Good-By

By Ralph Waldo Emerson

" An unhurried sense of time is in itself a form of wealth " - Bonnie Friedman, author

Salma

Introducing Salma.Kindly excuse if you already know this forty plus year old Muslim Tamil poetess and activist. I came across her through the pages of last weeks Literary Magazine of The Hindu. There were two things about her that caught my attention and forced me to Google about her the next day in office . Firstly, pure and raw talent that has no background to boast of and secondly the topics of her literary work. Born to an orthodox Muslim family she was forced to drop out of school in ninth standard since her family considered that good girls would not go to school after a certain age. Married to a still more orthodox family she was forced to write in anonymity under her pen name Salma.But she was determined to give vent to her feelings in writings and refused to be subjugated. Her poems and novels dealt with women in general and muslim women in particular.

More about her at : http://india.poetryinternationalweb.org/piw_cms/cms/cms_module/index.php?obj_id=8126

Below is the translation of one of her poems :

LAKE
Its face dark from pining,
The lake lies placid and still

A few days ago,
Without a moment’s pause,
You had flungYour empty chalices;
andThe lake took them in
Without protest
Another day,
You rinsed your ashtray,
Draining the ash in its waters

Even yesterday,
Scorning our love
Gone sour, you had spat
Furiously on the water

At all odd hours — heedless
Of the time of day —
You had dumped your waste
And cleansed yourself

Today, recalling
None of this, you prepare
To slake your endless thirst
This is no river to carry away
Your effluents in its flow,
But a lake — placid and still

Water, gathered
In a stagnant pool,
Hoards all, losing nothing

...

" Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory "
- Albert Schweitzer

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,

and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,

be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly;

and listen to others,

even to the dull and the ignorant;

they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons;

they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,

you may become vain or bitter,

for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;

it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals,

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love,

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

-- written by Max Ehrmann in the 1920s --

Happy Mother's day...!!!

With all due respect

Was just scanning through Sunday magazine of ‘The Hindu’ dated 26-Apr-09, when I was hooked at Vijay Nagaswami’s article ‘With all due respect’.
The article dealt with a train of thoughts that I have been thinking of lately- Respect and Love in a relationship. Any relationship whether it be those within a family, between friends or colleagues should have mutual respect as the foundation on which the relationship is to grow and flourish.
Including a link to the article:
http://www.hindu.com/mag/2009/04/26/stories/2009042650250600.htm