I didn’t post anything for last few days and it was for a good reason. It was Diwali yesterday – Festival of lights. For me, it is the time for being together with the family. That’s very important for me. I pray for the same every year. I’m grateful that I was with them this year. 
I had fun decorating my home for this festival and most important photographing it, which by the way was the best part. Here are some of the pictures I would like to share.
Yesterday morning, I woke up to a beautiful and bright day. While lying on my bed, through the window, I could see the brilliant-blue sky with almost no clouds. Without even putting my specs on, I took my camera and went out to shoot. It was hard to focus with my eyes still sticking together. Every other day it used be cloudy outside and so inside the house it would be dull and lazy. But this Sunday, it was totally different. I only wished that I had woken up at 06.00am. 
The only cloud dust in the morning sky
By afternoon, clouds started ascending from behind the green mountains. Still it looked so beautiful as they were rising gradually with milky white appearance. I actually love the blue-green combination. The picture below was taken around 02:00 pm.
After an hour around 3.05pm, the cloud pattern changed entirely. Neat boundaries.
A close look-
Cool breeze made me feel more good even though the sun was shining bright.
I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to capture this incredible view (esp., when it reminded me of Kashmir valley), and I was so happy for that, as by evening it was all dull, gray and humid.
I hope this day (9/11/2011) was peaceful for everyone.
“I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.”
~ George Washington Carver, American Scientist, Inventor and Educator
Pause for a while. It is good.
Neither bright nor dark, when it’s twilight sky,
and the moon pretends to be alone and shy.
I wait for it to shine more and more,
with blue sky fading into night, loosing score.
It takes me more time to switch on the TV than to switch on my camera. And by the time the advertisement screen (for the set up box) preceding the actual channel screen terminates, I am done capturing one beautiful picture. So, who needs the entertainment box (unless it’s very important), when I just have to look outside the window, step outside, and find wonderful continually changing colors and a lot more!
What’s more fascinating than the clouds during monsoon season in the Himalayas? Except for when it’s raining hard and they are covering the entire sky-view, they are like cotton balls spread around. They just fly around, sometimes run, and for a change, lie still as if the mountain is like a couch for them. But are consistently shifting shapes, thanks to the air currents! And this provides me with a whole set of photographs.
And I don’t need to ask them to pose for my photographs, they do it by themselves. Clouds! Camera! Click!!
All these pictures were clicked right outside my home. Click on the thumbnails to view the full image.
It’s cool. It’s humid. It’s beautiful. It’s dark. Clouds arrive in a fashionable way and then spread around. It rains sometimes, and then again it’s just clouds hanging around. Grass is wet and the path is slippery. Nothing is dry and warm. Still I walk and walk letting the clouds pass right beside me, through me, and all over again, I experience one of the gifts of the nature- monsoons.
Enjoy and let it in…!
I knew it and now I know it again. That one negative emotion leads to another and then there is no stopping until you deny them to enter in your mind. Here in my case, the negative emotion is “irritation”. I guess, I would have rather sung a song instead of listening to irritating words.
Anyways, I should not talk about it much.
Have a nice time. And here is the smile
When I was a kid (may be just 4-5-6 years old, don’t remember clearly) and I used to look up at the sky for an airplane, the first image along with a question which used to pop into my head was this – How is this airplane (in Hindi: हवाई जहाज) gonna go up and tear up this envelope around us which keeps the air inside? Of course I was too small then to stress more on it or even better clear this doubt with someone. [Aah, who cares, let's play now!] I wasn’t a question-type kid that time I think. Seriously, I don’t know why I still remember this image and the question which used to crop up in my mind. I mean I still have that picture in my head!
But now I just laugh about it. Obviously I must have had got my questions answered some time after that. My parents must have had a good laugh then; don’t remember the asking part also.
This sketch I just drew which would help to clear your question too (What’s she talking about?) :
Yeah, that was me imagining
Honestly, I had that picture for quite a while I guess. Thank God, I didn’t hold to it that long. Hehehe…
Also, I used to get confused when observing some river (only which had lots of big stones obstructing its way). Well the confusion: Which way is it flowing? [That way...no wait...this way...No... Oh. Dad!!!] Stupid right.
P.S. One of the things which fascinates me most now? The Universe!
It doesn’t matter if you’re black or white!
Let the colors splash to make our lives bright!
Colors are many, natural and artificial!
Spread the colors that show our divine!
Join hands to bond one and all!
Let Holi make life, a celebration!
- Jay Gurumurthy
Happy Holi to everyone! Let this Holi be a time when we not only change the color of our faces, but also of our hearts. Let the only color that penetrates our soul be the color of God.
