Environment Day!

Its World Environment day! Its a happy-sad feeling: happy because never before in the history of the world have so many people come forward and tried to save the planet. Sad, that we could bring the planet to a situation where it needs to be rescued.

Check out the words of the NDTV Green Anthem...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etf7Uj7lgww

A Summer to Remember

Walking beneath a canopy of magnificent magenta bougainvillea, a child-like excitement in our eyes. The flowers and leaves, once ruffled by the breeze, rearranging themselves carelessly, so oblivious of their beauty.

Watching a frisky elephant calf shower itself with mud and hay and then run aimlessly around its mother.

Counting the hairpin curves as we drove up the hill to Ooty, my son gaping at the Blue mountains and suddenly realizing why they were called the "Nilgiris"!

Taking a train ride from Ooty to Coonoor, sticking our necks outside the window; my daughter shrieking with delight as the cool crisp air hit her face.

Bright blue flowers that stood upright and almost seemed to stare back at us.

The monkey that crossed our path, looked askance at us and strangely looked so familiar!

Vibrant red Gulmohur trees in full bloom that almost took our breath away.

Gorgeously laid out buffets that tempted us time and again.

My strict parents who suddenly changed hats and became the most obedient grandparents.

A reunion with friends after a decade, laughter and girlish chatter as if nothing had changed.

Sleeping in "my" room again and the silent relief that I still knew which exact switch turned the reading light on.

This sure has been a Summer to remember......

The Bull at Oachira

A family wedding brought me and the kids to the little town of Oachira in Kerala. While the bride dazzled down the aisle and went in for the third change of sari, I was whisked away by some aunts to the “Parabrahma” temple nearby.

It’s the first time I have ever been asked to worship a tree. No idols, no stone temple structure…just a huge tree with branches that look much like the horns of a Bull. The priest explains that the Bull is worshipped here and I see many well fed decorated ones walk around majestically as people bow to them and touch their forehead.

Reminded me of my school history lessons where we had to trace the progress of early man. “Early man prayed to forces of nature.” I had written. “He prayed to the trees and thunder and rain because he didn’t understand them.” said my teacher.

How wrong she was! He prayed to them because he understood them…so well. There is nothing more beautiful than a resplendent, verdant tree over 100 years old, its leaves whispering a secret you cannot understand. There is nothing more beautiful than old drums playing in the distance as a Bull walks by with his eyes fixed on you but with no trace of menace. A man nearby sits on one side of a giant weighing scale and prays with eyes closed as dozens of bananas are placed on the other side until the balance lifts in the air and steadies itself. Chants go up in the air as his promise to the God has been fulfilled.

The atmosphere is almost surreal. It is so far removed from the reality that I live in yet I cannot help but marvel at the simplicity of it all. I look ridiculously out of place in my sequined georgette sari, nevertheless I kneel down and pray. I prayed that the energy and beauty of this place would never tarnish, and I prayed that more people would find God in a tree.

EARTH HOUR 2009

Its Earth Hour this Saturday, 28th of March 2009.

One hour where we simply turn off our lights to VOTE EARTH, a simple way of showing we dont stand for Climate change, that we are concerned and will do our bit.

I am planing to gather my friends and their families: grandparents, parents, children - Even the family dog! The only thing we need to do before we get together is turn off the power in our houses, completely.. .just for an hour: 8.30 to 9.30 pm. We are bringing our own candles, torches, lanterns, guitars to make the Earth Hour party memorable.

I know, I know....turning the power off for an hour wont solve the crisis. Its only symbolic. But so is Independence day and Diwali...and every other thing we celebrate! And besides it will be a fun thing to do, singing, playing games in the dark! Go ahead and organise your own Earth Hour party...its the most fun way of showing the planet you care!

Watch the Earth Hour Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CRs-7lRlPo
Have Fun!

Everything's Amazing, Nobody's Happy!!

Nothing like humour to bring the message home. Do watch this video on YouTube...great laugh and a good way to start the day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoGYx35ypus

God Only Knows....

Of all the phrases and attitudes that have been attributed to us Indians, be it the ‘chalta hai’, ‘Jugad kar le’ or “Swalpa adjust maadi”, the one I like best is “God only knows…”

Did you do your exams well?
God only knows….
Will your son get married this year?
God only knows....
So, you’re moving out of Pune this April?
God only knows...
Will the electricity come back on by evening?
God only knows...
Will your daughter get admission into this school?
God only knows...

Point to be noted that in all the above circumstances God has little or no influence in the matter.

But it’s comforting to think that someone up there is concerned about our trials however insignificant and KNOWS what is going to happen. If not me, at least someone knows the events that will unfold…it’s the uncertainty that is killing us. The ‘not knowing’ what’s going to happen.

