Sky was overcast with gloom,
Earth drenched in waves of despair,
As I faced the mirror of Life,
In those last moments of Strife,

Face of my darling was a blur,
Things I longed to say, a slur,
Choking & withering, in pain & terror,
Life’s become, a haunt of fear & horror.

Witnessing no gates of heaven,
Doomed to walk this path of hell;
Eating away at my good old cells
The dreaded disease in me dwells.

A beautiful life, laughter & jest,
Health, vigour & all the wealth,
Blessed till that very moment, I regret,
Lighting, my first, of many a cigarette.

Smoke, smoke & smoke everywhere,
Clouding & clogging, thick & vile,
Living & leading the toxic life of denial,
Left me, in my hey days, sick & senile,

Repentance too late to feel,
Hope was way beyond reach,
Say no to ‘cigarettes’, while you still can,
It is the one thing which surely needs a ban.

Cigarette smoking causes CANCER.
Let ‘NO TO CIGARETTES‘ be the New Year resolution for all the smokers out there. Let 2014 bring joy,peace,good health & prosperity to each one of us.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!

‘That one which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet‘.
But the great Shakespeare had long gone, before he got to smell the hybrid variety of roses(or see the morbid renditions of his works), adhered with a film of pollution. Call it by any fancy name but they do not smell half as sweet, do they? Come to think of it neither does the Jasmine flower of the North smell as sweet as the ones down South.

I presume, in their struggle to survive amongst their videsi cousins with elaborate names (‘branded or thy shall be shunted’ attitude of the North), the homely Jasmine has lost her identity, lustre & scent. South is still engrossed in their unique brand – ‘I, me, myself’, that, the Jasmine left to reign, still flourishes. That strong, heady, delightful scent of the flowers (Eco friendly, pocket friendly, mobile aromatherapy kit), we used to adorn our hair with, is now like a faraway  dream, more so, in these times when splurging on Gucci or Chanel (retail therapy kit) is the increasing fad of the Indian ‘cream’.

All said & done, scent or no scent, flowers make our world oh so beautiful. And vibrant hues of these delightful flowers is what drives away our blues & flus during the cold winter days.

Winter has made its presence felt,
With long nights under the quilt,
Months on end for the snow to melt,
Sun has moved out far from our belt;
Mist & fog cloud our vision & brain,
Takes long to recover from a sprain,
All our chores are not without strain,
Really don’t mind the help of a crane;
Endless steaming cups of coffee & tea,
Coats, blazers & ‘what not’ over tees,
Fried pakoras, red hot curries & peas,
Enjoy these months, they’re a real tease,
Eat, Pray, Love..without paying any fees,
Just don’t forget to cover your head & feet,
Winter has made its presence felt.

This winter, I’ve tried to perk up my daughter’s sober winter hats with a spill of colours, using some flowers & ribbons. You don’t have to go on a plucking/shopping spree, you can use your darling’s hair clips and brooches, or you could just rustle up some easy flowers from ribbons & stuff. I’ve used some hair clips, brooches, satin flowers & ribbons.

Picked up plain hats/caps from the bazaar at a throwaway price. The woollen caps are very versatile coz brooches & clips can be fastened and taken off easily to change their looks.

Decked up( stitched/pinned/clipped on) the hats with flowers & ribbons……..

Posing with red satin roses,                                                                       Ready to go, where she chooses.

 Colourful pom poms made into a flower,                                        Along with a feather, to lend some power.

 A hatted lass dressed in red,                                                            Looking oh so happy & well bred.

  Flashing a charming smile,                                                                       Can beat any flower by a mile.

 Chic, in black & white,                                                                                    Doesn’t she make a pretty sight ?

 Pink satin roses on her hat,                                                                        All rocking, for a tete-a-tete.

 With a flower on her cap,                                                                            Me lady looks all fit & fab.

So…… Jasmine flowers on your hair might remain a dream, but donning these ‘flowerful‘ hats are going to be every dreamers delight….