Its His Birthday!

Birthday’s are always much awaited days in a person’s life. All of a sudden, you become the center of attraction. The full world turns towards you. You are in the limelight and even if it’s just for a single day in a year, you will enjoy it at the most.

And today it’s his birthday. Being a Hindu and more than a Malayalee, we believe more in the sun sign birthday, than our date of births. And all the social networking sites doesn't asks us about our sun signs, the sun sign birthdays are becoming more personal day of celebrations. Thanks to the inventors of all the social networking sites, at least we have something to call as personal.

Sun sign birthdays, quite a personal thing for every one of us as there is no ‘happy bday’ messages from the known and the unknown. There will be just caring and a happy wish from the ones who really do care for you. Like our ‘date of birth’ birthdays we do check the date and month but not in the English calendar; we look in the Malayalam calendar, Malayalam month and for the sun sign. Remembering all these about your friends or special persons and checking for it in the calendar and wishing them on the exact day, gave us a lot of happiness. And just because of all these details, sun sign birthdays still remains personal and more special for everyone.

And today it’s his sun sign birthday. He, the person who came into my life just before two years , and what all strong bond we shares with each other today sprouted on his last birthday. Thanks to Facebook, for giving me notification, it’s his birthday, and it was his first birthday with me. The one who said, “I don’t believe in birthdays”, (and still he don’t do) as a reply to my wish. And when you are a year older today, I just want to tell you that nothing has changed with you. You are still that boy who will get irritated on the silliest things, shouts and make it quite tough to survive with you, for the one’s you love.

Some relationships are just like that. There won’t be any thread to connect you in this ‘big always connected to each other world’. And all of a sudden when you met this person all the invisible threads came into light and you will treat and think it as the best relation in the world. You won’t care anymore about what people think of that relation. And our relation was just of that type! Simple, stupid, fun, fights, teasing, tears, a whole lot of smiles and love and an unending care.

And on his special day, yeah, very personal special day am here praying for you all the happiness and luck in the whole world. Happy Birthday My Very Own Ani.

PS: Everything happens for a reason, and for me you happened without any reason and for so many special reasons.

SHADOW... MY FRIEND

I saw it for the first time through lime light

Someone walking, dancing, laughing

And crying with me,

While am in a crowd.

With the light

It moved to and away from me.

Sometimes as a close friend

Sitting next to me,

Felt…, it’s Me Only!

It started hurting me.

When the night starts falling.

Why you moved away from me?

Shadow… My Friend.

I expected you when the sun started

Diving into the deep blue sea

And when everyone left me alone…

But,

You too moved away with the crowd

As an unknown person!

Leaving me alone in the shadow of night…

Year 2013 or the Number 13?

The last days of 2013. It’s always in these days we just do the counting’s of an year. How many good days? Which all days went wrong? The people I met, the one’s I lost. The stupid things I did and like that the list goes on… And by December 31^st we reach to a new resolution for the New Year, which most of us won’t practice for more than the first few weeks of January!

Here goes 2013. This one is for you.

Even though the days and nights still continues with the same duration, weeks and months passed too quickly. Before realizing its 2013, coldest and Newer January was over and February was on my door step with Valentine’s Day.  Hottest March, Happiest April, Holidaying May, Life is not so easy June, Rainy July, Winding up August, Jobber September, Working October, Interning November and the Busiest December. In total, 2013, you were a fast moving year.

2013, the year was first discussed by the number present in it- 13. The number’13’ is believed to be the unlucky number. The search for the story of number ‘13’ started when I noticed that hospitals run by Christian missionaries don’t have a room number with the number plate ‘13’. The first answer I got for my query regarding ‘13’ is that it is the unlucky number. And that answer was followed by some king’s name. Someone else told me the story of Jesus Christ’s Last Supper and told me that’s why people believe ‘13’ is unlucky. I still wonder do all these stories give us a strong base to believe that the number ‘13’ brings us unhappiness.

