Reaching Twenty One
Book no 21, of course. I reached 21 so long ago I barely remember it.
This 21st book is even more of a milestone because it is special. I dabble a little in art and it has been my dream to illustrate a book of my own poetry. You don’t need to be a professional artist to do that. Now it is no longer a dream. The book will be out soon with a print edition on Amazon.
I have been keeping a daily drawing practice for years, mostly pencil sketches. It relaxes me to untangle the complexity of a simple leaf or flower using a pencil. Out of the pile of sketchbooks, I selected around 30 pencil sketches and a few watercolours and sent them in to my publisher, Dibya Jyoti of Red River. He approved and created a beautiful design for my book, drawings to accompany the haiku poetry. I loved the cover on sight and most people I showed it too also liked it. Do you like it?
Where Rivers Meet
When covid brought a lockdown in 2020, we were completely unprepared. Life came to such a sudden halt that people were discussing their travel plans – the long commute from bedroom to dining table and back. The highlight of the day was standing at the window.
My long commute was in drawing. In pencil miles I have probably circumambulated the earth.
Mornings, of course, are for writing the next book, a schedule I rarely change. During the lockdown afternoons, after lunch had been cleared and the sun was still bright, I sat at the dining table with my pencils and sketchbook. I painted bright flowers to keep me going like the sketchy little watercolour poppies on the cover.
I do not remember how long it took me to get the bouganvilla below – possibly days.
The intricacies of a flower
Where Rivers Meet is a collection of my work over the last fifteen years or so. My published haiku, haibun travel tales, lockdown woes and the delights of nature. Looking back, its been a long journey and much labour has gone into the 21 books. Even more effort is going into book no 22 which is a novel. The mere size of a novel which can top one lakh (one hundred thousand) words can seem overwhelming. You have to take it one step at a time, one small section at a time, not in chronological order. Mine is going well, still a bit recalcitrant, but sliding slowly into shape.
So, with book no 21, Where Rivers Meet (the title is always taken from one of the haiku in the book) two journeys come together – 15 or so years of haiku poetry and many, many years of playful fiddling with art supplies. Its not the beginning and nowhere near the end. I know that as long as I write and draw for the sheer delight of doing it, my life will continue to be an adventure – what is around the next corner, where will that story or graphite line take me, into which new world?
I can’t wait to find out. See you there, in the always unexpected future which is never what you expect and that is the beauty of it. Though I know one thing which my immediate future holds – my book in my hands. Coming soon.
