The Morning After..

The wedding season has, for the time being, come to an end for us. Back to back family weddings had turned my world topsy-turvy. A sort of block had engulfed me. These blocks usually come un-announced; almost in stealth mode and they attack when one is most vulnerable. And when your sleep and digestion are going awry, you are at your most vulnerable!

The ‘Love List’ was not completed. Maybe it was an ambitious attempt on my part considering the wedding and all. I did manage to read A Russian Affair (a collection of short stories by Chekov) and An Equal Music by Vikram Seth. An Equal Music is a book about love and loss, about friendships and broken relationships. But above all, it is about music. The book, for me, was a tutorial on symphonies, piano sonatas, chamber music and string quartets. It also introduced me to The Lark Ascending and Bach’s magical piece, The Art of Fugue.

An Equal Music is also a heart breaking love story of Julia (a pianist) and Michael (a violinist).  

‘In the painting I saw, in the books I read, I recalled her, for she had in many ways been the making of me’.  

‘When I hear Bach, I think of her. When I play Haydn or Mozart or Beethoven or Schubert I think of their city. She showed me that city, every step and stone of which brings her back to me. I have not returned there for ten years’.

Hubby dear is reading Maurice (another book on the love list) and I abandoned reading The Thorn Birds. There are so many books to read and new authors to discover that re-reading it seemed a slight waste of time. I’d watch the HBO mini-series once again, and ogle over Richard Chamberlain!

To undo the block I did some major reading this past week and managed to finish two books, Tender Hooks and The Catcher in the Rye. The ‘Life’s too Short’ Competition is just around the corner and I have to finalize my submission for that also (more details to follow).

It’s good to be back!