Juneli: a review of its own

Review by Hima Bista

A psychological fiction which is as knotted as the roads from Kathmandu to Dhading is Juneli. “You can never tell a book by its cover” if ever a stronger conviction of this phrase then the second Nepali novel Juneli by Mr. Brazesh Khanal is one of them. The bare backed art work of a woman (by Kapil Mani Dixit) which is the cover of the novel makes one wonder what kind of story has author Khanal written. This metaphorical idiom stays till you open the first page. 

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SOUND AND NOISE

"Let us learn today, what our eyes, ears and mouth are for"

Throughout our school, we chanted this song- clapping our hands-queued up in morning assembly. It explained about the proper use of those three. It said that there are equal good and bad things in this world. We should learn to filter and only hear, see and speak good ones.  Alas, it was a mere routine for us at those days. Neither the age nor the maturity guided us to ponder over what it meant.  Such moral values are taught to us by teachers, parents and elders from our childhood. However, when we grow up and enter the practical life, the race and struggle for survival and success make those fade like a writing of ink on an old paper.

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True Lies

A smart chap got in a fix. He was around Ratnapark area of Kathmandu when he got a call on his cell phone. He had to avoid the person calling, yet not ignore the call. He decided to take advantage of the technology and informed that he was in Pokhara. His lie would have worked if not for a khalasi of a micro-bus behind who was shouting as loud as his vocal chords would permit,

"Kopundole-Pulchok-Jawlakhel-Lagankhel."

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Customer (Dis)Satisfaction

We must have heard or read about a mythological cow named Kamadhenu. Such was the generosity of the cow that you could milk her all the time and she would keep on producing. We must have, sometimes, smirked at the notion of such a cow. How is it possible that a cow would keep on providing uninterrupted and any amount of milk forever? Well if we look at us carefully, the mythology will become a reality. We all are modern day's Kamadhenu.

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If Only We Followed Rules

I know that no one will blink an eyelid if I say that I was stuck in traffic. It has become an integral part of our daily routine. One cannot even imagine of a route where hundreds of vehicles are stranded and moving in a snail's pace. Few days back, while going home from work, I was stuck in the traffic for almost an hour. A vehicle which belongs to another era had broken down in the middle of the road. Everything was in complete chaos. The road from was jam packed with vehicles. Everyone seemed to be doing what they wanted. Buses, trucks, micro vans, small cars, big cars, motorcycles and even tractors from both the sides were proudly and openly violating the lane discipline.

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Guaranteed to Grin

America is in the air. There are more outlets 'promising' and 'guaranteeing' a green card than the potholes when one goes through Kathmandu valley. One such sprouting outlet had a proud display to lure their prey which stated,

"We have made more than 4000 people win the DV lottery till date."

I was surprised at their guts. Excuse me sirs, you have made them win? How come? Can you explain? How can anyone make such a claim?

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Hands and the Man

Amod called. He is a childhood friend for me. We studied in the same school from 2nd grade to the 10th. For others, he is a story writer Amod Dev Bhattarai.  Thanks to the 'superb call quality of the phone call, I could make out some of the words he said,

"Brazesh…hissssss…editor……mute…..New Yorker magazine….silence….get together..hissss….Bhoomi, Lazimapt….noise..Tues….silence….2nd……hissss….Sept……five..hisssss…..thirty….silence."

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License to Kill

Don’t panic, the sky is not falling.

Though I am no James Bond, I was handed over the license to kill. Not that I wanted it. I was forced to accept it. I had no choice. It happened last week.

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Alluring Addictions

There is one very interesting definition of cigarette. It says "Tobacco rolled pipe of a paper which has fire on one side and a fool on the other." Indeed, only a fool smokes. Before every smokers reading this plan to demonstrate against me, let me admit that I am one of them.  It is such a bad habit, is very addictive and very hard to quit. I have tried to give it up and have succeeded several times. Quitting smoking is so easy that a smoker does it frequently and keeps on doing so.

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Never Say Sorry Again

Recently, I nearly proved the medical science to be wrong. It says a human body has two hundred and six pieces of bones. I was about to break that record by breaking few of mines into smaller pieces. Unfortunately it could not happen. I was on a motorcycle and completely on my side. Suddenly a four wheeler appeared like magic from around a corner, completely on wrong side. He seemed to have a turbo engine fixed. His speed was terrifying. It appeared that there was no way I could avoid the head to head crash. Still, I stood on the brakes and he mirrored my action. Miracle saved me. I was infuriated. If that person could impersonate Michael Schumacher on a busy road with heavy traffic, I could impersonate Mike Tyson out of rings. Suddenly the person grinned from one ear to other and uttered a magical five letter word, 

"Sorry"

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Dilemma

I have been dreaming the same thing every night from last week.
I am walking properly without the aid of crutches. Its been almost two months that I am down with a medical problem called 'Bone Marrow Edema' of right knee. It started as a small pain when i walked. I did not take it seriously and continued my normal activities. It grew worse and finally I had to stop.
It is said that bone marrow edema, a swelling in the marrow, takes two to three months to completely heal.
What I have realized after prolonged inactivity is such problems have psychological angle as well. After following the physiotherapy and providing proper rest for the knee, I think I do not have that pain in the knee anymore. But, When I try to walk, the command center of the nerves in brain simply deny. It does not order to step. I am afraid that if I step or put pressure on my right foot, I might again get that pain and result in extended inactivity.
This is a very weird situation. 

