DP Daily Prompt: Name that ……You! Post by Ranu

Garden “butchart gardens”, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I am simply delighted to know,this prompt is all about our name. My name means ,”Garden”, I have no idea what made my parents choose this name. As far as I can remember the name was suggested by a very good friend of my parents.

Whether this name suits me or not, I really don’t know. My name is Chaman, it means ‘A Garden’. Let me define a garden. A garden is a beautiful place.There are flowers of every variety known to man. When one visits a garden,the sole purpose is to sit and take in the beauty of it and think of pleasant things. Poets visit gardens to get inspiration for their poems.Wordsworth,Tagore,Iqbal and others have written volumes about it. I love poetry and the ones written, keeping the garden in focus gives me enormous pleasure.

Artists paint pictures of gardens and use incredible colors, to attract the attention of scores of people.

When I think of a garden,immediately a beautiful picture captivates my mind. The flowers,the birds,butterflies,children playing,elders sitting on benches taking in the beauty of the atmosphere,all in all it’s a picture of heaven on earth.

My mother always said a name effects a person’s personality.According to her, parents should choose names for their children carefully.

I do not know whether my name suits me. I know I am friendly,I treat people kindly,I have a smile on my face when I meet new people,I have a special affinity for children. I can interact with them for any length of time. When you think of a garden, children come to mind,they enhance its beauty by their sheer presence.

When we named our children,we wanted the names to be people friendly,in other words,they were growing up in North America,it should be easy for the people they come into contact with to pronounce their names.We did that except the youngest,we originally wanted to name her ‘Sonya’,our good friend kind of bullied us into changing it to,’Fatima’. Her friends butchered the name,some called her,’Fat e ma’, and wondered why her parents did not name her,’Skinny ma’,because she was so thin.

I have read poems where the poet says, ‘What’s in a name’. I think it’s important to choose names wisely for our children!

DP Daily Prompt: Rolling Stone Post by Ranu

Nomad (Photo credit: ElDave)

I remember the saying,” A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss”. If I am given the opportunity to live a nomadic life.I’d certainly want to try.The best place I’d choose would be,keeping in the tune with  the song,’O give me home,where the buffaloes roam and the sky is not cloudy all day. A home on the range where the deer and the antelopes play.’

It is not difficult to decide.I have seen and lived in cities,while they have their charm,life is complex and full of stress. A nomadic life can help to look at my innermost self. I’d like to spend my time studying nature.It will provide the experience,Tagore had when he wrote those beautiful poems and songs. I feel blessed,I can read and understand him and appreciate his hard work that he left behind for us to enjoy.

When I leave for a life,which is carefree and rejuvenating,to me it will be heaven on earth. I am certain I will not miss my home base. I’d be busy talking to the variety of animals,I’d come in contact with.For once I’d get to see nature and learn to appreciate it. The absence of city life cannot and will not be an issue. I’ll think of Wordsworth and his poem,”I wandered lonely as a cloud . That floats on high o’er vales and hills, when all at once I saw a crowd,A host of golden daffodils.”

It will give me an occasion to feel Tagore’s poetry, “We play with the golden dawn,we play with the silver moon”. I ask , “But how am I to get up to you?” They answer,”Come to the edge of the earth lift up your hands to the sky, and you will be taken up into the clouds”. These are the moments I will treasure. I’d love to give nomadic life a try.