Arriving in Chennai

I recently attended my second WITS writing workshop with Omer Ahmed. In this workshop, we thought about the small things we did and how we can exaggerate them. I learned about some great tools to improve my writing skills. This is what I wrote during the session.

Arriving in Chennai feels like stepping into a desert. There are no ACs and everyone waits outside. When I round the corner, I see monkeys, jumping up and down, all wanting to get their customers first. Suddenly, I spot my grandparents, though one needs a telescope to see them. I rush through the crowds like a cheetah, anxious to get to them. They laugh and put their arms around me and we hurry off to the car before we melt into a puddle of nothing. I turn on the AC and the change from desert to polar vortex is very welcome. The suitcases and bags my grandparents bought are laden with gifts and I long to peek inside. I try to be sneaky like a snake, but the unwrapping of the gifts sounds as loud as a chainsaw. My grandmother glances back at me and her eyes pierce through me. After what seems like a million years, she smiles and I happily start to unwrap it again. I am joyful as I ride down the streets. I lean back, ready to make the most of this vacation.

If everything had gone by plan, I would be packing my suitcases and getting ready to see my grandparents this year. Instead, I’m at home, face-timing and messaging them, but at least I can still have fun with them!

A longing

This week, I attended the WITS poetry workshop, which Joshua Nguyen taught. We learned about haibuns (poems which have a paragraph in the beginning and a haiku at the end) and got a chance to write our own. I had so much fun with this and this is my haibun.

I wrote my haibun about a longing to be at the beach.

There is a longing inside of me to see a beautiful blue-green sea, slowly fading into dark blue. I wish to have my feet buried into the warm sand while a book captures my attention. I wish to be where trees line the background and I can sit peacefully with an ice-cream cone. I want to hear the shouts and joy of kids, but still live in my own world of tranquility. I want to relax in the shade of a tree while still staying warm, courtesy of the sun peeping through the branches. I wish to be as relaxed as I was there and never care for anything in the world.

I want to see the

wondrous ocean again

and relax, happy

What are you longing for during social distancing?

MLK Day

This MLK Day, I read a poem about Martin Luther King. Then I thought about how the world could be a better place.

The world would be a better place if we could all just sit down to talk instead of fighting. The country’s leader and a few representatives of his or her choice should go.

If we only fight, we’ll lose many of our citizens. Those citizens can be very useful in our nation and their families. If we lose too many volunteers a nation can fall. Families shouldn’t have to lose one of their members just because of war

Millions of people flee their homes and native land to get away from war. Families separate and lose their precious belongings. I don’t think anyone should have to lose any item that they loved and start over in a place they don’t know.

Countries can waste a lot of money on war. Stocking up enough weapons to fight back strongly takes a lot of money. If we could talk it out , it won’t cost anywhere near that amount of money.

This is my idea of a better world. Please tell me how you think the world would be a better place in the comments. Just like MLK, I have a dream.