That’s what home is like

I see sunlight, dancing on the back of my hand
filtering through the palm tree leaves
painting me shades of golden
that’s what home is like

I see luminescent yellow flowers
among a twittering flurry of sparrows
and the passing purr of autorickshaws
that’s what home is like

Kim, Donald and the Launch Codes

The Korean Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) is beautiful, according to David Maxwell, who patrolled the DMZ with the US army back in the 1980s. He said it’s almost like a nature reserve, as it’s a haven for wildlife. But don’t let the beauty fool you. Paradoxically, it is one of the most heavily armed places in the world.

GET A JOB!

The beginning of adulthood is like a race. Everyone’s running, some are faster and some are slower. You suddenly realise you don’t know why you’re running, or what you’re running towards. But it’s too late to stop, because otherwise you’ll just get run over. The search for a job is something like that. Although if you’re searching for a job in another country, it’s like running the same race but now you have to jump-rope your way to the finish. Unless you trip up and get trampled over, obviously.

Warwick Laksh – Volunteering in India

This July, I traveled to Haryana, India with a team of volunteers from Warwick University. I stayed at the Laksh Farms and worked with some incredibly talented people who are trying really hard to improve the standards of education in their villages.

My father is not a person.

I’ve always found it easier to write about incidents and events rather than a person. And when that person is my father, it seems close to impossible. This poem doesn’t even begin to do you justice, Papa, but I hope you like it.

Happy Birthday.

 

My father is not a person.

He’s a universe.

University: Truths and Fallacies

Where do I begin? It’s been quite an eventful 3 months. University is a funny place. It’s all-consuming and loud and messy and fascinating and new. Moving to a new country for university is an even bigger challenge. But it’s beautiful. New places become familiar, strangers become friends and home becomes dearer. I found out that I’d got into the University of Warwick in July and I left in September.

A Couple of Couplets

I’ve been staring at a blank screen for hours,
At a loss of words and inspiration,
What must I write about now
After a long ramble on menstruation?

I feel like a cloth run dry,
Wrung out until I’m empty,
My ideas are dull and hollow,
When once they were aplenty. 

Weight A Minute

 

Indian relatives have always been the epitome of kindness and sensitivity. They’re never rude or brash; instead, they’re understanding and compassionate. They’re not shallow and they understand that beauty is not only skin-deep. I also admire that they are hardly ever out of line and that’s why, when my cousin recently attended a family wedding, the first thing they told her, was:

CNN International published my Article!

MY COUNTRY’S PROBLEM WITH MENSTRUATION

Hasn’t your mother told you that you can’t step inside a temple when you have your period?