Vishu - 2013

14.Apr.2013 - Twilight of Vishu Pulari - The golden glow of morning rays slowly seeping in - In the middle of pooja room,  Vishu Kani is arranged - Ooturuli with Cucumbur, Jackfruit, Mango, Coconut, Banana and inevitable Konna flowers – none of these bought from market – Light from the oil lamps brightens the entire setup - The glow of Aaranmula Kannaadi, Coins and Gold bringing out a rich feel  - We are here – Celebrating the first Vishu Kani of Nandus!

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Nandus - 1st Birthday

 " I f   y o u   c a n ' t   b e   w i t h   G o d ,   B e   w i t h   C h i l d r e n "

 

:D 

( 1 4 . A p r . 2 0 1 3 )

Bicycle Diaries - 2

May it be in South Or in North Or In West - 

There is One and Only One Universal, Non Polluting, 

Environment Friendly, Salubrious Human Carrier - 

Own One If you Still Don't Have One!

In Uttar Pradesh

In Kerala

In New York

Man’s Search For Meaning – Viktor E. Frankl

The Classic Tribute to Hope from the Holocaust

Whenever we (my friends and I) discuss philosophy or in general touch upon the topic of purpose of life, the point where we usually end up is with the statements like

• Man should strive to be happy, content and peaceful in his life - by the way, who wants to be in constant worry!
• Man is the product of his surroundings and circumstances. If his circumstances are good he will be good. If not, he will end up as a bad one.

Be it be the Bhagavat Gita which tells us to perform Karma without being attached to its results, or Sankara’s Adwaita, which proclaims the World as unreal – it is on the sole pole of being happy and peaceful  to which we used to tie all our shallow knowledge of philosophies. 

But then, relatively, life has been kind to us. Just because we are spared by life so far doesn't mean life will be always kind to us.  In one way or other at some point in time there is suffering to be endured by all (spare any lucky souls). 

This is probably the key point which we overlooked in all our conclusions. We never looked at the philosophical question raised from the point of view of a chronic sufferer – be it be someone who is terminally ill or someone who went through a terrible tragedy in his/her life or someone who is in constant physical pain or a complex mental trauma.  If we put ourselves in their shoes, we will easily fail the test of life as per our conclusions. How can be a chronic sufferer be happy or peaceful. Our philosophy gets a good thrashing here.

It is at this juncture Viktor E. Frankl has brought us a possible answer to our dilemma.  In his book “Man’s Search For Meaning”, he comes up with a school of thought which could easily be powerful enough to change our perception of life - Logotherapy.  

He states –

“Logotherapy, or, as it has been called by some authors, ‘The Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy’, focuses on the meaning of human existence as well as on man’s search for such a meaning. According to logotherapy, this striving to find a meaning in one’s life is the primary motivational force in man.”

In other words what Frankl states is - Life is not primarily a quest for pleasure, as Freud believed, a quest for power, as Alfred Adler taught, but a quest for meaning. The great task for any person is to find meaning in his or her life. This meaning is unique and specific in that it must and can be fulfilled by him alone.

What a sublime way of looking at life. But then, we could still have reservations to accept this wholeheartedly if this is evolved by means of academic or philosophical research. However, it is not. This is substantiated by Frankl by enduring the abysmal depths of human suffering in terms of physical and mental pain at the Nazi concentration camps. If he is convinced even after this ordeal, then what stops us to be not?

 “Anything can happen to us, anything can be taken from us, except one thing, our freedom to choose how we respond to the situation.”

A point which we overlooked sadly for all these years of life, but which could be the guide in our treacherous journey ahead. Frank presents this book as partly autobiographical as well as partly therapeutic. However, I felt this book is much beyond that – it is more like a deep religious philosophy without any religion in it – one which could transcend our souls to the realm of sublime human possibilities.

Everybody Loves a Good Hartal

  
21. Feb.2013 - Like yesterday, today is also an idle day for us in Kerala. There is no work. In fact we could not go to work. Or, to be more apt, we are not keen to go to work. Yes, it is yet another Hartal and this time as a novelty, it is for 48 hours. For many of my less fortunate friends who are working for big corporates in cities outside Kerala it was business as usual. In their busy schedule they, understandably, have failed to take note of the All India Hartal which invariably transforms into a Bandh at least in Kerala. This is why we in Kerala are really lucky. Savouring the sweet feeling of Hartal solitude is much richer than a weeklong vacation to a distant hill station.

