What Ails Poor Greece* Can Trail Us Too...........

Trojan Prince Hector in the Movie , Troy
Actor - Eric Bana**

Greece dear, is in pain I hear
History of whose, all have heard


Of great statesmen,  of brave warriors
Of  past glory, of Trojan Prince Hector


Though over time, we all in a race
Yet we failed, to keep up the pace


Sorrow of one, is the wound of all
If not, we all are sure to fall


Sad is the day, when kids do stray
Sadder it is, when it's parents way


Think of the peace and of the joy
When homes are filled with boys and toys


Think of the wretchedness 
When homes are in a mess


But for few, who shared their wealth
Many can sleep now, in their beds


Time is now, for us to awake 
Time not now, to hunt for cake


Time to give and time to share
Time to remember, that '12*** can tear


Make peace with all, on this earth
Nothing else, is of much worth


Greece we love you, really we do
Soon you will be, decked anew


This too will pass, we all have heard
I stop here now, with these few words




*     "Poverty forces Greek parents to give up children" by Helena Smith in 
       The Hindu - India's National Newspaper Since 1878
       Dated 30-12-2011
**   Pictorial source - imdb.com 
*** 2012


An after thought.............for you I've got
                           
                              Adieu, Adieu

Time flew, but memories grew

Moments spent, though soul repents

Heart still aches, and mind not wakes

Life a dream, got to wake up 'morrow....................

                                          

Thank You Dear Friends For Sharing My Pain.......

1. Saint Lucia you reminded me of
 Maria Dear

I thought now of no more  tears

For the passing away of Maria dear
How can I forget date 13 December!
But all effort lead to further tears

2. Lucy before the Judge

Saint Lucia* a country, a new entrant to my blog
I wanted to welcome  with a smile & sweet talk
But just when I thought to check its origin..........
What I unearthed, made me shed tears again

3. Granada the 4rth largest city of
 Nicaragua has Architecture that 
dates back to the 16th century

Now tears aside I welcome my friends.........

Nicaragua, Venezuela and Bolivia dears
American tag you all proudly wear
Managua, Caracas or be it La Paz**
Please do rest whenever through here you pass


I welcome you, to this humble site
Where tears and laughter are your right

4.  Dusk falls on the streets of Vilnius,
Capital of Lithuania
 and the city's Athens-inspired Cathedral. 

Lithuania, Nigeria, I welcome you too
Please take a seat, I pray you do
Though a European & other an African
Care not we for all God's own


I try my best to be at my best
With  a warm smile and arms outstretched 
But wonder of wonders 
I speak of pain that lead to tears 

Now tears aside I welcome my friends.........

Jordan, Azerbaijan although small
Millions mourn at the Wailing Wall
Gone through a lot both have been
Wars and plague both must have seen

5.  Bibi Heybat Mosque, Baku
Azerbaijan

I try my best to give my best
But 'morrow she*** will be laid to rest
Thoughts of pain racks my brain
Sorrow speaks as tears do reign


Now tears aside I welcome my friends.........


Iraq will surely forgive me I know 
Who lost kith n kin and filled with woe
Congo too has had its share 
Of gunshots and of wear and tear

6. Jame’ Asr Hassanal Bolkiah Mosque,
Kampong Kiarong, Brunei

Mauritius and Brunei maritime babes

Sing together as water babes
I welcome you both to my humble site 
Where tears and laughter both are right

7. Map of the territory of Philip II of Macedon
Father of Alexander the Great

Macedonia**** always will be in our hearts
Though it be of one to other country's part
Over the years, for politic's day
But history will always have its say


From breezy north to sunny south 
East and west who are revered both
I thank my friends for coming my way 
For deep in sorrow I am today




Notes:-

**    Capitals of Nicaragua, Venezuela and Bolivia respectively

***  My Darling Aunt Nimini passed away on 20th December, 2011.
        Only on 10th December 2011 I had thanked Lord for the long life of my aunt ( You can check out " 
        Holiday Time " posted on 10th December, 2011 )       
        Patha nahi mary nazar tho nahi laghi. ( Dear God how will I interpret this ..............) 
       

****Republic of Macedonia became independent from Yugoslavia in the year 1991. It is also called     as FYROM an abbreviation for Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.  (wikipedia)

*Saint Lucia  is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. One of the Windward Islands, it was named after Saint Lucy of Syracuse, Sicily by the French, the first European colonizers. The Windward Islands are called such because they were more windward to sailing ships arriving in the New World than the Leeward Islands, given that the prevailing trade winds in the West Indies blow east to west. (wikipedia)

Saint Lucy (283–304), also known as Saint Lucia or Santa Lucia, was a wealthy young Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint by Roman Catholic Church, Anglican, Lutheran, and Orthodox Christians. Her feast day in the West is 13 December. (wikipedia)

