As...

...the magical dust settles down on another summer vacation, I move the memories of beautiful days spent in the lap of nature in Ladakh to that little corner of my heart, where I will return again and again to take a peek.

Meanwhile the slow rhythm of everyday life picks up. The daily routine, the mundane(ness) infuses me with a certain calm.

Trying to see beauty in everyday life brings a certain sense of gratitude towards the One.

live today.

A rainy morning...

* the photograph is blurry.

* so are things right at this moment.

* it's a rainy, grey morning.

* drinking some hot chai keeps me going.

* rather than complain about the weather, am thinking of ways to make today interesting.

* maybe catch up with some old friends.

* watch some movies on TV.

* bake?

* visit all those inspiring design blogs I haven't visited in a while.

* this blog is lovely.

what are you doing today?

November 1, 2009

* been away for 4 months. wow.

* hi there to people who still visit this space.

* where did I disappear?

* was very much here, but suddenly had nothing really to blog about.

* meanwhile, I upgraded my comp to an Apple Macbook Pro.

* got myself a new lens Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro Lens

* cut my hair.

* attended yoga classes.

* was offline for more days that I ever could imagine.

Suddenly today I wanted to post. So here I am:-)

* winter sunlight just warmed my soft heart.

* those succulent, juicy tomatoes with all their green crowns intact lured me to pick my camera.

* the new chai masala, that I picked up...does have some magical ingredient.

* loads of lotion on dry, dry skin.

* the father and the daughter huddled in the kitchen, trying to whip up a Sunday dinner.

* some new chai cups.

Hope all of you have a serene Sunday.

finding joy...

Life has been hectic with travel, activities and daily routine.
Hectic but enjoyable.
There are moments in-between these daily activities, that I crave for something more.
Something deep within. Simple pleasures.
Observing these moments and enjoying it. Dwelling on it. Living it.
Immersing in it solely and completely and then letting it pass.
( Almost like devouring the last bit of pulp and juice from a ripe Mango;-)

I came across this lovely post that talks about 'finding joy', in a collaborative project called this joy+ride

Hope all of you find joy in your own ways:-)

Will be away from blogging for awhile, finding my joys:-)

12 March, 2009

The lovely morning sun bathing our old home in warm light...*sigh*

Was hit by a strong wave of nostalgia, while I was deleting some old photographs from last summer.
Here are some outtakes from the photos I posted on Flickr last year...Tuesdays with Morrie~ The book I read for a whole month and features in many of my photographs...Dessert tea by Brooke Bond Taj Mahal and books from Crossword bookstoreJuicy red pears...
Enjoy your day!

Happy things.

Just close your eyes. Now.
What do you hear? What do you see? What do you feel?

* Mango trees are sprouting blooms.
* Big fat barbets are singing again.
* Some more Malai Kulfis.
* Memories of last summer come flooding back.
* The heady fragrance of ripe juicy Mangoes.
* Corner House's 'Fig and Honey' or maybe 'Vanilla Choco Chip' ice cream.
* Glasses of Nimboo Pani with Kala namak are guzzled in litres.
* Time for my special smoothies.
* Dreaming of summer vacations, hey wait, I am not in school anymore.
* Flip Flops.
* Fresh flowers on the dining table.
* Change those bedspreads to pastels or floral prints.
* Fruit custard and jelly!(Childhood memories)
* Sunrays are brightening different corners.
* The roads seemed empty yesterday afternoon.
* Love green signals.
* The purple of the jacaranda trees dot the lanes.

What do you hear? What do you see? What do you feel?

New beginnings...

I love~
* foggy mornings yielding to the lazy sunrays.
* church bells on Sundays
* hot fluffy quilts in the afternoon sun.
* kites flying in the blue skies
* intoxicating fragrance of wild white lilliums that greet me in the living room.
* fluttering of pigeon wings.
* mishti dahi ( sweet yogurt) in earthern pots.
* leftovers from a pre-new year bash.Tried a butterscotch icecream & chocolate cake sandwich for dessert. Jaipuri blockprint 'Razai' soaking up the afternoon sun

* this, this, this & this.
Would love to~

* read many, many books.
* listen to more classical music.
* bake more. cook more.
* travel more.
* walk more.
* sleep more.
* love more.
* do more.
* blog more;-)

* try this
What would you love to do in the new year? Do share:-)

the days gone by...