As on all Hartal days (since my childhood), I took a midmorning walk along the highway (NH-17) to gauge the Hartal spirit. The summer rains, which lashed a couple of days back, have brought a fresh energy on everything around. And today this freshness is enriched by a profound silence. The otherwise overcrowded road is in a desolate mood. The buses which fume around spitting their smoke are silently observing a penance in their stands. A few private vehicles ply occasionally. Otherwise the surroundings are completely calm, composed and ideal for a road side meditation. An old man peddaled past me on his bicycle – in a rhythm of a sweet lullaby. The policeman on guard near a Government office is enjoying a leisurely time with the newspaper.  At an otherwise busy junction, which has a big mango tree, children are all over the branches plucking its raw mangoes. Today, instead of the disgusting shrill of speeding vehicles I heard the melodious resonant call of a cuckoo perched on a distant tree. Today, instead of the usual stench of burning fuel, I felt the whiff of budding jackfruit flowers. Today, instead of the frantic rush, everything around felt so poetic. It is the special vibes of this sweet little expedition to a nostalgic world which makes Hartal in Kerala so special.

So who is feeling Hartal is so bad? To be frank, to this day, I am yet to find someone who has a genuine dislike for non-violent Hartals carried out in a professional manner with due respect to critical services (like Hospitals, Ambulances). Who is not happy to get a break from an otherwise monotonous grind? Hartal is probably the only time when all the family members are at home having the breakfast, lunch and dinner together. It is not about being lazy. It is not about being complacent. It is an occasional reward for our hard labour and an opportunity to rejuvenate ourselves. 

Let us take yet another perspective. Hartal is the only day where we all collectively contribute to our environment. Carbon emission gets decimated on these Hartal days. There is less soot, less litter and relatively less use of power (as shops and offices remain closed). Let us give our Mother Earth a breather! The road accidents are few and the emergency aid vehicles or ambulances need not worry about traffic jams.

But in spite of the benefits of these non-violent peaceful solitary Hartals, we still find reports of revenue loss which are in crores. Like the revenue loss reported by our ever-weeping super rich petroleum companies, this arithmetic of revenue is difficult to conceive (unless if it is due to violence or sabotage). For big corporates, loss due to a Hartal is just a trifle – or they take it as an opportunity to ensure their Risk mitigation plans are in place. For small companies, closing their business for a day is not going to be end of world. For hotels and tea shops this is the best time to do some cleanup – plastering the rat hole there, cleaning the sewage here – nowadays the Food Inspectors are on a prowl. For shop owners and street vendors closing their business during Hartal is a happily accepted collective loss (since all the shops are closed, no one feels any grudge). In fact they are the ones who use this time for much needed break – like my neighbor, a shop owner, who used this break for a pilgrimage to Tirupathi. Now don’t tell Hartal results in a loss to Government exchequer in Kerala. The Beverages Corporation’s liquor sales before the Hartal is enough to make sure our exchequer is safe, strong and peppered with profits.

Though Hartal is now used as a form of civil disobedience, time is not far for this Gandhian concept to take a new role for a greater cause. Looking at the reckless exploitation of our natural resources and the progressive pollution trend, a peaceful, non-violent implementation of occasional Hartals might become a necessity to save our Environment as well as our families!

An Autobiography

A mediocre personality with almost all human vulnerabilities.

A “believe all” kind getting easily manipulated.

Who ate meat against his family culture resulting in repeated lying to parents.

With an affinity towards sensual pleasures even when his father was at death bed.

Who almost slipped into moral lapses – not once, but on four occasions in his life.

With a wardrobe having a chimney-pot hat, an evening suit made in Bond Street and a double watch-chain of gold.

Who would travel only in first class. Who took dancing lessons and violin class to become an English gentleman.

Who learnt law, but fainted to give a speech even to a small group.

Wonder who is this man? He is none other than - 

The man who did penance and fasting for his country and countrymen.

The man who conquered his carnal tendencies with his power of total celibacy.

The man who went on to survive on fruits and nuts.

The man who traveled all over India in extremely filthy third class compartment.

The man whose wardrobe was nothing but a dhoti using hand spun Khadi.

