guest column - Comfortably Numb

Opinion: A little superstition to make the medicine go down?

Just a little superstition? I have to start with a disclaimer: I am not superstitious. When a black cat crosses my path, I just call out, here kitty, kitty. When the salt shaker slips from my grasp spilling the white stuff everywhere, I just grin sheepishly. When I burned the sleeve of a blouse I…

Opinion: So You Think You Are An Empath?

In this epoch of information overload, we watch a thousand crises unfold every day, where the sacred mixes with the profane at top speed, where the latest war updates are followed in quick succession by clips on how to wear a mekhela chador the proper way, how to make naan on an overturned tawa, what…

Opinion: Life`s too short to waste on bad books!

Even as the world is slowly but steadily disintegrating around us, we turn to our personal cope strategies just to survive each day. Me, I turn to books, try to lose myself in that world of make-believe. But of late, I seem to have lost all desire to plough through books that do not hold,…

Opinion: It`s OK to goof off once in a while

Back in the day, goofing off was when you had your make or break Math exam the next morning. You stared at your `rough` book, you stared at the pile of question papers from previous years, and then you went off to make yourself a snack to have with a can of Coke. Tidy up…

Opinion: Navigating life sans a smartphone

Surving sans a smartphone First, they said keeping your smartphone under your pillow at night carries radiation risks. So, I moved it to a nightstand a little distance away from my bed. Then they said don’t take recourse to the blue light of your smartphone on sleepless nights, so I`d switch on the bedside lamp,…

Column: When enough is enough

Enough, already! Let`s play a quick word game. I`ll throw a word at you, and you make the necessary associations. The word, used as a noun, is: enough. In response, I hear you say: ordinary. Limited. Average, tepid. No more, no less. My turn now. And I`m saying: equanimity. Balance, liberation. Happiness. I`m saying we…

Column: Happy is as happy does

In the pursuit of happiness, being kind is key Could we dwell for a few moments on the concept of happiness, please? Truth to tell, after Pharrell Williams` catchy tune of the same name, we haven’t really paused to think too hard about the state of being happy. Again, truth to tell, we lead uber-hectic…

Column: Widen your circle of friends

Widen that circle and you`ll be happier A couple of things I read recently has stayed with me. One is an Eli Shafak quote which goes like this: humans think they know with certainty where their being ends and someone else`s starts. With their roots tangled and caught up underground, linked to fungi and bacteria,…

Column: Let`s cut the ostriches some slack

Let`s cut the ostriches some slack You know the ostriches I`m talking about. The moment the topic turns to something deeper than if Dunki is a hit or if the southern part of the country is indeed having a mild winter, some people get an uncomfortable look on their faces. They shrug, they smile painfully….

Column: Do You Still Call On People?

Do you still call on people? It was a quaint custom, one handed down to us via our colonial masters, one we faithfully, happily followed. It involved people getting dressed up, not necessarily to the nines, but quite definitely in their Sunday best. They then went around to other people`s places, rang the doorbell and…