Very recently, we visited the Mayan Riviera. Travelling with us were my friend Anjan, his wife Bitasta and their 3-year old daughter Adrika. She calls me jyaja which is derived from jyethu, meaning uncle in Bengali. This poem is about our interactions in the morning before we would head out of our hotel rooms. Here it goes.
The morning after the ruin visit -
Knock. Knock.
Who's there?
"Mayan ghost," replies a tiny voice,
"We are all Mayan ghosts
except jyaja - he's a doggy!"
We go up and down hwy 307
looking for Xcacel.
Green sea turtle, green sea turtle -
Where can we find you?
The very next morning -
Knock. Knock.
Who's there?
Sea turtle.
Our Mayan ghost is now a sea turtle!
Next stop. Xcaret.
We sample the Mayan theme.
The next morning. Knock. Knock.
Who's there?
Spider monkey.
The turtle turns into a monkey.
Every morning the same routine -
Knock. Knock.
Who's there?
Mayan ghost to sea turtle
Sea turtle to spider monkey.
Innocence and imagination
of a little girl -
Part of my Mayan Riviera experience.
Footnote: the ruin referenced here is Chichen-itza. Xcacel (pronounced Ish-ka-cell) is a Sea Turtle Conservatory. Xcaret (pronounced Shcaret) is an ecological theme park.
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
September 23, 2008
September 12, 2008
Intersection and Interval
Last evening, I attended the Levitt Shell Concert listening to Bill Evans, Grammy winning saxophonist. It was an incredible experience to listen to a Miles Davis alum in his Soulgrass concert. The name of the concert was befitting as his music interlaced with traditional bluegrass style is really soul searching. His bandmates were also fascinating performers creating an evening of liberating music from multiple genres - jazz, bluegrass and funk. He even did an improvization where his saxophone leads were matched by the violinist. Almost like what one will find in any India classical performance called Jugol Bandi where the lead instrumentalist and his/her accompanist go into an impromptu co-creation.
While physically there, my mind was travelling and I was reflecting upon my life. Intervals and intersections are my favorite time and place respectively because they represent enormous possibility. While there, I jotted the following lines on my Blackberry that I titled "Intersection and interval." Here it goes. . .
At a crossroad -
do you follow your head
or listen to your heart?
Down on the ground -
do you wait for a helping hand
or bounce back on your own?
Your destiny -
do you leave it to chances
or are you making a choice?
Are events in history shaping you
or are you going to shape history?
Where are you heading? Where? Where?
Is your life a destination or a journey?
When dreams are shattered
don't rescind -
dream even bigger,
reach out for the stars!
If promises are broken -
don't withdraw into your shell;
forgive and forget,
love even more with renewed vigor.
At a crossroad -
don't just obey your mind
follow your soul!
While physically there, my mind was travelling and I was reflecting upon my life. Intervals and intersections are my favorite time and place respectively because they represent enormous possibility. While there, I jotted the following lines on my Blackberry that I titled "Intersection and interval." Here it goes. . .
At a crossroad -
do you follow your head
or listen to your heart?
Down on the ground -
do you wait for a helping hand
or bounce back on your own?
Your destiny -
do you leave it to chances
or are you making a choice?
Are events in history shaping you
or are you going to shape history?
Where are you heading? Where? Where?
Is your life a destination or a journey?
When dreams are shattered
don't rescind -
dream even bigger,
reach out for the stars!
If promises are broken -
don't withdraw into your shell;
forgive and forget,
love even more with renewed vigor.
At a crossroad -
don't just obey your mind
follow your soul!
************************
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
August 9, 2008
The Triumph of Human Aspiration
The opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics was a spectacular statement by the Chinese people. I was awestruck by the planning and execution, and, most importantly, by the power of human creativity, imagination and by a country's insatiable drive to dominate the world. Everything was so exceptionally masterminded, so flawlessly executed. No detail was overlooked, nothing was left to chance.
The number 8 happens to be very prosperous in Chinese culture. It is interesting to note how meticulously everything was chosen around the number 8. The show started at 08:08 on 08-08-08.
Several of my friends later described this event as an example of immaculate execution, some cited this as a classic case of Chinese ability to mobilize human resource, but, in my humble opinion, this is a fairy tale of victory of human imagination, triumph of human aspiration. Mixing their ancient culture with modern technology, the Chinese people simultaneously showcased their rich heritage from the past and their desire to dominate the future.
The director of the show demonstrated an uncanny mastery in symbolism. Every theme was carefully chosen to depict certain aspect of the Chinese culture, to showcase its prowess and to make a bold statement about its future.
The “bird's nest" is a befitting architecture from that perspective.
