Ramblings of a Lonely Girl

Thursday 26 January 2012

2012 Witches and Witchcraft Reading Challenge

Hosted by Melissa

Details

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012. I will be posting a place to link up a sign-up post (below), reviews and a wrap-up post. (Note: You do not have to review the books to participate, but only those who link up reviews will be entered for the prize)

2. Grab the reading challenge button (code & button below) and post this reading challenge on your blog to track your progress. Please include a link back to this sign-up post so others can join the reading challenge too. You do not have to be a book blogger to participate- you could track your progress and post reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, etc.

3. Any full length book that includes a witch as a main character or major witchcraft elements counts. They may be fiction or non-fiction. However, they should not be reference books which are not read cover to cover-I will leave this to your discretion.

4. Books can be any format (bound, eBook, audio).

5. Re-reads and crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed.

6. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.

7. When you sign up in the linky put the direct link to your post about joining the 2012 Witches & Witchcraft Reading Challenge.

8. You can move up levels, but no moving down.

9. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2012, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
10. Have some Witchy Good Fun !!!

The Levels

Initiate: Read 1 - 5 Witchy Books

Maiden: Read 6 - 10 Witchy Books

Mother: Read 11 - 15 Witchy Books

Crone: Read 16 - 20 Witchy Books

I am trying for Maiden Level. Hope I get there. :) Good Luck for all the Participants.

I am starting the Challenge with Practical magic by Alice Hoffman

You can sign up here.

Love from,
*No one

*Lost Innocence

Lost Innocence

Rakesh smiled sadly at his younger sister Pooja as he entered into their home.

"Pooja?"

The little girl who was trying to boil water was clearly startled and turned around. Rakesh was sad to see the fear in his sister's eyes. He tried, yet again to explain. "Pooja, its me. No one else is going to come here." No response. "I have brought something for you. You would surely like this." He closed his sisters eyes with a piece of cloth and placed something in her hands.

She slowly took away the cloth dreading to see what was in her hand. It was a bubble blower. She was dumbstruck as the memories she dreaded started flowing back to her. She was lost in thoughts.

She was back in her home a few months ago watching Television. Her mother came home after work. "Hey Pooja dear. Hope you are fine? Where is your brother?"

"I am fine Mama. He is not yet home. He went out for playing." And she went near her mother and hugged her. Her mother hugged her back and gifted her a bubble blower. Pooja loved playing with it a lot. She smiled and took it from her mother and went to her backyard and starting blowing bubbles. She suddenly heard some noise from inside and went near the window to see what was happening.

Someone was inside her home. Two men where arguing with her mother. "Look here, you have no choice. You are leaving tomorrow. They need workers there. We have sold you to them. They feed you. Then whats your problem?", a fat person whom Pooja recognized from her mother's work place spoke.

"I am not leaving my kids alone here.", her mother shrieked.

"Well then, take them with you. Let them work with you.", another guy teased her. Her mother said, "Then why don't you send your women and children to work along with me?" Pooja was scared to see her mother angry. She seldom scolds anyone. That guy looked her mother with an extreme anger and then beat her. And then he kept kicking and beating her. By then there was a lot of noise coming from their home due to the vessels and other things being damaged. A few people peeped inside. But as soon as they saw those guys they just left. Pooja was silently weeping as her mother was being tortured.

After a few minutes, her mother no longer protested. But the guy kept beating her. The person Pooja recognized stopped him and bent over and felt her pulse and then turned around and shook his head. The other guy said, "What an useless thing she is? Lets go." And then they went.

Pooja stood there for a few minutes, after which she gained courage to step inside the wreck of her home. She moved like a lumber, scared to the core. She reached out to her mother, hugged her and started weeping. She was caressing her mother, wiping away the blood from her face, asking her to wake up. But her mother did not open her eyes.

After a few hours her brother, Rakesh came home. He was shocked to see his mother and started crying. Pooja started weeping again uncontrollably not even knowing what has happened. Rakesh hugged his sister and comforted her. And the rest is history.

Now, Pooja was standing near her brother looking at the bubble blower in her hand. There were a few drops of tears that were silently coming out of her eyes. She turned around to face her brother, "Bhaiyya. Never buy me a bubble blower again. I do not want to lose you too." She threw the bubble blower and ran towards a corner of her home and took one of her mother's pictures in hand and hugged it. And she started weeping again.

Remember, things you do affect people more than you can ever imagine.

Stop Human Trafficking. Let people live their lives.

Please Stop Human Trafficking

Written for Three Word Wednesday.
Image Courtesy: Link and Link.