Scientists say the world is in peril today. They say they KNOW that the ocean levels have risen, that animals are going extinct, and that the earth is getting warmer. It’s not Myth anymore. They KNOW…which means you and I now have to live in the light of this knowledge.

It’s tough to live with such truth, you say. It’s not easy, I agree. But it doesn’t have to be all grim.

In my experience, all the things that we have cherished and enjoyed we have always preserved. Whether its our first born’s baby photos, that first jersey we wore on our holiday abroad, photographs of grandmas home, our sons wedding invite, our childs first scribble on paper, grandpas last letter to us, the first video of our daughter walking, our first home, ........the list is endless.

So that’s the trick. In all this doomsday speak, don’t forget to enjoy the earth!! Let life be a celebration! Enjoy the fruit you eat and give thanks for it. Be grateful for the water, the rain, the heat and the breeze. Look at the sky every evening and marvel at the sunset. Walk in your lawn and say thank you to the grass. Say hello to the pigeons that visit your window sill. Laugh at that street dog that barks at every vehicle that drives into your road, as if he were protecting his own! In Summer, don’t curse the heat and wait for winter. In winter, don’t say you ache for sunshine.

It works like magic and I say this with experience. As you acknowledge these tiny miracles in your life, habits and attitudes automatically change. Human beings rarely hurt that which they love.

So is it true, is the earth really going to end?
God knows that you know the answer to this one.....

Questions

Calvin: I wonder if we can refuse to inherit the world.
Hobbes: I think if you are born, it’s too late.

For the past few years, I did not bother about government decisions on second language in schools, entrance tests for 3 year olds, or board exam regulations. Why? Because it didn’t matter. I was done with school and college and all this was not part of my reality.

Today I have vehement views on Marathi as a third language and am incensed that 2 year olds have to recite names of vegetables to gain admission into a crowded class of 60. Why? Because my kids are in the race now.

When did all this happen, I ask? Why didn’t somebody do something??
Answer: because Somebody did not care too. Somebody’s children had passed out of school long ago.

It is a harsh reality we all need to accept. The only legacy we will leave behind our children is our short sighted vision.

Unless the heap of garbage lies outside my window, unless the broken pipeline floods my street and the power cuts are in my neighbourhood, unless the footpaths are unpaved outside my building, unless the job cuts are in my industry or the terrorists kill my kin, only if the women molested are city dwellers like me, unless the water dries up in my well: I will not be moved into action.

What did our children do deserve us, I sometimes wonder? Is this all we have come to, after all those management degrees and seminars we have so proudly hosted and attended. Will our children only remember us for the movies and popcorn and restaurants that we took them to? Will they measure the success of our parenting in the number of toys, or computer games we bought them? Or birthday parties we hosted for them? Is being a ‘cool’ parent so divorced from being a responsible one?

Or is it that we don’t know what to do? Are we just clueless this time and don’t now how to admit it? Especially to our kids? Or is it pure laziness to take the first step.

I ask questions only in the hope that in the midst of all this, answers might emerge. I want to think well of our lot. I really do. But in all honesty, its getting difficult, wouldn’t you agree?

How else can we explain our silent joy at a million dollars being spent on acquiring simple rimmed glasses at an auction last night in New York, when not one of us has the audacity to bid for the vision the eyes behind those glasses had the ability to see.

Our Green Mantra Campaign

Green mantra is underway and has been greeted with an amazing response! A big thank you to all my creative and hard working students who gave in their best. Out T shirts, bags, calendars, bookmarks and jewelry sparked much interest and at the end of the day all the hard work was worth it.
Making the environment trendy and putting it on sale was the last thing on our agenda. But our idealism soon vanished once we realized that unless we create a BUZZ, nothing ever gets noticed. Let alone a humble grocery bag!!
I thank all my friends who came in for the event and greatly value their words of appreciation. We now embark on our “plastic-bag free” neighbourhood programme. Please feel free to write in with your ideas/suggestions and whether you would like to start a similar campaign for your neighborhood.
I am posting pictures of our t shirts, bags and other merchandise. If any of it interests you, please write in to gulmohardays@gmail.com

Waiting...

February is a wonderful month. That wonderful space between winter and spring when dawns are still subtle and the world seems half awake. I can feel the sense of expectation in the air. Any moment now she would awaken, open her half sleepy eyes and suddenly the ground around me would bloom into a myriad colours. Never before would a single tree sport these many shades of green. Like me, the birds will be joyous and sing their happiness.