I have been missing-in-action for a while ~ Sorry.
Lots of things have been happening here~
* We moved into our new home last month.
* Our previous home was featured in BBC Good Homes, India Edition. Thanks!
* Kindness in many forms touched my heart.
* An Autumn Mouse traveled all the way from Poland to have hot 'chai' with me.
* Another birthday passed by.
* Lots of dreams and aspirations.
* Loads of hard work.
* 'Love in the time of Cholera' was finally finished and moved to the bookshelf.
* I promise to be more active in this space. So do drop by:-)
Have a great day!

Megha barso...

* monsoons here in India is a dream, a memory, a fragrance, a taste...
* paper boats sail away in narrow flowing streams.
* shubha mudgals voice singing 'Seeko Na' gets stronger in my ears.
* the heart yearns for classical music and out comes all the raagas from cds and cassettes ( do people still listen in that format?)
* hot onion pakoras are fried.
* colourful umbrellas pop-up everywhere.
* slushy puddles.
* flowers enjoy their daily showers and trees sway to the gentle breeze.
* the smell of corn being roasted on charcoal.
* getting drenched to the bones
* cups and cups of Ginger chai...
* sleeping to the sound of the steady rain in the night.Enjoy this moment. Enjoy the Monsoons. Enjoy your weekend.
* Megha Barso...Clouds, rain down:-)

Under the weather...

* drinking loads of ginger chai to soothe my itchy throat.

* reading 'under the tuscan sun' and dreaming of a villa in Tuscany where 'The windows are open to butterflies, horseflies, bees or any thing that wants to come in one window and out another' *sigh*
* inspired, I whip up Italian fares and learn the meanings of Antipasti, Primi, Secondi, Cortoni & Dolci:-) Oh yes and colour therapy works for sun-crazy people like me, who have been having a tough time with the cloudy skies.

* After Chai, I think the second best thing is Oats. Yes, milky oats with organic jaggery. It's quite a comfort drink, especially when the warm milky sweetness soothes your parched, itchy throat.
* Talking about sweetness, while cleaning my kitchen, I found two long forgotten goodies we picked up from out trip to the Nilgiris. Rhubarb Preserve from Beulah Farm and Gooseberry Jam from Last Forest.

* Outlook Traveller has some interesting illustrations apart from some nice photography.
* Listening to I'll love you till the end by Pogues from the soundtrack of P.S. I love you. Have you seen it yet? If not, watch today and cry loads till you feel cleansed.Have a lovely July!

Today is good.

Yesterday was cloudy, but today is good.
*Sun warms my 'tired of seeing grey clouds' eyes.
*Green Tea warms my throat.
* Season in transition.
* Maroon plums drip syrupy sweetness.
*'Langda' & 'Dhasheri' Mangoes are here.
* Love the shadow play at home when Mr. Sun comes out.

* Enjoying this moment.

* Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the year~ Spanish Proverb

Have a great weekend everyone:-)

brown(ie) remains...

its probably...
* the cloudy afternoons
* lights are turned on in the middle of the day.
* hurried trips to the terrace to scoop up all the freshly washed & dried clothes.
* the huge raindrops dot the dry concrete floors & wet the green grass.
* the body and mind are propelled towards the kitchen.
* brownies are baked.
* steaming cups of chai are sipped while listening to the rain.
Seeing beauty in what remains....
Enjoy the monsoon:-)

Baking & Musing...

* Reading Breakfast, Lunch & Tea~ Rose Carrarini.
* Dreaming of Baking Date Scones.
* Have to take a decision between Bonne Maman's Rasberry preserve or Fabindia's Chunky Orange Marmalade before the Jam bottle is emptied in a few hours.
* Brought back my mother's old Foley measuring spoons. She knew I'll 'want' it one day.
* A duster cloth so beautiful, I might never use it.
* The husband, the daughter, our neighbours enjoyed the Chololate Chip Cookies.
* I used powdered Jaggery instead of Brown sugar. I always do.
* A kitchen is a great place to hang out.
* Have to buy some Fresh Mangoes. Loads of them...

