What It Is

It is madness
says reason
It is what it is
says love …

It is unhappiness
says calculation
It is nothing but pain
says fear
It has no future
says insight
It is what it is
says love …

It is ridiculous
says pride
It is foolish
says caution
It is impossible
says experience
It is what it is
says love …

What it is by Erich Fried

Love this poem and read it many times. Do you love such poems?

I love many of them …

First and foremost, allow me to share Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 43, ‘How Do I Love Thee?’

It begins with the iconic lines:

‘How do I love thee?
Let me count the ways…’

These two lines alone contain volumes of meaning, and I find myself revisiting them often …

There’s another poem, I love, and that is ‘Hope’ by Emily Dickinson

‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all’ …

I may not be good at recitation, but I have a deep passion for reading and appreciating the intricate artistry of language. The way words are arranged to evoke emotions, convey wisdom, and capture the essence of life, love, and nature resonates deeply with me. It’s in these moments, amidst the twists and turns of expression, that I find myself enamored with the beauty of language and the emotions it encapsulates …

See, when you read ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ by Robert Frost, won’t you just love this famous poem?

‘The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep’ …

Here’s another eloquent excerpt from the renowned poem ‘The Road Not Taken’ by Robert Frost:

‘Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.’

This poem resonates deeply with me and holds a special place in my heart, as I often find myself reflecting on its message of making pivotal choices that shape one’s journey.

I have a profound admiration for another poem, namely ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.’ Its expression conjures the sense of companionship, as if the lover is spiritually present, ensuring one is not alone:

‘Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky’ …

Isn’t it beautiful?

I’m certain many of you appreciate these poems. There are numerous others, but I’d like to share just a few of my absolute favorites with you all, such as ‘Leisure’ by William Henry Davies:

‘What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare …
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.’

To selectively share excerpts from the poem is my means of conveying:

Please delve into the poems I’m presenting here—
read them when solitude surrounds you,
read them in the company of your beloved,
read them among friends,
read them with strangers,
read them in tranquility,
read them amidst chaos …
but above all, I hope you
read them in their entirety …

Read

Sharing one of my recent painting video from ‘Chaos’ series. Hope you may like it. Also I tried to read the poem ‘What It Is’. Hope you would like listening to it as well ….

And also please do share here about your favourite poems …..

Meraki

My canvas of delight is
Dancing bright …
My passion is igniting
A colorful sight …
My soul is painting
A tranquil choir …
My emotion is healing
With peace and fire …

Meraki
(v.) to do something with soul, creativity or love; to leave a piece and essence of yourself in something you do …

What If

What if it all works out?
What if you get that call?
What if today goes unexpectedly well?
What if you have what it takes?
What if you meet someone unexpectedly?
What if today you make the day best with what you have?
What if someone is praying for you?
What if you receive that one mail?
What if someone has special feelings for you?
What if someone tells you that?
What if you go on that trip with someone for a day or two?
What if the trip takes you to another state of mind?
What if you return with a complete different state of heart?
What if you do not know what’s next?
What if the best is yet to come?
What if great things are on the way?
What if you don’t search for any answer?
What if the answer is within you?

I love all the ‘What ifs’ …
What ifs’ give me hope …

Little Joy

So she was absent for one day

And came to school the next day and she came to my desk room to see me. She was standing at the doorstep and she called me softly,

‘Miss’ …..

I looked at her, and got up from my desk and went closer to the doorstep and touching her soft cheek, I said,

‘Hello Mumma! How’re you sweety? You were absent yesterday. I heard that you had toothache. How’s your toothache now?

I was saying all these to her at a go …

And she said to me ‘Did you miss me?’ with such deep affectionate look at me and with a softer voice that it almost melted my heart with pure bliss …

It was so heartwarming, I immediately gave her a hug and said, ‘Of course, I missed you dear. I missed you so much.’

It seemed she felt good to hear those words for her and then she hugged me for a few seconds and smiled ….

And then she noticed my buddy taping fingers

‘What happened?’ – serious concerns with full of innocent sympathy

‘It just was an accident my dear.’ I answered.

‘Is this hurting you?’ She couldn’t get it what’s that!

‘Well, yes! A little’ ….

‘How did it happen?’ – asked like an adult as if she would understand the whole situation …

She kissed my buddy taping and asked me, ‘Should I draw something on your bandage? So it’ll be cured faster.’

