musingswhileunlearning

  Is there a reason behind a face being etched in your memory; someone you hardly knew? Photo by Mari Madriz on Unsplash Last evening after Trataka (candle gazing meditation), I sat in silence with my eyes closed and allowed for thoughts to come and go and then she came into focus and stayed. Reena. Reena Mathew or Reena Sebastian? I fail to remember. Perhaps her husband was Sebastian Mathew. She took me down memory lane to when I was in grade two or three, aged six or seven. For some reason her face appeared to me as a black and white photograph. I have never seen a picture of her, so that is odd. 1980-81, Alwaye, Kerala. My grandfather was a doctor and at that time he had a little dispensary within the large compound and tended to patients with minor ailments. He had had two major heart attacks himself so he did things at snail’s pace. Personally, I think he was always like that being a Sagittarius. Laid back, independent in his own quiet way, naughty and a whole lot of fun. My

  Is the need to give and receive additional appreciation leading to expectation and corruption? Recently, I got a mail in my inbox stating that “tipping” is being introduced on that particular site for writers. Readers can show their appreciation for the writer by accessing a button and paying them a tip. I am a writer and I should’ve jumped for joy. Patrons always existed. Yet, I was disturbed. I sat with that feeling. Did I think of myself as unworthy? Did I have an unhealthy relationship with money? After a fair amount of thought, I realized that these questions may have been answered in the affirmative a year ago; not anymore! Then why was I restless? Honestly, I had been mulling over this very topic for a blog for a while now and this mail was the final nail in the proverbial coffin! “Tipping” or Gratuity as it is formally known, was a term that came about in the 16 th century or so from the French word “gratuite” meaning graciousness. This term that was coined in Europe