The Beautiful and Terrible World – Slam Poetry

This is my first poetry for which many people deserve credit. It was a group effort, which turned out beautifully! Written by me and Elaine (do visit her blog here!), scrutinized and modified by Niharika, and all the moral support provided by Stuti, here’s another addition to our overflowing Flatmate Goals!

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Another beautiful day!                                                                                 Another terrible day!

What’s so beautiful about
Wars and blood baths?

Wars are also waged for good
For change, and everyday
Is better than the last!

Good? The world has locked away
All the good it once knew
And the demons that they created
Are right in front of you!
Everywhere I see is anguish,
Pain, sorrow and despair!
Nothing ever seems fair!

What is not fair?
You see those little kids
Filled with hopes and dreams?
They have so much 
To offer to the world!

They? They grow up!
And all their hope is leeched
Right out of them
And their dreams are crumbled 
Into a million pieces!

Yes! They grow up.
To fight for what is right, 
To remove traces of sorrow, 
To strive for peace,
To abolish evil.
They speak!

And they are shot
Right in the head!
Their throats cut through.
Their voices silenced forever.

Their voices made a difference
It’s their acts of kindness and sacrifice
Which ignites a spark in us
A positive action,
A chain reaction,
Till the whole world is alight!

And where was this light?
When she screamed for help!
No one dared to move a muscle
Nor spoke for her. Well,
She died of course!
Where was this kindness
When she was killed in the womb?
When she was left beside a garbage can!
When she was looked down upon!

But now she fights!
So, no-one suffers her fate.
She is a phoenix of justice
Reborn from the ashes
Shining brightly, smiling gently!
What’s not beautiful?
And amongst all this cynicism
People still fall madly in love.
Slowly driving the darkness away.

Love? Love is brutally murdered!
It is hunted, till slaughtered!
All in the name of religion and caste.
Alas!
Love is reviled…

Yet love is alive
Why don’t you ask the ones?
Who loved and survived!
Whose hope was revived
Because their families fought for them
The world stood with them
This world has taught us
To open our arms and
Welcome love, peace and prosperity.
It has taught us that
Little girls can be warriors.
And little boys, sometimes
Just need someone
To wipe the tears off their face.

It has indeed!
Taught us that humans are humans.
The diminishing characters they are
Surpassing even the greatest demons.

No! It has taught us that
All humans are not monsters.
The nurturing goodness they have
Can uproot any evil from within!

What a terrible world!

It’s a beautiful world!

Cardboard and Kids

There are few things that give you immense satisfaction. I recently had a wonderful experience with little kids from a government school in Hyderabad running around with a Google cardboard stuck to their eyes, reveling in the joy of virtual reality for the first time in their lives.

Some of us might never understand what they felt when they were transported to a different world. For a privileged few among us, virtual reality is a means of entertainment in our free time. But for those kids, it was an experience they’ll remember all their life. They learnt about the human body by travelling through it, as a cell. And it was a sight to see them zooming around the classroom, driving their rover on the moon. And the fact that I was instrumental in providing this memorable experience to them fills my heart with unbound joy.

Children do find everything in nothing, and make you wonder why you haven’t been paying enough attention to marvel at that nothingness. As adults, what we learnt in that classroom was very different. It was everything that we knew as kids, but had pushed it somewhere in the dark corners of our mind as we grew up.

The experience had as much impact on me as it did on the kids. And I hope I carry the learning with me throughout my life, just like I hope they will.

A Very Happy Birthday Indeed

I’m writing this post at 2 a.m. because I had to write now, when I still feel this surge of emotion in my heart. This year’s birthday saw another strike-through in my Bucket List!

I wasn’t happy about turning 22. Because being 22 means I continue to be an adult. But you all made me so incredibly happy, I teared up. I quite like being 22 now, because these 2 hours gave me so many memories to cherish. And all I can think right now is

I don’t know about you
But I’m feeling 22
Everything will be all right if
We just keep dancing like we’re
22

The moment I stepped out of my room, I was greeted by excited screams, jigglypuff’s song, and the shimmer of fairy lights and candles in the dark. And then came the tears, for a couple of seconds, but they were there nonetheless.

Thank you for the wonderful track – with Jigglypuff, Pikachu and Boom Boody! Thank you for the beautiful decorations, thank you for all the effort you put into making this day special for me. Thank you for the great gifts. I love them all! Thank you for the surprise visit, for the dance performance, for your birthday wishes. Most of all, thank you for all the memories.

I missed a lot of people, who couldn’t be here today. I wish you were here, so we could stay up and talk all night. But you were, in one way or another. Being physically absent doesn’t mean you’re not a part of my life anymore. After college, we’ve all moved on to different phases in our lives, but you’ll always be a part of mine.

