A Lesson In Humility

I think I must be a very arrogant person. Every time I think I have beaten the demons that trouble me, I realize that I am in danger of being a hypocrite.
During the Christmas week of 2008, I got invited to visit folks in Vizag and Aruku. We packed our bags and boarded the train to Vizag (our first as a family together). The night was fairly uneventful except for my son falling off the berth. Fortunately, he was on the lowest berth and didn't really hurt himself except for a rude awakening.
The morning saw us in Vizag waiting for some friends to arrive and escort us to where we would camp for a couple of days. Later that night I was preaching in the church in Vizag. The kids made us feel great with their singing and natural enthusiasm. The kids belonged to a school run by New Life Fellowship, Vizag for those who could not afford schooling.
As I took the microphone to preach a message, I remember thinking what I could possibly say to the people gathered there. A special stage was set in anticipation and I just could not bring myself to teach from the Bible. Instead I shared about God's love to me and my family. Being a thinking man myself I was wondering if I had wasted the evening but to my surprise a few people came by and told me that they were indeed filled with hope with my testimony. I felt really small that day.
The next day was a free day to look around Vizag and we checked out the beaches and the submarine museum.
The following day, we left for Aruku to go minister to the tribals of that area. We arrived amidst great anticipation by the locals who were celebrating Christmas. My family stopped celebrating Christmas a long time ago and we usually use the opportunity it presents to preach the Gospel.
But that day seeing the enthusiasm of the crowd, I could not help but think of the many Christmases I had enjoyed with my family as a kid. It was more of family time than remembering God and His greatness. I felt nostalgic to see a cake sponsored by a brother especially for Christmas and the "visiting" women had the honor to cut it.
I also met three New Zealanders who had spent a few days at the hamlet (for that is what it was) in a little ramshackled hut. Having shared my personal experience of Christmas and a word of caution, we wrapped up the event with great gusto. Clothes were distributed and people had beautiful smiles on their faces. What struck me was the use of bright and cheerful colors by the tribal women folk. It really was a riot of colors.
We then got promptly invited for lunch and were led gently to the house of the local pastor. His wife was the perfect hostess courteously piling food on the plate. Rice and chicken curry was the fare. Scrumptious smelling but also spiced up dangerously, but then that is another story.
Well fed, we departed from the village and I remember thinking to myself that here were simple folks who had welcomed us into their homes and treated us like kings and in return all we were doing is bringing them some used clothes and knick-knacks.
If the truth be told, they gave me a lot more than I could scrounge up. I gave from my abundance the things I did not want. They gave to me and my family all they had - hospitality and food that I do believe would have come at a high price for them.
The simple villagers made me feel like a king for a day. Leaving behind the people I almost felt a pang of regret. My world is so different. It entails a lot of thing that we sophisticated city dwellers need to do to keep our standing in society. The simple villagers had none of those constraints. They welcomed us and the joy was genuine. They felt honored to have guests at their homes and they did everything possible to make us feel at home.
As I ate lunch that day I also bit into humble pie. It tasted like ashes then but now I can feel the sweetness of that lovely experience.
I was blessed that afternoon and I thank God for it. I realized that sometimes it is not what you can do but rather what others do for you that can make you feel complete. It is a humbling experience!
Isn't that what God did for us? In receiving His gift we are made whole and are complete...

I was an arrogant man!

When You Are Close To Me

When you are close to me
The sky seems blue
The tinge of red in the morning
Reminds me of you

The cuckoo in the branches
Sings a song so beautiful
The imagined reflection in the river
Makes me feel absolutely wonderful

Come my princess, alight
From my imagination alright
Look at your smitten beau
Crooning a song for you

Lets dance in the rays of the sun
To the tune of sparrows
And soar on wings of eagles
There is no thought for tomorrow

And up and high we will go
And find the loftiest peak
To look at the world below
And then, my beloved do speak

Speak my darling, with words of love
And fill the air with glee
Hold my hand and pull me close
Kiss me and let us forever flee

Far away to a distant land
Where seals sing in unison
The world is full of wonder
Waiting for you to plunder

You will marvel at it all, to see
The mist rolling over the mountains
The valleys and hills will charm you
Until my arms around you tightens

Oh see the wonders thru my eyes
And feel the thumping of my heart
It beats like crazy longing for you
You are, after all my sweetest heart

Your Beautiful Eyes

Your eyes will not let me see
Beyond what my love declares to be
It beckons me like twinkling stars
Shooting moon beams into my heart

Oh whither do your eyes get their light?
It overwhelms and controls my sight
With pain masked with pleasure in heart
I ask... can we have a whole new start?

Memories of you keep reminding me
Of the love that I felt for thee
And pierced in my soul is this thought
Should I let go or should I have fought?

Your eyes they bewitch my night
In sleep I see through your light
In dreams a story is often told
Should I weep for you or be bold?