Who could have imagined such a syncopated orchestration of so many drummers - drumming a 5000 year old instrument discovered only 3 years back? The pattern that was formed by the drummers was also visually pleasing. [On a lighter note, the formation could be an inspiration for the next chocolate square design - with caramel on top. Chocolate makers of the world - are you paying attention?]
The spirit of the games – harmony – was well represented throughout the evening. The formations - I later learned from a Chinese professor - represents harmony in Chinese characters. The 57 kids donned in traditional outfit represented as many ethnic groups in China. Depiction of the Ming dynasty – a period in Chinese history when China used to be very open - was used to exhibit openness. A scrolling giant LCD screen used as a canvas for a century old art form was a statement in modern innovation and engineering. Both the painting and the way it was created were mind-blowing - what a creativity, what an imagination! Similarly, a show in the "city of kites" couldn't be complete without a kite show - here the Chinese touch was the human kite. The fact that the Chinese invented the use of magnetic compass in maritime passage was well showcased when hundreds of performers created the shape of a boat.
Such symbolic messages were abundant throughout the celebration. Even though there were solo performers, each performance had a large support cast. The message from a collectivist culture was amply clear – individual success depends largely on group. The handover of the Olympics' flag to military personnel implicitly expressed the confidence and trust placed in the nation’s army and its military strength. The resounding statement feels like "nothing is going to happen under my watch." [The director of the show must have watched A Few Good Men! :-)] No wonder China is now a voting-member of the UN Security Council.
The parade of the nation was also unique. Rather than following the traditional alphabetical order in which participating nations come out, the order was based on the number of strokes it takes to represent a country in Chinese language. When the Chinese contingency came out, by having the 9-year old earthquake survivor next to NBA’s Ming, China sent out a strong message. A bright future lies ahead of the country if one of its 9 year old can demonstrate such personal leadership in the face of such adverse calamity.
Lastly, the erection of the Olympic cauldron (the commentator on NBC did mention that it wasn’t there even 30 minutes before the torch was going to be lit) proves modern China’s engineering prowess. And the way the final torch bearer approached the cauldron was so creative and original.
I find symbolism in the "One World One Dream" slogan as well as the “You and me” song. China wants to embrace the open market, wants to capitalize on the “One World” created by globalization.
Needless to say, I enjoyed every bit of the opening ceremony. This would be a hard act to follow for the future Olympic Game hosts.
Returning to my own backyard, I hope our leaders exhibit similar open-minded, imaginative forward thinking. I truly believe that such a great feat was achieved by not saying "we can't do it", "no one has done it before", etc. but by asking "how we can do it?" and then by working collectively towards a solution. That's the Chinese difference. That's the lesson I took away from the 2008 Beijing Olympics - victory will belong to those who dream, the world will belong to those who try to scale new heights.
Less ...
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
The number 8 happens to be very prosperous in Chinese culture. It is interesting to note how meticulously everything was chosen around the number 8. The show started at 08:08 on 08-08-08.
Several of my friends later described this event as an example of immaculate execution, some cited this as a classic case of Chinese ability to mobilize human resource, but, in my humble opinion, this is a fairy tale of victory of human imagination, triumph of human aspiration. Mixing their ancient culture with modern technology, the Chinese people simultaneously showcased their rich heritage from the past and their desire to dominate the future.
The director of the show demonstrated an uncanny mastery in symbolism. Every theme was carefully chosen to depict certain aspect of the Chinese culture, to showcase its prowess and to make a bold statement about its future.
The “bird's nest" is a befitting architecture from that perspective.
Who could have imagined such a syncopated orchestration of so many drummers - drumming a 5000 year old instrument discovered only 3 years back? The pattern that was formed by the drummers was also visually pleasing. [On a lighter note, the formation could be an inspiration for the next chocolate square design - with caramel on top. Chocolate makers of the world - are you paying attention?]
The spirit of the games – harmony – was well represented throughout the evening. The formations - I later learned from a Chinese professor - represents harmony in Chinese characters. The 57 kids donned in traditional outfit represented as many ethnic groups in China. Depiction of the Ming dynasty – a period in Chinese history when China used to be very open - was used to exhibit openness. A scrolling giant LCD screen used as a canvas for a century old art form was a statement in modern innovation and engineering. Both the painting and the way it was created were mind-blowing - what a creativity, what an imagination! Similarly, a show in the "city of kites" couldn't be complete without a kite show - here the Chinese touch was the human kite. The fact that the Chinese invented the use of magnetic compass in maritime passage was well showcased when hundreds of performers created the shape of a boat.
Such symbolic messages were abundant throughout the celebration. Even though there were solo performers, each performance had a large support cast. The message from a collectivist culture was amply clear – individual success depends largely on group. The handover of the Olympics' flag to military personnel implicitly expressed the confidence and trust placed in the nation’s army and its military strength. The resounding statement feels like "nothing is going to happen under my watch." [The director of the show must have watched A Few Good Men! :-)] No wonder China is now a voting-member of the UN Security Council.
