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Showing posts with label Ilovefestivals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ilovefestivals. Show all posts

All I Want For Christmas Is...

...a box full of Christmas Movies, nothing else.


Santa is just a costume and gifts are just excuses; using these two, all people want is to spread love.

This may sound hysterical but its true.

I read a Christmas based book, The Gift by Cecilia Ahern (who now, has become one of my very favorite authors). Its a beautiful book, and I recommend it to anyone who's as crazy about Christmas and lesson-teaching stories as I am. This is an extract from the book: (note how vividly she describes everything, and how true all of it is)

'On Christmas Morning, an air of calm settles outside. The emptiness on the streets doesn't instill fear; in fact it has an opposite effect. It's a picture of safety, and, despite the seasonal chill; there's warmth. For varying reasons, for every household this day of every year is just spent inside. While outside is sombre, inside is a world of bright, frenzied colour, a hysteria of ripping wrapping paper and flying coloured ribbons.
Christmas music and festive fragrances of cinnamon and spice of all things nice fill the air. Exclamations of glee, of hugs and thanks, explode like party streamers. These Christmas days and indoor days; not a sinner lingering outside, for even they have a roof over their heads.'
In my old school, on the walls along the staircase, there were quotes and Thought-for-the-day's pasted. And I read the quotes each time I passed. One of them I recall clearly, and a few days ago, I realized its true-ness.

Its nice to be important, but its more important to be nice.

This Christmas, lets try to be a little nicer. Family, friends, strangers, anyone.

So,

If you could wish for one thing this Christmas, what would you wish for?

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My ok-ok Diwali



Happy Diwali, people!

Well, belated actually.
All in all, this was an okay-okay Diwali. Some problems were solved, some new cropped up.

The best I could come up with, due to my non-existent artistic skills.
c

Lats year's was better, I think.
No it was as bad.

I love how everything is enveloped in lights. And when I try to take a picture, sometimes it looks like there are colorful musical notes suspended in air. Like this:


And this:

This was the view from the eighth floor in my building last year.


Which were, unfortunately, simpler times than these.

Sigh.

Love,
Srishti

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Good Old Holi

Holi has always been my favourite festival. Some people fail to understand why (other) people love colours and getting drenched and hanging around looking like a make-up artist's worst nightmare. But seriously, what can be more fun than throwing colourful gulal in the air or caking each other's faces with it shrieking 'Happy Holi!' ?

I've lived in an appartment complex for a major part of my life where, I am pleased to say, Holi is celebrated with full vigour and enthusiasm. Holi celebration always began days before the actual Holi. As soon as our exams got over, we'd go over to the market to buy water balloons. ("No, buy the one with the less pinks. Pinks never work").

And then of course, would commence the inevitable battle between girls and boys. It used to be so exciting, throwing water balloons at the boys, in retalitation to their unprovoked attack the previous day. Then fleeing the spot, as they would chase us the entire evening. After finally getting drenched from head to toe, we'd go home and get scolded yet again ("What if you catch Pneumonia? Huh? Then how will you play Holi?").

But it was so thrilling, hiding behind the solitary pillar, knowing they'd pelt you with water bombs if you made a sound. And then there was the real Holi itself, more fun than anything that happened in the past week. Waking up early to fill the buckets with water balloons and getting our pichkaaris ready ("I got the Dragon pichkaari! Ha! Beat that!"). We'd go down at around nine, and forget everything else till the afternoon. There are parts which are very vivid in my mind.

Stuffing hot pakoras in our mouths.Gazing admiringly at 'bade bhaiyas and didis' who had black 'grease' on their hands ("Look, so-and-so bhaiya has silver grease! And golden!") Debating whether we ought to try some bhaang or not. Filling the emptied water tanks of the pichkaari from the hand pump.

And then we went back home and cleaned up,. All scrubbed and shining, we'd go down looking new, for everyone had lunch together on Holi. We'd all sit together, showing each other the colours which had still not faded completely, because it had been particularly 'strong' (" That idiot _____ put pakka rang on me").

And then after everyone went home, we'd all sit together and pour the delicious raita in little cups, and sip it elegantly, while playing that game, Queen Queen Good Morning, in which one person gave the 'den' and the rest mimed a play and the dener guessed which play it was.
And that concluded my Holi. Although I like Holi as much as ever, its not celebrated as well as we did earlier. But I'm determined. Although fifteen, I'm still not ready to give up on water balloons. I dont care how many disapproving looks I get from Aunties, I'll pelt people with balloons. And yes, even the nine-year-olds.

And although we may skip the raita part this year, Holi still will be fun. At least for me :)
Happy Holi everyone!

Update on 16/03/09 : I was wrong. Holi this year was as good as ever. Even with different people :)

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