Hope and Healing in 2021

The first week of January 2021 has gone by in a haze of fog and rain, and the demanding work desk; the political drama playing out this week provided social media with the ultimate newsbyte to keep the cold at bay (at least in the Northern hemisphere).

As a meme read – “If this is just a trailer for 2021, send me back to 2020”. But I beg to differ for I see that violence has not been victorious. I hope this remains the resounding message in global and domestic politics, throughout the year 2021 and beyond.

I still have hope that the younger generation and the people who are not yet dabbling in hate and divisive thought and rhetoric will help pull up humanity. Though, the amount of hatred and hurt we are seeing everyday is scary, to say the least. The world needs healing – from the hearts of men to the depths of nature. May 2021 see the healing begin!

Do Not Tarry!

Today, is the first day of work
In the most mysterious decade
A new year, waiting for respair;
My schedule is filled
The calendar overflows
So do the diary notes
The brain counting To-dos’
Demands to push oneself
More and more to fulfill
Ambitions, aspirations
Continue to race ahead,
For so say the big-wigs
Competition and corporates
Academies, colleges, and schools,
Innovate, accelerate, don’t stop yet
Rush to grab an opportunity
To make a mark; when actually
The biggest message of last year
Was to stand back and breathe
In the silence of our homes
The deep aroma of peace –
Deliberate, meditate, get insight
Are all the projections, worthwhile?
Then, the fateful year also taught
To be grateful for all we had
And so am I for a bulging diary
Thats calls out to me, do not tarry!

Being Paranoid

January 2021

Writing for Pleasure or on Pressure?

Let me start the first day of a cold January by penning down questions that have been perturbing me since I restarted blogging. Let’s talk about the pressure of remaining high up on the WordPress Reader or search engines or being relevant every single hour on social media platforms. Do you feel pressurized to churn out content, incessantly? Do you fear reader engagement or readership on your blog will fall if you don’t publish regularly, daily, or even every 12 hours to reach audience across all timezones? Do you write for quality or quantity?

The dilemma is so real that a pleasurable hobby like writing or even reading has become a competitive exercise. We see reading challenges all over the Internet and people reading and reviewing books on tight schedules. The numbers are met, records made, challenges completed, several authors reviewed, more complimentary books received, a sense of satisfaction achieved, but how much did the reader actually absorb, remember, or imbibe for a deep and lasting impression.

Continue reading “Writing for Pleasure or on Pressure?”