All images: from paintings by Inni Kaur.
Poetry
Is This Love?
by INNI KAUR
"Valentine's Day is just another day," says a friend who has just celebrated her silver anniversary.
Is it? I wonder?
My mind drifts ...
To the morning of my 50th birthday.
"Happy 50th birthday," says my husband.
The room is filled with two-dozen red roses and two soulful birthday cards.
Joy fills me.
It is a foreign feeling.
"Darling, I feel like my life has just begun. I want to celebrate everyday as my birthday this year."
My normally quiet husband smiles and says, "This is your year, celebrate."
And celebrate I did.
I walked, I read, I wrote, I painted.
Yes! I even learnt to paint. Or did I?
I met the most amazing teacher who said, "I can't teach you to paint. The only thing I can do is to help you bring on paper what is inside you."
My classes with her were pure meditation.
For eight weeks, every Thursday mornings, I drove to be with her for four hours. Total bliss.
The other students in the class could not understand what I was doing there?
Midway, through the classes I realized their confusion. I was with a Master teacher. Her students were full-fledged artists in their own right.
And then there was me. Who knew NOTHING about painting?
I had flunked art in school.
How anyone could fail in art is beyond me. But I did.
In Grade 3, I vividly remember drawing a smiling elephant.
My teacher was furious. "Elephant's don't smile. That is not what is drawn on the black board," she said.
"I don't like to draw sad things. The elephant on the board looks sad," I replied very meekly.
That got me into deep trouble. And from that day, I never touched a coloring pencil, let alone a paintbrush.
And here I was at 50 surrounded with the most amazing artists.
I drooled at their masterpieces.
They tried very hard to find something nice to say about my paintings. To say they were amateurish is being very kind.
Yet, nothing could touch my joy at just being there and painting. I was in my own world. A world filled with love, beauty and simran.
I titled my masterpieces:
"Meditation, Prof. Puran Singh"
"Creation"
"Lotus in the Pond"
‘Meditation colors"
And many, many more!
It was a wonderful year! A magnificent celebration!
All because the man I married said, "Go ahead! Do what you want to do. Its your year!"
What an amazing gift he gave me.
On this Valentine Day, I say, "Thank-you darling, for everything and most of all thank-you for putting up with my madness."
Is this love?
I think so! An enduring kind of love.
They say that love is wasted on the young. I agree.
As I look in the mirror
I see the platinum shine
I smile.
In my red dress
Wearing my dancing shoes
I will dance the night away.
Happy Valentine!
May every day be a Valentine's Day ...
February 14, 2010
Conversation about this article
1: Manjyot Kaur (New York City, U.S.A.), February 14, 2010, 11:51 AM.
Yes, dear Inni, this IS Love! Thank you for sharing your artistic outpourings with us; they are ethereal. May this year, and all those to come, also be "your year," a time when the Divine Light within you blossoms forth in a myriad of amazing ways!
2: Harminder Kaur & Pritam Singh (San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.), February 14, 2010, 1:08 PM.
Dear Inni: This is absolutlely wonderful and inspiring. After almost 40 years of knowing you, we found out you are an artist, a poet as well as a writer.
3: Mage Rajpreet Kaur (Montevideo, Uruguay), February 14, 2010, 1:10 PM.
I agree. I've just written in my blog (in spanish) about today. And I said that we have love in many places. Yes, we have to do every day a Valentine's Day. Blessings.
4: Jasvinder (Hamilton, New Zealand), February 14, 2010, 3:04 PM.
Great to see, when people express their inner love for someone,and when they love life as well, we find the true meaning of love when we start living life to the fullest, enjoy every moment it brings. Love is unconditional love in just giving and not asking anything in return; love is God who just gives and gives and gives. God is the true symbol of love, if we want to understand love we should understand Him, and just give love unconditionally like Him.
5: Harveen (India), February 14, 2010, 11:38 PM.
I was emotional reading this. Thanks for sharing this with everyone. This could inspire so many husbands. An excellent way of expressing love ... better than diamonds!
6: Peter van Dell (Fairfield, Connecticut, U.S.A.), February 15, 2010, 10:01 AM.
Inni, you are blessed for a number of reasons. I love the art: the colors are calming as is the composition. It looks like you found another niche. Congratulations ... looking forward to more.
7: Parveen Kaur Dhillon (Redwood City, California, U.S.A. ), February 15, 2010, 11:43 AM.
This was such a beautiful and inspiring read! Thank you so-o-o much for sharing a part of you with us! Your paintings and your words have so much emotion in them and your wisdom and positive outlook on life are so amazing! This is a wonderful story that I will find myself sharing with many people!
8: Gurmeet Kaur (Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.), February 15, 2010, 12:37 PM.
Perhaps, behind every great woman is a great man, kind and quiet, letting her be ... a father, a husband, a brother, a friend, a son, a lover, nudging her to love her own spirit as she loves and nurtures his.
9: Anne Korde (Riverside, Connecticut, U.S.A.), February 15, 2010, 2:37 PM.
Inni, Besides being a wonderful human being, I am delighted to see that you are now expressing your feelings through art. I look forward to viewing you paintings.
10: Tejwant Singh (Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.), February 16, 2010, 2:45 PM.
Inni, you did not create just art. You created life on a blank canvas; the life that you had no idea if it ever existed or could be borne. You gave a totally new meaning to the word "born again" at 50. Thanks to your visionary and loving hubby, who showed you a novel way to live while leaving the nest for four hours, every Thursday and by using your wings to discover new horizons yet unknown to you. On a side note, your paintings have lots of stories to tell.
11: Arun Ganapathy (Delhi, India ), February 19, 2010, 9:09 AM.
Inni: My only question after seeing your paintings is, why aren't you painting full time? Especially when you have someone who supports madness. And yes, Ii would like to see more of your paintings.