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Alluring Addiction

There is one very interesting definition of cigarette. It says "Tobacco rolled pipe of a paper which has fire on one side and a fool on the other." Indeed, only a fool smokes. Before every smokers reading this plan to demonstrate against me, let me admit that I am one of them.  It is such a bad habit, is very addictive and very hard to quit. I have tried to give it up and have succeeded several times. Quitting smoking is so easy that a smoker does it frequently and keeps on doing so.

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Hands & The Man

Amod called. He is a childhood friend for me. For others, he is a story writer Amod Dev Bhattarai.  Thanks to the ‘superb call quality of the phone call, I could make out some of the words he said,“Brazesh…hissssss…editor……mute…..New Yorker magazine….silence….get together..hissss….Bhoomi, Lazimapt….noise..Tues….silence….2nd……hissss….Sept……five..hisssss…..thirty….silence.” 
And, then the line disconnected. Cool enough, rest was for me to put two and two together. After all if you can understand what is being said, the purpose of the communication is achieved. People blame our telecom service providers for nothing. It’s a miracle in itself that a person  from almost 17 km away was able to convey his message to me.  

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Happy with assumptions

I was asked an apparent question today. We come across such questions which has the answer which the person asking wants to hear. In a way that person is just seeking your confirmation to what he already believes in. The question is not relevant, the structure is. It was like asking someone,

"You are not hungry are you?" rather than "Are you hungry?"

On top of that even I was not sure about the answer to the question which I was asked. I replied,

"I prefer to believe it."

"Why do say that?" I was asked again.

Why did I say that?  I said that because that’s the reality. We prefer to believe in many things in life and accept it as the truth. But, is it necessary that everything is true which we believe? Even if we have doubt about certain things, we give it a benefit of doubt, accept it in a way which makes us happy and continue. That person agreed with my explanation and added,

"I agree that 50% of our life is assumption."

I defer. Almost everything is assumption. If we do not program ourselves to such a behavioral pattern, we will drive ourselves nuts worrying about almost everything. There are very few, almost minimal things which you can be sure of in life. The more such things are in your life, the more happy you are.

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Chasing the Mirage

Few moments back, I went up to the rooftop. Jakkhu, a Tibetan mastiff looked at me with adoring eyes as always. He is four months old now and 17 inches tall. He was just one month old and was 10 inches when we brought him. He is believed to grow up to 27 inches.

Jakkhu

Jakkhu has a routine and he strictly adheres to it. Every morning, after the dawn breaks, he needs something to eat. Before that, he heads out to pee and defecate. He has a regular spot out there in the field. We feed him corn flour as per the vet's suggestion. He can not have meat till he is 6 months. Immediately after eating, he climbs the stairs towards the rooftop. He stays there, plays, sleeps in the warm sun, moves towards the shadow of the garden swing which we have kept there when he is hot. Drinks water, chews a really big chew bone and plays with a ball which squeaks when pressed. We feed him again at around 1. When the dusk starts spreading its shadow, Jakkhu starts barking and scratching the door. That's the signal he wants to come down. He has a basket near the stairs. He sits there, looks towards the kitchen and barks. He needs food at about 6. After which, he needs to go out, pee and defecate. Then he comes inside, coils himself in the basket and sleeps.

When I watch him playing with the ball, chewing the bone and spend his whole day in the roof top, I sometimes wonder these little things are enough for him to be happy. But, we human beings need so many things to be happy. The more we achieve, the more we yearn for and none of us is happy or content of what we have. We spend our entire life chasing after the mirage of achievements, one after other.

Wish we could be happy with small things too.

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Some translated poetry

Embassy of Norway had come up with a project around five years back. Few noted poets of Nepal were shown the visuals of Norway and they penned the impressions. I translated the poems in English. I was told that it was for goodwill and a voluntary job. Later some source revealed that there was a hefty budget for the translation, which I never saw. I don't know the truth. I am listing those translations just for record.

