The Soul Drink

I love coffee. Nothing soothes me like good coffee. But even I can’t deny the times when coffee falls just short. It’s sad, yes. But there’s always tea.

That awesome English beverage that has enough caffeine to satiate the soul.

I like my coffee in any way: hot, cold, black, sugar-less, freshly ground, without chicory – it rarely matters, as long as it’s there. But tea – there are plenty of conditions. And that’s why it’s so difficult to find the best cuppa. Oh yes, I’m in love with that English term as well.

Perhaps it’s the rarity that makes me crave it. Perhaps it’s also why I can’t refrain from photographing my tea.

I can hardly stop looking at this photo. I fell in love with my own work and Instagram.

Some things in life are minute. It takes an artful look to see through the beauty of miniature. Much like the froth that brims in this cup of tea.

The photo is a moment captured in time. When you look close enough, you’ll see your reflection on the tiny bubbles. To capture such a moment on a lasting frame is a great feeling. And if an amateur like myself can do a decent job of it, I cringe to think what professionals could do.

I’m biased, but I love everything about this photo. The tumbler isn’t perfectly aligned with the dabara (the cup). But that’s what makes it natural. It looks like a cup I’m going to drink from, and not a model for product photography.

The lighting is average. I know nothing about the technical aspects of aperture and lens light. All I know is to point and click.

The bench, its shade,the blurry finish, the reflection of the tree – everything adds a little to the story. And plants improperly aligned – everything says outdoor.

Above all, it’s the reflection of the tree’s branches around the dabara that impresses me. They might be negligible, but it makes the photo all the more likable.

However much I boast about my photo, I can’t deny that none of its tiny, lovable aspects was intentional. It was a happy accident that Instagram highlighted and transformed.

Which makes me wonder about human nature. We don’t look at anything as it is. We constantly sharpen, hone and improve. It’s natural to pay attention to details, obsess over them, to give importance to even the negligible aspects of an object – to make it look better.

And that ability is worth more than anything else. A photo, a sculpture, a portrait, or a piece of writing – every work of art reveals mankind’s scrutiny. And that’s worth more than a thousand words.

My Expert

Everyone — at least once in life — feels that they know what they’re doing. Everything anyone says sounds insane — particularly the mother.

But no matter how much you hurt her, shout at her or insult her even, she calls you back. It’s the best relationship anyone could ever have. It’s also the only relationship that everyone should experience to comprehend its beauty.

As for me, my mother is just annoying. All the time. She calls me 12 times a day. I need to report to her after breakfast, lunch and dinner. During weekdays, she needs to know once I’m safely home. I should report to her before going shopping, walking or for a dine out. She so compulsively needs to be aware of everything I do. Everyday.

It’s really a pain. I can hardly go about my daily life without thinking about the consequences of my decisions. She’s continuously worries about what I eat and drink — down to the last dreg of coffee.

She’s made my life so much tough.

But she’s also the one who gave me this life. She supported my every decision. Even if it was painful for her. She understood when I had to leave home. She did make a big deal out of it, even cried, but never once did she tell me to quit on my life and come back to her.

Anyone else would use what they’ve done for me as a way to manipulate me.

She might not know to navigate technology, she might be a ancient in modern society, she might not fit in. And she might not be the ideal 21st century mother.

But she’s the perfect mother for me. Because everything we went through, we’ve gone through together. And that’s what makes her my first and only life expert.

This contest on IndiBlogger made me reflect on my relationship with my mother.

Then The Worst Happened

Sometimes, it only takes one small incident to change us. A word of love, or a word in haste, a disaster, a tiny flaw – whatever it is, it changes us. And once that happens, we’re forever free.

Peace in Melancholy

I came across this song in a blog, and ever since, I’ve been captivated by this guitar cover.

There aren’t many songs that touch you deep and leaves your spine tingling. This did that to me.

I was surprised too.

When I heard it for the first time, I thought it was a happy song. But when I kept listening to it consequently, I noticed it was melancholic.

Then again, was it really?

I wasn’t so sure. I loved the lyrics. But when I learnt that this wasn’t the original, I tried listening to it. But for me, this version was better. I like slow, deep music. And I loved the bass voice.

This song is so addictive I can play it on loop for hours straight.

Oftentimes, a good song is all you need. Do you have such a song?

House of Character

“Not just seen, I want to be significant”

Over the past few months, I’ve been watching popular television series. From Friends, The Big Bang Theory and Arrow to more.

But House of Cards was so incredible that it made me write about it. Which is surprising, because politics is a subject I try my best to be oblivious about.

But it wasn’t the politics that impressed me so. It was the sole character of Clair Underwood.

Beautiful name, isn’t it – Clair?

Oh and not to mention that awesome pixie cut — very appealing. It’s not just the hair and flair though. I loved her characterisation. The things she did to support her husband. She wasn’t just another woman married to a Congressman. She was a woman of ambition and that’s what sets her apart from all the female characters I’ve seen on television before.

Besides that CNN interview, she showed immense strength when she gave up, or paused her ambitions and devotion to ensure continued support for her husband.

She was twisted, yes. She was the embodiment of everything we have ever been advised against our whole lives. She’s not the kind of role model parents would expect their daughters to idolise. The affair, the manipulation and the threatening — she’s as cold as ice.

Nevertheless, there was something about her that made her much less detestable than Francis Underwood.

She seemed so inhuman in so many incidents, it was so well portrayed that it added a sense of extra beauty to the only incident that made her seem humane.

When she sat on the staircase of their home just after speaking the to First Lady about visiting Megan. Clair cried. Briefly, but she cried nonetheless. And that’s the only time she displayed frustration and helplessness.

That’s when she was the most natural. Every other time, she merely took the side that would help her achieve her goal — even if it weren’t the way she’d have preferred it. The water project — she gave up on the funding because she had to for her husband’s sake. Yes she did resist, but eventually she gave up. She sacrificed. A lot. For her husband.

Another great thing about the couple — they understood each other unlike anyone else.

But the woman and her resolve! Undeniably a powerhouse. I admire her.

I don’t agree with her methods though.

Her attitude and the way she carries herself are things I will always revere. But her habits were unhealthy. Not the smoking, but the way she took everything in her stride.

Annoyingly silent. Annoyingly patient.

She waited and waited for as long as it took to get what she wanted. She never broke down, never threw a tantrum, and she hardly complained.

That’s why that crying scene was the most natural. The only instance she displayed vulnerability, however briefly that might have been. That’s what I consider unhealthy. I’d have liked a more spontaneous woman. A woman who would just show her emotions a bit more naturally.

But I do have to admit, a more spontaneous woman might have ended up like either Zoe Barnes or Christina Gallagher.

Clair Underwood, a masterpiece in modern fiction. Excited for season 3 – yes, I only just finished seasons 1 and 2. :D

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