parents to return from office but they didn’t. When we reached there she jumped into my arms and asked me where she was? We had no answers..You know what is the worst possible thing for a parent? To see their kids pass away. I have seen Shobha , my daughter, weep ,laugh, sleep, I have seen every phase of her life  but my fate made me see her on that burning pyre. 

                                      He continued speaking with his eyes welling up.” Since then Laxmi is with us. Now when she drapes her Saree along just like her mother, applies Kajal in her big potato eyes.. Takes my blessing before starting her day .I see my daughter in her. She is just like Shobha .I have been paying for her education from my pension and to appreciate that she bought me a Shirt and a silk saree for her ammayi from her first salary.” She said, I love you tataya..Whatever you have done for me is irreplaceable “. He wiped his eyes and smiled at me. He felt relieved and light. Maybe He didn’t speak about this to anybody. Maybe he didn’t have anybody to speak to about it. He was so proud of her Laxmi, that he told his story to a complete stranger. He said, “I am sorry to bother you..I..just..” .“Its okay uncle! I like stories especially from elderly people” He laughed at my remark. “I should get going, you too should leave its getting dark” See you later. Take care beta! Reach home safely. He kept his hand on my head and walked away! I came back home reminiscing my memories with my grandpa!

And wrote this :)

A Fresh Beginning

There are lot of things in the world which are left unsaid,unspoken and unheard.
Here is my way of sharing it with the world those stories which may or may not be heroic but will definitely be simple and worth reading.
I am a student of Journalism.And more then reading or preferring to listening to music during travelling I observe people and listen to their talks.They might be not world changing conversations but are interesting though.
Working women,college going chicks,frustrated men,content families or even pedlars for that matter.
Everyone has a story to tell.
Ain't nobody got time for such people!
I do.I wanna listen to them!
I am promising myself that I am gonna write every Sunday of the week.
Let's see how it works out.
This is my space and every reader out there is welcomed and thanked if you have read my penned thoughts.
Fingers crossed.