News from the land down under + family secrets

My friend Simon whatsapped me from Melbourne this morning:
Quick group update, Mum overdosed yesterday is in emergency department at Frankston hospital will be moved to mental health ward tomorrow to start shock treatment...I guess accepting dad going into permanent care then her brother dying and then trying to adapt to living alone was a bit too much for her...dad is fine happy in his nursing home.Dog is being lodged in Berwick at a pet motel and I am exhausted...keep u posted Simon xxx
All this sounds quite depressing.I hope life eventually harbors everyone in a safe place where they all find peace of mind.

My brother and his family are going for a road trip. They will drive westwards from Beijing for about three days up to Qinhai lake. They also want to dip into the grasslands of inner Mongolia on their way back. I can't wait to see the pictures of what promises to be an awesome adventure.

Last year, at this very same period, Vimla was on her way to Lhasa and had stopped in Ladakh. She sent me pictures of places of such beauty that I thought they were out of this world. She stopped in a tiny village and asked a lady where she could wash her hair as she had been travelling for ten days without being able to take a proper bath. The woman graciously invited my friend inside her dwelling, heated some water in her pressure cooker, asked her son to go get two small samples of shampoo from the nearby hawker, invited my friend to lie on the bed and washed her hair. She lives in a 15 sq.mt house with her family. This story is like a warm broth on a cold winter evening.

On another note, yesterday, I chatted with my uncle for the first time. He is my father's half brother and his existence had been kept secret for eons from us. It was a well known fact that my paternal grandfather was a womanizer but a lesser known one that he had another child out of his marriage. I came to know about the existence of my uncle just a few years ago and I never knew what he looked like. With the help of FB, I managed to trace him back and was glad and relieved that he accepted my friend request. When Vimla told me that he came to her center, I decided that it was time for me to break the ice and I sent him a message following which we started exchanging. The reason why he kept such a low profile throughout all his life was because he did not want to bother the 'clan'. The dark side of the moon is being revealed. 'The past says a lot about your present ' goes the saying. Maybe there are answers to be found, maybe not.

My brother might be going to Mongolia but my expedition to the land of the unknown seems more daunting.

I can't believe how much I love this version

20th to 24th July Scorecard

Wednesday afternoon walk	Remarks	Score
Incumbent	Vimla
Purpose of meeting	To boost incumbent up
Catch phrase	Mone pense pou mett fin a mo la vie
Action taken	Mone zoure li, zoure li,zoure li
Outcome	She says she is feeling better now	6/10
Friday Evening Dinner
Incumbents:	Baba, Shaf and Boule
Purpose of meeting	To celebrate Shaf's graduation
Catch phrases	Mone guélé fort fort kan michou ine mort/ I am getting married and was waiting for this dinner to tell you/ I took a sentimental commitment towards the girl but broke up with her today / I, too, want a glass of wine
Reaction	Surprised	4/10
Friday Late Night Phone Sex
Incumbent	Un parfait inconnu
Purpose of chat	Sex
Catch phrases	Tone vini?
Outcome	Typed a thank you note after the steamy virtual sex session but sent it to the wrong person!!!	0/10
Saturday morning
Incumbent	Iqbal
Purpose of meeting	Reconnect with neighbours
Catch phrase	Yassin Owadally on the newspaper sheet taken to get rid of dog poo in the garden
Reaction	We were absolutely delighted by Iqbal's visit
Outcome	I felt lighter	10/10
Saturday afternoon
Incumbent	Boris
Purpose of meeting	Cheesecake
Catch phrase	Je ne me sentais pas à l'aise en arrivant ici mais finalement j'aime bien l'endroit
Reaction	:) :) :)
Outcome	Good vibes for the rest of the day	10*/10
Saturday evening
Incumbent	Blue Sky Team
Purpose of meeting	Dinner at Heritage Le Telfair
Catch phrase	Qui c'est qui a une saucisse à table à laquelle je pourrais goûter?
Reaction	Honestly, does that even call for a reaction?
Observation	Can't wait to start operations	7/10
Sunday morning
Incumbent	Baba
Purpose of text	Bury me six feet under
Catch phrases	To pou touye moi ! / Kifer? / I am thinking about getting married too
Reaction	Grands Dieux! Achevez-moi!
Observation	Ah well, tant qu’on y est…	8/10

Rosemonde Ménard (1943 - 2016)

Your song for the world to listen has ended

To me, it will remain a timeless melody

A delicate reminder of how you made me feel

These past thirty-three years; awesome & singular

Back then, you reached out to a ten-year old kid

And the rest is history...our story

One rooted in trust, laughs, strength, authenticity

And that unflinching will to be honest

On your death bed, I sat 

And whispered to your ear

That you had mattered,

That the purpose of your life had been fulfilled

Though your eyes remained closed

I could feel the shiver through your being

You can rest in peace, my friend

To trigger happiness inside human hearts,

To love and to be loved unconditionally till the end

Is the attribute of the lucky few

Generation labels

So, I started reading about the generation labels after a course I attended yesterday and that got me into some serious thoughts. Am I to be tagged as a GenX, 'the lost generation' by virtue of my behavior or simply because I was born in an era where people were naturally 'slackers'? From what I understand generation Z, though versed towards cloud computing and facetime, doesn't dig social media as much as the generation which precedes them. In the wave of continuous terrorist attacks and the prevailing of natural calamities, they long for human warmth and face to face socialization.

In a world where boundaries are often set or defined by the media, are we to be continuously processed,digested and labeled before we even know it or should we simply laugh out loud when researchers will call generation alpha the worst of all generations? Such condescension is appalling.
Those born in the beginning of the last century were called 'the greatest generation', mine 'the lost generation' and the coming one 'the worst generation'. I wonder who comes up with such shit! Each coming generation should be called the best one in its own field because they are synonymous to progress and evolution and they evolve according to their needs. Tagging generations as 'lost' or 'worst' because customs, conventions and norms evolve is somehow reductive.

True, we are birthed  and shaped by the whims and impulses of the society but there are two sides to a coin. The kids to come will be sharper, more intuitive and probably even wiser than we have been in our times. Their survival instinct will force them to choices which in turn will frame them conveniently or inadequately. I just hope for an ethnically more diverse and tolerant society, where sexual preferences would not be an issue anymore.

Oh my God...I'm Flying!!!

Half-way through July and I haven't posted anything yet.
I have joined an airline company. I figured out that it was the best way for me to travel. Air tickets are way too expensive when you live on a tiny island and I still need to see more of the world before it collapses completely.
Earlier this month I went to watch "Demain" and it gave me hope for a better future. Last night's attack in Nice left me with no words, just like the ones in Bagdad, Istanbul and Orlando.We have hit a never-ending spiral of violence and tragedies and I need to believe there is still good in people.
Wished Sujata a happy 7th birthday on skype yesterday. She has grown so cute. Kalim called at night for advice, I brought Sid for pizza this evening, texted Boris and called Mike to check on him and his family. Vimla just 'whatsapped' me the following message " When you are laughing, you cannot be in the past or in the future" ;)