Thursday 4 October 2018

Nail Bites

Nails, nails, my lovely nails
Ten of my nails in my lovely fingers
They look flat, and beautiful
Days passed by and something happened
I started biting my nails when I got anxious
My lovely nails got crooked and bitten

People around thought yuck-yuck-yuck
Nail-biter, called by buddies
Better stop it now, said my dad
My lovely nails, I wanted to stop biting
I was out of control and couldn't stop
For a year or two, I tried and tried
Determination is what I had to have
I decided to stop, stop and stop
Shouted, screamed and let things go
I stopped biting them for once
Happy, happy and happy forever
Nails, nails, my lovely nails
I have them back intact

(Published in Creative Communications, Poetic Power)

Thursday 31 May 2018

Monday 19 March 2018

Travelogue


MY SPRING BREAK TRIP

After a lot of planning, I went to Nevada and Arizona with my family during spring break.
In Nevada we went to Las Vegas and in Arizona we went to the Grand Canyon.

On my first day (in Las Vegas) we checked into our resort and then took a stroll through "the strip". It was really busy in the night and there were a lot of people gaming in casinos. I really wanted to try my luck but it is the Nevada law that no one under 21 can game in casinos. We got back to the hotel really late and then slept.

The next day we spent most of our time in a resort named The Mirage. This was my best part because we went to the secret garden and dolphin habitat. There I saw a lot of wild cats and dolphins. One of the Snow White Siberian tigress got excited and started going every direction I went, it was fun and I went running and hopping. But a security man (who was really nice) came and advised that I should not get it excited as they are natural predators. The rest of the day we visited other resorts and shopping malls in the strip. In the evening we watched a legendary show of illusions by DavidCopperfield (the magician in the act) and it was mind blowing.

On the third day we went to the strip again but this time we took a taxi and went to the resort named Venetian. This was a really nice resort based on the European city, Venice. I only have vague memories about my trip to Venice a long time ago. This resort had gondolas (a type of boat in Venice which has unique way of rowing) and a lot of nice restaurants which were mostly Italian. We also visited a really nice art gallery by a famous photographer Pete Lik. Then we rented a convertible yellow Ford Mustang for our road trip to the Grand Canyon in Arizona. All of us were excited about the car and enjoyed our ride to Yavapai lodge inside the Grand Canyon National Park.


The following day we spent most of our day at the viewpoints to see the Grand Canyon. The best view we had was at the Desert view in the South rim of the Grand Canyon. My dad did a wonderful sketch of the canyon with my brothers' crayons. We were lucky to spot some wildlife in the Kaibab National Forest on our way back. Then we drove back to Las Vegas that evening. On the way my mom found a really nice Italian restaurant as my brother was craving for spaghetti and meatballs. We were all concerned that my brother might catch a bad cough but luckily he got alright. That night we checked into a resort named Circus Circus which was kid friendly not like the others. We watched a circus act late night and played some games in the arcade.

On our last day we spent all of our time in this fun place called the Adventure-dome in Circus Circus. Me and my brother took a full day pass with unlimited rides and we did a lot of kids gambling and skill games. I got a big jackpot! In the end with all our tickets we bought a gun, a woopy cushion and some candy. Then we watched a clown act which was funny and I got to hold a spinning ball on the tip of my pointer finger. My parents also did some souvenir shopping. Then we gave back our rented car and went to the airport in a bus, and here I am in writing my travelogue in the airplane.


Well, that was a fun and memorable trip!

By
MahaDev S Nair




Monday 5 March 2018

Stress Buster

Amma: Mahadev, what do you do when you are stressed?
MahaDev: You mean when I am nervous or tensed?
Amma: Yes
MahaDev: I think about Kammu. His face can bring a smile for sure. I feel relieved then!

Happy Amma!!!

PSIA district winner, advancing to State Meet