To stop train, pull chain.

* "Amma, If I pull the chain, the train will stop?" asked Mallika.
* History sure repeats itself, I remember asking my mother the same question when I was little.

* The shape of the red painted metal hasn't changed much over the years and surely the experience of travelling by train hasn't changed either.
* The familiar sound of 'Chaiya- Chai', Garama-Garam Chai'.
* Coolies with their red kurtas haggling with passengers for that extra 10 rupee note.

* Aromas of onion vadas, cutlets, masala dosas, coffee & tea mingling with the cool breeze of the air-contitioned coaches.

* The peeling paints, the typography, the condensation on the windows, the setting sun.

* Screaming babies, lullabying grannies, working-hard-on-the-laptop-techies, walkman or was it ipod listening teenagers and Mallika asking me for the 101th time, "When are we going to reach?" is such an awesome experience;-)

Like they say it's the journey not the destination that matters:-)

sun, sunlight, rain...

* mornings are bright, sunny and beautiful.
* evenings are cloudy, windy, rainy and beautiful.
* watching raindrops slide down leaves.

* hands are curled around mugs of steaming hot chai.

* finding beauty in 'things as they are'

* learning that sunlight, a wooden table and a hot cup of morning chai is a great combination that makes it to the front page of explore.

* I linger around windows, sinks and wash basins.
* completely bowled over by this, this and this.
* hope to own a polaroid and a holga someday.
* I think park weddings are so simple and beautiful
* discovered 'Rumi'

* watching an ice cream melt is lovely.

Enjoy the day and your life.

Touched by kindness...

* I sip my lemon tea, feel the hot liquid warm my body as well as my spirits.
* Contemplative is my mind, you ask me how can tea warm my spirits?
* The tea was incidentaI it was a soul's act of kindness that has given such a beautiful start to my Tuesday morning.
* A little girl waits for a school bus every morning. An elderly sweet lady waits for the little girl every morning.
* To give a bunch of freshly picked flowers from her garden. To speak a few words of kindness.
* The little girl is excited to get lovely flowers and tell the sweet lady about her school.
* What a delicate, un-named relationship they share.
* A thread of kindness & innocence binds them together.
* The little girl being my Mallika, the elderly lady our sweet neighbour & the fresh yellow hibiscus is from her garden:-)
* Touched by this act I thanked her for the flowers and as I turned to leave, she said,"My daughter too was like her...when she was little." reminiscing her daughter's childhood.
* I had a lump in my throat and quickly walked away hiding a teardrop.
* As I placed the flowers in water I realised how beautiful life is and how people touch our lives in different ways.

The month of October...

This leaf, so complete in itself,
Is only part of a tree.
And this tree, so complete in itself.
Is only part of the mountain.
And the mountain runs down to the sea.
And the sea, so complete in itself,
Rests like a raindropOn the hand of God.~ Ruskin Bond (Book of Verse)

Autumn? Fall? What does this season bring with it in an Indian context?

I love seeing this beautiful season of warm colours and dry leaves captured through the eyes of many a photographers, poets and simple people like me from around the world.
Autumn in Bangalore- I sharpend my senses and set out with my daughter into the season.

* I smell the change in season.
* The trees are still green but there are subtle changes, the tulip trees are flaming in orange.
* Dry leaves fom trees fall silently on the ground.
* The comforting smell of burning dry leaves.
* Prayer calls from the mosque during 'Ramzan'
* Excited voices of children playing cricket on the streets.
* Dusshera holidays.
* Beginning of various festivals.
* My heart fills with festive happiness.
* Twinkling lights appear on earth lining the roads and shops.
* Nip in the air and the sunlight brightening up various corners of my home.
* A craving for giant sugary doughnut and strong filter coffee.It's also a month of contemplation, a month where I turn a year younger...
Like Maddie says Autumn is a time of birth, of renewal.

* A time to rethink, the things I love.
* Have been wondering can a person be and do many different things?
* Inspiration comes in various forms.
* Learning is a constant thing and I plan to learn, more.
* Listen to my senses more.
* Read more.
* Feel more
* Share more.
* Love more.
* Do more.
Enjoy the season, dear friends...