Hello! Great to see you this #Skywatch Friday!
The week crawled off to a slow start, plagued by self-doubts, worries, anxieties and the works – you know what that means, right? I’ve not been able to focus much, so, not been up to much writing. But, I’ve spent a lot of time doing other things, such as clearing closets, cleaning and organizing my things, my bookshelves and doing a bit of DIY work to bring myself back to my element and generally practicing mindfulness in the things that I do every day.
Arjyo’s exams got underway this week and I’ve been inspired by his rigour and tenacity to pull through the week’s load by staying up late and motivating himself to give his best shot – made me proud and happy. I know how much he loves to spend the evenings playing with his gang of friends. Sadly, it has been days when he has gone down to join them at play, what with being busy with studies, home work and revisions since the past couple of weeks. Frankly, if there is one thing that needs to change about our education system, it has to be the increasing pressure and work-load on the kids who seem to be losing out on their precious childhood days!
This evening, the boy was taking me through his English question paper and it brought back memories of my own schooldays. For the unseen comprehension, they had Robert Frost’s poem, ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’. We had an interesting conversation regarding the poem and I was pleasantly surprised to see how well he had interpreted it. Memories came knocking…Years back, I used to teach this poem to my ninth graders. I’ve read the poem so many times and on each occasion, I marvel at the way Frost conjured up the imagery to create one of the most memorable pieces of poetry ever written. A special favourite are the concluding lines that symbolise affirming a path of life and fulfilling one’s promises before one’s final rest:
“The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.”
That reminds me the good part is we’re almost half-way through to the completion of Arjyo’s semester exams – a big relief for all of us, as we gear up for our annual festival – the Durga puja. Fortunately, most schools in the state enjoy their 10-day break over the festival of Dussehra. Can’t wait for the break to see him take things easy once more.
On the health front, my daily walks are now firmly in place. Giving up my evening dose of caffeine was not easy at all, but every bit worth it, now that I am sleeping better. So now, I’m only on green tea and my insomnia is almost gone (touch wood, still early days, so shouldn’t say much!)
This week, being mostly overcast, the sky remained perpetually bleak and rather uninspiring. This week’s sky shots have been specially selected from some of my recent shots, from about a month back, thanks to my regular skywatching moments taken every now and then.
Capturing the ever-changing skyline was a great source of joy and as someone rightly said, the scenes help me capture the moment within me so the recollection is as joyful as it is in the moment. I hope I’m making sense here. 🙂
So, what do you think of the pictures? If you liked any of them, I’d really appreciate if you let me know in the comments below. I’ll be looking forward to hearing from you. Have a great week ahead and relax as much. See you again soon!
Linking this with #Skywatch Friday, a place where sky watchers present stunning sky views from their part of the world.
lovely capture Esha!
Thank you, Arv!
You are welcome Esha! 🙂
Did I like any of them? Understatement of the year. All beautiful captures.
Thank you, Alana! Very kind of you 🙂
“Capturing the ever-changing skyline was a great source of joy and as someone rightly said, the scenes help me capture the moment within me so the recollection is as joyful as it is in the moment.” I can so relate to this! Beautiful pics!
Thank you, Sunita! Glad to see you stop by 🙂
Such amazing captures, Esha… I loved them but more than that I loved reading your post. I have also been trying to be mindful lately, have begun going for walks albeit only when I’m a work, short breaks where I walk and practice deep breathing. I think we need it to remain centered and fight the anxiety that often engulfs us. Well, Durga Puja is almost here so I wish you have a lot of fun. Take care 🙂
Thank you, Nabanita! Good o know you’re back at picking up on some of your favourite things! Thats a great start, I tell you. The idea is consistency, so keep it up. Thats what I tell myself too…all too often giving up seems so easy but then, persistence pays. Yes, gearing up for puja…that’s one exciting thing coming up right now. Wishing you too a great time over the puja. I do wish we can bump into our families sometime over pandal hopping…what say? You little M is so cute, I’d love to see her some day! Take care and hope you’re done with the shopping part by now 🙂
Wonderful clicks and amazing post, Esha !!!
Thank you so much, Vasantha !!!
Wow Esha the simplicity of your writing never fails to touch ones soul . It almost seems that you go to some place within yourself where words live !
It warms the cockles of my heart to hear that Arjyo is so focussed .Academics is pretty intense so the Pooja break is a welcome change !
I am also trying to woo my mojo back . Don’t feel too settled after my return from the US . Must get into a decent routine !
In sharing your personal experiences, it changes the trajectory of another’s life for the better.Thank you .
Love the pictures ! They are so beautiful . The ever changing colours of the sky is a constant reminder that Change is the only permanent thing in life !
I am totally inspired by you so will tackle some cleaning project this weekend . Closets are on top of that list! We are meeting up with family friends and in a blink it will be Monday !
Hasta mañana ! Catch you soon !
Thank you so so much, Aru’di for those wonderful words! Honestly, I don’t write half as beautifully as you all do… Just pen down thoughts as they flow and fill in the empty spaces to publish my sky watch post every week. So grateful to know so many wonderful people who inspire me to do so almost always when I get down to put pen to paper. You are one among them, Aru’di!
Weekends are so crazy. I have no idea how we get by, during those two days with the usual things and still cannot find any time to do our pending tasks.
Happy weekend to you – am sure you will fill in the two days with many worthwhile things to do and enjoy your time with family friends! Cleaning and organising is very therapeutic every once in a while. Have fun and hope your mojo is back very soon!
Hasta la vista! Catch you later 😊❤️😍
Awww Esha , you are too modest ! You write from the heart and that is the only way ! Catch you soon ❤️😍😘