Ophir-to-Bassein: Some discussions from our Home Library

Posted on May 3, 2018 by prashant bhatt

The marathons of adventure are to Himalayan peaks, to the Poles, and across the oceans

Chris Bonnington-Quest for Adventure

 

2018-5-Bassein

EXPLORING LOCAL HISTORIES-Vasai-Bassein-mentioned in Bible as Ophir

Having a home library is a step different from being part of a public library. Over some discussions and readings, we evolved this concept a bit further. Here are some illustrations which form a part of our intellectual adventure and family legacy.

Over the years, I have developed some journals-individual and joint- through readings and re-readings of books in our home library. As Appu visits from Mumbai, we had the opportunity of going through some books of the home library, and I showed her and read some excerpts from the first book in the Home Library at our Mississauga home-the Autobiography of Jawaharlal Nehru- which was gifted to me by my grandfather-Professor Ganesh Prasad Uniyal- on my fifteenth birthday-in 1982-November.

I invited Appu to read from any of the many books in our home library and was glad that she zeroed in on-Howard Zinn’s- People’s history of the United States.

She is finding the book interesting- and we discussed some parts of relatively recent history-25 years ago- the bombing of Yugoslavia during the Clinton Presidency years-and I told her of two countries with whose people, I have stayed and had many conversations-who have been affected by NATO’s Nation Building- Yugoslavia and Libya.

For refreshing memory- here is a video of a Reading from the Autobiography of Nehru in Riverwood-area-discussing his evolution of the concept of Non-cooperation through readings of Charlie Andrews and discussions with Gandhi-ji and Tagore.

Quest for adventure

Appu has been to many parts of the world, and this is her second visit to Canada, and she is the first person from our family from India to visit our new home in Mississauga, having come here earlier when we used to stay in 905 Ovation, near the Celebration square.  Now, in Candlestick, we have a Naturalization zone close to our house, and we went there in the morning and read excerpts from some books – One of them being the history of Bassein-by Dr.Teresa Albuquerque of Bombay Local History Society.

2018-5-Dixie-Tim

Tim Horton’s-DIXIE-Mississauga-Book discussions -2018-4

The Marathons of Adventure-…in his book “Quest for Adventure” Chris Bonnington talks of the marathons of adventure and compares them with different levels –ranging from a sprint to a marathon. The 100 yard dashes of adventure are activities which are very intense but of short duration. Take a short afternoon trip to Riverwood area-or Port Credit or even a two day trip to Niagara.

Taking such local excursions in and around the place you stay-say Mumbai-from where we can go to Vasai fort or Manoribel or for a trip with Bombay Natural history society-to have Breakfast with butterflies- is different from going to see local areas in a far off country like Canada- where through this and previous visits-we saw together the Toronto zoo- one of the best zoos in the world-or explored the nuances of the Natural history and Local history of Credit river area-

Toronto Zoo-2014-October

Bassein

We walked to Naturalization zone, where we discussed many nuances of the way our family life has evolved in Canada, with the children who came here from two years in Malta- to join Middle School and have now grown into senior High school and even First year university.

And for the home library- we chose to read some excerpts from Dr.Teresa’s book on Bassein which tells of the history of this area –ranging from the times of Solomon- where Sopara is mentioned in the Bible as Ophir –today a disused port on the outskirts of modern  Bassein

To refresh memory- here are some readings in Naturalization zone area near our house.

From where we got that book

This is another interesting aspect of having a Home Library.

Where did we get this book from-what were we doing

For Example

Autobiography of Nehru-

Was gifted this by my grandfather-Professor Ganesh Prasad Uniyal-on my fifteenth birthday-1982-Nov

We used to stay in 9 Pratap Chowk-Delhi Cantonment at that time.