Love from,
*No one

Wednesday 25 January 2012

*Wedding time

My favorite Wedding Dresses

Image Courtesy: Google Images. Click on the Images for specific Links.
Posted for Wordless Wednesday.

Love from,
*No one

*Power of Smile

Power of Smile

She woke up early in the morning

Like she does each and every day

After a quick bath she is off

To do her kitchen chores.

After a few hours

She wakes up her family

Drives them all the way to take bath

And gets them ready on time.

By the time they leave

She starts doing the laundry and

Cleaning her home

Which leaves her tired as usual.

And then she hears a loud cry

She rushes to her bedroom

To see her one year old crying in her crib

Once the kid caught sight of her mother

She stopped crying

Feeling safe and loved once again.

And she Smiles at her Mother.

Her mother feels relieved

Of all the tension she ever had

And smiles back at her daughter

Carefully lifting her from the crib

And kissing her in the forehead

And the rest is history.

Written for One Single Impression Prompt: Smile.
Image Courtesy: http://www.theta-dna-healing.net/baby.jpg

Love from,
*No one

Tuesday 24 January 2012

*Happy to be Me

Prompt: Tell a story about a moment in time when you were so happy you were you and not someone else in the room.

I am different.

I am an Engineering Graduate. During college, I rarely used to study. Not the oh-my-god-i-can't-study type. But more of a lets-see-what-happens type. I listen to classes half the time and never touch my books. My books are normally as fresh as new ones even after my semester gets over. So I was never the pet-puppy of many lecturers in my college. But many were. They read during study time, during breaks in college, during bus travel, in between meals, before going to sleep, after waking up, practically they do it all the time. I was mostly irritated and a little bit jealous of these people. Because I simply can't stay awake after opening my college book. Semesters passed. My grades were not so bad but obviously cannot be compared to these Nerd's grades. Lecturers pick on students like us just for the fun of it.

Two things I really liked doing at that time was one, Coding and two, Designing. The incident I am going to speak about happened during my Third year in college. The Technical Fest of my department was about to happen in a few months. They needed people to code the website and design banners and pamphlets for the Fest. They normally get interested names and make them work on it and select the best one. I enrolled and worked on it. We designed the website in groups. Our group's website was selected and my banner was selected that year. I was happy beyond limits. So I was taken into the team to do the support work. And I never used to attend classes because of that. When my lecturers confronted me one day about it, the Fest-in-charge supported me saying, "She is doing work for us. She is not wasting her time. She can cope up with her courses. I am sure of it. Don't bother her again." It was the best day of my life. I was happy and proud to be me rather than just another nerd in my class.

Written for Writer's Workshop.

Image Courtesy: Link

Love from,

*No one

*Is that all there is?

Is that all there is?

She was standing near the sea and was enjoying the beautiful sight as the waves were continuously washing her legs. She was happy beyond limits. The one she loved a lot for years together has finally agreed to speak with her. She was carrying a single rose and a greeting card. She has been rehearsing this speech for years now but still she couldn't control the fear that was slowing getting ahead of her. She could hear someone walking in her direction. She took a deep breath, smiled to herself and turned around wishing herself good luck.

There he was, standing in front of her with a mild curiosity in his eyes. He looked at her then at her hands which carried the card and the flower. He sighed. She was scared. Bad Omen, She thought. She went near him and said, "This is what I have been waiting for a long time now. I do not want to spoil the moment. Have a look at this." and with that she handed him the card she was carrying. He was reluctant in the beginning but then he took the card from her and opened it.

I have been dreaming all my life

About this precious little moment

Now that you are reading this

I am scared to the core on what to say.

I had never been a brave girl

For it had taken me years to convey this

I am so incomplete without you

All that I ever learned to do is

To keep dreaming again and again

About this precious day.

He completed reading it and blinked. "Is that all there is?" She was broken. She turned around to hide a drop of tear that was fighting to get away. She started walking towards the sea, lost in thoughts. But he followed. He was not done yet. "Is that all there is?", he repeated. She turned to look at him, still fighting back her tears. "What do you mean?", she asked him. "I thought the flower was for me. I thought you called me here to say something more than your dream about this precious day.", he answered. She blinked at him. He answered with a smile. She no longer fought with her tears. It started flowing freely while she was searching for words. "I-- l-love you. W-Will you go out with me?", she staggered. He nodded curtly and pulled her into a tight embrace. He whispered in her ears, something that she wanted to hear for years now. "I love you dear. I guess it is complete now."

Carry on Tuesday Prompt

Image Courtesy: http://feelingsofalonelyheart.blogspot.com

Love from,

*No one