Fate - Thou art heartless (Poem)

Too many thoughts inside
Yet none that words can share
Too many people around
Yet none who truly care

Oh fate, you are a heartless creature
Loving those who pay no attention to you
And mess with them
Who fear the power beheld by you

Oh fate, why would you hate me,
When I fear your might?
Or is it that
You enjoy my plight?

For if it's so, then I shall avenge
The wrongs you did to me
And fly fearlessly like the birds
And, with courage, face thee

Oh fate, you sure are a heartless creature
But soon you shall bow down to me...

Life of a Writer (Poem)

Pencil ends bitten
Notebook pages filled
Pen nibs broken
Erasers milled

Stacks of books
Disrupted on the tables
He sits and weaves
The loveliest of all fables

Imagine. Write. Check. Hack
Repeat the process again
An unsaid hope - the hard work
Doesn't go down the drain

He reads it over - once, twice, thrice
Re-checking what would fit
A writer's day never ends
Even after evening lamp lit

The pay could be meagre
Though the effort too high
But a writer loves his life
Spinning out webs from a lie

Stop ‘Phubbing’

What pops into your head when you think about the causes which could end the civilisation? Probably World War III, natural or man-made disasters, nuclear wars or phubbing. Wait, how does phubbing come here? Yes, “phubbing” has been labelled today, as the end of civilisation.

What is “phubbing”?

The word “Phubbing”was coined recently to describe a unique 21st century phenomenon of snubbing the person in front of you in favour of your phone (Phubbing=Phone+Snubbing). 

A team of language experts had gathered at the University of Sydney and after much deliberation they agreed to introduce the word “phubbing” in the Macquarie Dictionary.

Apparently, we were in need of a word to describe this issue for a while. After all, it would be rare to find someone who hasn’t been in this situation at least once.

The café in which you would have spent evenings hanging out with friends and got relieved of all tension with the first sip of coffee would seem no more familiar. 

It would be a strange room where you are drinking a tasteless coffee and sharing a table with those who indulge in the “cold and rectangular device with pretty lights” while you are trying to hold a conversation.

Thus, when invited again for a hangout, you would recall the experience and reply, with rolling eyes, “Sure, I would love to come over and talk to you while you talk and text to other people all the time.”

Of course, no one likes being ignored. The worst part is the phubber doesn’t realise the effects on the victim. The person phubbed can feel ignored, unimportant and even resentful.

Unknowingly, we are using our phones in a manner that is affecting our real-life connections.

“Phubbing” might seem to be innocuous at once. But, it is capable of destroying relationships (if not the entire civilisation).

If you are feeling distanced from your loved ones recently, take an honest look at your daily phone habits. Taking small steps can save relations or friendships from breaking.

So, the next time you are with someone, put down your phone and look around. 

You will be surprised by the warmth of your relationship that you had been missing!

(Published in The Gulf Today on January 14, 2017)

New Year, New beginning?

A new year brings with it an array of new possibilities and the desire to set out on the “better me” path. A new beginning to a new life filled with new dreams and new hopes. 

People’s expectation from this New Year was no different. On the New Year Eve, everyone carried a hope in his heart – the arrival of New Year will bring revolutionary changes that will make the world a better place to live.

Thoughts on my mind were not different.

I woke up the next morning, yearning to see the rosy glow diffusing into the orange light that covers the sky, to feel the soft wind caressing my hair as it flows by, to see the streets huddled with smiling faces — some warming up with a cup of coffee in the nearby café, others carrying a long list of resolutions. 

As I bent over the balcony, I was disappointed with the scene below. It seemed like any other day. Cars resting in the parking lots. The grey pavements covered with dust with no souls wandering upon. The sky plain blue with minor white clouds blotched across it.

An eerie silence was holding the reins. No excitement in the air. Nothing that would give you the high spirits or let you believe it actually is a new year. 

As I stepped out from my apartment to visit the nearby café, I saw the guard sitting in his cabin as usual. It seemed as if the New Year was just another mark on the calendar for him. 

Guests at the café were trying to re-energise themselves with a mug of coffee. But even the strong aroma of their favourite drinks failed to fill the air with excitement that was witnessed on the New Year Eve. 

It reminded me of the words of famous American essayist and educationist Hamilton Wright Mabie: “New Year’s Eve is like every other night, there is no pause in the march of the universe…”

(Published in The Gulf Today on January 7, 2017)

Secret Santa

Secret Santa!!!

Christmas celebration is over, but Santa Claus continues to amuse children. While most of them are busy playing with the gifts they received this festive season, a few grown-ups are busy discussing the enigma behind the chubby old man with a snow-white beard flying across the night sky with Rudolph. 

