Santhosh's ramblings

Recently, I walked into a glass door. I was so preoccupied with looking at my mobile phone that I didn’t notice the glass in front of me. I suppose I am on my journey to becoming “Homo-Technologicus-Curvatus.” You can read more about this in a previous blog:   https://santhoshsramblings.blogspot.com/2024/10/evolutionary-journey.html   My concern was: why wasn’t I looking up? Why was I so focused on looking down? If only I had looked straight and up, I would have seen the door and what was ahead of me!   In neurology, the inability to look up with both eyes is called ‘Upward Gaze Palsy’. Patients with this condition are unable to look up, so their eyes often remain deviated downward. This phenomenon is referred to as the “Setting Sun Sign.” The inferior border of the pupil is partially covered by the lower eyelid, creating the appearance of a “sunset.” This typically occurs when the dorsal midbrain is affected by a blood clot, tumour, bleeding, or other causes. I...

Christmas Eve was spent with a friend and family in the hospital, and late in the evening, we were crying, comforting, and grieving the loss of a loved one. On Christmas Day, what C.S. Lewis said in his book ‘A Grief Observed’ seemed real and true: “For the greater the love, the greater the grief, and the stronger the faith, the more savagely will Satan storm its fortress.”   2023 and 2022 were similar. In 2022, there was the loss of a baby in the womb of a close family friend and the loss of the mother of another friend. As I grow older, the memories of Christmas from yesteryears seem distant. Carols, cakes, celebrations, and gifts are still there but do not seem to make as much sense as they did then. Is it my ageing heart and overly sensitive soul, or is it a season given to us that we must endure and walk through?   But then, for many, Christmas is not about cakes and celebrations. Yesterday, on Christmas Eve, Ukraine was bombed again. People in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen, and Syr...

I eagerly look forward to beholding and enjoying beauty like this. I suppose most of us would love to see such beauty around us.  I imagine this must have been the picture in the Garden of Eden, too—the day before. The day before, humanity decided to take control of the earth. The day before, we were to be stewards. The day after, it became free for all - anarchy.    This week, while travelling to a nearby city, we saw these pictures: beauty being destroyed for the sake of perceived new beauty and "development" that supposedly helps humanity move upward socially and economically.   But isn't this what we've done for centuries? First, it was the hydroelectric projects. Most rivers were blocked by dams. A few decades later, rivers dried up, green land diminished, droughts became a regular occurrence, and at times, flash floods forced the opening of dams, flooding lowlands.    Then came thermal power plants, supported by coal mines, which destroyed millio...

While travelling recently, someone showed us a place where a storm had struck, destroying everything in its path. They shared how life has now returned to normal.     In recent months, we’ve heard of many tornadoes wreaking havoc across nations, displacing millions and challenging lives. A few weeks later, life begins limping back to semi-normal again. Yet, for those who have endured such devastation, life will likely never feel fully normal. The pain, grief, and loss linger, reshaping their world.   Still, the grass grows back. Buildings are rebuilt. People return, and life starts anew. For a season, the scars of destruction remain visible. Isn’t this true of our lives as well?  Tornadoes—unexpected crises—strike us, leaving destruction and chaos in their wake. Over time, life slowly regains a semblance of normalcy, but we realize it’s okay to live with things not being entirely okay.     A tornado is a narrow, violently rotating column of air th...

I am just back and recovering (well) from a week of travel. It was physically tiring but emotionally and spiritually uplifting. The trip was to be together for five days as a big group (60-plus people) to plan, have fellowship, and get to know each other. By the end, we had become an “ intergenerational connected community .” It was intergenerational because we had Gen Zs, the majority of Gen Ys, some Gen Xs, a few Baby Boomers, and one or two Silent Gens (who weren’t too silent, but  😊 ).    We were connected by one purpose – to be a channel of “Healing and Witness to God’s love” in every community and nation. That common purpose knitted us together, even though we were from different generations. (Is this not what the world needs today, too?)   Carl R. Trueman reminds us in his book:  “The stories the modern world tells us are powerful: the future-oriented promise of science, the technology that privileges the young, the materialistic paradise offered ...

Travelling these days has become a bit of a mental workout, mostly due to my overthinking. I’m still in the middle of a trip, but let me share some reflections from my ongoing journey.   It started with an airport announcement: “Flight delayed due to technical issues.” Two keywords – ‘delay’ and ‘technical issues’ - set my mind on a whirlwind of overthinking.  Delay meant potential FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) from the conference’s first day. Maybe even a MOMO - Mystery Of Missing Out. What if I missed the 1st day, and no one noticed that I was not even there? That is more intense than FOMO. (I don’t think I had MOMO at that time   ). But then I realized: why not embrace JOMO (Joy of Missing Out)? The conference would continue without me just fine—I’m not that indispensable!   Technical issues raised bigger concerns. My mind spun tales of in-air catastrophes and set off a FOA (Fear of Accidents) and FOD (Fear of Death). These aren’t fears I like to think about, b...