When we were five and eight, my mother sat my brother and me down to teach us evening prayers for the first time. As the sky breathed out whispers of pink, purple and orange, the neighborhood blinked fluorescent tubes from its eighteen windows to see in the dark that was…

I became a Post Grad in literature not too long ago. At the time, I was not anticipating a quarter-life crisis. But six months into not being part of an institution, I am, like a few others in my peer group, barely managing to feel comfortable with this state of…

For the greater number of my twenty three years, I suffered from an ailment that baffled my family: obsessive dog disorder. My family would listen with the patient observance of a psychiatrist to my screams and throes in the night, when our golden retriever wagged and whimpered in her dream…

Death always happens to someone else. It doesn't suit the people we know. Death doesn't look good on our family, our friends or even our acquaintances. We can stomach obituaries when they are reduced to a statistic. We reframe and force ourselves to think of death in terms of percentages…

I was looking through the photos I had taken this past year and it was surprising to me that I could remember the backstories for only a few of the pictures. …

You know those dreams where you are roaming around the schoolyard, not wanting to be there, per the usual, and then you look down to see that you walked in front of the staff rooms, ran across the playground and sat on the corridor with no pants? You weren't looking…

Thinking of the birds is easier than thinking of myself. With my self, I take a deep dive, consider the cause and effect of every gesture, every fuss, and every reaction. With the birds, I can care for them without obsessing about them. I don’t wish a fussy bird would…

As a kid, I was dressed by my mother. She dressed me in soft pink frocks, buried me in white velvet turtlenecks where at least a quarter of my face sunk into the collar. I detested every piece of clothing I was bought. …

I'm writing this more for myself than for others. But in the process, if I help anyone, I'm happy to have served. Dear Anxiety, It is difficult to remind yourself now that this too shall pass. The catastrophes and tragedies you dreaded are materialising around you and you can't help…