Love the #DovePlay

What is the biggest strength for a girl? I know few would say, her smile, or confidence..so on and so forth. What if I'd say her beautiful tresses which she can flaunt? That's where my strength lies. Surprisingly it is my weakness as well. I want to flaunt my hair, play with them, but I am afraid. Caring about my precious locks and the thought of damaging them, makes me go weak in my legs.

I inherited wavy and thick hair from my Bengali parents. I had been possessive about my hair since childhood and was encouraged by my mom to lengthen them. Looking at other girl of my school, I wanted to style my hair. Since my mom did not let me shorten my hair, I would often end up experimenting with my wavy locks at some friend's place. At times I would cut fringes which was popularly known as "Sadhna Cut" or would play with razor cut. However, I could not leave my hair open because my hair texture wasn't smooth and straight. It was my biggest disappointment. For any girl who wants to leave her hair open, needs good shiny and strong hair. Isn't it? And that did not happen for two reasons- The hereditary waves in my hair and environmental stressors like pollution, weather etc.

I would love to play with my hair like I did in childhood. Straight at times, a french pony at times, some day fringes and one day color them! However, I could not grow my locks more than shoulder length because of the weak structure. On my hairdresser's advise I wanted to get my hair cut in layers. Haircut boosts you mentally, but when you can't flaunt them,  you find it totally pointless!

Often I would braid my hair or tie them in a bun, especially during an overnight stay at friend's place, because its embarrassing to see your strands of hair on bed, bathroom, floor, and everywhere. Come on, at girls night out, you are supposed to let your hair down and not tied in a bun! But who really understands the pain of having rough, dry hair?

The idea of pressing my hair and then coloring them struck me once. I got my hair pressed but ended up with split ends and losing more hair than the remaining ones on my head. That hurts! Looking at the rough strands and breakage, I grew paranoid of coloring my hair hence. What if they break post applying those dyes and chemicals? The fear of losing more hair held me back from playing with colors on my hair. sob sob. So, be it an attractive burgundy or amber brown, they scare me more and attract me less.

The only accessory for my hair is a clutch-er, that holds my locks together.

While wet look was an "in" thing some time back, I gave it a try. Wet look makes you look sexy and fresh. I applied gel to acquire that look. My hair turned brittle and could not resist breakage. I crave for that wet look, even today. But I am paranoid of hair sprays and gels that might damage my hair of what's left now.

My hair breakage had become so prominent that I had to consult a doctor to confirm if my body lacks iron! With so many shampoos and conditioners available in the market, irrespective their claim of being gentle and chemical free, the thought of dry,damaged hair and losing them soon, stops me from using them.

This blog post is a part of the Indiblogger #DovePlay contest http://www.indiblogger.in/topic.php?topic=105

The video seems to answer that how girls want to play with their hair. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rebjJcnactk 

Together, a beautiful "We"

On the highs and lows together

I knew you when our friendship was so raw,

we shared the same skipping rope,

hung on to the same sea-saw.

The memories still brew fresh in my mind,

when we left others behind,

in our notorious pranks on our neighbors

and we loved our life's spicy juicy flavors!

Partners in crime scolded together

You stole money from your dad's wallet and bought ice creams for both of us,

which your parents came to know and created a lot of fuss,

I shared the scolding with you as we were partners in crime,

our bonding grew stronger which was never to sublime.

"Sisters"? our new teacher asked us on the first day to school,

"Yes" you replied with a smile on your face,

and since then in our lovely bonding,

ego had no space.

My mum made sure to buy anything double,

one for you, and  another for me,

because you and I together made a beautiful WE.

I smile when I look at the doll that you gave me on my 8th birthday,

I remember how I had treasured it,

never gave it to anybody to play.

secrets well guarded

Those little chits that we passed in our classroom,

fills me with nostalgia now, as I remember

how for our poor classwork we were reprimanded,

and how those secrets remained between us so well guarded.