Chris Bonnington’s-Quest for Adventure-

Got this from the Annual Fair of ISM International school-Tripoli, where Mr.Francis –the English teacher had put up a nice stall, with many interesting books….2004

Mr.Francis taught us many things-over many discussions in Ben Ashor and Gurgi -still remember his introductions to Iago…”There is no villain like Iago in all of literature” or the nuances of Lahiri’s novels and short stories-The Interpreter of Malladies.

Basein-The Portuguese Interlude-by Teresa Albuquerque

Was gifted this by Father Ubaldo of Father Agnel Church-and Ashram-Mumbai…..

2012-July

People’s History of United States-Howard Zinn

 

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Chicago-2009-November-Cloud Gate Sculpture-Millenium Park-Chicago-Michigan- A public sculpture by Sir Anish Kapoor-.. when we got the book-by Howard Zinn-People’s history of the United States

 

Summary points

Having a home library –and developing a joint Reading journal through discussions of these books-is a way to Refine our understandings.

In our discussions on the evolution of Nehru’s understanding of civil disobedience, to the local histories of Basein-Vasai region of Mumbai to evolving –expanding our understanding our concepts of Adventure-after and through readings of Chris Bonnington’s ‘Quest for Adventure’ we refined and furthered our Home library

Hope Appu reads a few pages from Howard Zinn’s book and tells about some new points which she gained from that book. Looking forward to that discussion.

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Welcome Committee

Posted on April 25, 2018 by prashant bhatt

In previous years, we welcomed the family members from other countries and I told my sons to form a “Welcome committee” and try to arrange gifts, plan out places to visit, and get a sense of the extended family in an intentional way.

So in July of 2016-I had told my sons to arrange gifts for their uncle Bharat and family. I gathered books-momentoes from areas where we had stayed, Letters to his daughter-by Nehru, a plaque of the Temples of Cyrene-which was part of Greek Libya (modern day Shahat) and Symbols of the Knights of St.John of Malta, and views of Sultanahmet-(the historic Constantinople) from Bosphorus.

A year before that, in July 2015, when their aunt Appu had come from Mumbai-we had gone to Niagara falls and seen different facets, including the “Blue Moon”-a second full moon in a calendar month

Now –anticipating Appu’s visit again- I told the boys about the “Welcome Committee” and they started rolling up their eyes.

So, just posting some pictures of Yester-years-to make them a bit more motivated

 

2015 7 (2)

MAID OF THE MIST-Boat-ride-Niagara-we drove back pretty late that day-as waited to see the sound and light show on the Occasion of Blue Moon- July 2015

 

2015 7 (5)

Sep 2017- Naturalization zone near Candlestick-Bharat-Bhai-Priti going for walk together

2016-9

The Naturalization zone near our house- is a nice place to Think-Discuss-Reflect

 

 
Hopefully –weather permitting- will explore some areas of Hamilton
Dundurn-Burlington Heights

And Re-visit Wilket Creek area-Central Don-Toronto

and Port Credit- Jack Darling, Rattray Marsh and surrounding areas

Maybe, will take advice of some of my well wishers- and just go for some walks

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Out of your skin

Posted on March 3, 2018 by prashant bhatt

What are we supposed to get out of this (story, poem, play)?
While the formal reading group meets once a month, I read and discussed the same pieces of literature in different locations informally.

Burlington Plaza-Cafe-

BURLINGTON PLAZA-BRANT STREET, ONTARIO- Mai-orignially from Taiwan-now living in Hamilton, runs this cafe with his wife. A lunch time Reading -Thinking place , we discuss and learn many things about life, work, community in that break

In the previous book club discussion-(February-2018) on Madeliene Thein’s- Do not say we have nothing- the members had varied responses.

1-Madeliene Thien

One experienced reader said that he stopped at Page 127, the characters were too difficult to keep track of, and the historical context of the Cultural revolution was not clear. Another experienced reader said that she went through the whole book- to Honour the memory of the people whose struggle the book tells about

Another experienced reader said that she went through the whole book- to Honour the memory of the people whose struggle the book tells about

An Alternate Memory

The book ends on the note by the author- Not everyone who supported and strengthened this story can be named. To my beloved friends in Shanghai, Hangzhou,Beijing, and Danhuang, thank you for accompanying me through the book of records and an alternate memory of history. Remember what I say- Not everything will pass.