The man without a penny against his name - but whose every word was heard and followed by millions of an entire nation.

The man who is ruthlessly true to his conscience, who preached and followed “Ahimsa” and fought against the most powerful nation just with his “Non-violence”.

The man who inspired not just a Nation, but the entire World just by transforming himself - Mahatma!

33 years have gone out from my life. It is only now I could read it. I may not have read it so deep if I had got it before. It is only now I have realized – what it needs to do experiments with Truth. There is only one Mahatma. There can only be one.

A must read – for those who feel they know what it needs to become a true leader and those who don’t know what it needs to become a true human being.

An Autobiography - The Story of My Experiments with Truth – M.K.Gandhi

Copyright - Navajivan Trust, Rs.50, First Edition 6000 copies, 1927, Original text in Gujarathi.

An Autobiography

A mediocre personality with almost all human vulnerabilities.
A “believe all” kind getting easily manipulated.
Who ate meat against his family culture resulting in repeated lying to parents.
With an affinity towards sensual pleasures above his father at death bed.
Who almost slipped into moral lapses – not once, but in four occasions during his life.
With a wardrobe having a chimney-pot hat, an evening suit made in Bond Street and a double watch-chain of gold.
Who would travel only in first class. Who took dancing lessons and violin class to become an English gentleman.
Who learnt law, but fainted to give a speech even to a small group.

Wonder who is this man? He is none other than …

The man who did penance and fasting for his country and countrymen.

The man who conquered his carnal tendencies with his power of total celibacy.
The man who went on to survive on fruits and nuts.
The man who travelled all over India in extremely filthy third class compartment.
The man whose wardrobe was nothing but a dhoti using handspun Khadi.
The man without a penny against his name - but whose every word was heard and followed by millions of an entire nation.
The man who was ruthlessly true to his conscience, who preached and followed “Ahimsa” and fought against the most powerful nation just with his “Non-violence”.
The man who inspired not just a Nation, but the entire World just by transforming himself.

Mahatma.

33 years have gone. It is only now I have found him. It is only now I have realized – what it needs to do experiments with Truth. There is only one Mahatma. There can only be one.

(A must read – for those who feel they know what it needs to become a true leader and for those who don’t know what it needs to become a true human being)

An Autobiography - The Story of My Experiments with Truth – M.K.Gandhi
Copyright - Navajivan Trust, Rs.50, First Edition 6000 copies, 1927, Original text in Gujarathi. 

Two Gifts!

The Carrom men glided over, hit through and pocketed themselves presenting a beautiful gift for my wrist; The Chess men crushed past, dashed down and checked all in great pomp presenting sweet victories for my soul and divine music to my ears!

The Light Thief (2010)

The Light Thief (Svet-ake)  (2010)

Kyrgyzstan

A plausible plot. Weak narration. Weaker depiction. That is what we feel as The Light Thief take away those 80 minutes from us. The soft background music, the mountainous Kyrgyzstan landscape and the strong winds bring some energy along with few vertical shots.

But other than that the Aktan Arym Kubat movie fails in all other aspects. The role of protagonist is vague. Several scenes seemed unnecessary. The village itself is portrayed as barren with lazy people. Old men playing cards and rusty youth after horse riding. Naturally, the traditions, the culture move towards its inevitable doom.

There is nothing to take for the viewers at the end which is the biggest disappointment - the light really gets stolen! May be the movie is a reflection of the economic hardships of Kyrgyzstan which happens to be the second poorest country in Central Asia. A movie for those who don’t know anything else other than watching movies.

The Clown (2011)

The Clown (2011) – (O Palhaco - Portugese)

Director: Selton Mello

Country: Brazil

Duration: 90 minutes

Language: Portugese

Watching the performance of the clowns she bursts into laughter. Then when the "bravest lady" enters the stage, her face turns gloomy. She is Guilhermina, the little girl of true wisdom.

"The Clown", brilliantly picturised in the backdrop of Brazilian landscape takes us to the realm of "spirituality" in a very unique way. The movie neither preaches, nor makes any statement. In a very subtle manner it demos the power of morals and strength of unflinching belief through the mind of a little girl, who for me is the real protagonist.

All through the 90 minutes, we travel along with the circus troupe with a group of uninspired artists just trying to do what they know. We feel their helplessness, their unheeded little needs, deep pain behind their laughter, shrewd deceit and the unparallel hardships.

Among all these common traits of everyman is little Guilhermina whose mother always teach her the right way and true morals of life.

"If you ever need anything pray to Saint Genesius. He's the patron of musicians, comedians and clowns."

The words of her mother get hardcoded in her little mind as she turns out to be the saviour of the circus troupe.

"I'm brave and protected by Saint Genesius the saint who looks after the artists!"

Selton Mello portrays the dispassionate circus life in a creditable way.

Cinematography is just brilliant with dusty South American landscape brilliantly fused well with the bright colours inside the circus tent. The unique background score comes with a fresh whiff of breeze and the screenplay is easily the best without getting noticed much. 

A fantastic movie for all!

Notes From a 500 Rupees Farm

It was in the mid of December I got that call from Krishi Bhavan -

“Do you have any complaints on the seeds and saplings provided by us sir?”

I was a little surprised - a call from a Government Department!

It was about a couple of months back as part of a scheme from Dept. of Agriculture, the Krishi Bhavan had provided 25 agro-bags with organically fertilized soil and saplings. They brought it up to the terrace of my home all for Rs.500.

“I am perfectly happy. Why is this enquiry?”

“Sir, we have received numerous complaints on this scheme and we are conducting a meeting in our office with the seed authority officials to discuss these issues. You can join in case you have any concerns.”

“Ok. Sure. I will join if I have any.”

On the terrace, almost all my saplings looked healthy which included Chilly, Tomato, Amaranthus, Brinjal and Ladies finger.

From then onwards for another one month, at least half-an hour a day was spent on the terrace watering and watching those saplings grow up. Soon it became a part of our daily routine. Yes in between there were hard times as well due to pests. Again, it was all handled in an organic manner.

Amaranthus was re-planted to another 60 pots and to another small area at my sister’s home. The manure used for all these was cow dung and compost - all organic. The whole reason for this effort itself was to savor organic vegetables.

Soon followed the flowering – Amaranthus spread its red healthy leaves, Tomatoes started to bud with yellow flowers. Two weeks more – there we were on the terrace – gathering our ripe crops!

If Amaranthus was delicious to say the least, Tomatoes were out-of-world! Tomatoes in particular were sprouting in so many numbers that from those 5 bags, we already harvested around 120 tomatoes. Many times we were helpless to see its branches bend and hit the ground unable to carry the weight of tomatoes – Yes, the Height of my humble farmerism!

So far Amaranthus and Tomatoes are served to at least 15 households (friends and relatives). The joy of giving was special – as it always came back to us with more joy– 

“I am eating your tomato right now.  It is Super! No words to explain – I am giving it to my kid as well” – said Ajith in all happiness.

“I have not seen tomatoes with its stem. I am thrilled and they are delicious” – Aunt

"You know, here in Kochi you will get Amaranthus anytime you ask – But none are as rich as these – you don’t get this quality anywhere. Those at shop use chemical fertilizers which I never take – I want more from you when I come there next time.” - Uncle

“We prepared ‘rasam’ and Wow how tasty it was!” – Relative

The Krishi Bhavan officials visited our terrace farm and provided suggestions and appreciation. Last week a relative of ours visited Krishi Bhavan Office for setting up terrace farming. Referring to the terrace farm here the officer told -

"Take tips from how the terrace farm is done in Venus' house. That is well maintained."  

It was my dream to live as a farmer. Now soaking in all the applause around, I was relishing that humble dream – at least as a pseudo farmer!

ഗുരുക്കന്മാരേ നന്ദി!

ബാംഗ്ലൂരില സുദീര്‍ഘമായ 5 വര്‍ഷകാലത്തെ ചിട്ടയോടെയുള്ള അഭ്യസനം. പ്രഭാതത്തിന്‍റെ ആദ്യ കിരണങ്ങളില്‍ തുടങ്ങി രാത്രിയുടെ അന്ത്യ യാമങ്ങള്‍ വരെ നീണ്ടു പോകുന്ന സാധനയിലൂടെ അതിപ്രാവീണ്യം നേടി മധു പാന സേവനത്തിന്‍റെ നൂതന സാങ്കേതിക വിദ്യകള്‍ സ്വായത്തമാക്കിയ മഹാരഥന്മാരുടെ കൂടെയുള്ള ഗുരു കുല വിദ്യാഭ്യാസം. അവിടെ നിന്നായിരുന്നു തുടക്കം.

ചില്ലു ഗ്ലാസ്സിന്‍റെ വരമ്പിലൂടെ നിരര്‍ഗ്ഗളമായി ഒഴികിയെത്തുന്ന ആ ചുവന്ന പാനീയം നോക്കി അമ്പരന്നിരിക്കുന്ന കൊച്ചു കുട്ടിയായിരുന്നു ഞാന്‍. അതില്‍ ഐസ് കട്ടകള്‍ വീഴുന്നതിനും ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു ഒരു നാദം....“പ്ലക്”. പിന്നെ ഒരു ആരവതോടെയുള്ള ആ “ചീയേസ്”. കൂടെ നാരങ്ങാ അച്ചാറും കൂടി ആയാല്‍ - ഹാ, എന്തൊരു രോമാഞ്ഞം.

പക്ഷെ പഠിക്കുവാന്‍ ഒരുപാടുണ്ടായിരുന്നു. മധു പാന സംഭരണി (കുപ്പി) പൊട്ടിക്കുന്നത് മുതല്‍ കാലിയാവുന്നതു വരെയുള്ള വിവിധ ഘട്ടങ്ങളുടെ അഗാധമായ അവലോകനം. ഒരു പെഗ്ഗില്‍ തുടങ്ങി ഹാഫ് ബോട്ടില്‍ വരെ അടിക്കുമ്പോള്‍ ഉണ്ടാവുന്ന ചിത്തഭ്രമം, ബുദ്ധിഭ്രംശം മുതലായ അവസ്ഥാന്തരങ്ങളുടെ സമഗ്രമായ പഠനം. ചെന്തെങ്ങിന്‍റെ കള്ളു മുതല്‍ സ്കോച്ചു വിസ്കിയെ കുറിച്ചു വരെയുള്ള പ്രബന്ദങ്ങളുടെയും, നിരൂപണങ്ങളുടെയും സങ്കീര്‍ണമായ അവലോകനം. നിറഭേദങ്ങള്‍ നോക്കി വകഭേദം ചെയ്യുന്ന തന്ത്രം. മണം നോക്കി ഇനം അറിയുന്ന വിദ്യകള്‍. അങ്ങനെ എന്തെലാം.

ഇന്നിതാ, ഈ എളിയ ശിഷ്യന്‍ ചിട്ടയായ അഭ്യസനത്തിലൂടെ ആത്മസാക്ഷാത്കാരം നേടിയിരിക്കുന്നു.

അതെ, ഈയുള്ളവന്‍ സംസ്ഥാനത്തെ ഏറ്റവും മികച്ച വകുപ്പായ കേരള ബിവറേജസ് കോര്‍പറേഷന്‍ ലെ പ്രോഗ്രാമ്മര്‍ തസ്തികയില്‍ തിരഞ്ഞു എടുക്കപെട്ടിരിക്കുന്നു. ആയിരങ്ങള്‍ എഴുതിയ ആ പരീക്ഷയില്‍, മുപ്പത്തോളം പേര്‍ മാത്രം തിരഞ്ഞെടുക്കപെട്ടു. അതില്‍ രണ്ടാം റാങ്ങില്‍ പാസ്സായതു ഗുരുകന്മാരുടെ കൃപാകടാക്ഷം ഒന്ന് കൊണ്ട് മാത്രമാണ് എന്നല്ലാതെ മറ്റെന്തു പറയാന്‍.

അതിന്‍റെ റാങ്ക് ലിസ്റ്റ് ഗുരുകന്മാരുടെ പാദാരവിന്ദങ്ങളില്‍ അര്‍പ്പിക്കുന്നു. ഒന്നാം റാങ്ക് നഷ്ടപ്പെട്ട ഖേദം ഞാന്‍ മറച്ചു വെക്കുന്നില്ല. മധു പാനം സേവിക്കാന്‍ വിമുഖത കാണിച്ച ബാലിശമായ ചിന്തകള്‍ കാരണമെന്ന് ഞാന്‍ അറിയുന്നു. ഗുരുകന്മാരോട് ക്ഷമ ചോദിക്കുന്നു,

കുപ്പിയില്‍ ആക്കി കൊണ്ട് വരുന്ന ഗുരുദക്ഷിണ തീര്‍ച്ചയായും സ്വീകരിക്കും എന്ന വിശ്വാസത്തോടെ.

