“Gar firdaus bar roo-e zameen ast, hameen ast-o, hameen ast-o, hameen ast.”

I have been living in Srinagar for almost a year now. I arrived in Srinagar last year in the thick of winters in mid December. When I stepped out of my place after a mandatory quarantine of 14 days, the first snowfall of the season had started. It wasn’t the first snowfall of my life. I’ve lived earlier in Sikkim where the temperature dips down to -20º C in winters, but I was much younger then and living off the land which is a better option to endure the travesties of the weather. Anyway, the snowfall went on for the next 10 days. I had to go to the office walking everyday in the blizzard of snow. I never imagined that something which looks so beautiful and fun can turn into a nightmare in the blink of an eye. The water froze in the pipelines, some pipelines even burst off. The fibre cables of the internet providers fell down due to the weight of the snow and there was an internet black out for a few days. So, my first winter in Srinagar was terrible. I had not anticipated such a long spell of snow, but when it stopped it was a visual delight, like Narnia under the cruel witch’s reign. (Not that I didn’t want Narnia to be free, hail Aslan)

Anyway, fast forward three months from December, spring started to tip-toe in the month of April. As a North Indian, living in the plains, I had never appreciated the changing of the seasons. But this time, I realised the euphoria people living in cold western countries have with spring. The colours of the landscape slowly started to change from white and brown to Green. The gloom which has been there for the last three months slowly started to fade away with the sprouting of flowers and new leaves. Spring in the Kashmir valley is a delight to watch. It’s like a gift the valley offers to the people who have endured the harsh and unforgiving winters. The land which was barren just two months back starts to bear wild mulberries, blood red cherries, peaches, apricots, apples and what not. I call this a blessed land where such delicious and rare fruits and flowers can grow in the wild. Wild roses of the valley can make a bougainvillea jealous. The tulips of the valley can give the tulips of Netherlands a run for their money.

It’s November again and the fall is already here. You can not appreciate the colours of the fall unless you have been to this place. Leaves of the Chinar tree (the quintessential insignia of Srinagar) start turning red from green. The green landscape slowly starts turning yellow and red subsequently.

On one such cold November morning, I, sitting by the side of the Jhelum on Bund road in Srinagar, am appreciating the falling yellow leaves of an old Chinar tree. The sun has started to rise late amidst the fog. There is just enough warmth to step out comfortably and still feel the nip in the air. I’m heading to my favourite cafe in the city : Books and Bricks cafe. It’s a small cafe by the side of the road which has ample sunlight to keep you warm, right ambience to kick start a cold day with their delicious pancake and coffee, and amazing music to keep you glued to your work.

The winter has started to set in again. However, I’m eagerly waiting for winters this time. I’m better prepared and better acquainted with the place now. Moreover, I think winter is the downtime which the nature gives us. A lot of animals hibernate during the season and wait for winters to get over so that they can thrive again. Trees shed their leaves and endure the harsh cold to come back with new life in the spring. It’s the natural cycle of the nature which tells us to sit back and endure during the hard times. It tells us hard times will not last forever, there will always be a spring on the other end. Just hold tight and enjoy the winters!

And as a GoT fan will always say, “Winter is here”!

Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.

Steve Jobs

Simplicity has always been underrated. In a pompous world, simplicity is losing its relevance today more than ever. We all might have read “Simplicity is the best policy” while growing up, but the phrase has lost its meaning in a world mired by decadence and clutter.

I, like most of the millennials, has drifted away from simplicity in every day life. Thinking in retrospect, simplicity has saved me in a lot of dilemmas in life. I’ve always been choosy in life and most of the things I pick up for myself or my household are a reflection of my eclectic tastes. However, this practice has given me creeps a lot of times specially while buying clothes. So many times, I parade through the entire mall without even buying a single piece of cloth(even boxers), despite I being in dire need of them. I walk through stores and stores but pick up nothing. I’m always looking for that exquisite piece of cloth which will catch my fancy. For the record, it took me five months, three cities, a dozen of malls and hundreds of stores to buy a single TIE. On some occasions, my inner voice channels the simplicity in me and I cave in and buy a simple shirt (or boxers). Apparently, when I open my cupboard some of the best clothes in it are the most simple ones. For instance, my favourite shirt today is not the shirt that I thought is the best shirt I’ve ever picked up but the shirt I thought will be worn in just one party and will never see the light of day again.

Even some of the best products are more simple than the others. Steve Jobs was one of the entrepreneurs who revolutionised design in its most simple form with Apple. His vision of “Great design and simple capabilities” is visible in mostly all the apple products. As the headline of Apple’s first marketing brochure proclaimed in 1977, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Jobs was a practitioner of Zen Buddhism, and his focus and simplistic design in the products have been inspired by the Zen principles.

Many of us confuse simplicity as an antonym to luxury as if it was a trade off between the two. However, some of the most luxurious products are more simplistic in nature. Simplicity is the absence of clutter and the focus on the essentials. It is easier said than done, to achieve simple is the most complex thing to do. Even in your life, once you drill down and remove all the clutter, you will be left with the most simple and sophisticated form of you. So, next time If you find yourself in a dilemma – Keep it simple.

Has anybody ever gave a thought to the idea that whether a power bank can charge itself, like one single chord from its USB port to its power inlet.

What can you give to a person who is going to die?

A few days back, I was home to spend some time with my parents before they leave for Haj pilgrimage. The house was full of guests and random relatives whom I barely know. Suddenly, from the motley group of people I found a familiar face, rather familiar to my childhood. Yes, I said, she’s “Bhoori”, one of our very old domestic help. She was more than just a domestic help but, a sympathetic ear to my mother’s cribs, an accomplice, a well-wisher, a relative, family. But she looked a lot different than what I remembered, a pale boney face with no flesh. The color of her skin has become dark, like over boiled tea. She sat in a corner with her burqa on, her back hunched and face stooped low.I went to her and said “Assalamoalaikum”, she barely managed to return my salaam. My mother felt a need to introduce us – again, “Ye chota beta hai, bahut chota tha jab tune ise dekha hoga”, she said.  Bhoori smiled, with a pain in her eyes, a tangible pain, more than just physical. My mother told me she’s ill, she’s not able to work anymore. I thought I should help, I immediately handed over some money to my mother to give her. She took the money and smiled, her eyes were moist. She kept her hands on my head, gave me blessings for my better future and left.I asked my mother, after she left “What’s wrong with her, bahut kamzor lag rahi hai bhoori.” She has a hole in her heart my mother says, and she’s so weak she would not be able to survive the surgery. She’ll not be able to make it, she says. I felt asphyxiated, like life giving me a blow on my face. One of those times when you tell yourself, life is not fair.
I went outside my house, looked for a corner and lit a smoke. I took out my wallet, stared and asked myself “What can you give a person who is going to die?”