I wish my parents were here, just like they were for 17 years. I wish my sister were here to trouble me. And I wish my dog were here, wondering what all the fuss is about and why we aren’t asleep yet. I miss you all dearly, but I’ll be seeing you in a week.

Two more stuffed toys have now been added to my collection. Welcome, Minion and Pikachu.

Another year older, but am I a year wiser? Yes. Yes I am.

If You Were Here Today

If you were here today, I would have invited you into my room and showed you the place I’ve been given for a month. It has comfortable beds and the softest pillows I’ve ever come across! I would have offered you the laddoos that my mother sent with me, just a little snack from home. You know how mothers are. You would have loved them.

I would have told you about my first day at my first job. I would have told you how surprised I was that I didn’t get bored in the orientation. You would have loved the people here, at least those that I’ve met till now (save a crabby cab driver). Then I would have told you how lost I was about the income tax returns, and the various banks. I would have cribbed about how I don’t feel old enough to do all this and you would have laughed. You would have told me to grow up. Well, the process has begun.

If you were here today, I would have told you about the delicious bagara baingan that I had for lunch today. It tasted just like my mother makes it. I don’t know if I’ll ever learn to cook. I think I’ll just manage to survive.

I would have told you how excited I was to start the new chapter in my life, and at the same time, how intimidated. I would have told you that I’m scared I’m not good enough, and you would have encouraged me. And you would have made me see that I am. I can almost hear you say ‘You deserve this’. And I would have believed you. I would have believed in myself.

Then I would have told you how frustrating it is to look for houses. I would have told you how I want to step into a house and see my home in there. Too much of a dreamer? Maybe.

If you were here today, I would have told you how I had forgotten that I’m growing up. I’m almost 22 now, but I don’t feel like an adult. I don’t feel responsible enough. I’m not. I won’t make a great adult. But I guess I’ll settle for being a good child-at-heart adult.

If you were here today, I would have had a lot to tell you.

If you were here.

TommeTopple Readathon & TBR

I’ve never participated in a readathon before, mostly because they are focussed on read-as-many-books-as-you-can for the short duration of the readathon. I have never wanted to compromise on quality for quantity, which is why this readathon caught my attention. Thanks to Ayunda from Tea & Paperbacks for letting me know about it.

TomeTopple is a 2-week readathon, from June 5 to June 19, created by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. The goal of this readathon is to check off some of the intimidating big books (500+ pages) from your TBR shelf. I have quite a few tomes in my TBR, so this readathon is perfect for me! Here goes to participating in my first ever readathon.

There are 5 mini challenges in this readathon:

1. Read more than one 500+ page book
2. Take graphic novel breaks
3. Read a book that is a part of a series
4. Read over 500 pages in one week
5. Read a 500+ page adult novel

I don’t read a lot of graphic novels. So I will just skip challenge #2. For the rest of the challenges, here’s my TBR:

Mistborn: The Final Empire, by Brandon Sanderson

This book has been in my TBR for a very long time now. So I’m finally going to go ahead and read it. I’ve heard lots of praises about this book and I’m really looking forward to reading it. It has been a very long time since I have read fantasy so this book will, hopefully, also satisfy my growing craving for the genre.

The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak

Another great book that I haven’t read till now. I have seen the movie though, and it made me bawl like a baby. If I liked the movie so much, I’m sure I’ll love the book.

If I am able to read both these books, it takes care of challenge #1. By reading Mistborn, I will be completing challenge #3. I will try my best to complete challenge #4 starting next Monday, since I will be too busy packing and flying this week. And I think both these books are adult novels. They’re not YA for sure. So I guess I’m all set for the challenge!

I wish I had time to read more of those big books in my shelf, but I’m going to have a busy 2 weeks. I’ve got packing to do, and then I have to leave for Hyderabad. I can’t believe I have to start working. It feels like college just started yesterday. But well, these are some ramblings for another time.

I would love for you to join me in this readathon. Let me know if you are. I would love to read your TBR and updates.

Until next time.

 

NaPoWriMo Day 23: The World of Books

As I sit here reading and turn the pages,
Gleefully, I visit many lands unknown.
I see a ruthless king on a mighty throne.
Unseen, I travel through the ages,
With witches, wizards, Gods and sages.
One day, I’m in the hut of a crone,
Another, with a pipe and a mystery of my own,
Amidst torrid affairs and worldly outrages.
One day, on the back of a Hippogriff I fly,
Or soar across realms, from the Landing to The Wall,
And beyond, where White Walkers crawl.
One day I’m off to where shadows lie,
To find the one ring to rule them all.
As I turn the pages, worlds fly by.

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Prompt: Today, I challenge you to write a sonnet. Traditionally, sonnets are 14-line poems, with ten syllables per line, written in iambs.You can write a “sonnet” that doesn’t have meet all of the traditional formal elements, but still functions as a mini-essay of a sort.

