Love Shorts #5

...
it was not a very cheerful day,  or if it was, the cheers didn't reach me, sitting at the far end of the social group. She noticed my despair perhaps and let me hold her hand, without a word or for anybody to see. I held it for the soothing comfort at first, then drawing patterns on her palm from  the tip of my index finger..
''What were you doodling?'' she asked me later. ''I felt some were impressions of English alphabet.''
''They were all the compliments I could not say to your face.''
I could sense she regretted not paying attention.

...

Love Shorts #1-4

This January I plan to write about a 100 word semi complete love story. This is my submission for day 4, followed by the previous 3 days. Stay tuned for more.

...
₹4
The wet leaves tell me that the night was foggy. My wet cheeks tell me that she was here.  For all our conflicts she dug a graveyard, and tilted its mud with hand and love for fresh flowers to grow. Each morning is a spring with her. ''How do you forget and forgive so easily,'' I text her. ''I neither forgive nor forget. I am saving it all for your doom's day.'' She texts back with a wink emoticon.
The spring has been crashed by a storm.

...
#3
She sits at the window for long hours longing for her moon The night is chilly and she is cold. She fears not its coldness; she has become one with the night. She is determined to stay awake for the moment when the sky breaks down and sends her moon to her.
I watch her sitting at the window for  long hours longing for her moon. I pray either she attains her moon or I attain mine.

#2
At times her laughter chokes her words. At times, she finishes her sentence in a hurry to moan. At times, she innocently teases me with her mocks. At times she keeps on talking without a pause. At times, she speaks every word with an effort, and at a pitch cube root of her normal day voice. I see all these coming as I follow her eyes. And yet, even when I know that she is down, I keep asking her'How are you?'' For I hear that most people answer falsely to this question. ''I am fine, '' she says. And I hope it turns out that way.

#1
She greets me with her tender feather touch as fresh cream floating on milk and then begins the theatre in her eyes, where I see multiple scenes at once. Not sparing me time for a knee jerk , she beckons me with the most encharming darkness as she covers my face with the clouds of her hair.  Ending the exhibition with her most beautiful smile, she asks, ''You call yourself a poet and cannot write something on my beauty?''
I sink in her air and smile, ''I am not a poet if I write on that aspect of your beauty, which is for all to see.''
...

I would love your feedback on these pieces and if you have any sub theme for my next piece, I would try to write on it.

Thanks for the read.
Cheers. 

12 Golden Rules To Parenting In India

  The role of a teacher is just not transmission of subject knowledge, but it extends to making the child a complete individual, drawing out the best in the child's personality. This task  cannot be accomplished on its own; the role of parents play a vital part.  One of my moving complaints regarding parenting in India is that there is not much talk about it. Few parents read a book on parenting. Few attend discussions and workshops on the subject. Few consult an expert in case of a problem with their child.

This does not imply that Indian parents are miserable at the job of parenting.   Indians are righteous and upright people as a community . They are emotional and religious by nature. Hence there is immense love and attachment for family and children. But parenting is a complicated job. Behaviour of a child is unpredictable. The factors that affect a child's life are dynamic and a parent has to be aware about these before trying to find a solution. Because Indian lack the tendency of talking about parenting and bringing up children, these problems are left like open wounds, made worse by the nose poking society we live in.

Parenting is an art. To be good at any art, one needs to learn the basics, the fundamentals, the general norms associated with it. I have prepared a list of 12 golden rulew for Indian parents:

1.  Recognise your child as a different individual than you:

A child comes out of his/her mother's womb, and is a  different indivual. Treat him/her like one.

2. Do not try to live your life through your child's life:

Your parents night have made this mistake. It's typical in India. One must remember that we have a right only on our life and not somebody else's, even our children. We can offer advice and aid, but should not impose them.

3. Mind your language:

The is important for two reasons. First, you don't want your children to learn bad words when they are young. Second, saying bad things to your children when you are angry leaves a great impact on children. It affects their personality for years to come. So, mind your language when talking to your children.

4. Express your love
.
Indiams lack the art of expressing love. a kiss on the forehead or cheeks, a pat on the back, a simple hug can do wonders to the confidence of your child.

5. Understand their world:

Generation gap is tough to bridge. But as parents are gemerally the more experienced and learned people in this relationship , they should take the initiative of bridging it. They should be aware of all the factors that affect their children. But they should do so from a distance.

6. Motivate them;:

Go for positive motivation as far as possible. This would develop confidence in then. to direct yourself to the right girl.

7. Show confidence in their decisions :

Involve your children in decision making. Ask them for their advice on small matters like which colour should they use to paint the wall , or where to go for vacations. You may not listen to everything they say, but do explain to them why you sre rejecting their suggestion.

8.  Give them their right to err:

Especially important with teenagers. It is an age of storm and stress. Children can behav:e very weirdly at this age Try to understand them. Give them some space. Even let them make a few mistakes. This is how we all learn.

