July Footnotes – In Margins & Miles

And suddenly just like that July is over. I cannot profess to regret this constant flow of time; I believe in being present and appreciative of the moment we are in but at the same time, there is no merit in trying to stop what is inherently transient, i.e. time. There is value in this continuous change and though we may not always see it, the best kind of life is one where we keep moving forward, while retaining the memories of the past that is worthy of it.

July was not a soft month, but it was a useful month filled, with self-reflection and self realization; of intense work hours that were eventually broken by days spent near the sea. In July, after several months of being away from writing, I ended my-self imposed exile and started writing and blogging again. Putting words on paper brought back clarity of deep quiet thoughts and ideas that brings a sense of incredible fulfilment. I reconnected with many of blogging pals, folks who had known me for decades and despite having never met in person, have been some of my truest and staunchest cheerleaders through all life upheaval. Talking to them again, about books, garden, life was one of the best memories of the past month.

July was also a good reading month; I shifted from my usual genres of Classics, Crime Fiction & History to thrillers that entertain and enthral as work became extremely hectic & I felt the need for some fun.

Gothic Tales by Elizabeth Gaskell was a great book to start off the reading month. This was a re-read and I thoroughly enjoyed the plot and characters of all the stories. What stood out for me besides the true Gothic nature of the collection was Ms. Gaskell’s sense of justice, equality and sense of humanity, are even more relevant today. She is the only author who could write such entertaining fiction and still convey important messages about kindness and respect.

A Pale View of the Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro was a thoughtful page turner. This was Ishiguro’s first novel and I could see the foundations of the kind of writing that would culminated in books like Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go. Memorable characters and a storyline that can be considered complete in itself or open to interpretation based on the readers discretion, this was one of my best reads of the month.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Galaxy by Douglas Adams was another re-read for the month. Some books seem funnier when you re-read them and this was my experience with this novel. I enjoyed it when I first read it as a 19 year old, but absolutely loved the absurdities this time around. It was a perfect read for the time when I was in severe pain and needed a distraction. Following the crazy adventures without any logic is a very good antidote for sick days.

A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle was a joyful book that documented the first year of the author’s and his wife’s life in Provence. Filled with wit, beautiful descriptions of the land, eccentric characters & gastronomic delights, it also reminds the reader of the value of a simple life, a slow life, a contented life; the message being as relevant today if not more so as it was in 1989.

Leonard and Hungry Paul by Ronan Hession is my most favourite book of the month and one of the best that I had read in this year. The only thing I can say about this book is it is one of the most heart warming, life affirming novel I have ever read; it defies genre and I will not say another word, except read it! Read it or know that you missed on something rare!

Death in the Stocks and Why Shoot a Butler by Georgette Heyer were two solidly plotted whoddunits. Written with believable characters, hard to guess murderer, interesting twist and lots of wit, brilliant reads as always from the inimitable Ms. Heyer.

The Housemaid by Frieda Mcfadden was an fun thrillers. I did guess the why but the how was very well done. Not something I would re-read but during the very long work days, it did a very good service of providing amusement and distraction.

My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite left me with mixed feelings. The book was easy to read and the storyline flowed along with an authentic voice. But I was not fully convinced about the choices made by the protagonist or the end.

The Reckoning by John Grisham, sigh! What could have been a powerful and intriguing narrative was turned into a drivel of history of World War II, a wannabe murder mystery and a very pointless attempt at being philosophical about life. Badly written, boring and depressing. The only reason I still gave two stars to this book, was because of the history of the Battle of Bataan and the heroic US-Philippines guerrilla war effort after the US surrendered to Japan in 1942 . In a white washed world, it was heartening and important to read about the valiant war efforts by other countries out of the US-England-France narrative, especially ones that would turn out to be a crucial turning point in the war

I have no series or films to share because I did not watch any. I was too well entertained by the books, busy organizing a puja ( a Hindu prayer service for peace and well being ) at home and planning a vacation to the Beach with my sister. The puja is an annual event, that we have hosted since moving into this apartment last year and it was a wonderful day spent being grateful and sharing food and chatter with friends and family. Sharing some pictures below.

I called in the end of the month by the blue seas with my elder sister, in Goa, a beautiful lush green slightly hilly state in the western part of India, with miles and miles of beaches. Unlike other vacations, we did not spend time “doing things” – we did not visit too many places to eat, we never shop when traveling and this time round, there were no Forts or Galleries visiting. Instead, my sister and I spent days and evenings walking on the beach, swimming for hours by a quite secluded pool, reading whatever we wanted or felt like, eating some deliciously cooked local cuisine in the two hotel restaurants, sleeping whenever we wanted and soaking in the bright green lushness around us. It was a pause I needed from the never ending work treadmill and gave me time to reflect more deeply from my life as the first wave of changes from moving cities settled down. It helped me take back control of my life and peace again, which lately due to events at work was slipping away. In short, the vacation fulfilled it’s purpose completely. I therefore leave you with some sights and sounds that made this happen!