‘Oh dear! Really? You can draw of course.’

Then she brought out her special colour box and said to me, ‘I want to use the colors that you prefer today. Cause it’s your bandage on your hand.”

Then I chose some colors, pink, purple, green yellow …

She drew this one. She drew a heart, a flower …. For me ….

She asked me, ‘Did you like it?

I know you all know what my answer was to her …

Now you tell me, ‘Do you like this Little Joy’?’

Do you value such little joy in your life?

How sometimes we get someone’s affection and we don’t even notice ….

How sometimes you know that you’re someone special in someone’s heart, and yet you do not care much or ignore or you take that for granted …

How often we do not acknowledge these little joys of life …

Often I do find these ‘Little Joy’ moments in my life and I value them deeply. I believe life is made up of these little moments, precious memories, vulnerability and love that all add up to create a big canvas of your life. We should know that the bigger picture cannot be made without all the small moments that bring it all together. So

‘I hope you find, as I did, that happiness comes from noticing and enjoying the little things in life’

Solitude and Love

Without solitude, Love will not stay long by your side.

Because Love needs to rest, so that it can journey through the heavens and reveal itself in other forms.

Without solitude, no plant or animal can survive, no soil can remain productive, no child can learn about life, no artist can create, no work can grow and be transformed.

Solitude is not the absence of Love, but its complement.

Solitude is not the absence of company, but the moment when our soul is free to speak to us and help us decide what to do with our life.

Therefore, blessed are those who do not fear solitude, who are not afraid of their own company, who are not always desperately looking for something to do, something to amuse themselves with, something to judge.

If you are never alone, you cannot know yourself.

And if you do not know yourself, you will begin to fear the void.

Paulo Coelho

Jian Bird Creates

Happy Birthday Roksana

If I look deep enough I think I’ve always loved to paint. But that didn’t happen until 2020. Painting came as a healing journey during pandemic time and I delve myself into in a kind of hypnotic allures of colorful emotion. I was a full time teacher back then. In 2021 I left my teaching job and start living my dream life of being an artist. Though it wasn’t my plan and surely it didn’t come easy, but it was all about a healing gift for me.

Over the years I created so many paintings and organised self-initiated events from awareness programs to rooftop exhibition and in-house exhibitions to fund-raising projects for underprivileged children and people and my paintings displaying in fairs, wander ventures and pop-up sales and receiving admirations from all over the world and very recently, JBC initiating wellness programs under art therapy and colorful date with mindful conversations.

It’s an incredible journey which I’m enjoying immensely and all the things I do for my Jian Bird Creates, I do with all my heart and soul. The universe has been kind to me, and true are the words from The Alchemist, ‘And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it’ – as if it was happening for me without me knowing it because I was so busy in creating the wonders that were coming to my mind and everyone around me, specially my whole family, few beautiful friends and very very specially My Lama girl giving heart and soul for my wonders …

Happy Birthday my dearest friend Roksana Amelia
Love you to the moon, stars and beyond ⭐️
Life is a blessing. Bless it with all your heart wherever you’re ….

To the unknown
To the uncertainty
To the chaos
To the infinity

A Book with A Few Thoughts

Some days I like to walk with a book….
And with that, there are some words to reflect..

Don’t go back to past.
There’s nothing you can do about it.
Accept where you’re at and move on and try be in the present.
Have gratitude for what you already have.
Have compassion and accept what is.
And if you can change it, it’s okay.
But there are somethings that you need to accept that you can’t change
And if you can’t change, let it go.
Be who you’re and people will like you.

A grief is a grief is a grief, and there’s not a piece of me that believes one loss is greater than another…Everyone’s loss is greater in their life. Try to understand this and be empathetic about it. So in a world where you can be anything, be kind.

Time is the finest gift one can give to other from heart and soul. Empathy is the truest attribute one can possess for others.

Just “Don’t ever give anybody enough power to bring back the triggered unhealed version of you, when you’ve worked so hard to become better than that” ….

You Live Once – A Painting

Live life adventurously. You live once.

#sixwords



#JianBirdGallery❄️

I hope you would love this song which I have added in my this painting work in progress video. It’s one of my favourite.

I love this song, ‘Live More & Love More’ by Cat Burns. I love it’s melody and energy.

