Poem 1 & Poem 2: The Lamb and The Tiger by William Blake

Two beautiful poems by William Blake which represnt two different natures- The Tyger and The Lamb,  published in 1794. They mean much more when you read them together.

First is 'THE LAMB' from 'Songs of innocence' which describes innocence...

The second is ' THE TYGER' from his collection 'Songs of experience' which describes the evil. I had heard this poem but never realised its actual meaning till i read both together.The Tyger also presents a duality between aesthetic beauty and primal ferocity. Thanks to Wikipedia! And the best part is both the animals are used only as a metaphor! :) :P

An apt representation of the poem and it's message!

The element of surprise

A masterpiece by Renoir

  I go to the Tekdi when I am happy. I go to the Tekdi when I am sad. I go to the Tekdi  when I feel nothing...But going there always makes me feel good! Even if I get used to the beauty there, things keep happening which surprise me! Some things like walking along a peacock in breeding plumage, which I experienced recently. Or the different flowers, birds, clouds and hues and places I view daily. They add their novelty to the same old place. This is one part about the Tekdi I love the most! Experiencing something I don't expect....

  Its always enjoyable to experience a great work of art, be it- a movie, a painting, a book, a poem, a recipe or anything else. And, of course, I especially enjoy the recommended ones. But you must have sometime or the other discovered something on your own or stumbled upon something and found it engaging. That gives you a satisfaction which is unique in itself. That's the element of surprise which keeps things paced up and fresh in life! It doesn't always have to be something extraordinary or out of the world. But it is always something you never expected or imagined to exist. That is the blessing of innocence, inexperience, unawareness, which makes the thing so striking. As we grow old, the opportunity for this reduces and so does our appreciation of it!

  I so miss those times when I was used to these surprises! Now, ironically enough, I have to search for them. But they are still very inspiring ever time I experience them! But saying this, I have to admit that these out-of-expectation happenings also increase as you grow old. But only in a different way. Because you become judgmental about most things. Thus when something doesn't happen as you predicted it, that's another surprise for you! If you can take it that way!But mostly we don't because of the fear of disappointment. Richard Bach says, "The meaning I picked, the one that changed my life: Overcome fear, behold wonder." So what we really need to learn is to accept change and change the attitude of accepting things nonchalantly. As Albert Einstein puts it-'He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.' 

  Coming back to Tekdi and few such good things in life, even though they are not exactly surprises, there are some rare  but unpredictable moments which always take your breath away. I wish and hope that I capture them every time and many times! They inspire you every time you see them. So all this unexpectedness almost always leaves you overwhelmed. I don't have to describe how these moments affect you. Because I won't be able to do it as well as Guy de Maupassant does in his story Mother Savage-

We, whom the country enchants, keep tender memories of certain springs, certain woods, certain pools, certain hills seen very often which have stirred us like joyful events. Sometimes our thoughts turn back to a corner in a forest, or the end of a bank, or an orchard filled with flowers, seen but a single time on some bright day, yet remaining in our hearts like the image of certain women met in the street on a spring morning in their light, gauzy dresses, leaving in soul and body an unsatisfied desire which is not to be forgotten, a feeling that you have just passed by happiness.

  So here's my tribute to the joy of surprises!  And the unpredictable moments that always make life so worthwhile! I will end this blog with William Wordsworth's poem which again is about appreciating nature-My heart leaps up.

My heart leaps up when I behold

A Rainbow in the sky:

So was it when my life began;

So is it now I am a man;

So be it when I shall grow old,

Or let me die!

The Child is father of the man;

And I wish my days to be

Bound each to each by natural piety.

At the Lake

  
This ought to be the first blog I should have written! But somehow the blog name is too obvious for me to write about it. Because lake is something I very much relate to and have been used to! Come to think of it, there are so many associations with that word, that, it struck me just like that! Kind of, by default.  However, the main association concerned with this blog is contemplation. This you might have already guessed from the earlier posts. Of course, lake is just a medium, but nature always makes you ‘think’! Even though we never give much thought towards nature. 

In general, I love water. And I have grown up near a lake and hopefully, have grown better with my understanding about it. So it is kind of my first and life long association with beauty of nature. And any form of it lifts up my spirit! So I consider myself very lucky, that every time I need a place to escape to, I get to see one! Be it a small patch not intimidated by the man-made structures around it or some other place in the wilderness. These places give me a chance to be inspired.  So the name of the blog.

Nature, It exists. And what we observe about it is only up to the limit of our understanding of it. And yet it is overwhelming! So it always inspires me! This blog  is some place where I can write what I wish and not what I am expected to!  Hence, the blog name is also a tribute to its contribution in my life, thoughts and emotions. I guess everyone needs some way to always remain inspired and mine will always be nature. To summarize what I think, I like this line I read by Ralph Waldo Emerson although I don't know its context-

Flowers... are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.

