Living in a civilised soceity

Nikita and Haresh Mehta sought judicial redress for aborting their unborn baby who has been diagnosed with a congenital heart block and the whole world is peeping into their court rooms and passing their own verdict. The child will be born with a hole in heart. A person with a hole in heart can lead a normal life, but the problem is, one will get tired very fast as compared to normal persons. Now-a-days after a surgery, a pacemaker can be planted in the heart, battery of which lasts for 10 years. Generally speaking, people with any kind of deformity (physical or mental) are always treated differently. Either they are ignored completely or they are pampered to the extreme. Equal opportunities do not come easy to them and time and time again, they have to keep proving their ability to fit into a proper slot. Deformity is a block that blinds the society to recognise true talent instantly. It is very easy for others to pass the verdict and treat them (Mehtas) like criminals, but I have met many mothers of severely mentally challenged children. Many times, mothers are blamed for the deformity of the child and are treated badly by their in-laws. Lower income makes them dependent on sponsors for medicine and education for all their life. Some of them have zero social life and they go through emotional depression and become incapable of looking after their children. Having any kind of deformity is a life time punishment, not only for an individual, but also for the parents. It is very painful for a mother to see her child suffer. Even though Mehtas do have some help like Jaslok Hospital has promised to provide a pacemaker, worth close to Rs 1 lakh, and free surgery for their baby, but is that enough? Will they have a life time financial support for the child? Who are we to presume to lecture the Mehtas from the smugness of our normalcy? Separating the chaff from grain is always tough.

Walking down the streets in Puerto de la Cruz

This week end I decided to pass my week-end with my niece at Puerto de la Cruz, which is on the north of the island about 20 minutes away from Buen Paso where I am staying. Going to Puerto de la Cruz and sitting indoors is not a good idea. So even though I am still afraid to walk freely with a broken arm, my niece insisted that we go for a short walk down the street. Puerto de la Cruz is bustling with activity. There are people everywhere. Narrow streets of the Old Town, packed with colonial architecture, make walking a safer bet than driving. The city is packed with tourist during this month of August. .There are cafes and restaurants in every street that has no traffic or walking plazas. The stores display their article outside the shops and attract the passer-by. This is a town of two halves. To the west of Plaza del Charco, whitewashed houses and cobbled lanes reflect the serenity of years gone by. Whilst to the east, the excited chatter of holidaymakers reverberates around the labyrinth of cafés and restaurants. Just a short walk in any direction, and I am surrounded by quaint stores that carry local handicrafts, cafes and bars, produce stores (the bananas are absolutely delicious), fantastic wine stores and the old harbor. San Telmo is a neighbourhood that bridges old Puerto to new Puerto. That "bridge", Paseo San Telmo, is dense with tourists, stores, gelato shops, and restaurants. The hotel lined streets and avenues behind the walkway reach out like arms, encouraging travellers to rest. We walked, rested for coffee and pastries, walked again, stopped for hamburgers and sandwiches, walked the bridge through San Thelmo, resting a while, watching the world pass by. The short evening walk lasted four hours actually and was not tiring at all.

My Art World..part 2

It is unfortunate that I cannot do any fine work with my right hand for some time and all I can do all day I reading or writing or watching TV. Normally my days are occupied with various activities such as making dolls or stuff toys or any other handicraft stuff. I love to be surrounded by my own art work and keep adding them. I love to share my own artwork with my family too. My presence is visible through my art work and I feel good. Here in Spain, my brothers house is filled up with some of my works. Like this painting in oils This ship made from straws, cloth, twine and glass pieces and painted in bronze and red This collage of paper, cotton and wool and painted in acrylics This vase made in decoupage, This still life also in decoupage This portrait of my nieces and nephew in crayons and markers Birds in thread work A wall hanging in wool Guru Nanak in black and gold I hope to make more, there are still empty walls here waiting to be dressed up, if only my lazy right hand cooperates. ps: To view more of my art world visit http://chat-with-pushpee.blogspot.com/2007/06/my-art-world.html and http://chat-with-pushpee.blogspot.com/2008/03/woman-of-leisure.html from my archives

Visit to Playa San Marco

¨¨I don’t wish to go too far, a small drive will do¨ I tell my brother as I make myself comfortable in his car. We drive through the steep slope, pass through ancient Drago trees, a rich agricultural landscape and descend to the sheltered harbour down to San Marco beach surrounded by breathtaking scenery. Tenerife’s beaches have got the lot with plenty of nudist, black sand and golden sand beaches off the beaten track to suit; provided you know where to look…and Playa San Marco is the beach very close to my house, although quite far from the city. The peculiar thing about San Marco is its black shiny sand. The weather is cooler in this part of the island and therefore it is less crowded than the other beaches. It is mainly visited by locals. Some 70’s style apartment blocks on one side of the beach don’t make for the prettiest of vistas, but this small beach, beside a fishing harbour and backed by fish restaurants, has a certain charm. These restaurants are well known for their fish and Spanish rice dish called Paella It’s set in a sheltered inlet, which makes it suitable for kids. Although it is late evening, there are many people still soaking in water. Stunning vistas always impress; however, they’re pretty much an essential of any decent walk. The real ‘well I’ll go to the foot of the stairs’ moments are the unexpected surprises, especially when they’re to be found only a hop, skip and a jump away. Slowly and carefully I walk down towards the even path to reach the restaurants. There is a small church tucked between the restaurants. My niece informs me that it is regularly visited by locals and during San Marco fiestas, there is much activity here. We wait for a coffee as we watch the sun set down into waters, behind the hills. I glance in my watch, the sun has disappeared and the sky has all shades of red and blue and it is 9 30 pm.

Poetry and Story telling Performance.....

Last evening, I was invited for music, poetry and story-telling performance by a famous group of Tenerife called Sol Y Sombra. After dinner, we went to ´´Casa de Los Caceres´´ which is a heritage building, in Icod de Los Vinos, made of wood and stones. During day, there are many art exhibitions held in this place which exhibits the art and culture of Canarias. The show was held in the patio of this cultural centre and we were greeted with a glass of iced-gin tonic with basil leaves, and we sat there under the open skies, sipping the drink and watching the show. The patio, which is in the centre of the building, is surrounded by wooden windows of all the exhibit rooms, and it was from one of those windows, that we heard the musical voice of a singer, we looked up and saw him move from one window to another with a candle in his hand, his song resonating the patio as he walked down the steps behind the patio and he finally emerged the patio to present the show. The mood was set. There were musicians playing guitar/piano and the two artists who kept us captivated with their songs, poems and animated stories. There was a good interaction between the live music and the song. After each performance, the actors and musicians kissed each other expressing their gratitude and there was loud applause. The audience clearly mesmerised, wanted as many story telling performances as they could get. One could see that each artist performed with great passion, showing stunning melodic creativity and an ever fertile imagination. Although I am not too fluent in my Spanish, I could still follow the story from their powerful expressions. Such was the show that has clung to my memory and I am still relishing the tunes…..