9. Avoid direct talks:

Never start a discussion with 'what is your problem?' They are children, not experts. Most times they lack the ability to know or explain their problem. So be wise, have develop an atmosphere of healthy communication where they express themselves and in that way, split out what is bothering them.

10. Take help if necessary:

As I pointed out earlier in this article, never shy away from talking about the art of parenting,   read literature associated with parenting and take expertise help from counsellors and experts in case of a problem with your child.

11. Set the right example:

Children look up to you as their role model. Be the person you want your children to be. If you expect your child to hsve healthy habits, you cannot be telling them so with a lot cigarette in your hand.

12. Love; the secret ingredient to parenting:

The secret ingredient to parenting is of course love: never shy away from expressing it.

Thank you for your love and support

Thank you for your love and support, has been a very frequently used line by me. The reason for that I know we live in a tough world where there is little value for what used to be the most valuable things . Poetry for instance, has a force that only your heart and soul can feel. When people appreciate my poetry, I feel obliged and a sense of accomplishment drives me. All is not lost after all, I feel. 

This Thanksgiving day, I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude towards everyone who has read my book, followed my blog or facebook page and by doing so have encouraged me to pursue my passion. Thank you, thank you and thank you so much. 

I promise to keep you entrained with my poetry and wits. Stay with me. 

Love. 

Aman Arora

Top 10 interesting kids at school

Just one month into my internship at Bal Bharti Public School, I have had developed a strong indifference towards children that I almost consider the sterilization policy during emergency as the best one we had. It is because of the following type of children that my perspective towards children changed.

1. The speherical kid 

I enter class three and anmounce that it is arrangement. This kid does not conceal his excitement and goes 'Balle balle.' And as teachers, we are encouraged to surpress basic human instincts, so I decide to turn him out of the class. But he refuses my command. So I started pushing him out. But this kid is an 'all rounder.' He is the perfect example of a sphere. So I struggle to push him outside the class, much to the amusement of the third graders. I need to work out.

2. The Diva 

We all have seen teenagers with their out of place and overdone 'whatever's but this girl in class four could beat all of them. She did not use any urban slang or accent. She spoke nothing. Everyone had followed my instruction and took some work out, but this girl resisted my instruction. I tried taking to her. But she just listened, without an expression on her face. I swear even the 'tota' (the hottest babe) never gave me that look. She was like 'Who are you? Why are you talking to me. Go away.'
 I felt like bewaring boys about this heartbreaker in their class.

3. The well wisher 

'Good morning, Sir' this girl from class eight wished me in the corridoor. . It was nice. I replied with a smile. And them within a minute, she wished me a good morning thrice. . Everytime I pass through her way or she passes mine, she wished me good morning. . One morning I was waiting at the library. She saw me from outside and yelled 'Good morning. Sir.'  Finally I had to stop and ask her if the only purpose of her coming to school was to wish me good morning. They can make the next Conjuring movie on this girl. Imagine a girl popping out from anywhere and haunting you with those three words: Good morning, Sir.

4. The Pervert

He was short and tiny, hoarse voice, irksome laughter and a face only a mother could love (provided she has no other kids or pets.) But he had the guts to ask me to explain him that dream chapter for young boys who recently realised the presence of an organ in between their legs:  reproduction in animals . I asked this eight grader if he remwmbered what he had learned about this process from class seven: reproduction in plants. He said he did not remember anything from the previous classes. And so I explained him the process of reproduction in as vague terms as possible. (just the way we were taught.) But actually I wanted to say 'Reproduction is a process through which organisms give birth to their young ones, and also it is a process ugly snobs like you are incapable of.'

5. The back talker

A round of applause for me. I kept shooting at this eight grader to come out and stand at the front, and I raised my voice and anger to a level that he obliged. Sweet victory. Momma will be proud.  I sealed my victory with 'Are you moving yourself or shall I take you out physically?'
He got up at this, but murrurring 'Sir, physically? Can you also get me up chemically.?'
'I would spray pepper on your ass and when that reacts with your ass, and you bounce up from your seat, that would be a good chemical equation. ' I could never execute this comeback.

6. The 'You know who my mom is?'

It happens everywhere. The children of staff can be recognised from a distance. They fear no one. They are never on their seats. They are fighting. They are jumping. They are Monglis except that Monglis at least followed the rules of the Jungle. It is an irony that their mom is perhaps in the adjacent class commanding kids to be disciplined.

7. The athletes

They play sports and they are so much into it that they make a game out of everything. I saw this boy running from behind and sliding under the table. He did it so well that I was about to congratulate him when I realised that we were in a classroom and he could have banged his head doing that stunt. Imagine him going to his mom saying, 'Hey, mom. Look Sir gave me a gold medal for sliding under the table. Also Mom, could you please fix my bleeding head?'
And the parents these days are di competitive about their kids that she would have said, 'Yes, son, we will go to the hospital  but let's take a selfie first and find a spot to showcase the medal.'

