The Man Who Flew the Devil –and the Emerald-Eyed Empress
For here lie the mortal remains of the man who once flew the devil in the back seat and famously said: “the fate of the world was in my hands.”
Selma Tufail
La presencia de mi padre fallecido: cuentos de lo inesperado
Desde entonces, no he sentido mucha la presencia de mi padre otra vez. Pero cada vez que recuerdo este incidente, casi puedo escucharlo reír, su risa feliz y despreocupada.
The Presence of my Late Father: Tales of the Unexpected
…I have never felt the presence of my late father again. But whenever I remember this incident, I can almost hear him laughing —his carefree, happy laugh.
Never a Jezebel: In the footsteps of Phoenicians
An early settlement of Phoenicians in Iberia (Modern Spain) My bare feet sink into the cool wet sand of the Guadalmar Beach. The sun is about to rise, and there… Read more Never a Jezebel: In the footsteps of Phoenicians →
A Happy Teenager: How I Integrated into a Different Culture
My stay in London taught me that there was immense beauty in diversity. How boring would it be if all looked and dressed alike, ate the same food, and had the same culture. But the most important lesson I learnt is that thoughts are conveyed to others as vibes, and not necessarily through interaction. Integration or friendship cannot be rewarding or long-lasting without total sincerity from both sides.
Through the Looking Glass at Lyndhurst – Unexpected Serendipity
Much has been written about Charles, twenty years older than Ms. Liddell, and his relationship with the little girl. Did he feel any pangs of tender passion, romantic attachment or an aberrant sexual attraction to the little girl, or was it all innocent and pure, merely a platonic fondness with which he was drawn to the little girl on an entirely spiritual plane?
DEAR MARCUS AURELIUS, LOVE RANJINI
Bk. 5. 1: In the morning, when you find it hard to rouse yourself from your sleep, have these thoughts ready at hand: ‘I am rising to do the work of a human being. Soon I will have a mug, (with Marcus emblazoned on it, or another with the words Amor Fati, Love your Fate, not just accept it, but desire it), steaming with dark-roast coffee.
Dorchester, the Fascinating County Town of Dorset – Unexpected Serendipity
I think Tess of the d’Urbervilles is to the English, what Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary is to the French and Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina is to the Russians – themes of sexual encounters, challenge to societal norms, infidelity, carnal desires and passion.
The Story of the Unpaired Sock by Eduardo González Constán (translated from Spanish)
“I don’t want to discourage you, but a mismatched sock has no future,” said a stiff, cocky shirt that also hung from the rope.
Historia de un calcetín desparejado por Eduardo González Constán (with a complete translation)
Read A complete translation here: The Story of the Unpaired Sock Jamás se le pasaría por su pequeña cabeza de lana a aquel viejo calcetín que cuando saliese de la… Read more Historia de un calcetín desparejado por Eduardo González Constán (with a complete translation) →
From Asian Mountain Ranges to the Astonishing Deserts of Africa
Gibli رياح القبلى , the Libyan sandstorm, is my worst nightmare. It descends from the highlands of the country making its way to the Mediterranean. It covers everything in its path with a layer of fine red sand.
A “Misunderstood Artist” or a disastrous attempt at detail?
Children have a mind that has not yet been indelibly marked by the world they live in. This is what fascinates me when I talk to them. They come up… Read more A “Misunderstood Artist” or a disastrous attempt at detail? →
Death in the Afternoon: In the Footsteps of Hemingway
By Nasser Tufail The day arrives and we both show up early at Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas, eager, but anxious, about our personal experience of Death in the… Read more Death in the Afternoon: In the Footsteps of Hemingway →
Hemingway’s Obsolete Machismo: For Whom The Bulls Still Toil!
The Sun Also Rises, a story was inspired by Hemingway’s first bullfight experience. His graphic description of the running of the bulls at Pamplona’s Fiesta de San Fermín certainly helped popularize a local event into the world’s most recognized ‘bovine madness party’ which attracts over a million visitors every year.
100 Magical Days on Tillism: An Awesome Response
A peek at some of the contributions our friends on Tillism have made in the past 100 days.
Beautiful Imperfections: Interlocking Threads with Memories
Hand crafted projects rarely are perfect, I remind myself. I have learnt to embrace these imperfections and incompleteness, the wabi sabi (侘寂) of life. The simple Japanese concept of coming to terms with transience, the imperfections and the incompleteness that life holds.
A Painfully Shy Girl Finds Her Voice: An Unexpected Challenge
It took 25 years for my self-confidence to find a foothold, and 25 years more to ensure permanent stability.
Memoir excerpt from – Love, Kannon: Our Pilgrimage to Tokyo
A woman, Maria, approached me at the Buddhist temple on Millcreek Drive in Mississauga, Ontario—“I feel I have to talk with you”—and introduced me to a female Buddha with toenails and fingernails painted pink, one foot stepping forward, holding a vase and the wish-fulfilling jewel of the enlightened mind.
Spies, Hunters, & AK-47s: Reflections on the Trans-Siberian Express
“Lake Baikal near Irkutsk … holds one fifth of the total fresh water in the world and its length at 636 KM is more than the distance between Los Angeles and San Francisco!
…the Mirny diamond mine in the Sakha region of Eastern Siberia. This is one of the deepest open pit diamond mines in the world where temperatures can go down to a piercing ‐57 °C.”
The 7-year-old ‘Persian’ who wanted to go home
What I had imagined were shadowy road side bushes were actually tanks. It was the summer of 1979.