Have you ever checked what all specialties this number posses? I noted the first wonder of ‘13’, when I was in tenth standard. I still remember how our class teacher wrote it in our board and we continuously shouted ‘13’ and ‘B’. That was my first fascination for the number ‘13’, or for the numerals ‘1’ and ‘3‘. When the numbers 0 to 12, have their own names, the number ‘13’ comes with a compound name (Its name is a compound name of three and ten). The next fact about ‘13’ comes in writing. When the digits 0 to 12 are written as numerals, from 13 we need to spell it out (we can’t use ‘13’ in writing; instead we should use ‘thirteen’).

So with all these, obviously the number ‘13’ is a special number. Isn't it? What about the year 2013? Was it special for you? Or as our elders believe was this year unlucky for you? I didn't know what all had happened to the billions of the people in this world in 2013. And I hope nothing had gone wrong for anyone in this year. A number can’t never change your fate and can’t never bring you luck. What all happens in our life it have a purpose and believe in yourself and your god. Then you will believe Everything Happens for a Reason.

Ladies Coupe

Initially let me clarify, this write up doesn't have any resemblance with Anita Nair’s Ladies Coupe. Giving her all the title credits let me begin. This write up is about my experience travelling in a ladies coupe in a reasonable long distance.

Ladies Coupe. A small compartment reserved for ladies, which is usually attached to the tail end of a train. I have heard that it’s a different world when comparing with the other twenty or 20+ bogies preceding Ladies Coupe. Of course it is… Not even a vendor is concerned about the women souls there. My grievances are not over just by pointing out the absence of vendors. There are no good berths there. You may counter me by saying; it’s for the folks who travel a shorter distance. But I have seen good seats in passenger trains and why these uncomfortable seats in ladies coupe? From my experience, I met more than twenty ladies whose tickets are to the destination station and I hope they reached safe after travelling in an eight berth compartment for an overnight.

In between all these, I can’t end it without sharing the fun I had. When my friend suggested travelling in a Ladies Coupe, I totally disagreed with her and now thanks to her for giving me a unique experience.

We got into the Ladies Coupe by one O’ Clock at noon and the temperature outside was high. With all these rushes, spacelessness, heat, sweat and smell of jasmine flowers (we had some Tamil ladies in the coupe) we started our journey. The food which we bought, thinking we will have space to eat (as we used to have in sleeper coaches), somehow we had it and the lady sitting near to the window helped us to clean our hands.

Ladies Coupe was tightly packed. There were people from all walks of life. From the old lady who sat opposite to me to the small kid who cried in regular intervals, home makers to working women, school going kids to college students, continuously talking nanny to the silent old women, it was full of life. And most interestingly I had met some teenage girls and ladies reading ‘Mangalam’ weekly. In our theory classes of magazine journalism, we never paved attention to these weekly’s saying their era has came to an end, and here am witnessing people interestingly going through the pages!

Facial expressions, it speaks a lot. And especially when I’m sitting alone nothing to do in particular, I used to be a good observer. In the journey also same thing happens. This time I don’t need to look outside the windows, I have a whole lot of world in front of me and I just need to sit and watch till I reach my station. When there is a feeling of relief, in the faces of ladies who sit the ones who stand where wiping their faces and looking around to find a place to sit. Relief changes to anxiety, eagerness, tired and desperate as the train started. Engaging phone conversations and the expressions they have… what their faces say when they complain to each other about their in-laws… when someone asks to move a little… to hold a bag or book… when seeing another crowd waiting in the next station for the train and obviously when they make the rush to get into the highly packed one… It’s worth watching and sometimes we will be having the same expressions as they have.

I still hold to the complains I have, at the same time I can’t forgot some innocent smiles I received in that journey which made me smile, leaving everything that runs in my mind for a few seconds. Those smiles were the best things happened for me in that journey and as I believe Everything Happens For a Reason.

#2EHFAR pics

#1EHFAR pics

മഴ

  

  മഴ. ഈ രണ്ടക്ഷരങ്ങളിൽ ഒത്തിരി കാര്യങ്ങൾ ഒളിച്ചിരിക്കുനുണ്ട്. ഓരോ വ്യക്തിയും ഈ രണ്ടാക്ഷരങ്ങളോട് കുട്ടുകുടുന്നത് പല വിധത്തിലായിരിക്കും. ചില൪ക്ക് സന്തോഷവും, ചിലർക്ക്‌ സങ്കടവും, മറ്റു ചില൪ക്ക് പ്രണയവും, വേ൪പാടും, വിരഹവും അങ്ങനെ എത്രയെത്ര വികാരങ്ങൾ ഈ രണ്ടക്ഷരം കുട്ടിവായിക്കുന്ന മഴ എന്ന  വാക്ക് നമുക്ക് നൽകുന്നു.

