Continued from Broken Wings (I) and Broken Wings (II) A week after her elder sister had been married off, he had forced himself on her. She took her sister’s place who was his ‘plaything’ before Malti. He had formed an incestuous relation with his first daughter even before the child had turned ten. In that […]
Betrayed Promises
Broken Wings (II)
Continued from Broken Wings (I) Raj and Meera were school teachers. They also conducted private coaching classes for which they used the old house where Meera’s mother used to live before she passed away. Opposite that house was where Malti lived with her family. Malti had a father, a step-mother, an older sister who was […]
Broken Wings (I)
She was a painfully thin girl. That’s the first thing I remember about her. The rest of the things I remember have mashed together into one huge ball of raw pain. I never wanted to remember any of them, but I do. Oh, but I am telling you the story from the wrong end! Let […]
Words And Actions
Arvind stared at his mother in utter confusion. She went on talking rapidly, noticing his look and ignoring it deliberately. His brain seemed frozen. He felt stupid as if not only his power of comprehension but also of hearing had shut down. He couldn’t deal with the intent of her words. Shutting down seemed the […]
A Lost Horizon
There was this sky Ordinary, as skies go Blue, white, pink and orange Grey and yellow too, But mostly, mostly blue Distant, untouchable blue. … Far in the distance, The chameleon (but blue) sky Met the earth In a smoky haze of grey and purple. In that distant inky world Resplendent with imagination, Stories were […]
Not Just Words
Have you noticed how language- centric we’ve become? There is such an endless stream of words in our lives. There is increasingly less personal, face- to- face time we have for each other. We ‘communicate’ more than we ever did because we have a myriad ways to touch base with those who matter to us. […]
Beyond Salvage
Your garden has the exact mix of order and wilderness that appeals to you. You love it; it is beautiful. The best feature of your garden is a huge shady tree under which there is a garden bench. A rope swing hangs delicately from its sturdy branches. The tree is big and strong. It will […]
Life in 55 Words
ONE “Dad, let me take this summer job.” “What?! You’re just sixteen! People will think I can’t provide for my family.” “It’ll be good for my future, I’ll learn so much. Please?” “I’ll become the laughing stock of town. I’ve said no, discussion over.” The child fell silent, spirit crumpled under the weight of society’s […]
You Are Beautiful
You are incredibly, startlingly and marvelously beautiful. The most beautiful thing about you is that you don’t believe that you are. Let me prove it to you: You are a part of God and God is all beautiful, every bit of Him, including you. You are capable of giving, receiving and experiencing love. You experience […]
Pliant
The free online dictionary defines Pliant as: 1. Easily bent or flexed; pliable. 2. Easily altered or modified to fit conditions; adaptable. 3. Yielding readily to influence or domination; compliant. Its synonyms include: amenable, ductile, elastic, flexible, governable, limber, lissom, malleable, manageable, plastic, pliable, soft, supple, tractable, yielding. You may have heard this word used for […]