The parade of the nation was also unique. Rather than following the traditional alphabetical order in which participating nations come out, the order was based on the number of strokes it takes to represent a country in Chinese language. When the Chinese contingency came out, by having the 9-year old earthquake survivor next to NBA’s Ming, China sent out a strong message. A bright future lies ahead of the country if one of its 9 year old can demonstrate such personal leadership in the face of such adverse calamity.
Lastly, the erection of the Olympic cauldron (the commentator on NBC did mention that it wasn’t there even 30 minutes before the torch was going to be lit) proves modern China’s engineering prowess. And the way the final torch bearer approached the cauldron was so creative and original.
I find symbolism in the "One World One Dream" slogan as well as the “You and me” song. China wants to embrace the open market, wants to capitalize on the “One World” created by globalization.
Needless to say, I enjoyed every bit of the opening ceremony. This would be a hard act to follow for the future Olympic Game hosts.
Returning to my own backyard, I hope our leaders exhibit similar open-minded, imaginative forward thinking. I truly believe that such a great feat was achieved by not saying "we can't do it", "no one has done it before", etc. but by asking "how we can do it?" and then by working collectively towards a solution. That's the Chinese difference. That's the lesson I took away from the 2008 Beijing Olympics - victory will belong to those who dream, the world will belong to those who try to scale new heights.
Less ...
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
July 18, 2008
The Power of Words
The other day, my friend JJ forwarded me a link for a short film titled "The Story of a Sign" and suggested that it is a must see. It is a Spanish language short film that won the first prize at the 4th Annual Short Film Online Competition at Cannes Film Festival 2008. And she was right.
Very moving indeed! I cried – not only because the story is touching and but also because I felt a certain kind of pain of incompleteness. A pain of not being able to live a purpose-driven life. A purpose exemplified by the way this guy in the movie changed the old man's afternoon. A purpose higher than my daytime job.
Words have a wonderful way of touching other people’s lives, of transforming others. When I was young, in our composition exams in India, one of the popular questions used to be: Expand upon the thought "A pen is mightier than sword." Truly, the way the director used the pen in the film, showed us a partial glimpse of the letters scribbed by the young man, brought home the meaning of this old phrase so much better. If I were to take the exam again, in a multimedia world like today's, I would be showing this movie to expand upon that thought. The transformation of the old man's afternoon - the over-pouring coins into his pan - is no less than a "tipping point" (to borrow from the title of Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference.") Same feeling, expressed differently, did it for the old man.
So many revolutions have been ignited by flaming writings. So many freedom fighters during India's struggle for independence had given their lives, moved by the hypnotic power of the two Sanskrit words "Vande Mataram" (translation: bow to thee mother.) Transformational!
Often I wondered if the gift of oratory separates those with success and significance from those drowning in mediocrity and obscurity, separates the leader from the followers. Don't know for sure but the director Alonso Alvarez Barreda made me think again. Hats off to this young filmmaker.
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
Very moving indeed! I cried – not only because the story is touching and but also because I felt a certain kind of pain of incompleteness. A pain of not being able to live a purpose-driven life. A purpose exemplified by the way this guy in the movie changed the old man's afternoon. A purpose higher than my daytime job.
Words have a wonderful way of touching other people’s lives, of transforming others. When I was young, in our composition exams in India, one of the popular questions used to be: Expand upon the thought "A pen is mightier than sword." Truly, the way the director used the pen in the film, showed us a partial glimpse of the letters scribbed by the young man, brought home the meaning of this old phrase so much better. If I were to take the exam again, in a multimedia world like today's, I would be showing this movie to expand upon that thought. The transformation of the old man's afternoon - the over-pouring coins into his pan - is no less than a "tipping point" (to borrow from the title of Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference.") Same feeling, expressed differently, did it for the old man.
So many revolutions have been ignited by flaming writings. So many freedom fighters during India's struggle for independence had given their lives, moved by the hypnotic power of the two Sanskrit words "Vande Mataram" (translation: bow to thee mother.) Transformational!
Often I wondered if the gift of oratory separates those with success and significance from those drowning in mediocrity and obscurity, separates the leader from the followers. Don't know for sure but the director Alonso Alvarez Barreda made me think again. Hats off to this young filmmaker.
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
July 15, 2008
The Eye of a Photographer
This poem is inspired by a series of photographs I saw in a catalog that best exemplifies what the eye of a photographer looks for, who a photographer essentially is. Photography is a passion of mine and I agreed with what the images had to say. This effort is a result of my appreciation of that body of work.Please click on the image for a larger view.
© 2008 Sanjoy Haldar
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