I took a break, and now I'm back.
Top of the morning to you, Hiveans. This week was so eventful that I had to put a brake on everything and retreat for a little while. I don't know what is up with this year, but with every piece of good news, I get overwhelmed with ten other bad ones. And so, to self-reflect, I drowned myself in books and some cringy personal hobbies to blur out all the sorrows.
This week started on a high note. Unlike western countries, our weeks start with Fridays. And last Friday was great. Like too great. I won a contest. Goodness, gracious!! The feedbacks were so great. All I could have ever hoped for. So many people appreciated my entry, and I was so proud of myself. And on top of all that, our beloved Azircon dada gave me the greatest gift ever. Possibly something I could never imagine. Like the present holds little value to be honest. But the act itself was so kind and humbling that it made me recall all the good things I had ever done in my life. And be grateful to my peers and pray to God for making me part of such a fantastic community. Our precious BDCommunity.
That night was one of the greatest ones ever.
And then all hell broke loose. Three people died within two days with whom I was intimately acquainted. One of my friends who I wasn't that close with, but we had similar interests, died from COVID-19. That was the news that woke me up from sleep the next morning. Then that evening, a friend's father died from the corona. By the afternoon of the next day, the tally had risen to three. And to top all that, my youngest uncle from my mother's side has been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.
My heart broke with all these BS people call destiny or fate. Like how much shit can randomly be thrown at your face. But that was not it. Thinking about what their close ones are going through now and me being unable to go there and console them is burning me from within.
Let's not go too deep into my misery and keep it short. May they rest in peace.
On another note, I finished reading two books. Well, both are worth reading, but, only one might change your life. That one is 1984 written By George Orwell. Now, I can almost write a thesis paper on 1984, and it'll still not be enough to praise and critique its actual worth in literature. I'll post a review on it sometimes later this week.
And now, on to the second book. The Doomsday Conspiracy.
The Doomsday Conspiracy by Sidney Sheldon.
I am a big Dan Brown fan. His books, most of which are already read by many who is reading this post. Or at least you have seen one of the movie adaptations. Mainly, The Da Vinci Code. A significant influence on him while growing up was Sidney Sheldon. Go to the Fandom Wiki of Dan Brown, and you'll find every piece of trivia you'll ever want to know.
Now, as a criminologist, I'm always drawn to mystery, whodunit, adventure thrillers, etc. It's sad a little, but in all honesty, most of the bestsellers from these genres are like the same wine in a new bottle. The content is similar, and the depth is too shallow.
I'm not saying this is a bad book. But if you go through similar literature from the 90s, you will always find the image of grandeur they try to paint to be almost the same. The destruction of the world and the hero has to save the day, alone.
These are great reads for a child or a teen, but as a grown-up, not so much. But the NSFW inclusions say otherwise.
Alistair MacLean, James Hadley Chase, Frederick Forsyth, Clive Cussler, Ken Follett, and 50 other similar writers whos best works from this genre I don't know why but supports my theory. Always a heartthrob spy or some daredevil police officer or just a random treasure hunter trying to save the world. I have read 200 or more of similar books and never thought of going back to read one more paragraph from those. I'm not saying they are bad writers or anything. I'm in no way capable of judging their literature. And most of them have some other award-winning books too. But what I can do is judge a story. And The Doomsday Conspiracy, in reality, is not that impressive.
But, to be honest, Dan Brown's work differs from those other ones. As he takes history, popular conspiracy theories, biblical methodologies more into account, and try to build an adventure puzzle rather than describing how great his protagonist is. I know I sound like a fanboy, but it is true. Most of the other books lack in that department.
Our story In Doomsday Conspiracy hosts Robert Bellamy, like always, an NSA agent AKA super Spy who has to find some witnesses who saw a weather balloon crash. He is only given a date and a place and nothing more clues to investigate upon. But being the brilliant spy he is, he finds out all the witnesses one by one. But mysteriously, all of them die shortly after he reports the location and the identity to the HQ. Now he senses a more significant plot and sends himself on a mission to unravel the greatest mystery ever to exist. LOL.
On a serious note, this is a tremendous mindless read for you while you travel on a bus or a train. But if you are looking for some high-quality Food For Thought, then look away.
And now, as an apology for dumping all the negative stresses I had, here. Pics of some flowers for you viewing pleasure whose name I do not know of. Took them on a leisurly stroll a few days back. And the colors you see are all natural with no edit what so ever.
Looks like you have a hell of a week! I hope yesterday night was a bit of a stress release for you. You have the gift of both reading and writing... so just sharpen your skills :)
Thank you Dada :0. Means a lot coming from you...
They say fearing death is ridiculous. Being cowardly fearing something which is inevitable. But I'm always afraid of this anomaly that destroys something so beautiful. I fear not for myself but for that pain that comes after. That unending trauma. Nothing more vicious could ever happen to someone than losing loved ones.
But Friday night helped. Mostly the story of Moidul. Made my day and thank you for that dada.:)
No, I don't think fear is ridiculous. It is okay to be afraid. When I was learning to ride bicycle, I was so afraid on falling! When I first learned to fly, I was afraid that I drop like a rock from the sky :) But we all eventually learn... don't we..
Also like Albus Dumbledore said : It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more
Aren't we all dada. But death is such a concept that transcends every method of understanding with our limited brain functions. And that is what makes me afraid. That feeling of not knowing where they are now. In a place called the afterlife or just blank dark void. I cant bear the thought of my loved ones being in such eternal torture. And im afraid of that uncertainty of not knowing.
Well, that is exactly what Dumbledore said :)
Where our loved one remains is a concept that is personal. I like to believe that they stay with us. If there is one soul on the living world who remembers, then the one who passed away able to form a bridge between the two worlds...
Words truer than the Stars dada..
But Dumbledore was one crazy guy and He feared nothing. I knew his time was up when he had to drink from the fountain of despair to find one of the horcrux. He is such a badass. I miss my harry potter days. Ah what times they were..
We all feel negative at times, and sharing the burden, or load, can lighten it. I hope you have a great weekend and find something fun to do.
Yeah it was quite good. Fridays are weekends for us Bengali's. My sisters came to visit with their tiny cute devils and that was nice. I could never stay sad around kids. They are like the best therapy available for somebody like me..
Kids can be good to brighten the day...Better if they can be handed back to their parents to deal with all the bad stuff! 😂
Exactly XDXD. With faces like angels those are devils spawns. The littlest of my nieces once stabbed me with a pen. i was just about to slap the lights out of that evil incarnet when his mama bear entered the room. The feeling was like a good sneeze going away before you could push it out. LOL.