Noor was walking through the storm, or was she the storm? The sky was getting darker, and the wind picked up pace, howling like a hungry monster. It was April, and Rishra, a small town in West Bengal, was not new to these fierce storms, locally called Kal Boishakhi. Noor didn’t know how far she …
The Secret Ritual of Letting Go
“Let go, let go,” they saybut how can I?The pain, the ache…Is it so easy to forgive? “Let go, let go, it’s Diwali,” they say.I may let go of old clothes,broken vases,wilted flowers,cracked photo frames,unfulfilled promisesunread letters,but resentment—How do I let go of those? I ask…But no reply comes,Nobody knows.“Let go, let go,” they just …
Breaking Free from Autopilot: How to Take Control of Your Mind
When you make a decision, do you think it is your conscious effort? Is the decision completely yours? Well, not really! Did you know that up to 95% of our daily decisions are made unconsciously? From choosing what to eat to reacting to a stressful email, much of what we do is guided by …
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Manifesting
As we slid into the autumn’s embrace, And as leaves descend with gentle grace, My heart makes a secret wish as the year ends, Let it be a whispered plea, that’s what my heart intends. I have nurtured the dream, Since the year’s beginning, Now I wait for its magic to unfurl, Like a mollusk …
Dreams Don’t Expire
Life is non-fiction… or is it?Some of the wildest fiction is rooted in truth,And some truths feel borrowed from stories.Maybe life is both—a manuscript we live,and a tale we keep rewriting. Dreams spark in unknowing moments. When I was a child, I would stare at the stars and wish for so many things. One day, …
The Taste of Inclusion
Morning at the Tripathi household began with the fragrance of incense, the sound of cymbals, and the low hum of mantras. Sunaina Tripthi, 50 years old, was known to be an ardent devotee and a person of great religious conviction. As she recites the mantras with her closed eyes, her fingers move over the rudraksha …
An Ode to Coffee and the Memories It Brewed
I’ve always called myself a hardcore tea person. The kind whose morning doesn’t kickstart without a self-brewed masala chai. Yet, somewhere deep down, there’s this soft, undeniable corner in my heart reserved for coffee. Because “coffee” isn’t just a drink for me, it’s a memory trigger. Each sip takes me back to a different phase …
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Timeless Letters of Love & War
Dear World, There was a time when a man in khaki, with a jhola slung over his shoulder, would come to our houses on a cycle and ring the bell… tring tring. And somehow, we would always know that he is here. The Postman. He would hand over our letter and quietly leave. Wasn’t he …
Book Discussion: For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle
To begin with, I absolutely loved the vibrant cover of For the Love of Apricots. It instantly evokes nostalgia: summer holidays, jars of homemade jam, and the tangy aroma of pickles. Coming to the story, be prepared to lose yourself in the misty orchards of Mukteshwar, the warmth of its people, and a gentle, heartwarming …
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In Freedom, We Hope
I had just started reading the book Laxmi Panda when my phone buzzed with the weekly email notification from Blogchatter. The theme for the weekly Blogchatter Bloghop was Happy Independence Day. My mind was already unsettled, and perhaps that’s why I began thinking about the topic more deeply than usual. Normally, I would write happy, …
Cerebration 