"Desiderata" by Max Ehrmann

This was sent to me by a friend, I felt I had to share it.

Desideratum |diˌsidəˈrätəm; -ˈrātəm; -ˌzidə-|
noun ( pl. -ta |-tə|)
something that is needed or wanted : integrity was a desideratum.
ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from Latin, ‘something desired,’ neuter past participle of desiderare (see desiderate )

Weekend Rap-Up!

Linking up to Patty's Weekend Wrap-Up!

The weekend is over, it came and then went

Why isn't it longer? That's my constant lament

With 48 hours to use and abuse

and time to chill out, relax and let loose

You'd think I could get all those chores completed

and still have some time for my feet to get treated

at the spa round the corner? But the days just flew by

I have so much undone, my plans went awry!

It started with sanding and scraping the trunk

The one that long been abandoned as junk

Once it was smoothened bit by small bit

I got out my brushes and started on it

I painted a border of black on the top

Inside of which my new painting I'd drop

And decoupage it with a glue called Mod Podge

To hold it in place so it doesn't dislodge

Then I drew with white charcoal some art on one side

Nothing fancy or showy but I think it's alright

I stopped at that point, I had things to fulfill

I'll get back to the painting, I certainly will.

Then later that day I went for a lecture

On the origin of Sanskrit and Indian culture

About Brahmi and Pali the professor drawled

Spellbinding and thrilling it had me enthralled

I came back enlightened about linguistics

And metre and rhyme and ancient phonetics

On Sunday I cooked, my uncle came by

I made matar panir and stuffed okra fry

Then I lazed and I blogged and then shopped for some lamps

My diya collection I had to revamp
The locksmith who said he'd come by on Sunday

Never showed up at all to my sad dismay

So the mystery box still stays locked and sealed

The contents of which yet have not been revealed

So that was my weekend, some this and some that

Some eating, some shopping and time for chit chat

I finally finished the article I started

In which some ideas for design in schools I imparted

I went to the shop and got some art framed

To send to a blogger....who shall stay unnamed :-)!!

I hope that the weekend brought joy to you too

And it was restful and calm with no hullabaloo!

The weekend song!

Have a great weekend everyone! I'll be entertaining some guests tomorrow and feeding them some good old fashioned South Indian soul food - Masala Dosas, Chutney and Sambar for lunch.....

followed by Kheer, (rice pudding with flecks of saffron and slivered almonds) for dessert!

That should put us all in a pretty soporific state, so to revive us, some South Indian filter coffee, or as we say "kaapi"!

Then if I have any energy left and the carb bombs haven't killed me yet, I may get on with my packing, printing, gift wrapping, note making, to-do list checking off...and then hit the treadmill, maybe.....

For those of you who need some inspiration to just take a break and let the housework be, here it is:

Tomorrow Can Wait/The Weekend Song by Anita Atina

Languid repose
Piled up chores
Everything’s waiting
For my cheery doze
The appointments, the laundry
The house is in a mess
Don’t want fresh clothes
Undressed is best
When the music curls up slowly
In a drowsy haze
Oh its so nice to lie down
Under the sun’s warm gaze
The rushing and the buzzing
For the week is done
And finally its the weekend
To soak up the sun!

Rumi~ The great Sufi mystic!

Everyone knows how much I love Sufi music and lately I have been very curious about the Persian poet Rumi. I had of course heard of him and about him and read many of his quotes, but a quote on Priya's blog really piqued my curiosity and spurred me to read up a little more about him. And so far I have loved every single quote, poem or saying by him. Wise man this Rumi!

Mawlana Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi, also known as Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, but known to the English-speaking world simply as Rumi, was a 13th-century Persian poet, Sunni Islamic jurist, and theologian and mystic.

Rumi's works are written in the New Persian language. Although Rumi's works were written in Persian, Rumi's importance is considered to transcend national and ethnic borders. His original works are widely read in their original language across the Persian-speaking world. Translations of his works are very popular in South Asian, Turkic, Arab, and Western countries. His poetry has influenced Persian literature as well as the literature of the Urdu, Bengali, Arabic and Turkish languages. His poems have been widely translated into many of the world's languages and transposed into various formats; BBC News has described him as the "most popular poet in America".

