SOULspace

Have you ever told the same story 7 times to 7 different groups of children? I have, and will have to every Monday for the next 3 to 4 months! I am filling in for a friend who wants a break from storytelling at a school near my place. She has been doing this for 4 years now!.Amazing. So for my first story, I planned to do, Perseus from the Greek heroes myths. Story is great, right elements of heroism, monsters and magic so children should like it, and I was not wrong on that. I made simple drawings and in my signature style , converted them into stick puppets for use in the class. I made a good looking paper helmet of Invisibility, a Shield, and a pair of paper Sandals with wings to fly. The children loved the props, and especially got a lot of compliments for my rendition of Perseus. "Awesome" was the word one kid used to describe my drawing of him! Who doesn't like accolade?! I just lapped it up and basked in it! I threw in a bit of Geography, showed them where Greece w...

You must be wondering why, I'm weighing such heavy thoughts in my mind. It is stream which was activated by an article that I read in The Hindu, by Usha Jesudasen. She asks us how we practice Ahimsa at home, and goes on to say that Ahimsa is not some deep philosophy but is a way of life and asks us to examine our lives to see if we do practice it. She says it is not about renunciation, it is about sharing and caring. I quite agree with her. Ahimsa is non-violence in thought and action. In these times when there is such cut throat competition and violence you may think I'm anachronistic. Violence and aggression is an animal instinct. In fact the smile is a grimace of aggression that slowly evolved into this expression of recognition. I digress...Coming back to Ahimsa, I think we can learn from children. I remember my son was taking part in a running race during an event organized in our apartment. He had to run to a point, put on a T-shirt and then run back to the starting po...

I was approached to do a book review at the Bangalore book festival by a start up company. They do online publishing; authors publish themselves with the help of the company. New and raring to go. Concept is great; we have so many aspiring authors with no platform to launch them. This company will realise the dreams of many an amateur author. Coming to the event, it was the launch of the company name and some select books at the Bangalore Book Festival. They (the directors) soon realised that verbal acquiescence is no guarantee that your request will be carried out. The Festival organisers had promised them a place to launch their company and their books. But on that day, feigned ignorance!! So, this found one of the directors running from pillar to post looking for a place to set up the books and paraphernalia. Finally, the aisle which led from the entrance to the inside was given, 2 rusty tables were set up, and torn (serious, not jesting!), so called, white piece of cloth was s...