SOULspace

   There in a corner you stood Tall and ram-rod straight! I would have missed you If his shout had not made me run, Towards your majestic girth. 1869 - I rub my eyes with wonder... A hundred and fifty years ago you were planted, To witness the passing time.   Hello dear ancestor, I greet you with delight. Hello dear old tree, I hug you with tenderness. You, my evergreen have lived a long life, In your corner all by yourself. Perhaps, Whispering to your near and dear ones, In a language known only to you.   Wonder what you have seen and heard and felt in all these years, Wonder what secrets are known only to you, Wonder what you feel about me and the hug I give you, Wonder if you will live, long after I am gone...  A witness to the passing time.           ~Meeting a tree planted in 1869 ( Sims Park Coonoor ~ Nov 18th 2022)

 Life is experienced twice. While you go through it and while you remember it looking back! She was 17years old , when they took her to the studio to pose for a picture. This was very different from the usual pose of a bride to be; rigid, hands crossed in front staring at the camera. Here she was dressed in a velvet blouse and silk saree, seated on a bench of sorts and holding a Veena in her hand. The way you would imagine Raja Ravi Varma to paint his Goddess Saraswathi! Rajamma , my maternal grandmother was a proficient vainika and vocalist, showing an immense talent at a very young age. She would often accompany her elder brother on performances, enthralling the audience with her throw, range and A pitch. The family really thought they would become musicians of repute, until cruel fate struck a blow and took the brother's breathe as Tuberculosis. The only alternate was marriage for a girl like her and when a suitable proposal arrive, they sent her off along with the Veena and her...

                                                                                                     (image courtesy You Tube) While searching for an appropriate story to tell at a corporate event, I came across this story; "The Most Incredible Thing of all" by Hans Christian Anderson. Read it here: http://www.andersen.sdu.dk/vaerk/hersholt/TheMostIncredibleThing_e.html and watch it here by Diane Wolkstein: https://vimeo.com/18037595 The story talks about the most incredible thing that a man (woman) can do and that is: to find joy in another's achievement without envy or jealousy! Simple, yet such a powerful tale that made me sit up and observe myself. Can this be a healing story -  it is. Every time I am faced w...

Mullah Nasiruddin had never seen a falcon before and spotting it on the window sill, he caught the bird and cut its talons, clipped its beak and trimmed its feathers. "You poor thing, how did you get into such a bad shape" he sympathised, "Now you look better." ( from a collection of Hodja Tales by Idries Shah) All of us have to clip our feathers, trim our beaks and cut our talons...to fit into a framework that exists in another person's view or in the view of society. Lucky are those who are able to remain a falcon and fly the sky and be recognised as one. I have spent the last 10 years reattaching my feathers, beak and talons. To be the person I always thought I was and thought I wanted to be. Still I find a few feathers are missing and the beak may be more crooked than it used to be, but that moment of recognition when you realise you can regrow your talons, feathers and beak is priceless... I know I clipped my sense of fun and boxed myself into ...

A healing fable Turtle was in love with Rabbit. Her family was shocked. This is unheard of; we cannot allow such foolishness to prevail, they said. How can a turtle love a rabbit so? Yet, she left the water to be with him. She bid farewell to her mother and father, sister and brother and crawled onto the land. Somewhere in her soft heart underneath that hard shell she wore, she felt great love for rabbit, the Prince of Shore. She had seen him run and adored his pace. The way he combed his hair, took her breathe away. She had seen him feast on carrots and cabbage and felt she shared the same passion.  Made for each other she felt, so they married. Rabbit insisted on moving fast. He was always in a hurry. He darted in and out of holes and chewed his food rapidly, while looking at turtle with eyes impatiently. “Move faster” he would shout back angrily. “Wait for me” she would yell. He ran ahead and she plodded behind on feet that now had cuts and scratche...

The Rose Bush & the Snail - by Hans Christian Anderson A hedge of hazel-nut bushes encircled the garden;  but in the centre of the garden stood a rose-tree, and under it sat a snail--she had much within her, she had herself. "Wait, until my time comes," said she, "I shall accomplish something more than putting forth roses, bearing nuts, or giving milk, like the cows and sheep!" "I expect something fearfully grand," said the rose-tree, "may I ask when it will take place?" "I shall take my time," said the snail, "you are in too great a hurry, and when that is the case, how can one's expectations be fulfilled?" The next year the snail lay in about the same spot under the rose-tree, which put forth buds and developed roses, ever fresh, ever new. The snail half crept forth, stretched out its feelers and drew itself in again. "Everything looks as it did a year ago! No progress has been made; the r...

He stared at the ocean with unseeing eyes. There was no other place to come, but here. No where else would he be able to synchronize with the roar that he felt within his heart. They beat in tandem. The waters beat relentlessly against an indefinite shore, while his heart beat within unable to break free. So many thoughts and feelings confined within his mind begged for release but he refused them that relief. He held back the tears, the feelings, the emotions. How many times had he come here with her? How many times had he run circles around her on this very same sand? Sometimes tickling her with his humor, bringing a smile to her face (Oh, how he loved to see her smile), and sometimes irritating her with his incessant words and queries. She never let him out of her sight. Yet her control was not blatant, just a little subtle, as she constantly challenged him and his immature view of the world. They had a bond that not many shared, nor could understand. A relationship soaked in ma...