8. The complaint box

You should think that they breed in primary classes only but much like micro organisms and Arijit Singh songs , they are everywhere. 'Look at him. He is not studying.' 'Look at her. She is beating me.' 'Look at Ram Leela. They are making out.' All these complaints and many more come simultaneously, so as a teacher you ignore a few and find quick solutions for others.
A quick study on how I resolve problems.

Not studying. Ignored. That's the tuition teacher's headache, not the school's.

The beatibg girl.  Ignored, if the aggressor is weak than the defender. Warning, if the aggressor is strong. And play a spectator, if they are equally matched, mentally picking up and cheering for one.

Ram Leela. Ignored. Privacy respected. Quick advice, find an empty room in the school and use protection. We don't need any more children in the world than we already have.

9. The Panchayati girls

A girl from a backward bench, fighting against the majority of the class, broke out, when the Panchayat (consisting of three girls, who for half an hour, listened to the two girls with their issue 'who will sit with whom.'.) But much like any other government, this panchayat was less concerned about the problem and made fun of the sufferers at their back. When I played the police, I was told to back of as they could resolve it themselves. You know what they say, children are future leaders and classrooms are their training centres.

10. The loudspeakers

I am someone with a feeble voice. My vocal cords much like my luck, cause me pain, when I try too hard. But there are children in each class with much louder voices, and the problem with super powers is when you don't know how to use them for good purpose. So these loudspeakers would scream at the top of their voice (without trying too hard) just to address the student sitting beside then. And I am wondering why God hates me so much.

...
Thank you for reading. I would love to know which type of kid you were and you are familiar with.

The BookWorm: 7 Amazing Quotes from The Aman Arora Anthology

The BookWorm: 7 Amazing Quotes from The Aman Arora Anthology: Poetry Lovers are always thirsty for amazing quotes. It is a normal tendency that others would not understand. Recently I read "The A...

Movie recommendation : Dhanak

Theme and Plot

Dhanak is a Nagesh  Kukunoor movie  which celebrates the spirit of secularism and  religious tolerance.  Two greatest religions of this country live in harmony.  The 8 year old  boy,  a Salman  Khan fan and his sister,  a  Shah Rukh Khan fan, shares a relation of immense fondness and compassion for each other 

The above lines were meant to be funny.  But this is true that Dhanak is a touching story of sister-brother love and  affection.  The eight-year-old boy has lost his vision because of poor nutrition.  His two-year elder sisters goes out of her ways to help him get his eyesight before his 9th birthday.  Her master plan is to seek the help of the good soul,  Bollywood  actor,  Shah  Rukh  Khan.  And so she takes her younger brother through a 300 km journey to Jaisalmer. 

Treatment

The story is a fairly tale set in a realistic setting.  What happens at the end,  whether the children actually get to meet SRK and whether  he helps them or not is not important.  What happens to the children as they undertake this odd journey,  is what is  worth watching. They have  good and bad experiences,  just like a fairy tale.  And much like any top class fairy tale,  this movie has got great humour and music. 

Acting

Excellent acting by the two child protagonist. I often find Indian child actors act in a very irritating manner  (That Piyu  girl in Yeh hai  mahabitein  and Bade  acche lagte hain)  is a prime example.  They are pampered,  over smart,  stupid and simply irritating.  But the characters of these two kids were believable.  Their.dialogue delivery,  expression and screen presence was commendable.  All the other actors,  not much to say about them,  acted just according to the script.  That guy,  who played Ishan's father in Taare Zameen par,  whom we hated so much,  plays a very nice guy (he is the uncle and  the guardians of the.kids)  And you like him in this character. 

Music

Music is a high point of this movie.  The songs take the movie forward and are not there just for the sake of it.  The fusion song is a treat to the senses. 

Discussion point

I would like to share an observation.  While watching this movie I was thinking that isn't it true that people living in cities,  the multiplex audience like films set in a.village or remote settings and the village people,  mostly the single screen audience like films depicting fast city lives? There is something about my notion,  no? Multiplex audience watches Anurag Kashiyap and Nagesh  Kukunoor  while single screen loves mainstream Yash Raj  films and Vishesh films.  We want to watch what we are not. 

Conclusion

You know a B.Ed guy always ends an article with conclusion. I can say: Watch Dhanak  if you like good cinema.  But people have different definitions of good cinema,  so I will break it up. 

If you enjoy movies with children playing the central characters like Rockford ,  TZP, Stanley  ka dabba,  Hawa Hawai,  this one is for you. 

If you like movies with clean and instinctive humour,  this one is for you. 

If you love fairy tales,  then this one is definitely for you 

If you want to watch a movie with your family and children,  there are not many options,  this movie is a great one. 

If you know me,  and trust me,  you know I recommend good movies without any favours. 

Thank you for reading.  If you watch the movie based on my recommendation,  do come back to thank me later.  Chao.