Discover Prompts, Day 30: Grateful

Discover Prompts: Grateful

Month of April raced through so fast, I had no time to enjoy it. Today is the last day.

I’m grateful to WordPress for giving us a prompt each day to help us write. Thank you to all the members of WordPress. 🙂

I’m grateful for a lot of things, to God for instilling in us the thought that we should stay away from the outside glamour of the world, and appreciate our indoors, and once in our life remember that we are doing this for the whole world.

I’m grateful because we are not the only ones stuck in our home, the whole world is going through it.

Our Creator is letting us know, whether we are poor, filthy rich, white, black, brown, or any other colour on His earth, the COVID- 19 will not discriminate. It will show how strong it is and how weak we are.

The virus is not threatened by nuclear power, or any country or leader it will deal with all humans in the same manner.

It’s time for us humans to unite, help each other best way we can, regardless of caste creed or colour.

I am grateful knowing most of the humans on this earth will help each other!

…………………………………………………………….

Discover Prompts, Day 29: List

Day 29: List

The prompt today takes me back to my childhood, when I was seven years old. If I was ever asked to do something my question was always why/(keno) in my mother tongue.

My eldest brother, who habitually made me run errands which someone else older than me could do, he’d ask me. I would look right at him and ask Why? He was in one of those moods that day when even if he saw a fly, he’d jump from his seat and yell out, ‘close the door I’m sick of seeing flies.’

If I’d known better I would have taken his temperature to see if my word, ‘why,’ would be tolerated at that moment. Of course not, first he said, ‘you know Ranu , curiosity killed a cat, just for repeating this word you’ll be punished you’ll have to make three cups of tea for me, one at a time, within thirty minutes.’

I knew making three cups of tea in thirty minutes won’t kill me, but ‘why,’ does he need three cups I told myself quietly.

I am not seven years old now, I cannot ask Mr. Huberman, ‘Why do you want us to make a list?’

I put my curiosity aside and said let me make a list for the dinner invitation I’m about to send to my imaginary friends, we are observing isolation and it would be unwise of me to invite people to dinner at this time.

This imaginary dinner can be tasty if I take the trouble of cooking, but who cares I’d like to have fun making this list.

To cook something I need a recipe and the ingredients I need for dinner.

Here is my list:

1. Rice

2. butter

3. onion

4. salt

The above are the ingredients required to make pilaf( pulao, in Bengali)

Ingredients to cook beef curry:

1. Boneless blade roast 3 pounds

2. onion 3 medium size, salt

3. spices: ginger, garlic, cayenne, coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala( combination of whole cloves, whole cinnamon, pepper corn, cardamom, whole cumin)

4. Canola oil or extra virgin olive oil, ingredients required to cook beef

Ingredients for vegetable dish;

1. Cauliflower

2. Potatoes

3. tomatoes

4. spices, salt,

5. oil

Salad Dish:

Ingredients:

1. cucumber, red onion, tomatoes, green and red pepper, and lemon juice

Dessert : Famous cheese balls of Bengal.

Ingredients:

1. milk — 2 litres

2. sugar— 2 cups

3. Juice of three lemons to make the cheese.

If these ingredients are cooked well. It’ll be a wholesome dinner for our awesome guests. But COVID- 19 saved me from going through this trouble!

…………………………………………………. 🙂

Discover Prompts, Day 28: Focus

Day 28: Focus

Today’s prompt was kind of difficult for me to write about. I cannot exactly remember when I used the word, ‘FOCUS,’ seriously. Several minutes went by and I was still thinking. To dawdle is not something that interests me. So I started writing.

I went back to my school days, I did not focus in the lower grades I read my lessons a few days before the exams and barely made it to the next level. This habit persisted till I finished the undergraduate degree.

Suddenly I woke up I took admission to do my Masters degree. At first I had no idea what subject I must take to complete this degree. I asked big sister if I should study Economics. ‘No,’ she said, ‘you’re not a serious student you will not make it.’

After a few seconds she suggested, ‘English, study English.’

I was irritated I said, ‘No I’ll take History.’

Big sister went her way and I took admission in the department of History.

The day of our first lecture I found myself in a large room. The room was buzzing with the voices of boys, and the three of us females would not have been noticed if we sat at the back.

The Prof. was a serious guy he looked at us and pointed the first few seats for us to sit.

Classes started the prof. got his register called the names of the students and marked the attendance.

First few days went fast. The new week brought with it immense pressure at least for me. We were going to have tests after a few weeks. I was worried, what if I do badly in the tests. The male students who already thought they were superior students will make fun of us.

I realized then that I need to pay attention in class and do well in all these tests.

I started going to all three libraries in the city to take notes and study hard.

For two years I spent my time studying which was something I never did before.

The final exams were tricky I knew the subject well and succeeded in getting good marks. I was pleased I finally got a certificate I was proud of.

………………………………………………..

Discover Prompts, Day 24: Elixir

Water
Fresh water is the best Elixir for life
We believe it without any strife
Because it has zero calories
We drink it without any worries!

Discover Prompts, Day 23: Note

Maple Tree

Maple Tree

Here I am a maple tree standing on the ground,

Waiting to be clothed and trimmed all around.

Without my leafy branches I look not healthy,

My tiny branches have lost its beauty.

I know April showers will transform ,

My appearance one day and confirm.

Month of May will return my outfit,

Once again I’ll be pretty in my blanket!

…..

.………………………………………………….

