Three Words:Three Stories - Part 1

The stories that emerge from your deep experiences often tend to be most honest. You don't care whether your readers will like them or not. What matters is your ability to write what you want.

Last few weeks have been a struggle to re-live some experiences and draw inspiration from them.

This post has three words shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group and the stories I wrote about them.

Hinterland

noun [hin-ter-land]

the remote or less developed parts of a country; back country

Tale: Embrace

He buried all his negative thoughts in the hinterlands of his mind. Not knowing how to deal with them, he carried on for years, with problems in his life. It was a great way for a workaholic like him to just bulldoze ahead. His calm exterior and manner of speech belied the violence that had taken root in his heart. He didn't realize he was on the edge and tipping point was just days away. As he walked down from his office today, a woman appeared from nowhere and hugged him. The embrace was selfless and warm. The dams in his eyes opened, as if he had lived for this moment. When he wiped the tears, after what seemed like an eternity, the darkness engulfed him. The woman was not there. But a light shone bright somewhere inside.

Mutable

adjective [myoo-tuh-buh l]

given to changing; fickle or inconstant

Tale: Fashionable Smile

Today it was red and yesterday it was burgundy. The highlights of her hair color changed so often that, I had lost count. She, the girl of my dreams, somehow kept up with the mutable trends in fashion. Some of her idiosyncrasies were beyond my understanding. Like that time when she started matching her scarves' color with her artificial lenses. Once the shrugs caught her fancy in peak summers. The sweat on her brow didn't deter her. But I loved her for something constant. She was kind and ever smiling. Her smile complimented every fashion whim of hers. That smile will never go out of season.

Ignominy

noun [ig-nuh-min-ee, ig-nom-uh-nee]

disgrace; dishonor; public contempt

Tale: The Suspect

It was a momentous day today for him, for his family. The judgement on his corruption case was to be pronounced today. He was accused of taking huge bribes for passing a sub standard bridge. When bridge collapsed, several people were killed. He had a spotless career till then. His case dragged for three years, where he systematically proved his innocence. The verdict that was delivered today, was a slap on the face of his detractors and those people who ran a slanderous media trial against him. As he walked out of the court premises a free man, he realized that while he is no longer a criminal in the eyes of law, he will always be a suspect for those who know him. He couldn't see people in their eyes. The ignominy of this public trial was too much for him to handle. He felt dying was easy. 

 

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 7

Today is a slow day at office. But I still feel less creative. I find my best answers and I think best when I am really busy and in a rush. I don't know if it is a good thing or not.

In this post, I share three stories that I wrote around three 'Word(s) of the Day' shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group. These stories are reflective of our current times in some way. Let us see if you can link them with things you identify with. Share your views in comments section. 

Opuscule

noun [oh-puhs-kyool]

a small or minor work

Tale: Social Media

He wrote an opuscule on imaginary friendships, in the future world, almost 300 years ago. That two page description was written by him out of frustration, because of the social ostracism he faced at the hand of upper caste brahmins. It was a paper written as a form of protest and nothing more. But as Google launched its personal assistant Allo last month, historians found some striking similarities with the imaginary friend described in his fictional work. His untitled work till that day, started trending on Twitter, and that paper is now known as 'Social Media Version minus One point O'.

Bailiwick

noun [bey-luh-wik]

a person's area of skill, knowledge, authority or work

Tale: Transformation

Stealing is an art and he was an artist. He stole for thrills rather than money. The pleasure he got from pulling off each impossible heist, was his driving force. More than that he enjoyed the agony he was able to cause to his victims. But last time, he fell into his own trap. As he zeroed down on a potential victim, who was a rich young girl, he made an elaborate plan to woo her, steal her heart and to run away with her jewellery. But he lost his heart to her instead. He decided to quit the life of crime. He now uses his bailiwick to help police with unsolved cases.

Dilatory

adjective [dil-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee]

tending to delay or procrastinate; slow; tardy

Tale: Waiting in the Wings

He was a prime minister in waiting for ten years now. A firebrand orator with radical ideas, he remained in shadows of his dominating mother's leadership. Every time, he staked the claim to the highest position, diversionary and dilatory tactics were deployed to thwart his attempts. But he continued building the ground support and was very popular among his party cadres. As the years progressed, his mother's health started failing. The clamour for naming her successor intensified. She declared that her younger daughter will be the next premier. The daughter who was extremely good looking and intelligent. While she hadn't done much party work, her persuasiveness and charms were well known. She was instrumental in getting the nuclear deal for the country last year and had hogged all the limelight. But it was a lesser known fact that tilted the mother in her favour. He was a child born out of wedlock. His father had died years ago because of unknown reasons and the housemaid died of poisoning, few days later.

Unheard Words, Radical Thoughts - Part 6

Long time again, since I visited the blog. Last month was busy, festive and fun-filled. Busy because, it was half year ending at office. Festive because, it was Diwali time. Fun-Filled because, I had a quick trip to Koh Samui, Thailand and had an amazing time there.

One thing, though, remained constant. I made a new story daily, around the 'Word of the Day' shared on our Readers' Club WhatsApp group. The three words in this post were worked on in early October. It is strange that when I wrote these stories, I had a different frame of mind and when I re-looked at them today, I found them strange. 

Stemwinder

noun [stem-wahyn-der]

a rousing speech, especially a stirring political address

Tale: Farewell Party

It was his farewell party his colleagues had thrown for him. He had given ten years to this job and groomed many leaders and won several admirers due to his integrity and passion at work. He was leaving now, not for a better opportunity, but to serve the society. After he cut the cake, his soon to be ex-boss asked him to say a few words. He delivered a stemwinder of a speech stressing on how to make volunteering work a part of our lives. In the weeks that followed, several of his colleagues resigned from their jobs and joined his NGO. His ex-boss regrets till date, giving him the farewell party. A regret not filled with remorse, but pride.

Stiver

noun [stahy-ver]

the smallest possible amount

Tale: Worthy

"You are not worth a stiver," she bellowed in agony, as he walked away from her. She was shivering with anger and her cheeks were glowing red, as she saw his back, fast vanishing into the sea of revellers gathered on the beach. They were dating each other for a year now. Today, they had come here to celebrate their anniversary, at the full moon party. As the sun was setting down, and music was still not very loud, he went down on his knees and proposed her. He took out a ring that he had bought with his savings of three years. She wasn't impressed a bit. She expected the stone to be heavier and costlier. He could see contempt in her eyes. There was no love. As she threw the ring away, he lunged to catch it. He got up, dusted his clothes, and walked away. He couldn't hear what she said. Tears flowed down his eyes and a smile appeared on his face. He now knew all shades of love.

Etymology

noun [et-uh-mol-uh-jee]

the derivation of a word

Tale: Question Paper

Please read the below text carefully and answer the questions following that. Each correct answer will fetch you 10 marks.

'The dacoits robbed the bungalow and didn't even leave a cot behind. They beat the security guard to chutney and vanished into the jungle. The thugs came to be known as pyjama gang as they robbed homes only wearing colored pyjamas and nothing else. Their mantra was very simple. The thieves targeted homes whose owners were away. This loot went on for years but no one could stop it. The last robbery went kaput when they entered a dog owner's home. The dog barked loudly alerting the police. All were killed that night in cross firing. Karma caught up with them.'

Q1. Please write all words with Indian etymology in the above text.

Q2. Identify the ones derived from Sanskrit and Hindi separately.