Smitha Vishwanath's Blog, page 3

Book Review 18/ 50, 2025 : Sun Haiku by Dawn Pisturino

This week I have two reviews- both of poetry books. One, by blogger, Dawn Pisturino and the other, by Vandana Bhasin, who co-authored a poetry book with me. I planned to write them together but once I wrote the review on Dawn’s book, I decided to keep them separate, as both are very different and […]

Kenya Diaries: A trip to Gura river and Aberdare country club

Summer has set in and although it’s just begun, it isn’t pleasant between 11 a. m. to 5.30 p. m. if you’re outdoors. The equatorial sun shines brightly and the absence of particulate matter in the air to absorb it ( in other words, the air is pure), the UV is very high. However, if […]

The story behind this painting : Walking with a friend

There is a story behind this painting (see below). I first did a painting of these two Vietnamese school girls walking after the rain, in June, 2020. That was done as a landscape using acrylics. One of my friends loved it and wanted it. But I did not give it to her because I wasn’t […]

Thankful Thursdays 18.09.25 and Thursday Doors

It’s that day of the week again when I recount my blessings and share some beautiful doors from across the world as part of the Thursday doors challenge hosted by Dan Anton. It’s so easy to get bogged down by the things not working out for us and forget about all the things that are. […]

Published : 5 micropoems in ‘The Short of it’

PC – sarandy westfall – Unsplash These poems were published on 5/7/2024, but I saw them only now. 5th July, 2024, was when I was in Dhaka and there was an internet shutdown. We lost all connectivity with the world. The governement fell, Sheikh Hasina was ousted and an interim government was appointed. The internet […]

Quote 30 : Friends and Acquaintances

Note: I don’t use curse words and I don’t encourage its usage but I used this quote today because, over the last few days, I have been feeling ‘What the hell is wrong with people these days?’ The word ‘Friend’ is overly misused. With social media making it so easy to connect with people and […]

Art : Whirling Dervishes

It’s a year since I did an acrylic painting or any painting on a canvas. With all the moving around over the year, it’s been hard to do anything beyond working in a sketch book. However, reading Elif Shafaq’s book ‘Forty Rules of Love’, and a conversation with an acquaintance made me want to try […]

Kenya Diaries: Thankful Thursday 040925 Thursday Doors – Shrine of Remembrance, poetry- Lest we forget

It’s been a busy week: lunch at a friend’s place ( someone I met at another friend’s house), a neighbour’s birthday celebration and my first meeting at a book swap group. Meeting so many people in a short span of time has been a test to my memory. At the first friend’s house, I met […]

Art : Attempt at portrait drawing, Tanka Tuesday 08/26/25

After my last fiasco with portrait drawing, many months ago, I mustered the courage to try again ( I may have starting trouble but I don’t give up easily). This time, I think, there is an improvement and yet, it’s a little off because I did not use grid lines. They are the bane of […]

Book Review 17/50 2025 : The Keeper of Happy Endings by Barbara Davies

This is a lovely book that grows on you. Written between two time periods – 1943-1945, Paris (World War 2) and 1985, Boston, with two protagonists- Soline (a dress witch, a French seamstress who belongs to the Roussel family, bridal designers with a speicality – who sew charms into wedding gowns to ensure happy and […]