TODAY, MAY 30th, IS MEDICAL BATCH 62 REMEMBRANCE DAY
We had a very good response from colleagues, and I was pleased to post a series of reminiscences and appreciations in the last week.
This is a short video to complete the series, and I like to thank everybody who contributed and commented and the many who do access the Blog although they do not always post comments.
PLEASE CLICK ON THE ARROW IN THE YOUTUBE ICON FOLLOWED BY A CLICK ON THE FULL-SCREEN ICON (which will appear when you click on the youtube arrow) ON THE RIGHT, TO ENJOY THE VIDEO. IT WILL PLAY FULLSCREEN.
I like to post Kumar Gunawardane's Poem again as a most suitable finale for this year.
“Death has nothing to do with going away,
The sun sets,
And the moon sets,
But they are not gone”
Jalal-ad-Din Rumi
So, we should ponder,
Our friends are not gone.
Rather, we will remember,
“The splendour in the grass”
The laughter,
The joy,
The loves,
The boozy babels.
Also, the dejection of defeat,
Of anguish,
Of separation,
Of heartbreaks.
We who remain,
shall,
Hold on to the golden thread,
Of the gleaming years,
Of our fleeting youth,
Riding our winged chariots,
Spurred on by our tribe,
Of glorious lads and lasses
The sun sets,
And the moon sets,
But they are not gone”
Jalal-ad-Din Rumi
So, we should ponder,
Our friends are not gone.
Rather, we will remember,
“The splendour in the grass”
The laughter,
The joy,
The loves,
The boozy babels.
Also, the dejection of defeat,
Of anguish,
Of separation,
Of heartbreaks.
We who remain,
shall,
Hold on to the golden thread,
Of the gleaming years,
Of our fleeting youth,
Riding our winged chariots,
Spurred on by our tribe,
Of glorious lads and lasses
Personally its been a good Remembrance 2023. I have recalled most fondly those of my friends who were close to me in the faculty. Writing about them brought them closer to my life once again. My eyes did well up at times and I needed some fresh air. I remembered some of my teachers too with gratitude. How lovely it is to keep the month of May every year to Remember friends and Teachers. They will always be in our lives.
ReplyDeleteThank you dear Speedy for making the Remembrance Day so memorable with your sustained efforts . Though we remember our beloved departed friends through out the year , setting aside a special day has made it more meaningful. Like Nihal I found myself choking up and wiping away a tear .
ReplyDeleteI also want to say a special thank you to Bunter with her suggestion that we link up with the " lost sheep " Let's all try to make an effort to do so.
Suri
Suri
DeleteIt is wonderful to have you on the blog. Do stay with us despite your busy schedule. The Blog is the next best thing to a proper reunion with the advantage of connecting with friends when we wish to do so. With dwindling numbers our support will be crucial to keep the Blog alive.
Dear Mahendra and Nihal,
ReplyDeleteI thought I should give adequate notice to the two of you, to start preparing a Remembrance Day for our Blogspot, which appears to be in the departure lounge!
Sanath, I don't agree with you that the blog is breathing its last. There are times when it seems to need life support, but recently I have noticed that people like Suri have been successful with giving it some CPR! Hang in there!
DeleteDear Sanath
ReplyDeleteIts been vibrant blog full of life for over a decade. Dwindling numbers, health issues and sheer age has made the blog what it is now. There will be a few of us who will keep alive this candle in the wind. We have always appreciated your valued support and will continue to do so. At a time when reunions are hard to organise and also to attend. This is the best we can do to keep in touch and express an opinion.
Nihal, I agree with you totally
ReplyDeleteWe can only do so much. It is natural for the numbers to decline with time and if not for support from Nihal, Sanath, Kumar, Bora, Suri, and earlier from Chira, Zita, Razaque, Rohini and Sumathi, the blog would have not gone even this far. It has been a great medium to allow us to be connected.I suppose we will plod on for some more time!
ReplyDeleteI missed Srianee’s name. My apologies Srianee!
DeleteApology accepted! I am a bit inconsistent, I confess.
DeleteTo Mahen and Nihal
ReplyDeleteThank you for organizing our Annual Remembrance Week and Remembrance Day. It was a great effort on your part, which I greatly appreciated. I found the fond memories and sad stories moving. Thank you to all of you who contributed. I would also add that this event has given us the opportunity to pay respect ,as a group, to the lives of our departed batchmates and teachers.
Bora
DeleteThank you. We all appreciate your humorous banter and comments and look forward to the same.
Thanks for all the comments. I hope my video was suited for the occasion. Nobody commented on it (apart from a note of musical appreciation to me from Rohini).
ReplyDeleteMahen, I am now finally getting around to commenting on your video and musical composition which is a beautiful and a fitting tribute. I listened to it and was about to comment, but as I scrolled down got distracted by what others had written and had to respond! (This is what life is like for me these days - distractions and interruptions!).
ReplyDeleteYour efforts at making the month of May a month-long remembrance is much appreciated. To all those who contributed articles and comments, a big Thank You! I am really very impressed at the details that were shared by Suri, Nihal, Bora and others.
On an earlier post we did discuss the possibility of a Zoom reunion, since organizing reunions in person are almost impossible now. I do remember that we did a couple of Zoom meetings during the Covid lockdowns and it was lovely. Let's give this some serious thought.
Mahen, thank you again for keeping the flame of friendship burning.
Srianee, your kind comment is well appreciated. You have been one of the principal players in administering life support for the blog! I am reluctantly coming to the conclusion that interest is slowly but surely ebbing away. Having said that, I will do my best to keep it going.
ReplyDeleteThe above comment was from me
Delete