And lastly, but most importantly, I will end this blog with my first and forever favourite poem. An excerpt from Wordsworth's Daffodils-

I gazed --- and gazed --- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

 
P. S. : Being interested in science, although it is out of context, couldn't help sharing this! -

http://www.phombo.com/anime-cartoons-comics/calvin-and-hobbes/4826/full/ 


  

With a little help from my friends

I remembered this song by the Beatles and fell in love with it once again-


What do I do when my love is away 
(Does it worry you to be alone?) 
How do I feel by the end of the day 
(Are you sad because you're on your own?)
No, I get by with a little help from my friends 
Mm, I get high with a little help from my friends 
Mm, gonna try with a little help from my friends


The Beatles have a song for almost everything and that too mostly a good one. I especially love the last three lines! There are many people you know, some people you care about and only a few who matter. I would like to dedicate this post to some of those who do! There are many poems, stories, movies about friendship and yet it impresses you every time! To Friends...


Currently, everywhere I go, I hear people defining things. I wonder, how one could define friendship? As far as I am concerned; I know it, experience it and appreciate it. And that is enough for me! Simply put- friendship is when you mutually like the talks, arguments, fights, pranks, mirth, and so on. Like the characters in modern movies; behaviour of your friends with respect to you keeps on changing. It may range from protection, support, encouragement, confidence, camaraderie, criticism,  warning, scold; as per requirement. I believe it is a phenomenon - Its easier to help a friend in dilemma and easier to solve your's with the help of your friends. It may not be a universal truth but I have experienced it quite a few times! Friends are the ones who trouble you without troubling you. And basically, those who help you and stand by you when trouble comes from a different source. One thing that characterizes friendship is that you are on common grounds with people, which is not the case in all relationships. This helps you to understand yourself and each other better. In a difficulty, the solution appears simpler when facing it with friends. Because you know there is a back up or someone to suffer along with. So, when things aren't going right, friends are the only people who will ease it off by joking about it. :) 


One bad thing about friendship is the times when you miss your friend. But sometimes the missing part gives you a chance to look forward to something. Time is said to be very valuable. And only with friends, it is valuable even when you waste it together. I think one thing you share with friends and which you never stop loving is memories. And the best part is that you can miss them together. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for everything! And looking forward to all the great times ahead! I once received a text from a friend. It kind of summarized friendship in one word- SHARING. And on this note, I will end this one. I will conclude with a very meaningful and beautiful line from an amazing movie I recently watched! The movie 'Into the Wild' -

Happiness is real only when shared!

Photo credit: To a friend :)

P. S. : Dear Friends, Thanks for your encouragement! Criticism welcome too. :)

आजी

I would like to start this blog by dedicating it to one of the most beloved persons in my life although she is not a part of it now... my Aaji. Aaji taught us many lessons without words through her actions. She taught me one thing that we know but don't always understand. She taught me to BELIEVE. This is my first attempt at blogging. Aaji, this one is for you.....

Aaji never spoke much earlier but her silence conveyed most of her feelings. I went to Konkan last month. I couldn't help remembering our family trips there. We kept worrying about health of my grand parents and they surprised us every time with their enthusiasm. Their roaming was of course limited but their spirit never. 

We once went to Aaji's village there. We didn't even know if descendants of her family still lived there. Luckily we got to meet them and their hospitality just left us speechless. We also saw a letter written by her father. I will never forget her expressions as she read it. There are no words to describe them, they can only be felt.  

Aaji always engaged herself in one thing or other. People get tired of work, she got tired of not working. She never called herself old after 89 years! After her paralytic attack all she was looking forward to was the day when she would walk by herself again. She did complain of her troubles but she never let it affect her recovery. Even during her illness, she constantly kept herself involved in things like drawing, singing, reading, writing. She was an interminable source of optimism for us.

She always encouraged us to follow our dreams and more importantly our choices. And encouraged us even more when we failed at something! And one thing that cheered you the most was her smile! One thing I miss the most about her is her innocent, genuine and patient smile. I had heard the saying 'patience is a virtue', in her I observed it. 

Even imagining her forbearance during all the hardships and losses she faced exhausts my patience. I don't remember Aaji  being overjoyed or depressed or angry. But almost always she was contented and hopeful. 

There are no better words than these by John Denver which put her philosophy and attitude in a perspective-

To see in the darkness, to listen within 
To answer in kindness, to ever begin
To ever be gentle, to always be strong
To walk in the wonder, to live in the song