8. Windward Islands

9. Leeward Islands

Pictorial sources:-                                                                                                          

1. thecommonwealth.org 
2. wikipedia

3. eiu.edu    

4. travel.nationalgeographic.com 
5. starturist.hr
6. britannica.com 

7, 8and 9 wikipedia

Part 2 - Countdown Begun.......13-12-11*

( If interested you can also check out Part 1 of this post  given on  13 - 11 - 11,

and then read this one )

galacticroundtable.com

This post is a bit scary, but I do have to share
We all have to go, where warriors too not dare

It is so easy to do what one is being told
What lovely it is, to wear silk and gold

Think of a child, a babe yet not five
Her talks, her jokes, her mother's pride

Falls prey to a monster, what else to call cancer
For 2 years she carried with continuous blabber

To doctors and nurses, priests and sisters,
Neighbours and friends, all listened to her chatter

She braved it all, with an undaunted spirit
Sat through it** all,  though each did hit

Her cells, her tissues, her muscles, her bones
With best of the medicines, could she be toned

I asked her mother, what message she gave
Her life was her message, poor mother did say

What is the reason for pain, me thought
Last Message is what, I wondered a lot

Then it struck like the monsoon lightning
Countdown is here and soon all will take wing

Time for us, to all go on our knees
And prepare ourselves, so life after be eased

Thank You Maria, Thank You My Dear
For showing the way for all one and dear

Adieu! Adieu! May Gates of Heaven Open Wide
And through it our Dear Maria, will boldly stride

                          Maria, Maria, my darling niece
                          May you always, Rest In Peace

( For my very dear friends from school and colleges
 who offered their sympathies and their prayers )

Thx dear friends, she was such a dear.
And the crowd that gathered were all in tears

During the end she asked only for prayers,
Gave up all medicines and pain she did bear

__________________________________________________

*   Date of entry into Heavenly Abode
** Radiotherapy, chemotherapy, surgeries and the rest

Holiday Time

1. Journey Begun Down Memory Lane

Our uncle came to pick us up
From grandpa's house at sun-up
All in glee we dressed so fast
What could be better for a start

For holidays at our aunts house
There early morning we are roused
Follow our cousins to the pool
Where they dive and hunt for tool

Back we come from morning stroll
To have a bath and breakfast too
Lovingly made by our aunt so dear
Yet not a tiring face she ever did wear

For cooking for a hungry lot
Bent deep in cauldrons all so hot
Then to serve us from the pots
Spirit of service, all she got

Innumerable moments trapped in my heart
Although we do have to part
Now to go back memory lane
Not so easy and a lot of pain

 ( All this happened in late 60's n 70's, then around 2000
 that same aunt fell seriously ill and I again went to meet her,
 but my heart with so much of pain wrote the following.... )

                 Awaiting Immortality

The embers die yet the fire glows
Body weak yet the sailor rows
The plaster crumbles yet the curtains drawn

Death is near yet hope not gone
Pain does increase yet smile deepens
Heart does weep, yet teeth do show

How long now Lord, can I keep on the show
Take my body as spirit yearns to go

(At that time 3 valves of her heart were completely blocked and the 4rth 80%.
The doctors said that surgery is not advisable. When I met her 
 then she was all smiles and did not show that she was in pain.
But we knew that she will not live long and I was extremely upset
and wrote the following verse.............)


                    Aunt Very Sick

Body carries on in the house of rent
Farewells and goodbyes, and waiting to be sent
Soon with cries of sorrow the air will now be rent


But just see the beauty of Life.
She still lives on......................and it is 10-12-11
                            
                                                   Praise be to The Lord Almighty

2.  Chavakkad Beach Near Aunt's House.
Click on this pic to see the earth's curvature.

Pictorial Sources:-

1. and 2.   from mary's archive

Gratitude To The Lord and A Mother's* Wish ( Come, see an Indian Bride )

                   
             Gratitude To The Lord


With a senior like Masood and a junior like Madan
What else can I ask for and Jamia is like Heaven

More than two decades I have spent in its loving fold
God, Thank You so much for your magnificent hold

The love that you had showered me with, at every corner
For a person like me who is basically a loner

.................................more to follow

                                      _______________________________________________

A Mother's* Wish

1. An Indian Bride

Pretty face and lips so red
Velvet skin and a prince to wed
Slender hands and feet so trim            
A perfect figure not a whim

High tide in the heart
Indian bride about to part
From childlike innocence
To heightened senses


Farewell child, farewell to thee
Please never come back to me
Tis from there you must leave
For eternal life back to eve

2. A well groomed groom or simply a groom?

Turn back not, my  child
Moving forward out out into the wild
The world full of sin and din
No peace one has from within

Weary steps, broken legs
Shattered dreams on a deck
Of a ship in waters so spate
Even then my child, reach that gate

* A typical Indian mother

1. punjabigraphics.com
2. flickr.com

Back to Nature ( Bhatta Fall, Mussoorie )

Bhatta beckons one and all
To see its enchanting waterfall
Short mountain path leads us down
Or the winding road takes quite a round

Eating berries along the way
Picking flowers in the month of May
A thorny bush in the path
Move across or be caught