Here are some more beautiful, meaningful quotes by him:

"No mirror ever became iron again; No bread ever became wheat; No ripened grape ever became sour fruit. Mature yourself and be secure from a change for the worse. Become the light."

"Since in order to speak, one must first listen, learn to speak by listening."

"We rarely hear the inward music, but we're all dancing to it nevertheless."

“The minute I heard my first love story I started looking for you, not knowing how blind that was. Lovers don't finally meet somewhere. They're in each other all along.”


And here is a video depicting his famous poem "Say I am You"...with the translated lyrics appearing on the screen (a few spelling errors notwithstanding)...but just close your eyes and listen to the music!

My ode to my fellow bloggers!

I thought its time I wrote a poem on this awesome group of friends

A group that loves design and style and follows current trends

Stunning interiors, stylish rooms, we post whenever we can

Colors, fabrics, glam and cool, we like things with elan

Martha Stewart, Michael Graves, magazines and websites

Are food and fodder for our brains, they keep us up at nights

We're mothers and professionals, and some of us are joggers

We write, we type, we copy paste, we're the Desi Design Bloggers

First and foremost let me start with Anu of Seattle

Her blog is candy for the eyes, her sense of style is subtle

Her home is full of love and warmth, a vision in cream and brown

With pops of color here and there, a place thats all her own

Serene corners filled with flowers in shades of pink and crimson

And antique knick knacks here and there, vying for attention

My sister-in-law's sis-in-law is Arch at Rang Decor

She lives and blogs and writes her posts in lovely Bangalore

Her images and photographs will have you wanting more

The play of light on simple things are what she captures well

Flowers fragrant in the rain you can almost breathe the smell

Cookies, brownies, cups of chai and pictures of her home

Her love for things traditional that make you feel welcome

And then there's Patricia Torres, or Patty as we call her

She's happy and vivacious and her blog's Colours Dekor

Her spirit is infectious, her style is wild and free

She pens her posts from far away, from oil rich Duba-iiii!

She's crazy about wall art, (she has a peacock on her wall)

And buys lanterns for her garden in every color from the mall

Recently her blog was named among the top fifty two

Congratulations Patty, we think you deserve it too!

Kanika's blog "And Another" is about textiles, cloth and fabric

Her style is wordly and cultured, and especi-ally ethnic

Sensitive and caring just like a true Cancerian

She loves just about anything thats Argentinian or Bolivian

Her blog is full of ideas on where to buy cool funishings

Tablecloths and cushions, bedspreads, towels....anything!

Priya in SFO, blogs at Once Upon a Tea Time

Her posts are daily reads for me, to miss it is a crime

Lifestyle, interiors and design, both contemporary and classic

Her home tours are her forte, all you do is send her pics

She has recently discovered both Eames and Saarinen

And spends her time "geeking out over" over mid century design

Artnlight is the brainchild of Vineeta in Mumbai

The first design blog I ever read, and I couldn't stay away

From it, talent and creativity ooze out from every word

And her fabulous decoupaged boxes on Elle Decor were featured

She writes about the artists and designers who are the best

Her blog is such an inspiration to me and all the rest

Gagan of Midwest USA has "Of Peacocks and Paisleys"

The most prolific blogger of them all, she has to blog daily

Not just one or two a day, but sometimes even three

Her posts pulsate with passion, of design joy and ecstasy

Her blog to her is as she says "Comfort food for her soul"

From jewellry to home decor, she's really on a roll

Sharon blogs at The Key Bunch, she helps with Indian decor

With craft ideas and DIY's, she'll help you that's for sure

Her website's full of info on home products and resources

Flea market finds, store openings and anything new there is

Bhavna at An Indian Summer has just now completed 3

A corporate consultant by day, at night a designophile

Her home reflects her passion for color and for sass

The graphics on her website scream coolness and pizazz

Turquoises, greens and aquas, deep purples, pinks and red

And hours after you leave the site, they spin around in your head

Sundeep is the hip one, she writes Designwali

Her unique modern design style fits her to a T

Her home, in grays and creams and browns is contemporary cool

With splashes of black and white and red, the effect will make you drool

Her passion for interiors is obvious to me

An amazingly creative soul, this designer wannabe

With a baby girl Elisha, is new mom Shalini

A writer and a traveller, in essence a spirit free

"Of Travels and Travails" is where she pens her thoughts

Her photographs of simple things, of flowers and what-nots

She's planning a vacation now with her baby and her hubby

Australia is what she's thinking...will we be seeing pics of Sydney?

