T’was a fancy restaurant we went to in my imagination. The waiter not only had stiff upper lip, but same surgeon had turned his nose up in the air. “What will you have sir?” he smirked. “Wine!” I said “Which one?” “Red!” “Which one sir?” “Any wine that’s red!” I…
This New Year, Reach Out to Someone Lonelier Than You..!
And as I look at the New Year messages that’s flooding my phone, I see something that may have escaped many of us, it is that many of us are reaching out! A reaching out to the new year, asking for a change in circumstances, a change from misery, a…
Following Dad..!
It was the night before the New Year! The old man sighed as he watched his family sit together that night. He knew they would be leaving soon for the New Year dance, and he had also got his best suit pressed by the maid, so he would look good…
Resolutions, Purpose and Reality..!
Nothing like the New Year to make resolutions, right? But most of them hardly last a week, and here’s why. Most of us make resolutions that have to do only with ourselves, but if we look around, we will notice that we are all part of a bigger social network,…
Thank You for the Old Year..!
A principal of a school, a dear friend of mine, was telling me of an incident where he’d seen a girl crying outside her classroom: “I asked her what the matter was and she told me her cat had died. Did it have any kittens?” I asked. “Yes,” said the…
Looking at the Bright Side..!
A couple of years ago, Christmas turned out to be a little different for me. I had planned after church to partake of a sumptuous lunch and then have a long nap, but suddenly heard a noise on my terrace and found the plumber had sent his men to do…
Namaste, She Said..!
‘Namaste!’ she said, as all of us in the New York church turned to greet whoever was sitting by our side on Christmas Eve. For a moment I was startled. I was thousands of miles away from home, and the last thing I imagined I’d hear was a ‘Namaste’! She…
Driving On Life’s Highway..!
I remember once zipping down the highway: What a drive! As I drove I noticed tire marks that crisscrossed the road. “Burst tires!” I realized. Tires of motorists who had not checked their air pressure before venturing onto the highway. I noticed that these tire markings veered onto the barricades…
Freedom, Beyond the Door..!
Met a friend of mine a few days ago and we spent some time chatting with each other. He had done pretty well for himself, with a business going great guns. “You know Bob,” he said, “I grew up in Ahmedabad and when I told my family I was going to…
Let’s Celebrate a Violent Christmas Today..!
There are no Christmas celebrations I heard in the Palestinian Bethlehem as they mourn the death of innocents, especially children killed in Gaza. But maybe that’s because we celebrate Christ’s birth thinking wrong thoughts or doing the wrong things. Because violence also marked the birth of the Lord 2000 years…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.