Here’s to a better, healthier and more tranquil bookish August.

About Finding the “Ikagai”

Dalai Lama in one of his seminal speeches had said that “Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions“. It’s not what you have or who you have but rather what you do, how you act and how you live, that many philosophers and thinkers say is the key to happiness. The concept of “Ikagai” stems from these principles and in Japanese, means something akin to “a reason for being” and translated in English it refers to the “reason you wake up in the morning”.

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This idea of having a reason to wake up in the morning is beautifully explained and illustrated in a brilliant and precise work called Ikagai – Giving Everyday Meaning and Joy by Yukari Mitsuhashi . In this book, Ms. Mitsuhasi , takes the reader to the very root of the Ikagai word, explaining that the Japanese word of “Ikagai” consists of two Japanese characters, “iki” meaning life and “gai” meaning value or worth. The life that the “iki” refers to is not the big life and its meaning, but rather daily life – seikatsu; and about the joy a person finds living day to day , without which their life as a whole would not be a happy one. She further shares that while in West, the concept often leans towards finding happiness through work, in Japan, most people find their “ikagai” from their hobbies or their loved ones and not something they are necessarily paid to do. The concept of Ikagai per Ms. Mitsuhashi is so ingrained in the Japanese culture, that through their art and language, the Japanese people are constantly reminded of the joy that can be found in everyday life and will lead to a fulfilling life. Thus, Ikagai with its features of Everyday life, the act of giving, understanding and accepting emotions and active way of living leads to a stable state of mind, growth and progress and most importantly finding a purpose of life. She illustrates this concept by sharing stories of lives of people, both famous as well everyday man/woman, who have found their ikagai, through a variety of sources, including, hobbies, food, volunteering, or through their work, by getting better at their craft or seeing the impact that their work brings. Through several interviews, the author weaves stories of writers, business men and women and athletes, who have found their Ikagai through their work or by finding something worthwhile, post their retirement and how this finding of Ikgai has helped them succeed and find contentment. She brings the circle to its close, by showing how pursuit of Ikagai is the actions that lead to happiness.

This is a short, but a mighty book! It’s thought provoking and forces the reader to reflect on his or her life and the directions it is heading towards. The author’s examples are well chosen, in the sense these are successful men and women, but they are like us and their life and pursuit of Ikagai, has helped them succeed, thus providing the reader with role models and inspirations. The author has written with simplicity, which works very well, as the ideas that the author puts through are contemplative and require thinking as the reader navigates through the book. Furthermore, the concepts are clearly enunciated and the “plot” keeps moving forward. One of the most exemplary things about this work of non fiction, was that Ms. Mitsuhashi does not beat a concept to death, by constant repetition, but manages to find the fine balance of emphasizing on an idea and moving to the next concept.

To end, I would strongly recommend this book to everyone. It is good to sometimes sit and think about our lives and the good things in it and this book helps you value those good things and channelize them into your “Ikagai”

This book was part of my Non Fiction November Reads.

Let It Go……

I am seeing too many friends drop off and take a hiatus from blogging because it is getting a bit too much. I know exactly how stressful this is becoming…half the time I am worrying that I have yet not blogged about a book and started on Y book and I disliked Z book so much, that I don’t want to blog about it, but should! We all seem to be laying increasing emphasis on whether we will like a book or not; if we do like it, what would we write in our blogs; if we don’t like it, will it, will we find the right words to explain our angst about the book….this project, that reading event…STOP!!

I remember when I started this blog, it was only a place to put drown some thoughts and help improve my writing. Writing about books was easy because, I was constantly reading so many of them; but increasingly this became a bookish blog, which was never the main the intended idea to begin with! Its only lately that I have once again began to blog of things besides books….I don’t think it was a conscious decision, but somewhere I believe my mind was also exhausted of book reviews. I was tired of critiquing all kinds of books ….the good, the bad and the ugly and worrying over whether I was making enough progress on my projects, especially when other aspects of life took over, like job!

Time to end this madness….I will still write about books, but only if I really like em or don’t like em or because I feel like. Considering my love for books, this blog will continue to have bookish tendencies, but I will try and blog a little more about other things in life. I am not abandoning any of my projects, simply because I still see a lot of value in them – had it not been for some of these projects and reading events, I would have never read some great works and those would have a been a sad miss. What I refuse to do is stress over these reading projects and deadlines…no one is going to kill me if I read a book later than the stated date or chose not to complete one if I don’t like it!

Books and writing are two of my keenest pleasures…they are not my hobbies, they are me…manifestation of what I truly am and what I truly like. To turn them into six headed projects with gnatt charts and timelines is plain dumb. Its time to go back and read because that’s what I believe defines my essence and write because that’s what I believe I am born to do!! Hang around….this blog just took a very interesting turn (at least I hope you will find it interesting!)

I leave you with…naturally : have a great weekend! 🙂