Monday 15 September 2008

ABOUT HARRY POTTER. OR JK ROWLING

Enid Blyton
Richmal Crompton
Carolyn Keene
Franklin W. Dixon
...Take a bow!

It's their books I grew up on as a child/ pre-teen, and followed up on my love for reading with a gazillion books from so many talented authors as I grew older. It's been a long and fascinating journey with the books, always one of discovery and happiness at having found a new friend.

So what does this have to do with Harry Potter? Am I rambling on (as usual)? No. Yes. Maybe! The thing is, while a book may have stayed on in the memory, it's not always that an author has, unless associated with a specific book, if you know what I mean. See, like if you say Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell immediately comes to mind. Ditto Stephen King should you holler The Shining. Now here is where Harry Potter comes in. Or rather, JK Rowling does. The books are so magical (yes, I can hear so-JRR Tolkein-meets-Enid Blyton!), so unreal (yet real), so mystical...and yet they make you want to believe in everything that's written on every one of those pages. You can't help wonder whether you know, these things actually happen in real life (as we know it). So here's the thing. I guess Rowling's brought alive the child/ teen in me. After all, who said that fantasy is only for people in the single digit age-group? A little bit of fairy dust and magic works for us all!

Thursday 4 September 2008

SEPTEMBER GARDEN

September's a happy month.
Here's why:
First and foremost, it's Mum's birthday month. That in itself makes it special, because Mum's super special. (A separate post will see me go into raptures about Mum sometime.) But hey, do think about it - doesn't your Mum make your day? If you live together, or close by, a smile, a hug, or even a few quick words (or gossip!) exchanged can do it. If you live a distance away, or your Mum's that extra-shiny star in the sky, even a memory can do the trick. Anything, really, because Mums are always, always there.

Next, my window box flowers bloom. They're finally not rain-soaked anymore, neither are they gasping for breath (and water) like they do in the scorching hot summer. They're in that happy plant-world balance of good food, sunlight, shade and just that occasional rain shower. If you look closely, when it rains in September, it's almost as if the flowers are reaching out daintily to the sky, their delicate faces uplifted to capture that tiny sparkling jewel-like rain drop. Beautiful.

While on the rains, let me tell you that for someone with hair that can at best be (politely) described as frizzy on a good day, the fact that we're slowly inching towards sunshine is goooooooood. No more bad hair life, never mind days. Honestly, HOW can those waif-thin (Another grouse. Hmph.) models look all hot and sultry with rain-soaked hair, pray tell?! I can manage a frumpy and mouse-like, and that takes a lot of effort. Else, we're talking clumpy and we-have-given-up-on-life strands that stringily stick to the scalp. *whimper*

Plus, we're inching closer to November. Dunno why, but just love November. Maybe it's the sound of the word, I dunno. But November it is, as far as the best month of the year goes. You know, it's just one of those random things, like lucky numbers and the sort. But back to September...

Also, come September (Ah the old movies!), it's the advent of the festive season in India. It's from here on that we move into new clothes/ fairy lights/ scrumptious food/ magic mode. Pure bliss.

Yay, it's September!