Holi Haiiii

Holi, the festival of colors, this time we friends gathered at our usual meeting place, M's house. Some elaborate mails pre-exchanged on the timings of the celebrations with must read warnings about spoiling your dress that you cannot even think of using for months or may be even years to come! That reminds me of my scarf and my salwar set that saw it's first holi along with me, which I preserved and so proudly worn until the colors faded :( I was all charged up for the D-day, and B came to pick me up. Oh, last time it was R&D who came to my hostel and pulled me along, just in time to catch me when I tried to quietly slip away to office!

I entered their house, the coloring had already started... M's brother and his friends were gleefully waiting for anybody who dared to enter their gates with their dresses unstained! There were eggs and tomato to add to the madness... I'm sure the houseowner would have committed suicide seeing the condition of his house! Well, not house exactly... only the portico... these guys were sensible enough [for this once ;)] to spread newspapers all over the floor to save the house this time! And, we had a good laugh over the onions that were placed along with the eggs and tomatoes intended for playing holi outside the house... some brahaspathi had brought onions assuming I donno what!!

There were all colors, yellow, green, pink, chrome, red, violet... and water colors and silver! This time I was better off... I could discern the hard colors from the soft and could use it to my advantage ;) Last time, M made sure we novices got our hands on soft colors to play with and had kept hard colors for our faces! Result was our faces looking red and pink while M's hands alone were colored! After emptying all water and playing enough, it was time for sweets and some cleaning too! Aki was the only one spared with minimal colors on his Tshirt, so he was the one who ended up bringing us buckets of fresh water from inside M's house... Poor Aki! But he did take advantage of his clean hands and was hogging all the sweets meant for us :O... Just then Chells was shouted at him... "Aki, if you are doing this, I'm gonna come and hug you!" Another burst of laughter... though it did save some sweets for us!! :)

R dropped me back and after hours of scrubbing and cleaning I could still find patches of pink, blue and green on my face... Gosh!! I had to go like that to office. I was rather quick to say "Happy Holi" to anyone who gave me a puzzled, concerned look, before they could even ask "Oh, what happened to you?" Our gang was the one colorful lot in our office, feels nice to stand out among the boring rest.

Be a Woman!

Hey woman...

They say you symbolize beauty
not bothering to look at your substance;
They say your heart is an ocean
not trying to know it the least.

They say you are precious
not letting you fly in freedom;
They say you are frail
not realizing you created them!

One touch is enough to heal you
One word is enough to inspire you
One tear is enough to melt you
One smile is enough to lift you...
May be thats why there is just
one day to celebrate you!

May the spark in you light the world
May the will in you conquer all heights
May your tenderness spread love
May your nobility hold you high!

My favorite in Gitanjali

One poem (numbered 52) in the Gitanjali collection that had stitched me unto the book... the verses I kept reading again and again, mysteriously intoxicated by the words weaved into it!

I thought I should ask of thee--but I dared not--the rose wreath thou hadst on thy neck. Thus I waited for the morning, when thou didst depart, to find a few fragments on the bed. And like a beggar I searched in the dawn only for a stray petal or two.
Ah me, what is it I find? What token left of thy love? It is no flower, no spices, no vase of perfumed water. It is thy mighty sword, flashing as a flame, heavy as a bolt of thunder. The young light of morning comes through the window and spreads itself upon thy bed. The morning bird twitters and asks, 'Woman, what hast thou got?' No, it is no flower, nor spices, nor vase of perfumed water--it is thy dreadful sword.

I sit and muse in wonder, what gift is this of thine. I can find no place to hide it. I am ashamed to wear it, frail as I am, and it hurts me when I press it to my bosom. Yet shall I bear in my heart this honour of the burden of pain, this gift of thine.

From now there shall be no fear left for me in this world, and thou shalt be victorious in all my strife. Thou hast left death for my companion and I shall crown him with my life. Thy sword is with me to cut asunder my bonds, and there shall be no fear left for me in the world.

From now I leave off all petty decorations. Lord of my heart, no more shall there be for me waiting and weeping in corners, no more coyness and sweetness of demeanour. Thou hast given me thy sword for adornment. No more doll's decorations for me!

And this reminds me.... hey Krish, where is my book???? :O