Small step big thought

‘Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto’, is a Latin quote that translates to, ‘I am a human and nothing human is alien to me’. This powerful quote is attributed to Roman playwright Terence, who was brought to Rome from Africa as a slave, but was eventually freed. This is a quote that was often used by Maya Angelou, the famous poet and activist, in her class, to drive home infinite possibilities of the human psyche. A quote so powerful, it talks about how every human being possesses whatever it takes to do what some other human being has done- be that something mundane, something brilliant, something inspiring or something that is pure evil. Yet, a larger chunk of humanity is not pure evil, because we make a conscious choice to not be evil. Such is the power of choice. Given this immense power of conscious choice that we humans possess, I sometimes wonder if defying labels and stereotypes, rising against odds or creating a positive impact is just a matter of choice. It probably is, b...

  Autonomy; it is an eight letter word that sums up the end goal that most parents envision for their children. It is also something that is organically and gradually achieved as a child grows into a teen , and eventually into an adult. Or, does it?!!! Welcome to autism land where the term ‘autonomy’ takes on a completely different meaning, or is conspicuous by its absence. If you find yourself wondering about the hard hitting statement that I just made, then it’s time to take a step back to understand what the life path of many autistics, especially those with higher support needs looks like. As with all other autistics, those with high support needs  too have an atypical sensory profile, except, out here the level of difference is so intense that it impacts the attainment of gross and fine motor skills, besides a delay or complete absence of speech. What this also entails for parents and primary caregivers is that they have to actively work with us to help us achieve these...

  It was not a typical Monday morning in the life of Vijaya Raghavan, the petite 65 year old with the eyes of a hawk and the uncanny ability to smell something unusual from a mile away . And to say that something was up with Meenakshi mami would be an understatement . After all , the entire colony knew that Meenakshi Iyer was unable to get over the demise of her beloved aathakar . No matter how hard the other women in the colony tried to include her in their activities and social gatherings , she just did not budge from her vow of leading a life of a recluse . Grief did that to people and who could understand it better than Vijaya mami herself , whose sole progeny , Ramya, had gotten married to her colleague Aaron; yes you heard that right ! Ramya married her American colleague Aaron in San Francisco   in an infamous semi South Indian farce of a   wedding   to which Vijaya and her aathakar Raghavan mama had been invited as guests ! Vijaya understood grief like no...

  The pendulum swung from right to left and all the way back to the right generating the ubiquitous tick tock sound that is the hallmark of a clock; especially grandfather clocks that are such an integral part of old homes . Meenakshi looked at the clock, standing tall and occupying a place of pride in her drawing room   with an air of ennui, even as the voice in her head urged her to do something dramatic, like maybe push the prized heirloom of the clock down and watch it break to smithereens with a deafening noise . Meenakshi was bored in ways that she had never been for all the sixty five years of her life . Her job as a Commissioner of Income Tax for a good thirty five years until retirement left her feeling apprehensive about humanity at large , especially when it came to matters of money . The biggest saving grace in her life was her late husband , Sundaresan Iyer, god bless his soul , who made a career out of peddling whimsical dreams coupled with promises of a bright...

  The best part about history is that it gives a peek into life and times that were very different, but times that set stage for evolution of the society and of life, as we know it today . What if you found out one day that one of your ancestors left their own little mark in the annals of history ? History takes on a personal significance and what begins is a quest to understand the life and times of the said ancestor . A few days ago, one of my mother’s aunts , an eighty seven year old scientist, shared with her the information that she had painstakingly put together about her grandfather,Professor P Sampath Iyengar, a geologist from the erstwhile state of Mysore , who is credited with discovering Iron ore deposits in the Kudremukh region of the Western Ghats in the year 1913. Known to her only through anecdotes, for he passed away before her birth , what probably motivated her to research for more information on a man who was considered a legend by many , was the innate curiosity...

  Namita loved to travel . The one with   quintessential wheels on her feet, an eternally packed suitcase and a well used passport , Namita had traversed the length and breadth of the world . From the pyramids of Egypt to the Great Wall of China , from the Great Coral Reef to the Aurora Borealis , Namita had seen it all . The stamps on her passport were her souvenirs , for they reminded her of the lovely time she’d had in all her trips . It was only natural for Namita to choose a career that fuelled her life force ; the insatiable wanderlust and a craving for unusual experiences . She became a travel show host and began getting paid to do the thing she enjoyed doing the most -travelling and talking about it . Soon her show began to top the TRPs and she became a force to reckon with on National TV. Namita enjoyed collecting souvenirs from all of her travels and she had a penchant for collecting pretty unusual ones at that ; not the run of the mill t-shirts and keychains sold in...