1. Midnight Sunshine / Ishwar Ballav

Defying the law of nature
are made the Scandinavian stature
hearts vast as sky
flowers breathing life in them
and soul made of snow


White feathery shapes of
clouds flutter
with the wings of birds
reflection of nature
chorus of melody
reach up to the blue
where the sun emerges in mid night


How very lucky
before anyone else
to see the light
they don't have to wait
for the twilight


Realities tender as heaven
a lass and a child
straight out of fairy tale
poetry penned with snow
Norway, a true replica
of a perfect dream land
country like a sweet ballad


When I am alone, I try
just for you
a country's rhyme
of midnight sunshine


Shoo away my darkness
you have to come
along with your sun rising
for me, you have to sing
your melody of light and dark
wearing the necklace
glittering with snowy spark


2. Painting of Nature / Ramesh Chhitij


Eon back-
sun received a souvenir
the finest masterpiece
ever made by nature


Glittering white mountains
and lakes so serene;
akin to eyes of philosophers
colorful trees and shrubs
racing mountain rivers
frolicking reindeers
carrying a tree of horns
gentle curves of roads
soaked in the shower of snowfall
ocean like a sleeping beauty


The gift was a painting
carved with the art of living


In the mind of ever roaming sun
trying to catch a wink in night
comes the glimpses of all
the painting received;vivid and bright
when everyone is engrossed
in tranquil sleep in mid night
the Norwegian sky opens its window
as the sun admires
the painting bestowed by nature
a quick content peek
before going to sleep

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the image we are projecting

State Minister for Health and Population Saroj Kumar Yadav, all drunk, misbehaved with doctors at the emergency ward of Bir Hospital on Sunday night. He verbally abused Dr Binita Joshi and threatened to “kick” and sack her, according to witnesses.

although i have mentally prepared myself for not being surprised, shocked, aghast and frustrated by any news anymore in this country, i am worried. if we look at the recent acts of leaders, ministers, high ranking authorities of various fields, we feel ashamed. ministers ignornat that they need a visa to travel in a foreign country, involved in criminal activities, corruption and abuse of their authority have been making news.

we know how a minister is made in our country. we know what it takes to get appointed to various high ranking positions. but, all those in the world are unaware of the facts. for them, such people are supposed to be the best of their respective fields. in this regard, how would they be judging or evaluating nepal and general nepalese? what is the image are they projecting to the world?

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why are we judgemental?

i twitted about a meeting with some producer director. my tweets are linked with my facebook page. immediately after the tweet, i was amazed to see one comment which accused me that the new film must be of the same old pattern. it made me think twice. why are we so judgemental about other people? why do we jump to conclusions without knowing anything? there are two sides of every coin and every picture has its other side. but, most of us have our own pre concieved notion about everything in life. it applies to other people, their life and their activities too. it leads us to make prompt decisions and we are very vocal about it. for exapmple, a couple decide to seperate their ways. we immediately take side of whoever is closer to us and start blaming the other one for he failure. not even for an instance do we consider the fact that they might have their own side of story. we think what we prefer to think. we like what we prefer to like and we say what we want to say.
alas...we are not correct all the time.

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What Makes Special Days of Life Special?

How many special days are there in a person's entire life?

I do not remember the philosopher's name right now but there was an awesome thinking which I had read many years back.  It said that we have very few special days in our life.

Assuming that an average person has a life of 65 years, it means he lives 23725 days. From that you can deduct 1825 days because a normal person does not have childhood memory from below 5 years. It comes to 21900 days. Yet, most of the days from that huge amount just pass in between. At any given point of life if you try to remember your past, you can only remember few days. Those too- not in detail. It's almost impossible to remember the 24 hours and 60 minutes inside them which makes a single day. We remember only few selected days of our entire life because of certain importance. For example we remember the day we had a first crush, a first infatuation, first love, first kiss, first time we learnt to ride a bicycle, motorbike, car and likewise. Rest just passes in between.

Special days are gems, treasures of our life. What makes a day special might vary from person to person. Your beloved's birthday or your child's birth might be a special day for you.  Or your marriage anniversary might be a special day. These days become special only if you feel the importance and spend it specially. If the importance of such days is not felt, they pass just as any other days out of those 21900 days. It is not the day that is special; it is the way you feel, treat and spend it makes it special. Believe me, there are very few such special days in our life. We should not let them just drift away. We can or not make them special for us or for whom it matters. They can be your beloved, your spouse, your children, your parents or your friends. If you fail to do it, it is even your loss.

Do not let those special days vapor away. They are the true treasures of life and if once gone, they will never come back.

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Limits Of Rise & Fall

Is there a limit as to how much a person can fall or rise in his own eyes? Probably not. 

Either willingly, or unknowingly, a person takes this roller coaster ride several times during his life. Sometimes, a person lets him go deep down in his own eyes for various reasons. When he/she is sacrificing? Probably yes. Or maybe when being taken for a ride or becoming an emotional fool. Sometimes getting carried over by emotion, sometimes under the misconception of being greater than others and most of the times while letting one's heart rule the head. Logic fails to hammer in the stark reality of life in such instances. And, a person becomes what he is not. It is not only for the yearning of appreciation. Nor it is for the greed of illusion of being superior than others. On top of that there are idiots  who pen poems such as,

"खोज्छन् सबै सुख भनी खै त्यो सुख कहाँ छ,

आफू मिटाइ अरूलाई दिनु महाँ छ"

(true pleasure is in giving to others demolishing yourself)

Alas, when a person realizes that his efforts of self destruction has gone in vain, he/she never gets that real pleasure glorified by flowery words of literature.

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