The Zahir

This is the 3rd Paulo Coelho book I read. I have read “The Alchemist” and “Brida” before. It took me longer than usual to finish this one – because there were many pages where I lingered, trying to etch the words in my mind. As humans, we are cursed to forget and re-learn life’s lessons the hard way but that should never stop us from trying to learn and remember them, should it? And yet, if you ask me what the book is about, I wouldn’t be able to give a straightforward answer.

The book is about love but it’s not a conventional love story. It’s about losing something precious and finding it again after going through hell. It’s about relationships. It’s about letting go of your past and living in the present. It’s about listening to your heart. It’s about banal topics discussed by the rich and famous during gala suppers but it’s also about what the beggers say about life. It’s about a gift to the world from a dying soldier. It’s about an author who becomes so engrossed in his work that he forgets about his wife. It’s about a wife who wants to find herself before she loses herself. It’s about an epileptic called Mikhail who knows the energy of love. And it’s about a country most of us have only heard of - Kazaksthan and its Steppes.

I am not yet sure about how to forget one’s personal history and go on living as if each day were your last. I cannot go on a pilgrimage along the old silk route like that Dutch traveler. Maybe, it’s not time yet for that. But till then, I am going to try my best to learn from others.

And if you are like me, then “The Zahir” is definitely for you. Give it a chance!

When the Unwanted Guest arrives…

The books quotes some lines which the Author’s Note informs us are from a poem “Consoada” by Brazilian poet Manuel Bandeira। They are so haunting that I am sure that the words are going to come back to me in my quiet moments (which God knows, are so rare!)

When the Unwanted Guest arrives…
I might be afraid.
I might smile or say:
My day was good, let night fall.
You will find the fields ploughed, the house clean, the table set,
and everything in its place.

Much as I would like to believe that I would smile when the Unwanted Guest arrives, I know it in my heart that I would be afraid – because the fields haven’t been ploughed fully yet, the house isn’t totally clean and the table is in disarray. And in my life, I have known days so dark that they looked no different than the blackest of nights.

No, the things aren’t quite in their place, yet. I am not ready for the nightfall. I am not fully ready to look the Unwanted Guest in the eye and say “Let’s Go!” :-(

These days when I listen to the radio on my cell phone, I zoom through my stations list to stop at either 100.7 FM Gold or 107.1 FM Rainbow. True, they have more than their fair share of banal RJs (I particularly hate the one who calls herself Maya because she talks nonsense and punctuates that nonsense with her fake laugh!) but there are some good ones who share jokes and good stories with the listeners (and don’t treat them like half-wits!).

And of course there is no denying the fact that due to their network in the far-flung areas of the country these channels come up with news items which we would neither read on the newspapers nor see on TV। I remember listening one afternoon to how a man and a woman who were searching for donor kidneys for their spouses ran into each other in the same clinic and discovered that they were a suitable donor for the other person’s spouse. The couples belonged to different Indian states and they had to bring about a change in the laws of both the states to facilitate the organ donation!

One of the RJs shared a wonderful story the other day। There are 2 little kids – a boy and a girl – who are great friends. The boy has a box full of his favorite marbles and the girl has a box of her favorite sweets. Once they decide that they should exchange these boxes to seal their friendship. After the exchange they go to their respective homes.

The girl falls asleep soon enough but the boy remains awake – tossing and turning। The reason? When he gave his box of marbles to his friend he has kept one of his most favorite marbles to himself. And now he wonders if the girl has kept some of her favorite sweets for herself too.

So what’s the moral of the story? :-)

Mumbaikars burn Kasav effigy in Holi fire

http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20090310/1416/tnl-mumbaikars-burn-kasav-effigy-in-holi.html

When I am watching news these days, I cannot help but feel that the world is getting crazier by the minute. Lines from a long-forgotten Hindi movie song come to mind:

देख तेरे संसारकी हालत क्या हो गई भगवान
कितना बदल गया इंसान
सूरज ना बदला, चाँद ना बदला, ना बदला ये आसमान
कितना बदल गया इंसान

Have you ever watched two horror movies with similar plots back to back? I did, last week, and then had trouble closing my eyes at night. :-)

The 1st movie was “Quarantine”. It is shot in the “Blair Witch Project” style but the effect is less jarring because the camera is pretty steady. It’s about a channel crew of 2 – the anchorwoman and cameraman - that goes to shoot the local fire station at work during the night. Clearly, they haven’t heard the adage “Be careful about what you wish for – because you may get it”! Just as the anchorwoman is dying to film some action, the station receives a distress call. Someone has called the cops about screams being heard from one of the apartments and the cops request the fire station guys to tag along. The channel duo follows, of course – only to discover that the residents of the apartment building are falling prey to a mysterious disease. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) seals the building and death rules supreme. If you want to get absolutely creeped out in the safety of your own living room, this movie is a must-see!

I should have stayed away from any more horror movies – at least for a week but I am not a particularly sensible person. :-) So when “28 Days Later” showed up in the listing on the TVGuide the following night, I couldn’t keep away from the channel airing it. This time it is the UK that falls prey to a deadly disease that turns human beings into raving lunatics eager to sink their teeth – notwithstanding the proverbial “Stiff British Upper Lip”(!) - into the nearest living thing! :-) The sight of hundreds of these zombies running through the streets is enough to chill you to the marrow. That’s exactly the stuff nightmares are made of!

So take my word for it – unless you don’t mind staying awake through the nights, NEVER EVER watch horror movies back to back. It’s injurious to your health. And this is not just a statutory warning!

When you read this post, I am sure that you will wonder – like my family - about my incessant interest in Hitler and Nazi Germany. I must confess that, despite all the violence and bloodshed, these black pages in history remain some of the most interesting ones – if only to find out where the world went wrong.

So, this particular program – on National Geographic - was on all the assassination attempts on Hitler – 42 or 43 I think. Project Valkyrie was mentioned of course. How ironic that this nutcase should survive all those - only to end up dead by his own bullet in the bunker!

The other program was on the History Channel and was about the Tamil Tigers. For me, the mention of LTTE has always brought back memories of the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. But I never knew what started it all till I watched this program which, incidentally, is the latest in the series that covers world terrorism since 1945.

So if you are a history buff, don’t miss this series!

I have always preferred good old Thump Up over either Coke or Pepsi. But that doesn’t stop me from absolutely loving everything about the new Coke ad – from the concept and the accompanying music right upto the last voiceover which tells us what is being offered free with Coke! :-)