I love these mornings. When you can look up at the half lit sky and breathe deeply seeing the sun emerge and a dull orange moon disappear in the distance. I marvel at the birds that flit past quickly yet silently, so mindful of our sleep. Today I will finally wrap up the quilts and store them away with enough naphthalene to last till December

This month makes me nostalgic. I remember sitting in the balcony of my Delhi home staring at the once barren trees suddenly come alive and shimmer in a lovely green. I would watch the fresh velvety leaves for hours. To me, this was a sign that the summer holidays were not far away. Even today, when I feel this sense of lightness in the air, when the morning rays gently part the curtains and I wake up to the pleasant whirring of the ceiling fan that did its job so dutifully through the night, I so badly want to be 10 yr old again. For a brief second, I feel like packing and setting off to hot and sultry Chennai where I spent 2 months of glorious summer vacations every year of my childhood.

Mud pies and hop skotch, the smell of curry leaves and mustard being poured on raw green mangoes as jars of pickles got made, hiding behind coconut and chiku trees, staring at chameleons that would sit at the window sill and change colour, helping the maid wash clothes near the well. I now realise how close to nature we were then.

Today I stand in my apartment window, perched high above the birds and trees on the 9th floor. I peer down at trees that look tiny and envy that solitary morning walker. I am thankful for the one pigeon that chooses to sit in my balcony if only for a fleeting second. I feel the same happiness, the sense of heady excitement and freedom - the kind you feel on the last day of your final school exam. I don’t have summer holidays anymore, no end-of-exams to look forward to, no more grandma’s home to go to and yet…

Need we say more?

If anyone had doubts on the effects of Global Warming, I think this picture says it all. Find more pics on www.treehugger.com

Green Mantra

I have just come back after a refreshing trip to Matheran. Cannot ask for a “greener” start to the year than staying in a little town that allows no vehicles at all, not even a bicycle! That monkey in the picture, sat on the roof of our hotel for a good hour studying us closely with an expression that almost seemed to say "Humph! Humans!" and then as if to drown his sorrows he downed half a bottle of Pepsi left behind by a careless guest!!

Don't even get me started on plastic waste thrown around by tourists! I don't want to start the year complaining!

“When you pray, Move your feet” says the old African proverb, and time for action it is!

First up, please put on your creative hats and give me catchy green slogans that can go on T-shirts and Bags. (Thank you all for so wonderfully sharing your Green and Not-green lists, its so inspiring to know the little efforts all of us are making)

My personal goal is to ensure that my neighborhood is plastic bag free. I intend to work closely with local associations, shopkeepers and residents to ensure the message gets across. Please do give me advice/ideas on how I could proceed and if any measures taken in your locality have succeeded. In fact it would be great if we each adopt this task for our own neighborhood and compare notes on progress.

Legislation obviously does not work. Education hopefully will. Why not reward shopkeepers who do not keep plastic bags at the store? Why not celebrate stores that give out only cloth bags, even if customers have to pay a little extra for it? To start with, I intend to get every shop in my neighborhood to at least put up a poster showing the ill effects of plastic bags. (All my friends in the creative and design fields: HELP!!)

Right now, I am doing something I never thought I would do: designing grocery bags (with go green slogans) that are useful and smart to carry around! Wish me luck!!

New Year Wishes!

To see a World in a Grain of Sand,
And Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
-William Blake

May the simple pleasures of life light up your New Year. A very happy 2009 to all of you.

A Spoonful of Sugar

I watched Madagascar over the weekend. The laugh-a-minute toon drama was thoroughly entertaining. As the African forests suddenly dry up, the animals are forced to fight for their share of water from a band of resilient New Yorkers. There is one particular scene that I thought was potent with meaning. “Have you found any water?” the hippo asks aloud. Her friend surfaces from the hole dug in the earth with a tired, “No! Just some more diamonds and gold.” Their glittering find is tossed into a corner because it’s worthless when compared to precious water.

A gentle reminder from the makers of the film that in all the fun, don’t forget that humans, wherever they go, even in the midst of an African forest, survive in the only way they know how: by storing up all the resources of the world for themselves with scant thought of its repercussions. And all the riches of the world cannot buy you what is natural and essential to survival. Couched in all that humour, the message still rings clear. Perhaps a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down?

