Tagged

Have been tagged by one of my blogger friends, Ardra. She says she wants to know more about me, which is very sweet of her - and very flattering to me :). So here goes:

I'm thinking about:
Swimming. I used to swim very often - many years ago, on a daily basis. Just looking into those blue waters for an hour gave me such a sense of peace, and after a good swim, I slept like a baby. All this was before I became a parent...Now my time needs a lot more juggling, and prior planning. I do want to take up active swimming at least twice a week, and God willing - hope to pull it off.

I said:
Nobody knows the depth of slime except the water it grows in - and those that have slipped on it. Sometimes pain and experience, more than superficial observation, are our best teachers.

I want to:
Cook like this blogger. Would be nice if I had the time, and more importantly, the patience :)

I also want to write - to my heart's content. Maybe I will publish one day - but I'm afraid that I may feel compelled to write to readers' tastes. To me, writing should come from the heart.

I wish:
That one day I will inherit my father's green thumb. Appa was an excellent gardener, a botanist - and specialized in agriculture and agricultural products. Many years ago, when we were children, I have seen him plant and tend to a vegetable garden. We grew snake gourd, eggplant (brinjal), okra, chillies, amaranth, tomatoes, carrots and some cabbage. Appa would tie a small stone to the end of the snake gourd, to make it grow straight and not curl up on itself. My hitherto brown thumb (i.e., ability to kill anything I planted) is on its way out. Some plants in my care have taken pity on me and decided against committing suicide. :-)

I hear:
Not much right now. The sway of trees in the breeze, and the sound of my typing.

I wonder:
Whether I'd have been a successful actress, had I chosen to pursue that line. I've had a passion for theater since childhood - and have imagined, pictured myself in, and enacted a variety of roles. As a child, whenever we heard stories from the Mahabharata, I was enchanted by Arjuna's archery, and Krishna's charm. A cousin and I used to make homemade bows and arrows (fashioned out of sticks purloined from the maid's coconut-bristle broomstick), and practice shooting arrows at each other. In each of these roles, I was the warrior, the swashbuckling hero/heroine, the brave queen. On stage I have played these roles, as also those of a cheat, a clever trickster, a merciless anti-heroine, even a clown. But never - and I mean never - did I even want to play a stupid weepy heroine who looked good but was a delicate darling otherwise. Too contemptuous of those roles :-).

I regret:
Not much - every experience has taught me something. I'm thankful to God for what I have.

I am:
Friendly, free spirited, conscientious, somewhat lazy, an avid reader, a decent singer. I need my space, and sometimes quiet time to myself - to recharge. I love: plants, trees, jasmine flowers, ancient temples, and natural settings. I dislike amusement parks and noisy manmade attractions.

I dance:
When I'm in the mood. Wish I was a better dancer :)

I sing:
When I feel like at home, sometimes on stage in local Karaoke events. Used to sing in my college's orchestra many years ago.

I cry:
Not often. Am a stiff upperlip kind of person - and most of my sadness either comes out as anger, or in my writings. I have cried a lot in my married years, though.

I'm not always:
Patient. I can lose patience with movies that drag, long-drawn things, whining/indecisive/pessimistic people.

I make with my hands:
Not much in terms of needlework or handicrafts. But I can whip up a decent meal, with my own twists to the recipe.

I write:
When I have something to say, and the space and time to say it.

I confuse:
Directions to places. Have trouble remembering how to get to a place I've been to just once. But two or three times does the trick.

I need:
Friendship - but one that gives me space.
Family - the presence of loved ones.
Exercise - a healthy dose of it everyday.
Books and reading materials.
Good food :-)

And finally:
Silence is wonderful, after penning those thoughts. May peace be on earth, may there be no wars - may we all one day live in harmony.

Now I'd like to tag some blogger friends, whom I want to know better: shpriya, willowtree, Shankari, aria, and vi.