It tells about starting whatever it is you want to start and doing whatever it is you want to do in life. Because we only have one life, and we deserve to live it to the fullest. Such a positive powerful song.

It beautifully expresses to find a balance between growing ourselves as individuals and sharing our love.

“If there’s something you wanna do, just do it
Don’t let your head stop your heart from moving
If there’s someone you wanna talk to, talk to ’em
Who knows who we’d be if we just
Live more and love more
We all just need to live more and love more
So hug your kids, tell them you love them
Have some heart but make sure it’s open
Play by risk ’cause time gets stolen
Maybe speak less and listen more
‘Cause life’s too short
You only have one
It might sound cliche
But your life can start when you choose it to
When you choose it to” ….

Another song that I love so much is ‘Fix You’ by Coldplay…. Love these lines so much,

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you’ ….

Isn’t it beautiful?

What is/ are your favourite powerful positive song/s?

Cracks – A Painting

You’re shattered enough to understand that cracks are required for light to enter …

Let the light enter your soul …

We are all broken—that’s how the light gets in

Ernest Hemingway

Isn’t it true?



#JianBirdGallery❄️

A Tale of Twin Paintings

I put my heart and soul into my work, and I have lost my mind in the process.
-Vincent Willem Van Gogh

It is true for each of my creative works. My paintings have its stories and often they echo my deep-rooted emotions and deep talk with myself. I live in each of its stories and moments of creativity.

So here I so very wish to share my stories of two paintings with you all.

A Tale of Twin Paintings

Finally Falguni has the other twin painting tittle ‘Hope Shines’. I am super happy that she has chosen this one. And then there the first twin painting titled ‘Follow the Soothing Breeze, Here’ already owned by my daughter …

Why am I saying this two paintings as ‘TWIN PAINTINGS’?

Because I painted this two paintings simultaneously, keeping them side by side using only one art paper, dividing them with masking tapes. And they both have the same wavelengths I felt at the time I was painting them. While I was working on this Twins, during their creative process, colouring, taking pauses, brushing, re-brushing, stroking the brushes here and there, I remember I was contemplating on various things, specially doing meaningful purposeful work for the rest of my life. A purpose greater than life itself. Many a times I felt discouraged and demotivated, but never ever I felt lost as to what next. I’ve been always having different ideas to move forward in life. Never look back what I couldn’t, but moving forward what I can. Just like the titles of the Twin Paintings, I have been following a Soothing Breeze instilled in my heart all my life keeping my ‘Hope’ Shines throughout this life’s journey so far ….

Amazing, na?

Now I’m so glad that one twin painting is with my little sister-friend Falguni, and the other twin has its permanent residence at my dear daughter’s far away homesweethome.

When I first shared the two paintings after seemingly finishing them with my daughter, she immediately asked me to keep the ‘Follow the Soothing Breeze Here’ painting for her. I just loved the urgency to book the painting for herself. So I did keep it aside for her, happily. Last time I visited NY, I took that painting for her home there. She has already few of my paintings at her home. Now all the people come to visit her place, they ask her about the paintings and she feels so proud to let them know, ‘My mom is an artist. These are her paintings.’ She has been my very own cheerleader from the day I started the painting journey in 2020. And from then onwards, I listened to her many suggestions for my Jian Bird Creates and my painting journey. She absolutely adores my creative style of living and specially this journey inspires her to follow the soothing breeze deep inside her loving beautiful heart for herself.

Now ‘Hope Shines’ had lost its Twin and was alone, passing its days with other dazzling paintings around it. One day Falguni came at my Fund raising event ‘Meet & Greet’ for love and light. She walked through my small Jian Bird Gallery, and there she found her ‘Hope Shines’. As definitely always her hope shines through all the ups and downs of life’s tragic and unexpected happenings and yet she continues to shine ✨ For that reason or some other, she decided to own the ‘Hope Shines’ …

For an artist, the canvas is his life, breath and philosophy. So when someone owns their artwork or creative piece, and genuinely wants to keep those with them, I as an artist consider it as honor. I feel they can relate to the piece as I do. And for most of my artworks, I had this conversational experience to tell a story or to evoke an emotion. And there are some who wants me to attach the story with it. I feel it’s a complete connection, from soul to soul.

