A Knotter's song

I am not a regular viewer of Netflix or Amazon prime, but two web series and one film captured my viewing interest. What got me binge watching these, though not in one go, was a combination of familiar location and local actors coupled with compelling stories and engaging drama. The first I watched was "The Last Hour", a mystery story based in Sikkim, with glimpses of  a familiar school: Dr Graham's Homes in Kalimpong. The story revolved around a local shamaan or Jhakri, who uses his uncanny sense of the nether world for solving the mystery. The second, a movie, called "Jaane Jaan" with the recurring theme of murder mystery in the mist, this time featuring a Darjeeling school: Mount Hermon. The mathematics teacher in this movie, uses his dogged persistence in solving maths problems to become part of the murder mystery solution. The most recent one "Pataal-lok-Season 2", another murder mystery story shot on location in Nagaland. The location in the fina...

Isaiah 40:31  - But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Romans 12:12  ~ Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 'Tis Hope, Invisible, yet so strong,  holding steadfast despite storms, silence, desperation, every discouragement or uncertainty.  Wields power, not and never to give up. Even in dying embers, lights up if there is but a spark. Finds and trudges on towards that distant light,  amidst deepest darkness. No mountain too high, no sea too wide, to climb, to cross. 'Tis hope, That keeps us going on. 'Tis hope, That makes us stay. 'Tis hope, That lightens up the load.  'Tis hope, that the seed, dormant for many years, once sown, finds life. Romans 15:13  - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 1...

Dusk and Dawn sights from the window at home in Darjeeling!  

When we had sunshine in Darjeeling during the monsoon, the school would declare a sunny day holiday! That was many moons ago. Perchance, I happened to be in Darjeeling in the thick of this monsoon. And while my last two evenings were spent indoors with the storms displaying their might of lightning and thunder showers, this morning was different. Clear blue skies, sunny, and bright. As I gazed at the well washed valleys below, the brilliant green tea-estates, I could not just keep myself from wanting to go outdoors. I also wanted to try the bike-taxi service which I had heard of called "Ju-Ju" or "lets go-lets go" in the local language. The biker came within 10 minutes of my call and I asked him to suggest the perfect nice, sunny and warm place to visit that was offbeat Darjeeling and un-touristy. Jamuni! he said, and off we went. After forty minutes or so of winding ride, across a series of tea gardens, we reached the valley below! Jamuni was quiet, serene and ever...

 A heart-wrenching week just went by. Two young lives were lost to epic battles with deadly diseases.  The first, an eighteen-year-young boy. I dare call him a man. He had fought valiantly with years of drug addiction in a hideous locality known for petty crime. When he was finally admitted to the rehab center, he caught the ominous tuberculosis. When I met him, the disease had spread across his lungs and into his brain. My last-moment diagnosis and advice to rush him to the hospital was help too little and too late! The second, a young man, just in his late twenties. A software engineer, with a plump job. A very eligible bachelor. Handsome, tall, fair, and full of life. Till colon cancer got him and drained every bit of life slowly and wickedly from him. The last unit of my blood did little to save him, as I witnessed his final breaths and last heartbeats on the monitor. The families were heartbroken. The mothers were incessant in their cries, unable and unwilling to comprehe...

Meghalaya was an unlikely choice for a family vacation in the middle of winter, around the corner of the new year. Yet, with all the usual clouds, rain, and mist swept away, we got to enjoy the sunniest side of the wettest places on Earth!  Well known for their natural beauty, the twin hills of Khasi and Jaintya, folded like a thick skirt of mother nature, soaked in embellishments of lakes, creeks, streams, gorges, valleys, plateaus, and cliffs. The most amazing were the refreshing waterfalls, the ancient caves with fossils, the knotted living root bridges, and the crystal clear Umngot river in Dawki as it meandered from between the twin hills into the plains of Bangladesh. Here's my list of top picks from the wonderful short trip to Meghalaya.  The amazing sun-rise and sun-set views, a heady cocktail of sun's warmth with the nip of the crisp winter breeze.  The views from the tops of trees which could be climbed through a maze of narrow bamboo walks.  A humming tree...