Melanie, our gracious host of SYW, has posed these interesting questions today;
Love this new badge Melanie!
The image today is courtesy of the fantastic Sadje with subtle changes by MBC!
QUESTIONS
Do you become discouraged by the annual “Blogging Ennui” phenomenon that comes around every year? (it’s early this year IMO) (blogging ennui means (to me) a distinct slow down in writing and participation, which lasts an indefinite period of time).
Not really! In fact, it gives me a breathing space. I agree that the usual number of posts has fallen down and many bloggers are missing in action. But I guess they have their reasons. One thing that I suspect is that not all posts are showing from all the bloggers in my reader. Maybe another WP glitch?
If you were in a room filled with you and your doppelganger (someone who looks exactly like you do. Supposedly everyone has at least one out there in the world) and 2 billion dollars, what would you do? What do you think your doppelganger would do?
A very interesting question. I’d split the money with my doppelgänger and leave as soon as possible. The doppelgänger may look like me but how can I trust her? She may want all the money for herself.
A building is burning. You have time to either save a child trapped inside or a valuable painting which you would then sell, using the money to save 20 children from starvation. What would you do and why?
Of course, I’ll save the child. Saving a child from certain death is more important than a painting, no matter how valuable it may be. As for saving 20 kids from starvation, we don’t need to sell paintings for that. It takes very little to feed a child; an open heart and a generous mind can do that without going to those limits.
What’s your opinion of yams or sweet potatoes?
I love them. Not the way people eat them in the west but the way we eat them here. After roasting them in coals with skin on, it is peeled, and cubed. It’s them drenched in chat masala and lemon juice. Yummy!
GRATITUDE SECTION
Please feel free to share an image of something that makes you smile!
Full moon on 5/15/22My phone decided to change the full moon into something dramatic!
Thanks Melanie for once again posing very interesting questions.
All through my life, There’s been one guiding light That showed me the way Through all the strife My faith It supported me when I was faltering It bolstered my confidence when it was shaky It lit up the path I needed to take in the dark Where would I be Without my faith, my guiding light?
What two totally normal things become really weird if you do them back to back?
I really am struggling to find an example here except what Melanie suggested herself, eating a big meal and going for a weigh-in at a dietitian’s clinic. Or perhaps brushing your teeth after dinner and then eating a piece of dark chocolate!
What is something that you just recently realized that you are embarrassed by, that you didn’t realize embarrassed you?
I used to be embarrassed by the faux pas I committed frequently but now I just laugh them off. Quite the reverse of this question asked.
If Australia (including New Zealand and Tasmania – which I KNOW are different countries); the UK, Ireland, Germany, the USA, and Brazil or Italy were represented by one food, which would it be for each?
I’d say Pizza for Italy, a hamburger for USA, fish and chips for UK! For the rest I have no idea.
What might happen if Goldilocks and the Three Bears were set in modern times?
Goldilocks would be strictly prohibited from wandering the forest on her own but if she did, she’d have her cell phone and GPS to guide her. The bears would in any case be afraid of humans and wouldn’t approach her at all.
Where was the most most embarrassing or inappropriate place you’ve passed audible gas?
Do you think I’d tell!
GRATITUDE SECTION:
If you celebrate it, how was your Mother’s Day? What did you do? If you don’t (because you’re a single guy or it’s not in your culture) please share something fun you did recently.
On Mother’s Day, we were traveling so we have plans to celebrate it later in the week or the next weekend. Last week was Eid and the whole week was off from school and work. We had a very pleasant time with family and friends. Even managed to see a couple of movies; Dr. Strange and Sonic the hedgehog!
A view of the mall on the Chand raat ( eve before Eid)
Thank you Melanie, for these very interesting questions.
This week Dr. Tanya has asked our opinion about Hemingway’s quote;
TODAY’S QUOTE;
“In order to write about life first you must live it.”
Ernest Hemingway
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I think that this quote is true in context of emotions because if we haven’t experienced the ups and downs of life, it’ll be difficult for us to capture those emotions.