Our late night conversation and gossip sessions,

together our homework and swimming lessons,

just brought out our best in us,

I had many friends, but none like you,

who made my life bright and beautiful too.

I cried when a kid pushed me on the playground,

You always lent me a shoulder

you pushed her on my behalf and turned the world around,

you lent me your shoulder when I cried,

and stayed there with me till my tears dried.

I grew dependent on you for almost everything,

including my mood swings and solution to my problems,

you patiently counselled me to be a calm person,

and so well handled all my tantrums.

No, I was not a spoiled child at all,

it was just that while growing up there was not a single day I did not see you,

it was you who understood my condition whatever I went through.

The thought of parting with you was a nightmare,

but someday that would happen, you were aware.

My heart skipped a beat, to know you will be far from me,

but you consoled me each second with your words

saying "Distance does not matter, together we still make a beautiful we"

Friends forever

We were inseparable since childhood,

till the day you left to a different city for higher studies,

we were torn physically apart,

yet the best buddies.

Poem dedicated to my childhood and best friend Namita, who is in Australia now, leading a happy married life. I love you Namita and feel blessed to have you as my best friend. Could not write more lines on you as my eyes just brimmed up,

Indibloggers Dove contest http://www.dove.in/en/Products/Bar-Body-Wash/default.aspx

Image coutesy:Google

The forgotten real moments

If I dive deep into time for the “real” experiences I have had, there are countless of them from my childhood which are quite fresh and crystal clear in my mind. And it was not only my parents but my school as well, to contribute to the noble cause.

Unlike the modern times where kids are glued to computers & video games, we were forced to go outdoors. Our exposure to computer/TV/indoor games was limited to a maximum time of an hour. At school, P.T classes were given more weight-age than computer. I still remember my summer vacations projects (popularly known as holiday homework) wherein the major tasks were to collect seasonal twigs or leaves and stick the dried ones on a scrap book. I am not surprised to see my young cousins surfing the images on internet and finish the holiday homework instantly.  However, they would never get the feel of visiting natural places and seeing the seasonal/rare twigs for real. They would probably never know how is it to climb trees or to run in open farms.  Surely, they are missing the real experience which will be rare times ahead.

I hail from the beautiful town of Dehradun where natural beauty and surroundings were abundant. My family never had to book holiday packages for exotic locations for picnics. I have been brought up amidst real things; to name a few are the Sulphur Water spring of Sahastradhara, the snow clad hills of Mussorie, the green Eucalyptus belt of Dehradun, heavy rainfall of Autumns and the list goes on. Water parks were unheard of, so were play houses for kids. I have enjoyed the real moments which today’s generation kids are not far from.

Talking about “real” things, food cannot be left behind. Tinned/packed foods were a strict No- No! The practice of squeezing out Sweet Lime juice manually from the small portable juicer was a common sight during summer afternoons. This was when we kids refused to chew the lime pieces.

My siblings and I grew up in the lap of nature surrounded by “real” luxuries. Be it the morning walks in parks or seeing the sunrise/sunset every day, we have had our best share during childhood. Changing life styles and modern technology brings everything close to you in a click of a mouse. But how would a child of today’s generation know what does a vegetable or fruit market look like? Accompanying grandparents to the market and seeing them pick out the best fruits would seem strange to a kid today who has either has never been any where else but air conditioned supermarkets or has ordered groceries over the phone!

Vegetable market visit with kids

Even writing letters have lost their charm in the world of emails/sms. Sending festive greeting cards and letters to distant relatives were the most exciting part of “real” growing up experience. Our school syllabus covered letter writing those days. I wonder whether they have switched to “Sms/ Mail writing” now? From bed time stories of grandma to painting sceneries on canvas while looking at them, the real moments are inseparable from my memories. Sadly, technology and virtual world has overshadowed those experiences these days.

Written for Indibogger Kissan Real Moments.

Second image source- www.outlookindia.com