Became one with the Force

In the course of my life I have come across dogs of all shapes and sizes, some on the streets, as a pet at friend's/relative's and we used to have two at home. However, Appu was different; yes, the looks of a dog, and the behaviour of a human.

I am not exaggerating; from the first day that I met him at Vivekananda Kendra in Kodungallur, there was some invisible bonding and silent communication between us. It is as though he understood every word I said to him. Initially, I thought it was my own imagination playing tricks; however, there were many incidents that had me convinced that Appu is an elevated soul in the form of a dog. Like I said, he somehow would understand whatever was told to him, and there were times when he would look at me, and there was so much unsaid in those brown eyes of his. 
My younger daughter quickly became very close to Appu, and I observed the same silent communication happening between them; for my daughter, the primary reason to visit Kendra was to meet Appu and get him his favourite cupcakes! On days when I would be at Kendra and when I call back home, the first question I get from my younger daughter is 'how is Appu?' And like I said before, Appu would patiently listen to my daughter and obey all her instructions.

On another occasion, my elder daughter had sustained an injury while playing during a camp, and had got a small cut on her forehead, which was bleeding. One of the inmates made her lie down on a couch and applied some medicine to stop the bleeding. During this time I observed Appu moving around here and there near the couch and repeatedly looking at our faces as if enquiring, 'Is everything ok?' Somehow he was not satisfied with the responses he got, so he raised his forelegs onto the edge of the couch so that he could see my daughter. I was literally taken aback by this sudden development; my daughter also noticed. She patted him and told him I am ok and fine. That was the answer he was looking for; he walked away from the couch to the corner of the room and lay down to grab a quick nap.

This evening Appu left all of us physically to become one with the force that surrounds each one of us. Like Obi-Wan Kenobi said in Star Wars "the force is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together.” “Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not."
Share:

The Joy in making others Joyful

Smile At a recent event the chief guest proclaimed that most of the caricature artists in India are from Kerala Smile, he also said that folks from this small state in the southernmost part of the Indian sub continent had the special ability to “put a smile on others face”, one way or the other. Now that got me thinking….. In today’s world where most are “Very” busy doing nothing (of value), people have forgotten to smile. I guess there was a time when one would smile at the self standing in front of the mirror, apart from smiling at others. In our mad rush to make the most(fame, money and what not) and be happy we often end up not smiling, as our urge to make more has no limit. This event was an exhibition of caricatures by Shri Balakrishnan Kavungal Anat.  I love caricatures, everyone does, however going to an exhibition of caricatures is another experience, and to top it if one comes to meet with other renowned artistes, it is certainly the icing on the cake. Balakrishnan Ji is a Facebook friend. Came across his post in 2016 when the IAF plane went missing, somehow the post touched somewhere deep inside, so I kind of browsed through his profile and found his passion for caricature and photography! So no way could missing meeting him in person! Murphy’s law stepped in “There is no such thing as a perfect plan” , the dates clashed with my personal travel plans. and in come Paulo Coelho “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it” Smile  I reach back in time to attend the exhibition. Adding couple of snaps. IMG_5105IMG_5109IMG_5113IMG_5101IMG_5110IMG_5117IMG_5116IMG_5123IMG_5119IMG_5126IMG_5120IMG_5118IMG_5104IMG_5114 There are many caricature artistes from India. R K Laxman a name I remember from my childhood. Then there is Mario, Abu Abraham, Sudhir Dar  and the list goes on… and surprisingly many from Kerala – - Kutty(Puthukkody Kottuthody Sankaran Kutty Nair), Shankar(Kesava Shankara Pillai) “the father of political cartooning in India”, O. V. Vijayan. A brief profile on the artist : Shri. Balakrishnan K Anat is a self taught Artist, Cartoonist and Photographer, presently working with the Airports Authority of India as Asst. General Manager (Air Traffic Control), Chennai International Airport. A native of Thrissur, Kerala, he is a graduate in Physics, a PG in Psychology who freelances for several National and Regional Dailies. Wishing Shri Balakrishnan the very Best…. 

 

 

Share: