Lucy Gray

I like reading poems (writing too sometimes...but that's rare). Anyways I remember reading this one, long back in school, possibly 7th/8th class, and I remember how moved I was by this really beautiful poem by William Wordsworth. Suddenly had the yearning to read it all over again, so searched internet hard and long, coz I could not recall its name. Only had a faint idea of who the poet could possibly be and some not-so-faint idea of what the poem was all about. Anyways found it finally and here it is for you and me to enjoy :)

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LUCY GRAY
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Oft I had heard of Lucy Gray:
And, when I crossed the wild,
I chanced to see at break of day
The solitary child.

No mate, no comrade Lucy knew;
She dwelt on a wide moor,
The sweetest thing that ever grew
Beside a human door!

You yet may spy the fawn at play,
The hare upon the green;
But the sweet face of Lucy Gray
Will never more be seen.

"To-night will be a stormy night--
You to the town must go;
And take a lantern, Child, to light
Your mother through the snow."

"That, Father! will I gladly do:
'Tis scarcely afternoon--
The minster-clock has just struck two,
And yonder is the moon!"

At this the Father raised his hook,
And snapped a faggot-band;
He plied his work;--and Lucy took
The lantern in her hand.

Not blither is the mountain roe:
With many a wanton stroke
Her feet disperse the powdery snow,
That rises up like smoke.

The storm came on before its time:
She wandered up and down;
And many a hill did Lucy climb:
But never reached the town.

The wretched parents all that night
Went shouting far and wide;
But there was neither sound nor sight
To serve them for a guide.

At day-break on a hill they stood
That overlooked the moor;
And thence they saw the bridge of wood,
A furlong from their door.

They wept--and, turning homeward, cried,
"In heaven we all shall meet;"
When in the snow the mother spied
The print of Lucy's feet.

Then downwards from the steep hill's edge
They tracked the footmarks small;
And through the broken hawthorn hedge,
And by the long stone-wall;

And then an open field they crossed:
The marks were still the same;
They tracked them on, nor ever lost;
And to the bridge they came.

They followed from the snowy bank
Those footmarks, one by one,
Into the middle of the plank;
And further there were none!

Yet some maintain that to this day
She is a living child;
That you may see sweet Lucy Gray
Upon the lonesome wild.

O'er rough and smooth she trips along,
And never looks behind;
And sings a solitary song
That whistles in the wind.

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how insignificant are we!

This video from American Museum of Natural History, NY takes us on a voyage from the Himalayas on the surface of the Earth to the “can be seen by us" edge of the Universe, also known in astro jargon as the last scattering surface and shows us how insignificant are we in the Whole Wide Universe! (and yet we keep fighting and killing all the time...this part is not shown in the video...it just popped up in my head after watching this!). The video is based on real data (including from SDSS), and is not an artist’s conception.



I am just back from NY...wish I had visited AMNH...but then there are so many things to be seen there...this comes 2nd on the list if I ever go there again (1st one is the Holocaust Museum, which was unfortunately closed on Saturday).

feels like...

One of the things I have learnt and got used to in US is the term "Feels like". This phrase (?) is often used here in weather industry mostly to describe what the temperature outside "feels like" as opposed to what it "actually" is. And so I also got used to this. When someone asks me what is the temperature outside, I promptly reply (after checking on internet), "It is -2 C but actually it feels like -20C". That big a difference! Trust me I am not joking here...It does get that different. Imagine if I would have reported only the "actual" part and not "feels like" part, my friend would have either frozen or I would not be writing this today:) Maybe that is the reason we got so used to it. Had the "feel" and "actual" part not been that variant, I would have been happy to report the actual version only.

I have this annoying habit of using weird words and phrases in places and at times where they don't make any sense, and mostly I end up looking like a fool. It happened one day after the daylight savings time started last spring, at around 10 AM, we were driving to school and saw that the parking lot looked strangely empty. 10 AM is not early to go to school and and consequently the parking ramp is usually almost full. It's being empty was a little surprising, I blurted out, "It's not yet full because it feels like 9 AM and so people are still sleeping!" It makes sense. Doesn't it!

I have so come to love this phrase "feels like". I have heard NY is actually a big, fun city to explore. Let's see what NY "feels like".

One amazing evening

It was one awesome evening. Went to a small gathering called "Found in Translation" in old town, where an assortment of poems were being recited; poems by giants of Hindi/Urdu literature from India and Pakistan. Poems like my all time favourite "Madhushala" by Harivansh Rai Bachchan and another towering figure of Urdu Poetry, Faiz Ahmed Faiz with one of his best creations, "Speak". Ghalib and Agha Shahid Ali were also among the poets honored on the occasion. Overall it was pretty amazing experience! And as we stepped outside to leave; lo and behold, there you see the much awaited first snowfall of what might be my last snow season in Michigan. Snow falling down like little balls of cotton ever so softly landing all over. Driving back home in snow felt total divine, like a perfect icing on the cake of choicest urdu/hindi couplets. We called it a day by taking a walk in at night and letting the snow cover us all over with its warm hug:)

Sweet little Poem by Edie Brickel

I was wandering in the cyberhood and accidently bumped into this sweet little Poem by *Edie Brickel*. totally liked it!

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I'm not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean

Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box
Religion is the smile on a dog

I'm not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean

Choke me in the shallow waters
Before I get too deep

What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?

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hmm...yummy!

The saga of interesting and "go laughing in your head" headlines continues....listen to this:
BJP may need 'surgery' or even 'chemotherapy': RSS chief

Don't I love our Supreme Court!

I saw this very interesting news story in The Indian Express titled, Listen to whatever your wife says: SC tells husbands. Of course it was said in the lighter vein, not to be taken literally :) It nevertheless made me go rolling on the ground with laughter! And it gave a couple of my (married) female friends something very amusing to pass on to their respective husbands! On the other hand if we think (!), it is a very important piece of advice. Guys listen to what SC has to say if you want a trouble-free life on the home-front!