Now I know my very first TWIN paintings will always remain as their beloved treasures at their soul-home wherever they go. They are themselves two amazing souls in the beautiful Earth, self-made, selfless and strong.

Lastly, I just want to say to ALL of you;
Never forget. Hope shines only for those who believe.

Thanks, kindly, for stopping by and reading this long note from me.

Warmly,

Roksana


JianBirdGallery❄️ JianBirdCreates

And Promise Me …

The Good Traveler

And promise me
You’ll always remember:

You’re
Braver than you believe, and
Stronger than you seem, and
Smarter than you think.”

A. A Milne, Winnie the Pooh

.

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On the road

Sonamarg, Kashmir

Melancholia

Soft yellow breeze …
Sweetness surrounds …
Such tenderness …
Yet a melancholy mood …

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Sayuri – An Embroidery 🪡

Hair tied in circle …
Blue night …
Mountains are making the path …
Blossoms are coming.

Early Morning Rituals

Wake up early morning …
Watch the beautiful sunrise …
You can watch it from your small or big balcony or rooftop (if possible or you prefer)
Or just from your window …

Sit and feel the breeze on your cheeks …
Contemplate … touch the petals softly …
Smile … keep smiling 😃
Oh! I forgot to say …
Can you please sit with a glass of warm water with honey and কালিজিরা (black cumin) in it?
(Or you like a cup of tea early morning?
I don’t know about you)
They say it’s good for health if you can have the warm water with honey and black cumin in the early morning of everyday …
Write something … converse with yourself …
Read aloud for a while …

Stretch your body …
Make your bed nicely …
And say, ‘Thank you bed for a wonderful warmth that I felt from my last night’s sleep on you! You are so very kind!’
You can blow a flying kiss to it 😘

(You want to go for a walk
Early morning?
I don’t know about you.
But if you go for an early morning walk,
It’s all good … Let’s walk together …)

Now start the day.

Heyyy, don’t forget to take a long shower
(If you are not in a hurry though;
See, I don’t know about you)

Finally, be grateful for the day, pray …
For you are alive, breathing!
Every new day is a new beginning …

Byeeee for now 😊

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What are your morning rituals?
Let me know please.

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Fireflies

Let my love surrounds you

Like fireflies

A little light with wings

To fascinate your world wherever you are!

If you ever be in the midst of gloom

And loneliness envelops your soul,

I will always be right there

Like hundreds of shimmering fireflies

To light up your world …

Serendipity

At night

She went to sleep around 11 pm-ish

Slept the whole night to wake up early morning!

Ah! What a beautiful morning and the morning breeze

She is in love with this moment …

Reflecting back the other day ..

Two things hurt her in heart’s core

She was emotional with hurt still attached

Cried a bit or two

She doesn’t want anyone to see it

Made her silent and

She couldn’t get pass of it for long.

Another work made her productive

Tiring yet satisfying ….

And there was another happening that made her happy

For the first time the soul feels joy

As if a blossom in the desert

She felt her worth for an unknown reason

This alone kept her joyful all day long till now

Made her feel she is loved and cared so much …..

They say

Everything happens for a reason.

Then the happening that made her smile and happy has a reason

She falls in love with that reason

At night

She slept long hours …

Her spirit, free and fair

Awoke from its blissful sleep!

As she reflects, humbling herself for a joy she cherishes right now.

Ecstasy

At night

I slept well …

I saw you in my dream!

That’s surreal

This moment of joy is gifted by God ….

I wish

I love you, বেলী ফুল

I wish I could give you the fragrance of this flower ….

Therapeutic

Enlightened

The disciples asked, “What does one need in order to be Enlightened?”

The Master said, “You must discover what it is that falls in the water and does not make a ripple; moves through the trees and does not make a sound; enters the field and does not stir a single blade of grass.”

After weeks of fruitless pondering, the disciples said, “What is this thing?”

“Thing?” said the Master. “But it isn’t a thing at all.”
“So it is nothing?”
“You might say so.”
“Then how are we to search for it?”
“Did I tell you to search for it? It can be found but never searched for. Seek and you will miss.”

Do not search. It’s there. Feel it. Just be it. Just be.

Divine Sunrise

My heart glows like a candle

To witness this divine sunrise.

Looks like a boundless majesty..

Feels like all the heavens lit.

And I smile and say to myself,

“How trivial is this life!”

“How divine a destiny ahead!”

