SOULspace

How exciting to read a book with the person who wrote it!! Obviously the passion and the nuances,  the thought and the idea behind a page or a word  is transmitted seamlessly. Arthi Anand Navaneeth shared her new book, released by Tulika publishers called "Have you Seen This" A curious yarn she has spun  Through questions that make us imagine When things may not be as they appear Then we ask ourselves,"Have you seen This"!!  Delighted to have her interact with kids at  thinkBox library,  last Saturday (Sept.22nd) Kids jumped into an imaginary questioning world with Arthi, as she also spoke about bonding through and with books to parents who had come along. What's best is that the book is bilingual and can be bought in 5 different languages along with English; Tamil, Malayalam, Gujarathi, Marathi and Kanada! Super! I was all curious to know which was her favorite book...and I was told 'The...

After a long time, I got the threesome to move out on a Sunday morning ....for a horse ride...but even I never expected the morning to turn out so visually amazing. We decided to stop by at Commercial street to have breakfast and behold our surprise....a riot of colours.. We were in time to see the Rangoli competition conducted by  Shri Vidyaranya Yuvaka Sangha, Basavanagudi. Steady hands, patterns flowing, colour schemes...children could not peel their eyes away, and neither could I! Some opted for shadow effects and shading...so well thought out... This lady was using a funnel to draw out the patterns, clean neat lines flowed threw her hands Amazingly fast this lady had finished well within the allotted time, you can imagine how clearly and meticulously she must have planned it...or she could be an old hand! Lovely colours...a peacock is the inspiration perhaps? Simple lines, yet a dramatic effect Ah, intric...

A hectic month and half for a person who likes loads of space...this was a good season of storytelling with children for me. Interestingly I have been reading a lot as well. My on and off relationship with books saw a marked changed when I finished 3 books thanks to a dear friend of mine. "Emperor of Maladies" was an eye opener, a fact-pack if I may coin such a word. All you need to know about Cancer and more. It leans heavily towards metaphorical storytelling, using feelings and emotions to paint a picture of this disease through the ages. (The other 2 books were totally different from this, "the Curious incident of the dog" and The Giraffes Tears"; I recommend both as subtle, honest and wonderful literature) Yet what I want to vent about today is based on none of these. Hmm...actually it is slightly relevant to the first book I mentioned....   Siddhartha Mukherjee paints a grim picture of Cancer, the phantasmagorical disease of the genes. He is qu...

I walked a long way To find a locked door I stood hesitantly Do I turn and go? I walked a long way To hear words that echo in my dreams Nothing there No one here I walked a long way to wait with indefinite longing

Love ya Arranged? Surely we must be deranged To think we want to spend with one When happiness can come with none! Expectations and desires Are ignited around the same fire But whether they are met Is a fifty-fifty gamble net! The chase is good for some Or the courting romantic, But once the fellow commits His life sentence is mostly now legit! With awkward exchanges and gawky looks Family arrangement is the way for some, As she dons the mantle, nee hat Of super-woman, and, the door mat. Living, Loving, Laughing The toil is the same, Conflicts, confusion, confrontations The journey could be the same. But lets not disparage A union that brings two together Love ya Arranged क्या फ़रक पड़ता है ?! (The trick is to quickly surge forward Grab that spouse by the hand And gallop towards a destination Or just choose to enjoy the scenic road!) This was written for: IndiBlogger Love Marriage Ya Arranged Marriage call for posts

Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more.   You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement.   They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful.   There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because...

The Cocoon and the Butterfly A man found a cocoon of a butterfly that he brought home. One day a small opening appeared in the cocoon. He sat and watched the cocoon for several  hours as the butterfly struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to  stop making progress. It appeared as if the butterfly had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further. The man decided to help the butterfly in its struggle. He took a pair of scissors  and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon... and the butterfly emerged easily. As the butterfly emerged, the man was surprised. It had a swollen body and small, shriveled  wings. He continued to watch the butterfly expecting that, at any moment, the wings would  dry out, enlarge and expand to support the swollen body. He knew that in time the body would contract and the butterfly would be able to fly. But neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling ...