Today I learnt that there’s this term called Bildungsroman . I tripped upon it while I was pondering the commonalities between Harry Potter and Naruto , about how both of them were underdogs, cursed at birth – one with a horcrux, and the other with a curse-mark, grew up effectively with no one to love them till they were of a certain age but are both intended for great things and grow into their respective savior roles. The genre itself doesn’t require the main character to be a “hero”, but the stories do intend to show the psychological and moral growth of said character.

Now that I know a whole bunch of books fall in this category, and because I know I like this genre, I have a lot of potential reads to pick from this year.

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/3248.Best_Bildungsroman_book

I’m sure there would have been some unintentional overlap in this year’s picks anyway. But now I know.

— borne out of sounds I heard, remembered or imagined.

• A glass bottle rolls lazily down the stairs, not too hard that it would crack or shatter on each bounce but just enough to maintain momentum that it doesn’t stop noisily rolling down till it reaches the floor.
  
• The dog next door barks continuously, tirelessly, but probably not effortlessly. It’s hard to imagine that there wouldn’t be some stress on its lungs for the amount it barks. I wonder what it’s thinking about..What it’s pining for..Maybe it’s hungry. Maybe it wants some attention from its owners. Maybe it feels cooped up indoors. Maybe there’s a sudden unexpected change in what it’s been observing. Maybe…

There’s something satisfying about the “Rule of three”. When you want to explain something it’s helpful to break it up into three steps or points because –

• 1 – It gives you the time to set up a premise.
• 2 – It gives you the space to build up anticipation without an abrupt halt.

• And 3 – Of course you read this, because you wanted closure. And that’s what point 3 is supposed to do. Provide closure. Complete the picture. Descend from that proverbial peak of anticipation gracefully. This process is employed very well in many movies. E.g The Prestige.

Every magic trick did not Need to have three steps. It could have had 2 or 5 or 4 steps. But Nolan no doubt chose this trope because it’s satisfying.

It goes deeper. The Rule of 3 can be spotted even in ad Slogans and mottos –
– Olympics – Citius, Altius, Fortius
– Julius Caesar – I came, I saw, I conquered.
– And more locally – Horlicks- Taller, Stronger, Sharper.

I suck at poems but I try

– Abhiram

We are resilient.

We were here long before you were born, and we will be here, long after you’re gone.

We are intransigent.

We wander into your house like we own it. And in many ways we do.

We are stealthy.

We creep along the sides, on the walls, on the blinds. We whisper to the inner walls of vessels.

We are cautious.

You may catch us unawares, with your stares and your scares. You may scream at the gleam of our hide — you desire it. (Or not.)

We are evasive.

Your presence is not lost on me, but you don’t matter. You may stamp me, you may hurl me, you may wrap me up in that encasing you call a cover. You may squash me , smash me, destroy my shell and my dreams of meeting a lover.

I might die. And that’s alright.

For we were here long before you were born, and we will be here, long after you’re gone.