Further down, deafening sounds
Make us cautious of other hounds
For all is peaceful with not a soul
Bhatta Fall for us alone

Walk had made us pant for breath
Dive in water for our health
Although hot, but water cold
Make me come out for a hold

Warmed by sun and back in water
Made me long for children's laughter
Life of old age has to pass
In this world so very vast

With hubby dear along my side
Fun filled will be the ride of life
For heaven is here when all is bliss
My children then, I will not miss

Back to nature I want to go
Leave this city with all its woe
Dreamt of future as said above
Please make it true, heart says, as I bow

________________________________________
Notes:-
1)  The background image is that of Mussoorie from mary's archive
and yonder is the Bhatta Fall.
2)  Bhatta is a small village around 6km before reaching Mussoorie.
It boasts of a tourist place-namely the Bhatta Fall, which is obviously
more famous now, but not then when the poem was written.
3)  This poem was written somewhere around the year 2000 when
the kids were all less than 13. And now the youngest one is 13+.
                       Thanks be to God for Everything

Part 1 - Hounded by Cancer, Blinded with Pain*...............Yet, Your Will be Done on Earth we Pray

Let us Pray **
 I need help Lord, and in You alone I seek my refuge. 
I ask You for help in times of trouble, small or huge 

A grieving heart
A heart wrenching thought
A painful sight
A mournful voice

A babe in pain
All effort in vain
A helpless father
Well wisher's gathered

With sorrow, mother's heart laden
Destiny written with what a pen
No more dancing, n singing no more
No further chatting, n laughing no more

Pain is what now Maria has
Though she longs to be a lass
We ask for mercy from the Lord
Do take away the sorrow, God

Please make the child healthy again
Let the parents now smile again
And laughter fill the home of love
Golden girl,  a harmless dove

Your will be done on earth we pray.............
Yet still we plead for sunny days
May life live and death be stalled
I sincerely pray, do listen to my call


                                                         On the eve of Children's Day*** 
                                                         We ask you Lord to show us the way                                             

With Kids Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru****

Now on our knees and head held high
We cry to you Lord that let not it be a bye

But still now with bowed heads
We fear for what lays just ahead
We know You are our only help
 And so we pray together again

                   
                      "Your Kingdom come 
                        Your will be done 
                        On earth as it is in heaven"

                                                                   From the Lord's Prayer

Note:- If you want to know more about Maria, check out Part 2 of this post dated
           exactly one month after...........That is  13 - 12 - 11 

*       My darling niece Maria struggling with cancer
**     telling-secrets.blogspot.com (pictorial source)
***   Children's Day is celebrated on 14th November in the loving memory of 
         Our own Dear Chacha Nehru (Chacha in Hindi means Uncle) and Nehru is 
         of course the famous Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru the first Prime Minister of
         Independent India who had immense love for children from all over the world.
**** dipity.com (pictorial source)

                                         Years will pass n changes a plenty....

                                         Yet we will love our dear friends.......

                                         No matter the wrinkles ...........

                                         And no matter the stumbling gait.....

Aces and Races, People's of Places, Camps been Set Up, Loosen Your Laces

1. Aces and Races,  People's of Places

Many an ace have come to see

What a race, they clap in glee!

Here we find all together in arms

Read together for see no harm

An Asian, three Africans n Americans eight 

Three Europeans too, have entered the Gate 

Guyana, Libya, Namibia bold

Costa Rica, Jamaica with sunshine gold

2. Listen to Harry Belafonte
 Singing
"Down the way, where the nights are gay......."

Alpine baby, Austria dear

Carpathian kid, Slovakia near

Thanks to each, each one of you

Here's a tilak*  for each of you

3. Puerto Rico

In Spanish, Rich port, is Puerto Rico,

If not for Spaniards many lands not known 

I Salute to Indians of Trinidad Tobago

To all these places we surely must go

4. Bedouin Caravan Riding Through
 The Sahara Desert,
Near Merzouga, Morocco

Bedouins of Morocco, what a race

Belly dancers, we love to gaze

Yonder Portugal, whose men did sail

World over wide, they surely trailed 

5.  Cyprus Countryside  -  A Picture of
Environmental Preservation

Cyprus isle, Mediterranean babe

Caribbean hugs as Honduras shrugs

Although Paraguay not a coastal home

Yet it surely has a way of its own

I thank you all from north and south

For stopping a while at Mary's blog

Please do rest and read a while

For life will stretch from a mile to miles.............

                                    ___________________________________

6.  Applying tilak* (red vermillion mark)
On the forehead of Guests  

Pictorial Sources:-

1. quotesbank.org     

2 .whoisgsx.com 

                "Down the way where the nights are gay, 
                 And the sun shines daily from the mountain tops,                               
                 I took a trip on a sailing ship,   
                 And when I reached Jamaica I made a stop". 
                                    ( Dear Friends, please do not forget the golden days gone by........)

3. destination360.com   
4. allposters.com 
5. cyprusq.com
6. inimitableindia.blogspot.com