We are coming to the end of the year and its time to for New Year resolutions. I normally laugh it off, but this time I will make promises and keep them. But even before I can decide what I will/will not do next year, I am going to be very honest and write down all the things I have done right (and not done so well) in my efforts to be environment friendly:

My Green List
1. I have stopped accepting plastic bags completely. My cloth bag follows me to every store.
2. I don’t use plastic wrap or zip pouches if I can help it. In fact I haven’t bought any from the store the past 8 months or so.
3. I don’t insist that my bathrooms/balcony/car be washed every day, unless it’s a real mess.
4. I use paper with care. My kids love to paint, and my huge glass windows are now their easel. They can paint all they like on the glass and I simply clean it with a damp cloth once they are done.
5. I re-used last year’s decorations to spruce up my Christmas tree. No new items bought this year, and I also found a store that sells eco-friendly decorations.
6. I will wrap all my Christmas gifts in newspaper. (One of my facebook friends is my inspiration for this!!)
7. No televisions, music systems or computers are left on stand-by mode during the day or night. My cell phones are never left to charge over night. And yes, electricity bills have come down!! Yippee!

My Not-So-Green List
1. I just don’t walk short distances. I know I should, but….never mind the excuses.
2. I don’t segregate garbage as well as I should. The lady who comes to collect doesn’t seem to make a fuss, so probably that’s why!! But its wrong, and I will…I promise.
3. I sometimes run the washing machine even when it’s not a full load. Part of routine! Bad habit.
4. I get arm twisted into picking really silly plastic toys from the market, just can’t seem to say no to the kids. The Barbie dolls are the most expensive pieces of plastic in the house!

Ok, the truth serum just wore off!

Would love it if you could come up with your green/not-so green list too. Do play along and write in with your ideas, even if they are just a few; perhaps you’ll inspire someone or I might just find all my new year resolutions right there in your list.

Take care everyone and Merry Christmas to you all!!

The Birthday Gift

Like all kids, my son plans his birthday a good 365 days in advance. I was still cleaning up the house after his last birthday party, when he decided what his next birthday gift would be.

He so desperately wants us to gift him a pup for his 10th birthday!! Suddenly the PS-2 we were arm twisted into gifting him for his 9th birthday seemed so desirable and age appropriate!! My head reeled as images of me vigorously brushing away doggy hair from my precious Fabindia cushions and cleaning doggy poo left in the middle of the kitchen flashed before my eyes.

I ignored the requests initially but then countered with the usual “A dog is a huge commitment” line! And to ensure he couldn't counter that, I gave him the “You have no value for money!” argument. “Pups are not something you just go and pick up; they cost a lot of money these days!” I thundered.

And just to drive the point home, last evening I asked my friend (who had bought a spaniel a month ago) in a rather loud voice how much she had paid for the pup. “A little over 9000. . .” she said and I repeated the amount with added emphasis and a raised eyebrow as I looked at my son.

Over dinner the same evening, I asked him whether he was shocked to hear how much the dog cost our friends. He replied rather calmly that he WAS shocked, he was shocked that a “living thing actually costs less than a PS2”. “I didn’t know a real live pup costs less than a computer game” he said.

I have never felt smaller than I did that evening at the dinner table. Here I was telling a ‘child’ the ‘cost’ of things and there he sat unwittingly teaching me that ‘value’ and ‘cost’ didn’t mean the same thing at all.

The "Common" Voice

A room bursting with excited chatter, placards and slogans, over 150 participants and 15 street plays all in a row. You can't ask for a more fun Saturday morning and I must admit that I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Hindi and English chants filled the air as each play attempted to explore and highlight the environmental challenges facing the world today.


The themes were endless. . .deforestation, polluted rivers, garbage disposal, smoking and air pollution, saving electricity, the plastic bag menace, individual apathy, lack of political will, war and terrorism.

The heartening fact was that each and every play acknowledged the powerful role the individual could play in changing the so called "system". The call was for ownership of tasks, of accepting ones shortcomings and then moving forward to a create a world where individuals participate in the process and don't simply wait for those in authority to come up with solutions!


Whether it was Lucifer tempting Man to destroy his planet, a tired Super hero who refused to take the responsibility of cleaning up the mess every time, the voice of conscience calling us to the truth, the jury pronouncing the world too preoccupied with "more important issues" to bother about something as vague as global warming, teenagers partying with no care for tomorrow, a planet crying out for help: each and every play raised important and pertinent questions.


Kudos to all the participants! Here's hoping the questions raised continue to resonate long after the excitement over staging the street play has subsided.

Perspective

Shah Rukh Khan took a fistful of earth from his village as he left for America, in the Hindi film Swades. Each time he looked at those grains of sand, his heart twisted in agony at the thought of the land and people he had come to love.

As we watched the Taj burn in Mumbai, our hearts felt heavy with sorrow and anger. We cheered lustily when the Indian tricolour was unfurled after the ordeal. The Taj had been reclaimed; it was “ours” again.