As I was having a leisurely walk in the neighbourhood park, I overheard a group of children discussing the subject. 

“Santa has brought so many gifts for me,” a child said.

“Santa Claus doesn’t exist. Parents shouldn’t lie,” said the elder one.

“He is fictional,” said the third one joining the debate.

These were just a few among those who give Santa the stiff-arm. But what is the fun without a Santa? There will be no Christmas carols, no excitement on Christmas eves, no waking up early to tear open the gifts, no more magic in the air.

For a child, Santa Claus remains at the core of Christmas celebrations. He is someone, who increases the fun of a family reunion, who motivates children to remain good throughout the year using his “naughty and nice” list, the one who loves to share the spirit of Christmas with others.

You can spot Santa anywhere walking in the crowd. In fact, Santa could be anyone who goes out of his way to help others, who shares his joys with those who are sad, who tries his best to bring a smile to the face of others, one who teaches the spirit of benevolence.

As American educator Edwin Osgood Grover has said, “Santa Claus is anyone who loves another and seeks to make them happy.”

It would be better if we don’t try to take away the magic of the festive season and let the child himself unveil the mystery of Santa!

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 31, 2016)

Read, as you like it

Many people believe fast reading isn’t the best way to read, while slow reading is the habit that a reader should acquire. On the contrary, there are many others who believe otherwise (though I do not know how it matters whether you are a slow or a fast reader).

My friends often criticise me for reading too fast. They believe one cannot grasp enough of the plot if he/she reads fast.

“Try to read slowly,” they prescribe.

“You just skim through the book.” 

“Do you even remember what you have read?”

Reading fast, according to these well-wishers, implies that you read just as a frivolous pastime. You don’t actually pay attention to what is written. While slow reading can help you savour the plot, grasp the content, be captivated with the characters, provide time for imagining the scenery, wondering about the characters you come across. And the list goes on.

However, the question remains – do they really have a point? And, is their viewpoint relevant in all situations and for everybody?

Can’t it be that fast readers understand better, remember more?

I have met a few who support speed-reading. They are keen on proving that slow reading is not a good idea as it proves less fruitful than speed reading. 

“Slow readers often aren’t able to retain information for a long period of time. On the other hand, a fast reader is able to do so,” one of my fast-reader friends said fiercely when others were bent on proving us wrong. 

I have often read that few slow readers experience tension, since they read for a short time and they fear exceeding the time limit. Conversely, a fast reader can remain relaxed while reading. Often slow readers lack concentration while those who read fast are in a position to concentrate well by being able to avoid distractions.

However, I fail to understand why it is necessary to hold a debate on such a trivial topic. Read at your own pace and enjoy reading a book the way you like it.

How does it matter whether a person is a slow reader or a fast reader as long as he/she is an avid reader?

I would just like to pitch for reading. One must find time to read, anywhere, anytime, anyhow. Because, as they say, “the world belongs to those who read.”

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 24, 2016)

Ode to the editor

It is difficult to speculate the speed of time. Oh, how swiftly it passes! It seems as if I had started contributing to the Short Take column only a year ago, although I completed five years this month.

I remember being nervous when I had sent my first piece. I had never thought that I would reach this far. The fact that I have written over 200 articles during this period makes me feel grateful towards my family and friends and my readers for continuously encouraging me. But it is the editor who deserves the most credit.

Editing is a tough task. Going through each and every line of the article, deleting some and rewriting other passages. It is quite taxing.

Editing is no five-finger exercise. Looming over the computer, pushing his glasses up with one hand while the other is busy typing; the keys of the computer forming a rhythmic sound; the words magically appearing on the screen; smiling inwardly, and praising the modern technology for the assistance; reading word by word, line by line and wondering whether the particular line is significant or not; spending even hours on a single article.



I realised this when I experienced the busy lives of editors recently, after I was appointed as one for my school magazine. Convincing others to send their parts. Correcting the improper grammar. More often than not, rewriting the sentences. Creating a sensible version of something which was incomprehensible initially. These were what occupied most of my time.

It made me realise that the job of an editor is much more challenging than an outsider can imagine.

A few of my friends believe the job of an editor is to simply go through the articles once and compile them while the writer is the one who does the hard job. If only they knew how wrong they were! If only they could understand the effort behind it all.

It’s not just collecting all the articles and glancing at them once. To make an article worth admiring, it requires the same amount of dedication and persistence that any other art does.

Ace American author Stephen King has rightly said, “To write is human. To edit is divine.”

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 17, 2016)