Whereas the human mind has been gifted with a very fertile imagination that helps people to create stories that they themselves have never lived. Many genres of story telling would never be possible if we only wrote what we have experienced.
In blogging, when I write about something I’ve personally experienced, It generates more interest in my readers. Perhaps, because there is an element of relatability which pulls their attention. The recent A to Z challenge I did was an example of this.
In summing it up, I think one needs to have experienced the highs and lows of emotions in life to write convincingly about them but as far as the story is concerned, people have ample imagination to write of things they have never experienced or have ever happened.
In blogging, however, personal experiences always create more connectivity as others may also have experienced those situations in life.
Selma Martin shared a poem today which she had written taking the last line of another poem. She has invited us to do the same. Here’s the last line from her poem, ‘I Feel Adored’
May 9, 2022, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a mom selfie — a story that creates an image of a mom. No one mom looks alike or fits a maternal mold. Who is she? Go where the prompt leads
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I am a mom of three and a grandmother to three. I’m not a perfect mother, no one is. But I do try. I often make mistakes and forget things that I ought to remember but I do try.
I gave up my career so that I could be a full-time mom. I did what all mothers do to make sure that the children are well looked after.
My children love me but they aren’t very demonstrative. That’s why when they do something like this I am so pleased.
A customized poem and hand-painted dupatta to show her love.
My father was a great fan of Urdu poetry. He had collections of Mirza Ghalib, Allama Iqbal, and many other Urdu poets. There was a couplet he was very fond to reciting to us when we asked for something that was out of his purchasing power;
hazaron khwahishen aisi ke har khwahish pe dam nikle
buhat niklay mery arman lekin phir bhi kam niklay
(ہَزاروںخَواہشیںایسیکہہرخَواہشپہدَمنکِلے
بُہتنکِلےمیرےاَرمانلیکنپھربھیکمنکِلے)
Roughly translated/ paraphrased, it goes like this;
In life there are thousands of desires, each demanding a sacrifice
Many of my wishes were fulfilled, yet too many left unfulfilled
At first, he had to explain the meaning of these lines to us and later whenever we made an outrageous request, he would recite only the first line and we got the message.
All his life, he was in government service and had a lot of power during his tenure, but being scrupulously honest we had a very simple lifestyle. We never went without necessities but had very few luxuries. But he taught us that honesty was way more important than having material things.
Your prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “a phrase you grew up with.” Include in your post a phrase your mom/dad/grandparent/sibling used all the time when you were growing up, or just write whatever inspires you based on that phrase. Enjoy!
Blogging Insights returns today after a month’s hiatus. I posted almost daily for theA to Z Blogging Challenge 2022 last month and couldn’t keep up with my prompts. So here goes :
TODAY’S QUOTE
“I believe the term “blog” means more than an online journal. I believe a blog is a conversation. People go to blogs to read AND write, not just consume.” – Michael Arrington, TechCrunch
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I agree with this quote 100%. The only thing I’d add more is that blogging is not only a means to write and read but also to connect.
One person writes a blog post which is read by many others. This completes the stated purpose of this quote, but what comes after is the real joy of blogging: The connections formed with others in the community.
For myself, this connection is the reason I blog. When I write something, be it a story, an informative post, or a poem, I get instant feedback on it. I get to know what people think of my effort and this gives me a chance to improve on my writing skill. In fact, this has actually helped me to write better, to improve my grammar and by reading the posts/ poems of my fellow bloggers, I’ve learned a lot about writing better.
Thank you Dr.Tanya for restarting Blogging insight series again.
After the month of Ramadan, where Muslims fast for the entire month, the first day of Shawal is celebrated as Eid-up-Fitr.
It’s a festival that Muslims celebrate all over the world. The day Eid falls is different for people from different regions because it depends on the sighting of the moon. It
Today, it’s Eid in my part of the world. We will meet family, friends and extended family too. Have a meal together and exchange gifts.
This means that I’ll be away from my blog most of the day. Will try to catch up with you all as soon as I can.
Keep it alive 
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