What should I write about?

It has been a crazy month, so crazy that I couldn’t post much. Between my various projects and chores, blog ideas flowed and short story plots craved for attention. But I couldn’t give any of them expression. Things are still quite crazy here, but I had some time today, and decided that I would blog come what may!

So then, as I recline on my couch, I wonder what I should write about. It is a lazy Saturday afternoon. The kids are out, my husband is out. I look out from the balcony and start wondering…

Should I write about this beautiful orange flower or the way it contrasts with the deep brown of the soil, should I write about the cornflower blue sky or the merry cotton clouds, should I write about the chirping birds or about the cooing pigeons, should I write about the silence at home without the kids or the energy that will flow through the house when they are back, should I write about seeing the joy on the face of Michael Phelps as he won his fourth gold medal at the Rio Olympics or about how Olympic viewers jump and wave when they know the camera is on them! What should I write about?
Should I write about the aroma of fresh coffee from my coffee filter or about how lazy I feel to walk to the kitchen, should I write about the books I am reading these days or the absolute lack of time to read them at the pace that I want, should I write about the busy ants scurrying about my balcony or about the moth that has not budged from its place on the balcony wall for more than an hour. What should I write about?

Should I write about the busy traffic intersection where everything seems to be in a rush, or about the man in the park below who is just recuperating from surgery, should I write about the freshly washed linen fluttering in my neighbour’s house or about the wind swishing through the trees. What should I write about?

As I sit and mull over all this, I realize that life is happening all around me -little insects, flowers, birds, trees, people, vehicles – everybody is busy.

Life goes on….

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Look up

We are so busy these days that we don’t have the time to look up at the sky and enjoy its splendour. As we go through our day, the sky above is also changing. So much is happening up there, clouds are lazing about or seriously gathering to bring us some showers. The sun is busy travelling across the sky, silently casting shadows, both short and long. The sky is a kaleidoscope of colours through the day.

We only seem to have time to bend our necks downward and keep texting,  or to keep inclining our heads at odd angles to answer calls on our mobiles, while trying to complete other chores.

We never ever look upwards.  Because, if we do, we may actually get to see the absolute deep violet of twilight or catch a few twinkling stars that are almost invisible in the cities, where skyscrapers grab the skyline.

Or like I did, one may get to see something like this –

A merry jet streaking across the morning sky, hints of pale yellow reflecting off the clouds.

Another day to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

Digital simplicity

Last year, one of my treasured possessions – a hard disk with my complete digital photo archive – crashed.  I do have backups, but this was the ‘Mother HDD’, with every file slotted, tagged and organized by date, time, folder. When it comes to my digital archive I suffer from a serious case of OCD, and then some.

I was miserable but was lucky enough to be able to retrieve most of the data – over 9 GB worth of photographs.  But sadly, when I opened the new hard disk, I realized that I had to reorganize, re-tag and re-slot every single file.  Most names and references to date and time were gone though some files were untouched.  It’s been a long year. Phew!

However, through this entire archival journey, I got to relive some of the best moments in my life –  working life, marriage, children and friends.  When I look back, I realize how many wonderful moments life has thrown at me, and the many lessons I have learned along the way.

Thankfully, I am on the last leg of this arduous re-archival journey.  Very soon, I will let out a whoop of joy and probably weep tears of sheer relief from the monotony of this task, that has bitten-off huge chunks of my free time.

This afternoon, as I sifted through the last 2000 files, I chanced upon these photos.  These are photos of my son’s Grade 1 school notebook.  The teacher seems to have rewarded my son with  ‘smileys’ for his efforts in writing.  My son has converted the teacher’s smileys into a couple of cute animals, with ears and tails.  Sharing these photos with you.

 

My digital drill seems to have been worth it.  After all, such simple moments are the ones that need capturing.  These are the moments that make up the mosaic of our lives. Simple moments of love, joy and innocence, captured for posterity.