Inanimate rock and stone seem to evoke such strong emotions within us.

This planet that we live on, nothing but a mass of rock and liquid, has perhaps evoked the most poignant responses in our cinema and literature. Bhoomi Devi, Dharthi Maa, Mother Earth . . . we serenade her with a million names. She is personified as the all-knowing feminine principle; so nourishing, abundant, magical, quick to heal and always quick to forgive.

Perhaps it’s the first time in the history of mankind that this image is changing. The Mother now almost seems like an irate adolescent. At times happy and willing to please, at other times crying for attention and spewing spite. Severe famines, torrential rains, freezing winters, floods and tsunamis . . . she has used them all to tell us of her anger.

As Mumbai burned and we hung our heads in despair and shame, what we chose to see was only the Taj burning. It is easy to identify with a city, a people and share their sorrow.

Our planet is in peril today. Every day a part of it goes up in flames, some parts are plundered and looted, her children persecuted to the point of extinction, her face ravaged by greedy hands. And this time the perpetrators are not some “foreign hand”, but so called well-read folks like you and me.

Several trees have bled for that luxury terrace apartment that promises a slice of paradise in the middle of a city. People are dying of starvation as land marked for agriculture now sport huge Business complexes. The earth is riddled with wounds as bore wells look for that last drop of water. There are no more sparrows in the city of Bangalore where I spent my childhood. We managed to kill them all, slowly but surely.

Who will rush to the rescue? Where will the victorious flag be unfurled? Who will be arrested and interrogated? These are inconvenient questions, for the answers are embarrassing. Perhaps the plot that will be unraveled will be far more sinister, and as self-defeating as the ones hatched by these gullible 21 year olds who believed they were working for the betterment of their kin.

The air conditioners that are so essential to keep us cool and comfortable, the million lights that make a city dazzle at night, the vast opulent restaurants that guzzle water and food, fuel that is used by our third car that we could do well without, the “Tiger Project” we study purely for “academic” interest, the cloth bags we will use only if they are fashionable, the Diwali crackers we burst because that’s what we are “supposed” to do on that day . . . .

How gullible we all are! How easily we have believed the lies fed to us.

How tragically we have been taught to associate Prosperity with Wealth.

There is an African proverb that sums up the illusion of progress so beautifully:

“A bird that flies from the ground onto an anthill, does not know that it is still on the ground”

First Steps

Faith is good. Prayer a necessity. And nobody does the prayer-faith routine with as much fanfare and diligence as we Indians do. Our schools still begin with the grand assembly, where prayers and national anthems are interspersed with announcements and prefects checking for uncut finger nails. I light the lamp at home every evening and chant the only Sanskrit I know with eyes shut and complete fervour. It makes me feel good inside. And that is so important, isn't it? Feeling good from within?

When my 9 year old, slammed his environmental science book shut and refused to study for his test because nothing the book advocated was followed by anyone around him, I was shamed into silence. I didn't feel good from the inside for a long time after, even when I prayed. Today I am thankful for the discomfort. It sent me on a journey of introspection that has since impacted every decision I make as parent, teacher, friend, shopper, and now blogger!!

Today, I understand the frustration my son felt that evening. How could I help him make a poster on the " Say no to plastic bags" campaign when I had a refrigerator full of food neatly packed in Ziplock pouches and plastic wrap? Of what use is it to teach children in school about building embankments to conserve water? Teach them instead how much water they consume when they shower every morning. Teach them how long their plastic toy will take to decompose.

In the many workshops on this theme that I have held since, I have been amazed at how quick the kids have been to understand the magnitude of the crisis facing the earth today. How quickly and effortlessly they have changed habits since. They have coerced their parents into changing even as the adults grumbled and mumbled about the inconvenience.

This blog is for all my young friends whom I have met the last year, ages 3 to 19, who have so inspired me to write and share. I confess, I am a reluctant blogger. I am wary of writing on a platform this public. But I care far too much for the environment to let my inhibitions get the better of me.

This space is for simple folks like you and me, who want to BE the difference. This space will capture and applaud the smallest of endeavours to go green. Whether its a sapling you planted, a poem that your child wrote, a play that you are doing in college, an essay you want to share, a telling photograph that speaks of our apathy, an anecdote that will inspire, frustration at a lifestyle that is so conditioned, a habit that you changed, a teacher who has inspired you, a wish-list of things you hope to change for the better, a painting or poster that speaks volumes, small lessons you have learnt from your child: do go ahead and send it all in.

Even as we pray that the coming year will see less famine, hunger and flood, and show us Nature at her benevolent best, let us remember to galvanize prayer into action. "When you pray, Move your feet".