“House-house was the most popular game in my childhood. I had no choice but to play as per preference of my playmates. It was better than isolation. I was often castigated and rebuked because I showed a marked preference for administrative and going-out tasks rather than cooking, cleaning and laundry.” “The story has not changed … Continue reading Wisdom
Those pages make a story for sure, but all are not written by me. How ridiculous is it to say, that I’m not the author of my own life? Am I blaming others for failure, or giving them credit for undeserved success? Maybe, I happened to be at the right place at the time to … Continue reading Whose story?
Silhouettes - the dark shape and outline of someone or something visible in restricted light against a brighter background. It’s not just a dictionary meaning. It represents the underground presence, hushed voices, crushed identities that lie beneath a story. They are the ones who created the outline, but disappeared either voluntarily or were compelled to … Continue reading Silhouettes
Denise gives me a ponderable quote. “A book should be an ax to chop open the frozen sea inside us” I go ahead and choose a book that seems relevant. I’m engulfed by dizziness, just when I’m on the verge of a breakthrough, landing in a whirlpool. My feet are shackled by guilt, as I … Continue reading Frozen Sea inside Me
The world looks so different from here. But what separates me from it is still a haze… I’m not sure if what I think or infer is right. The people who hurt me are floating around, showing me unknown aspects of their existence … unknown to me that is… altering my view totally. Is revenge … Continue reading Haze
We’ve always been here, seeing each other, communicating in deemed interactions –where words are exchanged but understanding is zero. It’s like a transparent film separates us, but also serves as a string that does not let us drift too far apart. Born to the same parents, the manner in which we absorbed the same reality … Continue reading Twins
We walked into the haze together, several years ago, not knowing what lies ahead. Faith kept us together, that only better things lie ahead. The rocks we had failed to see tested us at many points, as the haze thinned down and heat escalated. We stumbled, blamed each other for placing those in our way … Continue reading Dreaming together
“The weather looks lovely outside.” “The tales it carries from faraway lands may not be pleasant”, says Hazel as she fiddles with the remote flicking news channels. He was fed up with being imprisoned … Yes, perhaps that is what an ultra-protected life means. He was fed up with being controlled by an almost invisible … Continue reading Lure of freedom
How can Time stop moving? How can this room be exactly the same as when grandmother left it? The aroma of chocolate cake hits his nostrils. But there can’t be an oven, if there is no electricity here. He pushes the door, the lights come on …..and his family is singing Happy Birthday… “What are … Continue reading Surprise
I distinctly remember the midnight mass I attended with Aunt Josephine, and the purple frock with golden checks stitched by my mom for Christmas. I was all of five years old. Eid was spent with Uncle Latif and Aunt Mariam. The childless couple doted on me, and cooked vegetarian food for us, respecting my family’s … Continue reading Bonding
Creative Experiments and More 