The light may not last long now
The sunflowers will soon bow
But in the inky darkness black
I will keep watch without a slack

Your eyes they say to me
Whispers tales of wonder and glee
Oh! If only you could see
What I see through your eyes of me

You Amaze Me

It's amazing how I feel with you around
Your presence fills me with love and life
My being swells with happiness
And life could not be more right

I feel you must be mine
To treasure and to hold tight
To traverse the seven seas
And write music in unknown keys

Watch out my love, turn around
My heart's drumming with the sound
Of romantic waves hitting the surf
Romancing on my beloved's turf

Behold the dance of the eyes
Flared passion on the mind
Singing the songs long forgotten
A sound from Eden is in the rhyme

Cloaked with mystery and with mirth
Seems destined from our birth
That spirits would meet and touch
And release the love so much

Look around my dear darling
My love doesn't cost a farthing
It's the most precious possession
And a piece of my obsession

I give to you all I have
To hold close to your heart
Do not let go, my dearest
It's all of me in your heart closest

That Time Of Year

It's that time of the year :) December is famous for Christmas, decorated trees, lights, shopping, yule tide, and for many, yule log as well. It is a nice month when people take a look at the year that went by and decide to make new resolutions for the coming year.
Every once in a while it is good to take stock of our ambitions and make course corrections to achieve them. For me December is usually the most hectic time of the year. With Christmas preparations in church and rehearsals, it gets pretty busy. But the most enjoyable moments are those when folks come over and spread bon homie all around. Life is priceless when that happens. In light of recent events in Bombay, and around the world, I intend to cherish every bit for these precious moments.
Rehearsals have been crazy. We have had so much fun doing what we want to do. Having around 10 overcharged youth and channeling their energies in a single pursuit can be daunting but loads of fun nevertheless. Giving them tips on voice modulation and stance on stage earned me a lot of nicknames. One of them insists that when I write the next play I should put up a board that reads, "Barney's Art Academy (BAA)." [BAA indeed - the transition from bull to goat begins here :)]
Then there are the dance steps for the choreo's. Now that is something to be seen to believe. Some have it and some don't. I have given the youngsters hours of belly-aching laughter with some of my "professional" and well-coordinated moves.
Someday, one of the wise guys promises me, he will make a director's cut DVD so people can see the efforts that went into the makings of this production. I am not sure I want to see it done but then it can't do much harm methinks.
Meetings, planning, rehearsals, coordination between the various teams, fund raisers, schedules, arrange snacks, endless phone calls, appointments, and related things have kept me on my toes literally. And the one thing that pleases me the most is the time that people have been giving and the gusto with which they have been practicing. I am proud of this little production and I pray that things proceed like clockwork on December 20.
A lot of efforts have gone to present "merry Christmas" to friends and colleagues. And while I am braced for critical remarks and let-downs, I hope and pray that it comes to me only. The cast has put in so much efforts and hard work that I may well be the loudest cheerer in the audience.
Spreading the cheer is the theme for Christmas. I will do that by cheering my Arts team now.

Felis Navidad!

Christmas is also synonymous with the message of peace. I wish peace to all readers of this blog...

An Ode To My Soul

Oh, my soul, why are you so forlorn?
Is not the sky blue still?
And the flowers pretty!
The wind blows and ruffles my hair
And the cool breeze caresses my face
Yet, the feeling persists...

I aspire
To smile and be well
And then I sigh...

Is there a tomorrow?
Is the Faith alive?
Or is it the emptiness
Of someone left behind!
Does my cry reach Heaven?
Or am I just deluded

I aspire
To laugh and live
And then I sigh...

Melancholy, I want to let you go
Tears, don't come too close
Dread, be away and stay there
Smile, please come back to me
Hope, spare me a moment
Love, come and kiss me

I aspire
To love and to cherish
And then I sigh...

Thank God, It's Over!

"Thank God, it's over," began Prannoy Roy of NDTV this morning. Thank God, indeed! It takes a situation like this to finally understand how feeble everything around is and how much we take life for granted.

I still can't get over the events of the past three days. My sentiments echoes the sentiments of the nation. How many innocent lives have to be snuffed out before the politicians will leave petty politics alone and unite to make a positive difference? How can the politicians even look at themselves in the mirror? How can politicians who are responsible for corruption and "games of power" live with themselves knowing that their actions have been responsible for the death of so many lives? How can politicians sing the National Anthem?

Enough is enough! Everything that we know about politics is irrelevant today. I don't care. I want answers.

The news channel said, "If ever there was a watershed, its now." The common man cannot be taken for granted for too long. Politics which should have been synonymous with good governance is now a curse word. Corruption amongst politicians and government officials is a way of life. Security almost non-existent. "Value for life" is a term that is a joke.

How much blood has to be spilt before man becomes man again? The blood of the innocents have reddened the palms of every politician in India afresh. The blood cries for justice.

NO, it's not over yet...