In that frame of mind....

when I feel like playing this song over and over again....

What's your song today?

If...

Thanks Chandni for the Inspiration!

The Bamboo tree might have flowered in the time that it took me to come back to this space and write! But now that I have, here goes:

f I were a month, I’d be April (but naturally)

If I were a day of the week, I’d be Wednesday

If I were a time of day, I’d be 12 noon. (lunch time!)

If I were a season, I’d be spring.

If I were a planet, I’d be Earth.

If I were a sea animal, I’d be a whale.

If I were a direction, I’d be West.

If I were a piece of furniture, I’d be a revolving chair.

If I were a liquid, I’d be Wine.

If I were a tree, I’d be an Ashok tree

If I were a tool, I’d be a hammer (so I can nail it guahaha)

If I were an element, I’d be Helium (and help balloons go UP)

If I were a gemstone, I’d be diamond.

If I were a musical instrument, I’d be a saxophone.

If I were a color, i’d be Blue.

If I were an emotion, I’d be Happiness.

If I were a fruit, I’d be a Lychee

If I were a sound, I’d be the sound of windchimes.

If I were a car, I’d be a Mini cooper.

If I were food, I’d be kadhi-chawal.

If I were a taste, I’d be spicy.

If I were a scent, I’d be gardenia

If I were a pair of shoes, I’d be peep toe sandals.

If I were a bird, I’d be a cuckoo

And last but not the least, if I were you, I’d take it up too! :) (This one's for Anu, Sheen and Goofy Mumma)

Lessons in Urdu

M and I attended the Midival punditz concert a few weeks back. We also got one of the cds as a gift from a generous friend.

One of the tracks that was playing in the car as we were driving back home, was based on Ghalib's poetry- " har ek baat pe kehte ho..ki tu kya hai. Tumhi kaho ke yeh andaz-e-guftagoo kya hai". (stay with me- this is relevant to the rest of the story)

Needless to say, for someone who's gradually becoming familiar with Hindi, this had the same effect a heavy metal song might have on Mayawati- zero comprehension but immense wonderment.

" So, what does gufta-gu mean"

" It's a nice way of saying conversation-but you don't really use it colloquially"

" So would it be right to say- 'mere ghar aa ja. gufta-gu karenge?'"

" hahahahahah. no. that just sounds like a proposition"

" but is it not like 'vaartalaap?'"

" yes. it is the urdu equivalent of vaartalaap- but you don't use it in everyday language unless you are reading the news.....at home!"

" so how would you use it?"

" umm, if I were to compose a poem and say 'aa baith mere ru-ba-ru. gufta-gu karenge" (yes- this was at my poetic best)

"......"

"why don't you call up S and tell her that hum uske ghar gufta-gu ka pradarshan karne aa rahe hain"

"???!!!! silly- pradarshan means display!"

"what does the song mean anyway- each time you ask me, who are you?"

"no no. It's more of a probe into what you are...think of it as 'tu cheez kya hai' types"

"simple-main cheez badi hoon mast mast"

*give up+ apology to Ghalib*

Heavy metal might not be a bad idea. The mayhem does not conceal very many words.

Life Is

A riot of colors

Poetry in black and white

An evening spent in the company of laughter

A day dissolving tears in fire

The breeze that caresses your face

The footprint that melts after meeting the wave

The dew drops of hope that glisten in the sun

Moments consumed by the gluttony of thoughts

Crumbling under the pressure of convention

Getting resurrected by the levity of ambition

The mind wandering and searching for the truth

The heart stumbling on common desires

Experiences that clasp and mold

Events dispersed and tales untold.

Life is.

Nana Munha Rahi Hoon

Remember Swades?-the scene when SRK spots the lil’ fella selling water in a ‘kulhad’. You might have felt your eyes moisten a bit or maybe even a lump forming in your throat. Or maybe not.

Remember Taare Zameen Par? the scene when Aamir watches dolefully at “chhotu” cleaning the tables at a highway dhaba. You might have recalled a similar instance from your life when you shook your head condemning child labour but felt too small to cause a change. Or maybe not.

Remember Slumdog Millionaire? the scene when Jamal and Latika are made to beg. You might have felt angry at the foreigners making the film too real for comfort or maybe you stayed indifferent. Or maybe not.

How about the Rs. 700 you might have spent on watching any of these movies at a multiplex? What if the same amount were to make a very real and very meaningful impact to a child’s life? What if all it took was 2 minutes to bring a child closer to 1 year of education?

Would you still hesitate in taking action? If you are proud to call yourself an Indian, maybe not.

WHAT IS THIS ABOUT?

School Equals Lunch feed 6,00,000 underprivileged children one hot meal every day. This meal is served at the municipal school they study in, and is very often the only way to convince their parents to send their kids to school.

One hot meal. For which the parent sacrifices sending the child to wash your car or sell flowers at the signal. One hot meal. Which is probably the only nutritious meal the child has in a day.
One hot meal. That brings a child to school every day.
And all it takes is Rs 700 for a whole school year.
So here’s what we’re hoping for. If we can get thousand people to donate Rs. 700 in the next ten days, then thousand more kids can go to school this year.

HERE’s HOW YOU CAN DONATE:
1. TO DONATE, YOU COULD USE THE INTERNET PAYMENT GATEWAY AT WWW.MIDDAYMEAL.COM
2. OR CALL 022 40366866. THEY'LL GUIDE YOU THROUGH THE PAYMENT OPTIONS.
3. DRAW CHEQUE IN FAVOUR OF 'ISKCON FOOD RELIEF FOUNDATION' AND MAIL IT TO NANHA MUNNA RAHI HOON, ISKCON FOOD RELIEF FOUNDATION, 19 JAYWANT INDUSTRIAL PREMISES, 63 TARDEO ROAD, MUMBAI 400 034. OR CALL SEEMA AT 982084245 TO HAVE IT PICKED UP, IF YOU ARE IN MUMBAI

MORE ABOUT SCHOOL EQUALS LUNCH:
We are School Equals Lunch. We’re passionate about feeding children. You are more than welcome to visit our kitchens or call Seema at 9820842453 to know more, or even visit our website (www.middaymeal.com). We’d love to show you how much thought and effort goes into cooking that one meal. Whether it’s a different Khichdi for every weekday or the steam cooking kitchen we‘ve introduced, we’d love to share our passion with you.