നിങ്ങളുടെ ഏറ്റവും എളിയ അരുമ ശിഷ്യന്‍ ദിവാകരന്‍.

In Search of the Absolute Truth

Standing on the cliff of the green mountain I looked around.

In the middle of that night, the full moon seemed very close - like never before. The milky white luster was sprinkling down in that rich landscape.

This world is so beautiful. The moon lit meadows, the dense valleys, the medicinal breeze.

Taking a deep breath I looked down. There is that deep blue lake. Like the loosely tied glittering garment of the goddess.  Captivatingly calm. Alluring to the eyes. Its mild tides still caressing the already smoothened rocks. Few crabs are there clenching on the rock clefts.

I have been standing alone on this cliff for years now. When I came here, I was not alone. I had a bunch of friends with me. We were celebrating our life -  celebrating the days and nights like never before. We were happy like those birds flying above the trees. But soon, one by one started to jump down. Deep down into the abysmal lake. Few slipped, few jumped and few others seemed to be pulled down. I watched them wondering what they go through.

Now I am the only one left. Occasionally at a far distance I would see my friends in the lake swimming and calling out to me to join them.

“Jump, why are you still standing alone there !”  -  they would yell with a mischievous smile.

Few of them have gone deep below the lake, I have not seen them after that. Some are there resting on the far distant rocks in the lake, tired, yet waving to me.

But no one has come back to the shore.

What is in this lake? Why is it so enticing? Why are all my friends calling me?

They are laughing at me for standing alone!

Are all enjoying out there? But, if it is so beautiful, how are those crabs there? is there filth too ?

Again, I looked far into the sky. The little twinkle of the stars is so soothing. It is really rich here. I might be alone. But there is that essence of peace here.

The flow of my thoughts was suddenly disrupted by a deep voice.

“Son!”

I turned around. There is the old man who often visits me with his words of wisdom – head shaved, wearing a saffron garment looking at me with his rich kind eyes.

“What are you thinking so deep?”

“No, I was just thinking about this lake and my friends” – I replied.

“Why don’t you too join them?”

“Why do you too ask this same question? I am supremely happy here and feel pristine peace in each and every moment. They why should I?”

“Look my son.” The old man said placing his warm hands over my shoulders.

“This human life is meant for salvation. You are here to search for it and you should strive every moment of your life to reach that veritable state. And for that you should experience your life in totality. Just like a stagnant stream cannot reach the sea a static life cannot reach the Supreme Almighty. This is not the way for you.”

“They why don’t you too jump ?” – I asked back.

“Who said I have not? But unlike others, I know how to come back to the shore.”

“Then how do you come back? None of my friends have come back once they have jumped down – Please teach me”

“Nobody has asked me this question. Many asked me how to jump. But no one has so far asked me how to come back to the shore. I am surprised you asked it!”

And he continued -

“Dear, first, you let go of all your fears and jump off this cliff into nothingness – Do not fear the depth. Do not struggle in those tides. Neither should you try to swim over it – What you see below is nothing when compared to what you can find inside you.

Like the lotus in the pond, the canoe in the river – just float in this lake experiencing everything, irrespective of good or bad, and importantly accepting nothing as the real truth. Nothing can bother you then. Nothing can drown you.

Soon you too will join me and we together will be soaking in the moon lit night in real truth. Go my dear son. You can surely get through this and come back to me unscathed. Reach your salvation. Reach the ultimate peace. Convert your greatest fear into your biggest opportunity. Go and come back soon. I am here waiting for you, to be with you.”

I took few steps back. Looked again at those benevolent eyes of the old man. With prayers I took that sprint. From that cliff I leaped down – With my toes up, heads down – in search of the Absolute Truth.

HNY 2013!

Listen to it!

It is sweeping across

It is not a feeble weep. Nor is it a fading cry.

This time it is a deafening roar, thundering rumble -

Awakening the dread, Resurrecting the dead

It is coming down to us.

The Absolute Freedom is not far away.

Change is Ringing Rightly

And here it is.

Wishing all a HNY!