what GAP?

warning: this has nothing to do with that fashion label.... read on..

you know, the other day,

my mom and me got talking.. and looking through her school and college pics, made me realise that the so called generation gap, is not aboutdifferent ideas, or attitudes.. hell no... ask you parents how their teenage days went.

they would list their favorite music, which would include western music, they would have tried experimenting with their looks, clothes.. they too, like us, would have believed in same illusion- that we discovered what love feels like..

only the names would have changed.. the bell bottoms of yesterday, have become the pedal pushers of today( i can hear the divas, goin- " pedal pushers, are like, so yesterday!!!")

the elvis and beatles have been replaced by today's pop assembly line icons.. ( fact is though, none of today's greats, could hold a "candle in the wind" to the greats of those days)

the cary grant and gregory peck has been replaced by the tom cruises of today( dont worry, i cringed while writing this line too)..

point is though, that we grow up, believing that we are so unlike our parents, that it's next to impossible to make them see the truth( " You wouldnt understand dad, you have never been in love!")..

but as i looked at my mom's photo, where her 'gang'(her words, not mine) and her, posed with their arms around each's shoulders, i was struck at how yours truly too, had taken a pic in the exact pose...

i think it's time we acknowledged the truth of our predicament.. the fact is, there exists not a generation gap, but one of communication..

few of us have the ability, to carry on a conversation, entirely in one language.. sooner or later, english or hindi, will make their presence felt..

and honestly, if one were to read the english that our grandparents had to endure, at their school level, i am not sure how many of us would emerge unscathed, from the rigours of spellings and grammar.

nothing can be( should be, could be, actually ;) ) greater proof of this, than the mushrooming of the english speaking classes all around you..

i see some students, handle math and science with ease, but tremble at the prospect of entering the group discussion or public speaking opportunities..

and how many of us could actually speak for an hour, without some expletives creeping into our talk? very few of us, i am sure..

and let's get started started on the most essential area, which has become non existent almost, today..

the art of letter writing..

growing up in an era of TV, and phones, and mailing and chatting, it's not a surprise to me, that the basic and beautiful art of letter writing, has become a relic of a glorious past..

reading the letters written by my dad to his dad, i was struck by the beautiful composition of it, and the symphonic structuring of the letter.. when i asked him, on how he could come up, with such poignant verse, he had a simple observation to make.

" each letter, to me, representd an oppurtunity, to communicate with someone, to tell them, what was my current state of mind. and such opportunities presented themeselves rarely.. maybe once or twice a month, if you could save enough.. so, each letter was crafted with care... i approached it like a scripting session.. made rough copies, re read it, and read it again.."

they took care to see to it, that each letter was one worth cherishing. and such handwriting!!! sigh! seeing the letters my parents wrote to each other, in the months following their engagement, i am entirely convinced, that insofar as handwriting goes, i am truly the black sheep in the family.

but i digress. the point i am trying to make, is that in today's times, we take every thing for granted.. but somewhere down the line, in the pursuit of ease of communication, we lost the penchant for the beauty of careful prose..

think over this.. ten years from now, what will remain of the chats, or conversations that you have had? mere text files, subject to the horrors of magnetism..

you can never wrap them up in cloth, to be looked at again whever you wanted.. you can never look at a computer screen and become wistful.. somehow, paper is the best medium for making one thoughtful..


sure, we have made tremendous economic and social progress..but still, somehow, we have become stilted, when it comes to making our fellow beings, understand what we wish t tell them..

imagine this.. even today, if in the office or class, u see a person who is extraordinarily proficient in english, the most common epithet that is bestowed on him/her is " shakespeare"..

400 years have passed, yet he remains the benchmark, by which we measure the lingual abilities of people.. and find everyone, wanting...

anger management

you know, on the other day, someone i know, asked me- " how the hell, did you manage to get a job? that too at !@@$( it's a company, but i dont have time for lawsuits and suits of any kind)...
some guys have all the luck..."

well, you know, Mr. unnamed friend, you really pissed me off.. so, i wanted to get back at you.. but if there's one thing that i have realised, over the 22 years that i have spent on terra firma(well grounded childhood helps), it's that good revenge is like a meal.. the longer you take to prepare, the better it tastes...

so, i let my anger simmer in me, and then, decided, to mash it all in, and heat in the oil of indignance, and generously sprinkle it, with loads of abuse...

imagine my surprise, when, upon opening the larder of imagination, i found it to be utterly empty... like a locust had held a party and had left only emptiness behind...

" this just wont do", i promised myself... " i am capable of venomous spite, wont give in, without a fight!!"...

so, i started to look for a reason to be angry with the world again... i tried to develop a short temper... i snapped at all those people, whom i knew... i pulled strings, which i knew, would lead supporting structures to collapse..

but nothing worked out... even the pup, whom i growled at, laughed and continued wagging it's tail... i could almost hear it say- " ok two legged funny thing... you got a very high voice, can we get on with the playing please?"

it's disappointing to know, that one of the fundamental rights are being taken away from me... the right to anger..

imagine if there was no anger.... no angry young man, no angry middle aged young man, no angry old man, no angry T Rex, no angry politician( in same order)....

so, i am demanding my right, to be recognised as a human being, capable of anger, and demand that i be treated with avoidance and anger , in return..

it's the democratic thing to do..

an idle mind and other such things

well, i like to write good night rhymes once in a while.. and pester me friends to read them. so, here's a sample of the inane stuff they have to put up with... and i swear that these are 100 % original....

and much thanks to hema, for collecting them and sending them to me.. u rock :)

12/1/2006

Let the stars twinkle tonight,
when they gaze upon your sleeping face.
Good night :-)

13/1/2006

Let your mind set at rest,
The world of dreams is the best.
free of trouble,worry and fights,
sleep well and early,have a good night!