Then there's the other Priya,illustrator extraordinaire

Her blog The Plum Tree 2, is where she shows her flair

For capturing the essence and the beauty all around

Of fat cats and crows and flowers and seed pods on the ground

Her thought provoking pictures and descriptions in her ink

Will stop and make you ponder, she likes to make you think.

Charu's another genius with markers and pastels
Simple themes and daily life in portraying she excels
A graphic student by design who always loves to paint
Her subjects are simple folks, and travellers in trains
Who talk and laugh and eat and read......to while away the time
Faces, postures, moods and feelings, so different and sublime

Anrosh has a passion for color and for handloom

Designs, prints and patterns, embroidered in costume

His aim is to educate us about ancient textiles and traditions

To revive these age old practices is his untiring mission

The weaving community still exists, there's so much from them to learn

This blog he says is his homage, his ode to the Indian yarn

Celebrations Decor is the design blog of Lakshmi

With photographs and images of all things that are desi

Sajavat is the baby of Sangitha in Mumbai

An admirer of all things beautiful, she hopes we will enjoy

Deepa Raman of Chennai has information  and some more

On just where to find that designy thing you're looking for

Sanghamitra - gosh I LOVE that name - who lives in Singapore

Has a gorgeous home with warmth, and full of ethnic Indian decor

Then there are techno blogs and travel blogs and blogs on art and books

And blogs on kids and blogs on pets and blogs on budding cooks

But we designer divas, we're a closely knitted group

We comment on each others' blogs and gladly share the scoop

There are many other bloggers there who I'm sure I have forgotten

Please don't feel bad, it was not intended....don't tell me I am rotten

Feel free to send me all your information and I'll be sure to add it on

To this hallowed list of desi girls to who I say....BLOG ON!!!

Apologies to my fellow bloggers for lifting  images off their blogs for this post!!!

Bangle-sellers

I'm taking a sort of blogging break here.....not a complete break but I'm taking the easy way out and just posting a favorite poem of mine. I seem to be in a "bangles" state of mind. Last Monday I did a post on bangles.....and then last week I came across the poem in a book, and felt I must share it.....!

BANGLE-SELLERS by Sarojini Naidu

Bangle-sellers are we who bear

Our shining loads to the temple fair......

Who will buy these delicate, bright

Rainbow-tinted circles of light?

Lustrous tokens of radiant lives,

For happy daughters and happy wives.

Some are meet for a maiden's wrist,

Silver and blue as the mountain-mist,

Some are flushed like the buds that dream

On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream;

Some are aglow with the bloom that cleaves

To the limpid glory of new-born leaves.

Some are like fields of sunlit corn,

Meet for a bride on her bridal morn.

Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,

Or rich with the hue of her heart's desire,

Tinking, luminous, tender and clear,

Like her bridal laughter and bridal tear.

Some are purple and gold-flecked grey,

For her who has journeyed throguh life midway,

Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest

And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast,

Who serves her household in fruitful pride,

And worships the gods at her husband's side.

Sunday morning adventure

Sunday's Shenanigans by "me".

It started out normal like any Sunday
The streets were all empty, no cars in the way
So off we set out to walk our dachshunds
Who were excitedly jumping in leaps and in bounds
Blithely we walked not a care in our heads
Till Lucy our doxie spotted a stray dog ahead
She charged at said street dog, she tugged and she pulled
Her collar came undone, she ran as fast as she could
The street dog and Lucy then came face to face
While Raga chased Lucy at a furious pace
To make sure that ST (that's "street dog" for short)
Did not bite our Lucy in this canine sport
He let go off Junglee our other black doxie
Who then ran after ST showing courage and moxie
So now we have Lucy and Junglee both chasing
The ST, with Raga and me behind racing
Then Raga tripped over a samll rock on the road
He yelled and he screamed and he moaned and he groaned
He got back on his feet, the dogs were still running
By then we had all the neighborhood dogs barking
Then believe it or not it was my turn to fall
I too tripped on something and went for a sprawl
By now all the people had got up and come out
To see what all this commotion was about
Instead of the Sunday being calm and serene
Were 3 dogs and 2 humans creating a scene
By now J and L had slowed down quite a bit
So we caught them and leashed them and decided to split
We carried them home while they wriggled and squirmed
No more Sunday walks with them we confirmed
Then Raga drove off to the emergency
And came back later with a bandaged knee
His palm is all swollen from the fall that he took
Nothing too serious, he can still get on Facebook
A tetanus shot and a ice cold compress
Has taken away the pain and the stress
Both Junglee and Lucy are tired and exhausted
So all morning long they've been asleep on the bed
My fall was not severe, I don't hurt a lot
My bruises are mild, its my nerves that are shot!

