Spring is here.....

How the days have gone by.Mr.R and I are back after our sprint home. Life goes on as usual. The days are getting longer with sunset at around 730. Today is bright and sunny. And cold. But it's still better than being dark and cloudy. Temperatures however still hover around the 11-13 deg c mark. Mr.R started work at his new job yesterday. And this morning, we finally finished assembling our 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle. I can now reclaim the dining table.

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The trip to Goa was a whirlwind of activity - beaches, Holy Week services, friends, families, some familiar faces. There's never a dull or quiet moment! I even got a chance to see two movies at the new Inox in Panjim. I saw 'Ray' and 'My Brother Nikhil' (more on that later).We also managed to pack in day trips to two very quiet beaches in South Goa. Clean, not many people around, clear (better than any other beach I've seen in Goa or Mumbai) water and good food.
In all it was a very nice trip. Short but sweet.

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MY BROTHER NIKHIL
One of the nicest movies I've seen in a long time, My brother Nikhil is a must-see for anybody and everybody. It's a Hindi movie set in Goa and is the story of Nikhil, a state swimming champ (played marvellously by Sanjay Suri) whose life changes drastically when he is diagnosed with HIV. The movie is told through the eyes of Nikhil's family - his sister played by Juhi Chawla, mother (Lillette Dubey) and father (Victor Banerjee). The story weaves back and forth Nikhil's life - his glory days as a medal winner, to how he is treated when he becomes the first known HIV patient in the state. It is a story of how our health system treats patients - with known or unknown diseases. It is a story of communities who withdraw their affection. It is a story of fear, of dealing with the unknown, and of sticking by your family inspite of it. A sensitively made film, it gets a message across without being preachy. You're likely to leave the theatre with a lump in your throat (if you haven't wept silent tears during the movie already.)
A must-see. You'll enjoy it.

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For some peculiar reason, this ancient (I think we learnt it in primary school!) rhyme keeps popping into my head these days and it's stuck!!

Spring is coming, spring is coming,
Birdies, build your nest;
Weave together straw and feather,
Doing each your best.
Spring is coming, spring is coming,
All around is fair;
Shimmer and quiver on the river,
Joy is everywhere.