  മഴയോടുള്ള നമ്മുടെ കാഴ്ചപ്പാട്, നാം പ്രകൃതിയുടെ ഈ വരദാനത്തെ എങ്ങനെ ആസ്വദിക്കുന്നു എന്നനുസരിച്ചിരിക്കും. പ്രകൃതിയുടെ വരദാനം, പ്രകൃതിയുടെ ദുഖം, ആത്മാക്കളുടെ സന്തോഷം ഇതൊകെയാണ് ഭൂമിയിൽ മഴയായി പെയ്യുന്നത് എന്നൊകെ നമ്മൾ സൗകര്യപൂർവ്വം വിശ്വസിക്കുന്ന അന്ധവിശ്വാസങ്ങളാണ്. ശാസ്ത്രിയമായി മഴ എങ്ങനെ ഉണ്ടാകുമെന്ന് അറിയാമെങ്കിലും, കുറച്ചുകുടി നാം ആസ്വദിക്കുനത് ഈ തെറ്റിദ്ധാരണകളെതന്നെയാണ്.

എത്രയൊക്കെ വള൪ന്നാലും, എവിടെയൊക്കെ ജീവിച്ചാലും, മഴ മലയാളികളുടെ മനസ്സിൽ ഒരു നൊസ്റ്റാൾജിയ ഉണ൪ത്തുന്നുണട്. കുട്ടിക്കാലം മുതലുള്ള ഏവരുടെയും ഓ൪മ്മകളിൽ മഴ ഒഴിവാക്കനവാൻ പറ്റാത്ത ഒരു അവിഭാജ്യഘടകം തന്നെയാണ്. ആദ്യമായി മഴ നനഞ്ഞ് സ്കൂളിൽ പോകുന്നത് മുതൽ തുടങ്ങുന്ന ഓ൪മ്മകൽ, തൻറെ പ്രണയിനിയുടെ ഒപ്പം മഴ നനഞ്ഞത്‌ വരെ എത്തുമ്പോഴേക്കും മഴ ഓരോ മനുഷ്യനും സുഖമുള്ള അനുഭവമായി മാറിയിട്ടുണ്ടാവും.

ചിണുങ്ങി ചിണുങ്ങി പെയ്യാൻ മടിച്ചു നില്ക്കുന്ന മഴയും, ഒരേ താളത്തിൽ പെയ്യുന്ന ശാന്തമായ മഴയും, പ്രകൃതിയുടെ രൗദ്രത മുഴുവൻ ഉൾക്കൊണ്ട പേമാരിയും, നമ്മെ ഒരേ സമയം സന്തോഷിപ്പിക്കുകയും വിഷമിപ്പിക്കുകയും ചെയ്യുന്നു. പ്രകൃതിയുടെ വേറെ ഏതെങ്കിലും ഒരു പ്രതിഭാസത്തെ നാം ഇത്രയധികം സ്നേഹിക്കുകയും കാത്തിരിക്കുകയും ചെയ്തിട്ടുണ്ടാവില്ല.

   ചാ൪ളി ചാപ്ലിൻറെ പ്രശസ്തമായ വാചകങ്ങൾ കടമെടുക്കട്ടെ, "I always like walking in the rain, so no one can see me crying.". ഏവരും മഴയിൽ നടക്കാനിഷ്ട്ടപ്പെടുന്നതിന്റെ മറ്റൊരു കാരണം ഇതാകുമോ? ഏതായാലും മഴ നമ്മുടെ സങ്കടങ്ങലെയെല്ലാം കഴുകി കളഞ്ഞ് സന്തോഷകരമായ പുതിയ നാളെയെ സമ്മാനിക്കട്ടെ എന്ന് നമുക്ക് പ്രാ൪ത്ഥിക്കാം...