Arbor Vitae

A Stain of Ink befalls the night
Washed away with the morning light.
The Golden Orb with all it's might
But a humble cloud can block it's light.

Summer flowers that Blossom Pink
Only to fade away within a blink.
Amber leaves that shed and shrink
And back into the earth they sink.

Carefree Winds blow a tiny Seed
The Rains Nurture it's every need.
And alongside there grows a weed
Unwanted it is, but pays no heed.

The Rising Sun from the Brilliant Blue
And setting each day in a different hue.
Into a Mighty Oak, the little seed grew
Serpentine roots cutting the earth through.

This time the breeze a Fury flew
Rains Lashed and WhirlWinds blew.
After the storm, the trees stood but few
Fallen trunks mingled with morning dew.

The mighty oak, it's last breath drew
But beside it, the Weed still grew.
Laws of Nature though seem Askew
The Circle of Life will start Anew.

PRINTING MISTAKES

The pen, they say, is mightier than the sword. And even as we grapple with literacy issues, there's no denying the impact of the mass media. The morning newspaper and evening news is a compulsive ritual for most of us. We like to be appraised of all events - recent, remote and distant. And while the media meticulously reports nearly everything under the sun, it takes the annoying liberty of sensationalizing.

Case in point is the suicide of an ex-supermodel. The media worked itself into a frenzy churning out graphic details of the incident, not to mention the sordid attempt at painting the classic love triangle. And to display some mediocre journalism, the chain of events leading to the suicide were constructed and reconstructed after some harrowing micro-analysis. It was somewhat tedious to read the same piece of news for nearly a week. The supermodel's suicide story featured on the front page for 3 consecutive days. On the 4th day, the funeral pictures were splashed all over page 2. By day 5, she was back on page 1. And each time, the media dished out different pictures of the deceased dressed saucily. All in all, it felt crass.

Interestingly, on the day of the said supermodel's funeral, there was another suicide case reported in a measly column on the 9th page of the same newspaper. The deceased in question was a middle-aged woman, a humble cop's wife, who presumably ended her life due to the financial and emotional strain of the last of her 3 kids being mentally challenged. Just why didn't this piece of news stir a media storm? The underlying issue is after all just as socially relevant. But it was not the classic case of a doomed celebrity, which is why it didn't grab eyeballs. A beautiful model with the world at her feet, but longing for amorous love and eventually committing suicide is way more compelling than the drab house-wife trying to cope with her domestic routine and a mentally challenged son. The dilemma of the house-wife neither evokes our sympathy nor holds our attention. But talk about a patho in a celebrity, and we're all ears. Not to mention, sensitivity personified. So we're heart broken over the ravishing model who chose to end her life, but we refuse to be appalled by the average woman in agony committing suicide. 

While the press and celebs go hand in hand, it doesn't justify reducing meaningful journalism to a mere oxymoron. The media needs to make a conscious effort to avoid undue sensationalism and it ought to display some semblance of professionalism. It is unacceptable to discriminate so blatantly between the deaths of two individuals - practically turning a blind eye to one, while dedicating a week long tribute to the other. Being a celebrity sure has it's perks, and media attention may top the list. But the media should refrain from exhibiting such gross favouritism amongst the dead.

For if not in life, in death at least, we all lie equal.
Or so, us commoners would like to believe.