Discover Prompts, Day 22: Tempo

Day 22: Tempo

This is the poem I’ve chosen for this prompt:

The Burial of Sir John Moore at Corunna by Charles Wolfe

Not a drum was heard, not a funeral note,

As his corpse to the rampart we hurried;

Not a soldier discharged his farewell shot

O’er the grave where our hero we buried.

—————————————————————

We buried him darkly at dead of night,

The sods with our bayonets turning;

By the struggling moonbeams misty light

And the lantern dimly burning.

————————————————————-

No useless coffin enclosed his breast

Not in sheet nor in shroud we wound him;

But he lay like a warrior taking his rest,

With his martial cloak around him.

—————————————————————-

Few and short were the prayers we said,

And we spoke not a word of sorrow;

But we steadfastly gazed at the face that was dead

And we bitterly thought of the morrow.

————————————————————————

We thought, as we hollow’d his narrow bed

And smoothed down his lonely pillow,

That the foe and the stranger would tread o’er his head,

And we far away from the billow!

———————————————————————-

Lightly they’ll talk of the spirit that’s gone,

And oe’r his cold ashes upbraid him

But little he’ll reck if they let him sleep on

In the grave where a Briton has laid him.

———————————————————————-

But half of our heavy task was done,

When the clock struck the hour for retiring,

And we heard the distant and random gun

That the foe was sullenly firing.

———————————————————–

Slowly and sadly we laid him down

From the field of his fame fresh and gory;

We carved not a line, and we raised not a stone,

But we left him alone with his glory.

——————————————————————–

We learned this poem in Presentation Convent School, whenever we recited this poem the atmosphere was so solemn, we felt as if we were going through the burial of Sir John Moore in person.

The tempo of this poem is unbelievable.

Discover Prompts, Day 21: Instrument

Discover prompts: Instrument

I like all the instruments that I had the privilege to listen. Out of all the instruments, I only wanted to learn to play the Piano.

My husband bought one for me, I was fortunate to get a teacher who agreed to help me. After a few months she could not continue, she had no spare time . She was a music teacher in the local school.

Then I managed to convince a neighbour who also was a music teacher. It was convenient she lived close by and things were going well. One day she told me her husband was transferred to Yellow Knife, which meant I’d lose the second teacher too.

I don’t know how I got to know another Music teacher, who was teaching in the local high school. He moved from Scotland to Newfoundland. He agreed to teach my daughters too. I was pleased we finally got a permanent teacher.

This time I lost him because he was only allowed to teach in the school, and was not permitted to have private students. This is what he was told by the immigration office, he was not an immigrant. The school employed him and he got a work visa.

Someone in our little town complained. He was given a warning if he did not obey, they will send him home.

I was left with an instrument and no one to teach.

Perhaps destiny was telling me, it had given me enough this one is not written in my future.

I tried one more time, this musician was my student in grade four, she grew up got a music degree and believe it or not lived in a house across the street from mine. I took some lessons from her. She applied to get into medical school, perhaps she was selected. I did not hear from her any more.

Right now my instrument is occupying a corner of the living room, where feline Raphael is having a grand time putting his sandy paw marks, declaring he owns this thing.

Discover Prompts, Day 20 : Music

Discover prompt, Day 20: Music

In Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night, Orsinio was so frustrated in his courtship of Olivia, he asked for more music, thinking excessive music will cure his love. I know more food can cure hunger. But Music I do not think can cure love.

I like songs sung by singers who are professionals. There are some songs I like which I can continue to listen several times.

One song that deserves mention is Tagore’s song, ‘Forever Me.’ I listened thirteen times, but did not want to continue because the owner might think I’m crazy.

I still love it but I cannot embed the song because I’m not allowed by the owner.

If I only translate the lyrics and publish it, the reader won’t feel the sound of music,

Discover Prompts, Day 19: three

Three Institutions where I got my degrees

First: Comilla Victoria College Image :

Haiku: 1

Doesn’t look Impressive,

Had the very best teachers,

Made us what we are!

Second Institution: Holy Cross College

Haiku : 2 Image

Holy Cross College, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Insitution 2: Haiku

When I studied there,

The grounds were old but cozy,

But the nuns were strict!

Dhaka University
Haiku 3
This building scared me,
The men outnumbered women,
They thought they knew more!

Discover Prompts, Day 18: New

Day 18 Prompt: New

Ramadan will begin on the twenty-fourth of this month. It means eating in the middle of night, fast all day and the next meal will be at sunset. Eating and drinking stops for the whole day. It takes a few days to get used to it. After three or four days the department of hunger takes a breather for several hours.

It’s a time for prayer, be at our best, no feud, selfishness, just try being a New person.

Can a human train him/her to be generous on the month of Ramadan? I guess we all make an effort.

Years ago when my Dad was alive, to us Ramadan meant New clothes for us.

I remember the arrival of our favourite tailor, who’d come to take our measurement. We’d wait patiently for the month to end so we could try on our clothes. After thirty days of fasting we celebrate the day which we call, ‘Eid-al fitr.’ It is also called, ‘Festival of Breaking fast.’

The name of the month in Arabic is Shawwal. This religious holiday is the first and only day in the month of Shawwal when Muslims aren’t allowed to fast.

Going back to Eid, we wear new clothes on this day, visit family and friends, give alms to the poor people.

Another thing was our Dad would go to the bank to get some change for us. We loved having them especially those shiny new coins which we cherished so much.

Those were the days we thought will never end!