The book takes us inside two talented families musicians of China , lives of two entwined generations- Those who weathered Mao’s Cultural Revolution, and their children , who became the Tiananmen Square protestors.

What are we supposed to get?

In their introduction to the pocket anthology of literature, Gywnn and Campbell write that if you have really savoured the full experience that good literature offers, then the first thing you should get “out of” will be your own skin- when you do that you will answer your own question. For a few moments you lose your own identity and see through the eyes of an Elizabethian Englishman, a modern Nigerian, or a contemporary Canadian woman, and you may just find that in some significant way your own manner of looking at the world will never be quite the same again.

Some books which got us into different Skins – The Reading list

2-Sawyer

Robert Sawyer’s-Calculating God-made us discuss the meaning of ultimate reality. The book takes place in the present day and describes the arrival on Earth of sentient aliens. The bulk of the novel covers the many discussions and arguments on this topic, as well as about the nature of belief, religion, and science. Thomas Jericho, a paleontologist working at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, makes the first human-to-alien contact when a Forhilnor, a spider-like alien from the third planet of the Beta Hydri system arrives on Earth to investigate Earth’s evolutionary history. The alien, Hollus, has come to Earth to gain access to the museum’s large collection of fossils, and to study accumulated human knowledge in order to gather evidence of the existence of God. It seems that Earth and Hollus’ home planet, and the home planet of another alien species traveling with Hollus, all experienced the same five cataclysmic events at roughly the same time. Hollus believes that the universe was created by a god, to provide a place where life could develop and evolve. Thomas Jericho is an atheist who provides a balance to the philosophical discussion regarding the existence of gods.(source-Wikipedia)

 

Robert Sawyer’s-Calculating God-made us discuss the meaning of ultimate reality. The book takes place in the present day and describes the arrival on Earth of sentient aliens. The bulk of the novel covers the many discussions and arguments on this topic, as well as about the nature of belief, religion, and science. Thomas Jericho, a paleontologist working at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, makes the first human-to-alien contact when a Forhilnor, a spider-like alien from the third planet of the Beta Hydri system arrives on Earth to investigate Earth’s evolutionary history. The alien, Hollus, has come to Earth to gain access to the museum’s large collection of fossils, and to study accumulated human knowledge in order to gather evidence of the existence of God. It seems that Earth and Hollus’ home planet, and the home planet of another alien species traveling with Hollus, all experienced the same five cataclysmic events at roughly the same time. Hollus believes that the universe was created by a god, to provide a place where life could develop and evolve. Thomas Jericho is an atheist who provides a balance to the philosophical discussion regarding the existence of gods.(source-Wikipedia)

March 2018-Readings- Riverwood

Going to open places to read- gives an interesting twist to the reading experience.

This morning, went to Riverwood and read again- about the Inmate Shadow from Neil Gaiman’s –American Gods. Shadow is released early from prison as his wife Laura dies in a car crash. He meets Wednesday and goes into crime. The use of language by Gaiman helps expand, and going by the experience of “Getting Out of your Skin” the author gets the reader into the mind-frame of different characters.

Example-

Shadow remembers his carousel ride as a child in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco –on his first trip to the States and the sound of music makes him wish as though the last 36 hours had never happened (when he gets out of jail and goes to his wife’s funeral) , as if the last three years had not happened (his jail term).

Riverwood-3-3-18 –American Gods-Neil Gaimon

 

 

Perspective Note
Keeping a Reading Journal enhances the reading experience in many ways. Going to different-“thinking places” to read adds another twist. Different reading member groups bring different flavours to the reading experience. In this quarter we discussed-read three books-which bring out concepts of Faith, Community, life in different ways.

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