Rain...yes, we FINALLY had rain last night!

I am so excited....last night the skies opened up and we had some rain! Yes, those drops of water that fall from the sky and cool things down....! OK, so maybe the temperature is a 100 degrees today instead of 113, but still.....it is a sure sign that the monsoons are just around the corner! Here is one of my favorite rain poems....I really feel like jumping around and standing on my head!

RAIN

I opened my eyes
And looked up at the rain,
And it dripped in my head
And flowed into my brain,
And all that I hear as I lie in my bed
Is the slishity-slosh of the rain in my head.

I step very softly,
I walk very slow,
I can't do a handstand--
I might overflow,
So pardon the wild crazy thing I just said--
I'm just not the same since there's rain in my head.

by Shel Silverstein

Pretty in Pink!

The weather's too hot, my grey cells are fried

I've run out of ideas, I've tried and I've tried

To come up with something that's exciting to post

But what can I do if my brain's turned to toast?

45 degrees Celsius and my head's in a fog

But I am so addicted, I just have to blog

So I'm posting a picture of pretty pink flowers

While hoping and praying and waiting for showers

To signal the end of this infernal heat

Till then feast your eyes on this delectable treat!

A Wild Orchid

I came across this beautiful poem yesterday....

A Wild Orchid
by Lanie Alexandria Costeas

We are all flowers in the garden of the world.
Some of us are daisies, dainty and bright.
Some of us are poppies,with sweet contagious laughter.
If there was a flower for you,
You'd be a wild orchid,
So f'ull of life,colors alive,
Sprinkled with scarlet and purple,
Explosions of colors racing through your petals.
I was walking in a garden,
Looking for a flower with a soul like yours,
A free spirit,so intense and vivid.
There were many flowers,
The tulips were always telling me to stand up straight
and not open up too much.
The violets were deep but when watered with love closed up.
The rose was too perfect in every aspect.
Then there was you so unique and wild.
A orchid with a soul different from them all
different to touch,to hold,to look at.
You took my wild colorful side,and let it live.
Set me free with your fire
I dream of finding you again,
discovering you again,
There's far too many daisies in life.

"All the Spaces in Between"

One of the best things about moving back to Hyderabad was reconnecting with some of my high school friends. Usha Raman is one such friend. It was such a thrill to meet her again and catch up on the past 23 odd years, and to learn that she is a communications professional and teaches media writing and communication here in the city. Recently Usha had some of her poetry published by Writer's Workshop, the book is called 'All the Spaces in Between". Its an introspective collection of her poetry, and the book sits by my bedside and I have been reading her poems over and over again.

Here is one of my favorites:

A Daughter is born

"Dredged up
From the depths of neo-natal experience
A memory stirs.
While head and hands groped for life
In the womb-darkness
Of pre-birth
Tiny feet found
Their first breath
In the bright hospital air.
A little body
Inched out into
The adult world, defined
By adult-set hopes.
Before even,
The baby eyes saw
Their first rays of light,
The voices fell --
"It's a girl".

And another:

Encounter

On so many night travels
I glimpse eternal understanding
in a stranger's eyes.
smiles, words that matter
outpourings of life's stories
essences trapped, bottled,
in seconds.
Then the clickety-clack
of steel on steel
is silenced
as day breaks
 --our everydays are there to greet us.
Exchanged addresses
promises to write, to meet.

And occasional memories
fleeting, nostalgia-packed regrets
for those misplaced slips of paper
somewhere in my duffel bag.