14/1/2006

The sky is ready,lovely blanket.
Winds are ready,soothing feather.
Nightingale ready to serenade.
As u make your sleep,in your bed.

15/1/2006

Fret not on what could have been,
focus insteadon what can be.
Happiness you should keep,
as the innocent make their way to sleep.

16/1/2006

Bid adieu to the day of light.
Hate and anger,sorrow and fright.
Laughter,joy,unlimited delight..
await the one who sleeps tonight.

17/1/2006

i walkin the clouds,float in the air.
Divein the seas,frollic in the fair.
Of so much happiness do i partake.
must i wake? oh! must i wake!

18/1/2006

I am a car running on empty,
A weary traveller looking for respite.
The oasis of dreams lie in my sight,
I trudge on,hoping to reach it tonight.

24/1/2006

I have sunk like the titanic, in my lake of sorrow.
Grief of today, can't face tomorrow.
No one from whom, glee i could borrow.
my heart lies stabbed, on the mark of an arrow.

25/1/2006

Oh what a tangled web we weave.
Only in end to us decieve.
time does not heal,te ones who grieve.
pain and suffering is all they recieve.


27/1/2006

The smell of floowers, warmth of the sun.
A cheerful smile, mark summer's return.
Time for many tales to unfold,
eternal beauty - a joy to behold.

28/1/2006

Even on the darkest night,
when nothing lies in sight.
i look to my heart,
it guides me right.
my memories remain my greatest might.
forever burning, ever bright.

29/1/2006

I wear an armor, of the thickest hide.
Alone in battle, enemies i smite.
yet slowly i bleed my way to death.
The rose over my heart, thorn in the flesh...

30/1/2006

Tired bones,weary sighs, feel that drag all while.
sad times, happy climes, make you glad to be alive.
with that thought, hope you sink in bed so deep,
that the prying hands of the world,won't snatch you from your sleep..

31/1/2006

I have missed it the whole day, won't miss it at night.
The face i search for, burn into my sight.
The face that makes me hate, being all alone.
The face that has made my heart,it's own.

02/02/2006

Why hath man wrought his blight?
Why kill children,destroy life?
plague the lands, endlessly consume.
erect all buildings,can't see the moon.

04/02/2006

The tallest trees starts as a seed.
Earth can move with smallest deed.
One thing satys through hell and after.
Ties of blood run thicker then water.

05/02/2006

A heart is fragile, yet we load it with worries.
The mind isn,t agile, to play out our stories.
flesh and bone we are,be happy instead.
a night's rest lies ahead.

06/02/2006

courage lies in the heart, not the might o arms.
Wisdom is eternal, not bodily charm.
conscience is the father of the soul.
Keep these in mind, as you reach your goal.

07/02/2006

With the passing of day,and onset of night.
The best days of life are taking flight.
i laugh while others despair.
vanity shall never me ensnare.

08/02/2006

The oldest wine tastes divine.
Oldest tree has the toughest spine.
ages makes one frail, but also wise.
Savour each day, life's spice.

rest will follow

zen and the art of illusion

while watchin the Da Vinci Code, in theater( not in india, but UAE), i was struck by something.. how, all of us lead lives, in blind acceptance of illusions that are all around us.. we prefer to sit in the cushion of delibrate ignorance, than face the GROUND realities, so as to speak...

even the most fundamental questions remain unanswered, yet, we choose to go on, without a pause, for the fear that questioning would halt us in our tracks...

for example, the greatest lie foistered on us, is that democracy empowers the masses.. look around you, honestly, and see if that is so.. all we have managed to do, in the absence of monarchy, is replace a nobility of blood, with a nobility of wealth... the aristrocrats of yesteryears, have been replaced with the ministers and industrialists of today..

the only thing that remains the same, is the fate of the destitute... the world over, if you are born poor, then, 90 % of the time, you die poor... the shackles of fate ensnare people so tightly, that making our own destiny remains a dream that few are able to make real...

and, the last few months have shown us, how our so called economic progress was just a lot of optimistic gung ho... all it took was the sensex to dive by 3000 points, and all of a sudden, hitherto unnoticed ' Fundamental Flaws' were discovered in our economic, which were the cause of ' Market Correction'.. now, place this talk of so called progress of last few years, with your life... while your average salary has only grown up by a notch or two, prices have been rising faster than Mallika Sherawat's hemline..

while any man on the streets would have told you, that in 5 years time, a 10 Rs. note would buy you lesser quantities of anything, our ministers were going to town with tales of our prosperity... unfortunately, that's all that they remain.. mere tales...

there are several instances, i am sure, in your life as well, where, you realise all of a sudden that even the most fundamental assumptions of your, were flawed... that can either shatter your morale, or, you can grin and then try to move on, while making place for corrections...

my aim, here, is not to ramble on and on.. so, will cut short...