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

Ready for any adventure

The adventurous soul as I am

Restless like sea,

Strong and content

And all the good fortune I bring

Along my path …..

15 Deep Psychology Quotes That Will Change Your Life

  • 1. Not everyone deserves access to you, it’s okay to create boundaries to protect your peace.
  • 2. Don’t trust too much, don’t love too much, don’t hope too much, because that ‘too much’ can hurt you so much.
  • 3. We cannot change anything until we accept it. Condemnation does not liberate, it oppresses.
  • 4. Don’t compare yourself with other people; compare yourself with who you were yesterday.
  • 5. You’re not afraid of new love, you’re afraid of old pain.
  • 6. Disconnecting from others to reconnect with yourself is self-care.
  • 7. If you ever find yourself in the wrong story, leave.
  • 8. A person who truly loves you will never let you go or give up on you, no matter how hard the situation is.
  • 9. It’s a wonderful thing to be optimistic. It keeps you healthy and it keeps you resilient.
  • 10. The only normal people are the ones you don’t know very well.
  • 11. Sometimes you make the right decision, sometimes you make the decision right.
  • 12. I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence but it comes from within. It is there all the time.
  • 13. We must not allow other people’s limited perceptions to define us.
  • 14. If you want to change attitudes, start with a change in behavior.
  • 15. It is not primarily our physical selves that limit us but rather our mindset about our physical limits.

9 Must Read Books

Today a reader, tomorrow a leader”~

1. The World As I See It by Albert Einstein

2. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

3. The Art of War by Sun Tzu

4. The Psychology Of Money

5. The Great Mental Models

6. The 48 Laws of Power

7. The Daily Stoic

8. Atomic habits

9. Deep Work

Which books will you add?

“So please, oh please, we beg, we pray, go throw your TV set away, and in its place you can install a lovely bookshelf on the wall.” – 

Roald Dahl

Friendship Is The Best – inspiring

Friendship is the Best !

Monks, a friend endowed with seven qualities is worth associating with. Which seven?

1- He who gives what is hard to give.

2- He who does what is hard to do.

3- He who endures what is hard to endure.

4- He who reveals his secrets to you.

5- He who keeps your secrets.

6- When misfortunes strike, he doesn’t abandon you.

7- When you’re down and out, he doesn’t look down on you.

Mitta Sutta

Surrender – a quote

The boat I travel in is called Surrender.
My two oars are instant forgiveness and gratitude
complete gratitude for the gift of life.
I am thankful for the experience of this life,
for the opportunity to dance.
I get angry, I get mad,
but as soon as I remind myself
to put my oars in the water,
I forgive.

I serve.
I do the dance I must.
I plant trees,
but I am not the doer of this work.
I am the facilitator, the instrument.
I am one part of the symphony.
I know there is an overall scheme to this symphony
that I cannot understand.
In some way, we are each playing our own part.
It is not for me to judge or criticize the life or work of another.
All I know is that this is my dance.
I would plant trees today
even if I knew for a certainty that the world
would end tomorrow.

Balbir Mathur

UspiEd DwON

Accept life’s ups and down.
Lovingly live it ….

Cna Yuo Raed Tihs?

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno’t mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!
– Collected

Tihs is raelly gerat:)
And asboltutely crroect~

ItnersetniG~

What is actually important??
Spelling is no matter, sometimes to express what you want to say.
Its just okay.
Cause~
Its matter how we look at things,
No matter how hard to understand, sometimes.

Make it easy friends for all to understand you.
What you think about and thank about, you bring about!
Make it a happy day today for yourself and all around you!!!

‘It’s not just polite to let people say what they wish, it’s seductive. The best gift you can give is your attention’. ~Chris Matthews sharing

Accept life’s ups and down.
Lovingly live it upside down:)

♥Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ♥

Philosophy For a Happy Life

My philosophy for a happy life | Sam Berns

  1. Be OK with what you ultimately can’t do! Because there is so much you CAN do!
  2. Surround yourself with  people you want to be around!
  3. Keep moving forward!
  4. Never miss a party if you can help it!<3

Find Inspiration!!

For more information, visit:

Facebook: facebook.com/hbodocs;

Twitter: @HBODocs #LifeAccordingToSam.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/01/140114-progeria-disease-berns-children-premature-aging-research-gene-mutation/