Since today is World Book Day, I decided to base my sonnet on the World of Books. I chose the Petrarchan sonnet with the following rhyme scheme: a b b a a b b a c d d c d c
I haven’t followed all the iambs. Turns out, writing a sonnet is not as easy as it looks.
Hope you enjoy it 🙂

Is this place a dump? (Need advice from fellow bloggers and readers)

Sorry for this seemingly useless post in the middle of NaPoWriMo, but I really need some advice from you all. If you have been following me for some time, you might have noticed I use this blog for everything I write – poems, daily ramblings and about the books I’m reading.

Although I don’t have a lot of book posts, do you think I need a new blog dedicated to books and limit this one to poems, ramblings and maybe short stories, or should I continue with everything on this blog?

I thought asking fellow bloggers and readers would give me a better idea of what I should do. So please help me out here.

Thanks!

Batman V Superman!

The day is finally here! I’ve been waiting for this Friday since I first saw the trailer of Batman V Superman. The critic reviews that I’ve read do share a mixed opinion, but who cares! That won’t stop me from watching the movie, and miss Batman kicking Superman’s ass! 

I’m a Bat fan. And a Ben Affleck fan. And I’m going to get them both in a single, (might I mention great looking) package.

Fans of both superheroes are already battling it out on social media with memes, an evergreen social weapon.

Are you excited about the movie?

A Soft Spot for Hitler?

Hitler has done some awful things for which he does not deserve forgiveness. I was, like every other child, repulsed by the destruction he caused and the lives he had taken. And then I came across this :

“Hitler created laws against animal cruelty”

So I started reading about him. Turns out he loved animals. He was extremely fond of dogs, especially his German Shepherd named Blondi. They seemed inseparable. He adored Blondi and her five puppies.

Look at him

Just look

Okay. So he loved animals, but did not care about human casualties to achieve what he wanted; to do what he thought was right.

I’m in a bit of spot here. That sounds like me. You know the old “I don’t care who dies in a movie as long as the dog lives“. I shed no tears when people die. Because they have to. In fact, I love murder mysteries.

And it doesn’t end here. He suffered from Ailurophobia, the fear of cats. All right, so I don’t have a phobia. But cats scare me. Kittens don’t. But cats, they look evil. Whenever I’m passing by a cat, it looks at me like it will scratch my eyes out if I take a step closer to it. They don’t wag their tails and tell me they’re happy to see me. They just sit there and stare. Menacingly.

What does that mean? Am I Hitler?

But well, he poisoned his dog in the end, so I guess not. Peace.

The Last Semester

It will all be over soon. 4 years of college. I still can’t believe it has been 4 years already. Well, almost. But these 3 years and 7 months have given me uncountable memories that I’ll cherish all my life.

Manipal has taught me a lot, from living on my own, to embracing the things I love. It taught me that sometimes, people may take time to warm up to me. It taught me how to be a better human being. It taught me not be condescending and biased. It taught me how to get along with everyone, regardless of their color, caste, the language they speak and where they’re from. It taught me how to respect the differences I might have with others. It taught me a way of life.

And now, in 3 months, I will say goodbye to my college forever. And although I’m very excited about the next phase in my life, it scares me. So far, college has just been an illusion of living independently. I have had to do nothing on my own, except get dressed and go to different places.

And I’m not great at keeping in touch with people. I don’t know how to do that. I’ve moved so many times, that I just let go. And I do that with a lot of ease. I still talk to a few people of course, but it isn’t the same. Things change, and we’re not as close as we once were. So what will happen to all my friends from college? We will no longer be living in a huge campus where we bump into each other everyday or can decide to meet up whenever we want, wherever we want. We will no longer be living in the same hostel, where we can go to each other’s room and just sit around and play poker or UNO or just chat away. Hell, most of us will not even be the same city!

So I’m writing to thank all of you now. Thank you for being a part of my life. Thank you for making my time in college wonderful. Thank you for imbibing a little of your fashion sense in me so at least I know how to look decent now. Thank you for everything.

And I’m attaching some photos of us, hoping to make you cry.

Roommates! Thanks for keeping me company in the room 😀

NCC Ladies 😀

Teacher’s wedding gang?

Go to sleep Utkarsh

Sirs 😛

Bowling in Mangalore finally!

CSE – B 😀

As my last three months in college, I plan on enjoying these to the fullest. At least as much as I can on a very limited budget (This was a hint for my parents to send me a voluptuous amount of money).

I don’t know how I’ll survive after college though. How do I suddenly turn into a responsible, mature adult? It hasn’t happened in these 21 years. If magic exists, I will need some in three months.

For now, I will go and continue my vacation-before-I-start-working. Adios!