If the world really were to end .....

  Who hasn't heard of the 2012 doomsday predictions? It is impossible to live under a rock for this long. But, whether you believe the apocalypse is impending or not is not the question. My question to you is ..... If you knew for a fact that the world would end on 21 December, 2012, what would you do right now?  

  In other words, what would you do in the last few months of life that you may have left? Would you go out and meet your family? Would you fervently continue to go to work? Would you fall down to your knees and worship the God you believe in and beg for salvation? Or would you rather not change anything at all?  

  I know what I would do. I would fling the schedule that my life seems to be bound to right now out of the window and hop on a plane and set out to travel the world. Of course, I would have to wait some time for the visa procedure, but I guess that is fine. ( I could go road tripping in the meantime ) . Perhaps, having the pressure of worrying about the future lifted from my shoulders would be more uplifting than anything else I could have experienced in a prolonged lifetime. My aim would only be to enjoy myself and see new things; the dreams of a younger me. I would also probably work on spending every dime that I have. And maybe, after all my travels, with the 21st of December nearing, I would go back to my family and spend, quite literally, the rest of my life with them.  

  I suppose everyone would want to do something similar. Whatever it is they wanted to do but had the thought of earthly repercussions prevent them from doing so. The world would most probably descend to anarchy if this were to happen. Everyone running about, not caring about consequences ..... Perhaps, this is why the future lies behind a veil; close enough to pique our curiosity, but too far for us to see it clearly.  

  It is probably best to keep it that way.  

  So, what do you think you would do if you knew for sure that the world would end? I know I would want to be completely sure of this fact because I wouldn't want to end up without any form of money or with a hole in my education if on the 22nd of December, I were to wake up and see that all of it really was a hoax. 

  Yeah. I don't see any carefree globe - trotting in my near future.    

  

T.S Eliot on Time

“If time and space, as sages say,
Are things which cannot be,
The sun which does not feel decay
No greater is than we.
So why, Love, should we ever pray
To live a century?
The butterfly that lives a day
Has lived eternity.”
― T.S. Eliot  

Last Kiss

Flash fiction about the double - entendre in romance .....  

  Having spent their 6^th marriage anniversary watching TV on the couch, Jenna was certainly worried about the way things were going on between them.  She no longer complained about the lack of romance in their marriage and he no longer seemed to care. The very frequent quarrels were of no significant help either. That is why she was beyond surprised when Jack wanted to take her out to dinner tonight. Not just to the diner that she had learned to expect, but a nice white - tablecloth restaurant.

  No need to say that she was over the Moon when he took her to the river side where they had first met. And her smile only grew in dimension when he took her hands in his and said that he loved her. Jenna was relieved. The passion was still there. Was it possible that she had been pushing him away? …. Maybe it was all in her head. And then Jack looked into her eyes; those bottomless blue ones she had fallen in love with stared at her with earnest emotion. Her Jack was back; and she was prepared to leave everything behind and run away with him again if he would just say so. She followed the trail of his lips as he parted them to speak ….. 

  “I know things have been tough for us in the past, Jenna and if you know anything about me, you will know that I am a survivor. I make it through things and don’t let them stop me, Jen”.  He paused as if forming the words in his head, but firm resolve shone in his features. Jenna didn’t think much of it. In fact, she thanked God for what seemed like the first few earnest words he had told her in months. She couldn’t move even if she wanted to; she was his …. And he was her Jack ……. 

  “ And today I just wanted to tell you that I love you and ….” He kissed her tenderly with the infinite patience of a man for whom all bets were off …… 

  “ I may not be your first kiss , Jennifer ; but you know I want to be your last ……"      

  She beamed at him. Memories of the first time he had told her this played in front of her eyes and she couldn’t help smiling even as he reached his hand to his pocket and pulled out some insignificant piece of metal. They were going to be fine. She was going to be fine. After all, Jack’s words were practically made of love and admiration. That was all she thought before he leveled a gun against her stomach. She looked down just in time to notice the moonlight dancing on his wedding band. It was the last thing she ever saw .   

Of Fire Alarms, Fire Fighters and ..... Neighbourly Sentiments ??

There was a fire alarm in our building a few days ago. Luckily, it was nothing serious, but that didn't prevent it from being extremely ...... Let's just say ....... tiresome. The alarm rang out at 1 o'clock in the morning, just as I was about to go to bed after deciding to give procrastination a chance regarding the work that I had been trying in vain to complete.

  As is expected of a good and responsible citizen, I took my coat out and went down the never - ending flights of stairs ( more proof of me being responsible ) and waited outside in the freezing cold next to a woman trying to  prevent her overly small sized dog from snapping at her neighbour's ankles.

  Even though it may seem as a very adverse kind of situation, it is perhaps the best example of neighbourly love that you can possibly get in a metropolitan city of this day and age. People who would otherwise come out of the house a little late just to avoid having to talk to you; people who are essentially strangers even though they live in apartments separated by a single wall and will complain every time they hear the tiniest of noises from your apartment at night, begin to talk to each other in the cold.

  From what I overheard the other day, it wasn't much nor was it very elaborate. The conversations generally ranged from a half-hearted "It is freezing out here, isn't it?" while rubbing your palms together, to an equally awkward joke cracked by some old man who believes that he is young at heart. And there was one woman who began talking to another one about how her boyfriend had gifted her a very expensive something; something that sounded a lot like a coffee mug in a wrapped box from her description. I am willing to bet that the woman listening couldn't have cared less and thought the one yapping was a douche; that is assuming that they had been acquainted at all before that night.

  Just as I was amusing myself with observing the little things in life that people say matter so much, the firefighters came out of the building and announced that all was well and that my insomnia would be the only that would keep me up further tonight. So, we piled into the building with the alarm ringing like there was no tomorrow and some of the firefighters gathered around the ghastly thing trying to figure out how to turn it off.

  From what I gathered, the metal box which encased the alarm panel was as old and rusty as the supervisor of the building, who was supposed to take care of it, and also as old and rusty as the building itself. And it had decided to avenge its mistreatment by getting stuck in the middle of a winter's night; thereby not allowing us to shut the alarm off. There were about 5 firemen pouring over it trying to pry the damned thing open and let everyone's headaches die down. As ancient as the thing might have been, it was very obstinate.

  It was funny to watch all the men in their well-equipped uniforms fumbling over something as tiny and insignificant as the stupid alarm. Some time later, they finally succeeded, and I finally went home. I probably could have gone back a bit earlier, but my neighbour's dog growled at me every time I tried to get to the elevator and I was too lazy to walk all the way upstairs. Its owner felt it appropriate to let it snap at me as she was trying to entice one of the firefighters, by the looks of it.

  I wonder how that worked out for her ??

  Oh well, at least the next day was a Sunday.

Two Insomnias

When I am with you, we stay up all night,

When you're not here, I can't get to sleep.

Praise God for these two insomnias!

And the difference between them.

From Essential Rumi  

Flash Fiction -- Blue Eyes

  This a short piece of flash fiction that just popped to my mind the other day. I hope you like it........         
  Never before had he seen anything like her and that is why Adam couldn't take his eyes off Lily. To anyone else, she was not the most remarkable of women around, considering the looks of those swaying to the music at the party they were in right now; but all Adam could notice was her hair playfully falling over her shoulders, her eyes as blue as the ocean and just as deep. She turned around, caught his gaze and smiled. He returned her smile and knew that coming to this party would be worthwhile after all.  

Most Effective Advice on Overcoming Writer's Block ....... Or any form of Procrastination for that matter ......