CATUS PETASATUS (Latin for Cat)
A coat of soft velvet grey,
A tale tipped like an artist's brush.
Two oval almond shaped eyes of translucent opulent green.
Ears alert to every sound, movement and whisper,
A body as lithe and agile as an athlete
Leaping high and far into the abyss
To land with perfect poise and grace.
My four-legged companion
Of Ancient Egyptian blood descent
Standing proud like the Godlike Bas.
Gentle heart of gentle gold,
Every purr, every murmur
Affection no bound
Dusk dwells,
Midnight moon abound.
Cat-eyes glowing in the dark, luminous.
Warrior-like stance about to strike.
Claws like blades,
No escape, no where to hide.
You are the hunter feline
And I am your prey.
Copyright Subrata Saha (2009)
THE LITTLE MERMAID....
.. ..
"Nah!!!" said the Little Mermaid. "I don't like it. The story is too bland".....
.. ..
"Bland?" said Hans Christian Anderson. He was totally flabbergasted if not a slightly hurt by this remark. "I spent all night writing this. I wrote it for you!"....
.. ..
Han Christian Anderson was down by ....Copenhagen.... harbour speaking to his secret little friend the Little Mermaid. ....
.. ..
"It's too predictable", said the Little Mermaid. ....
.. ..
"Ok what don't you like about The Little Mermaid story", asked Hans Christian.....
.. ..
"You men and have no clue what a woman wants", said the Little Mermaid. "You think all we want is men, money and chocolates!"....
.. ..
"Well isn't that what all women want? And you like your sweets that I bring for you!!" said Hans.....
.. ..
"Nah! You really don't have a clue do you? With your story you are using the same old formula again and again like all fairytales. The girl is waiting for her rich handsome Prince to take her away and live happily ever after!!" ....
.. ..
"Little Mermaid haven't you heard a word of my story that I just read to you. You don't get the guy and another woman does. This Little Mermaid heart breaks and then she slowly becomes foam on the sea and then joins the Children of Light and is free from the love she has for her Prince. In fact she did a very noble thing by giving the Prince up and ending her life to save his, as she loved him so much!"....
.. ..
The Little Mermaid looked at Hans Christian Anderson with her deep violet eyes. She really liked this handsome young man. Even fancied him! When she first saw him writing near the ....Copenhagen.... docks she wandered curiously what was he putting pen to paper? She had to find out especially when she heard from the other fisherman on the docks that he was a writer and poet. The Little Mermaid loved anything to do with the Arts. She would happily play and sing on her sea harp at the bottom of the ocean among the sea corals , star fishes, seaweeds and crabs, different assortments of breathtaking myriad of multicoloured fishes, sea bubbles and dream of stories for hours and hours that she too would like to write one day. She liked being on her own sometimes from her father The Mer King and her sisters to dream of far away lands she would like to visit and she was so curious about the human world, the world above the Ocean. She definitely wanted to explore and write about it. ....
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
Her people were the Mer People of the sea and they had fish tail instead of legs. She did love her tail. She loved the way it sparkled in the sunlight and the individual scales mirrored the sun's reflection given a shimming gold glittery feeling. It was ever so feminine. But if she had legs she could walk on land and travel the world and write! But she did not want to travel on her own. She needed a companion at her side. The world above the water could be a dangerous place to be! ....
.. ..
Then one day she was swimming in the harbour when she spotted Hans on the shore. Instantly she was attracted to this handsome young writer. She was shy but slowly and gently she edged nearer and nearer to the shore until she finally got his attention. ....
.. ..
Hans was awestruck when he had first seen her. He believed that Mermaids were stuff of legends. Mythical creatures dreamt up by hallucinating seamen. The Little Mermaid was absolutely enchanting and so beautiful with her sun kissed hair and golden sparkling tail. ....
.. ..
She had simply asked him what he was writing and so he told her of all the stories he had written and they soon became firm friends. She absolutely loved hearing his stories and she in turn told him the stories she would like to write one day. ....
.. ..
Then one summer's day, Hans decided to write a story of his friend The Little Mermaid and was disheartened when she did not like it! ....
.. ..
"My heart gets broken?" said the Little Mermaid.....
.. ..
"Yes and then you are free from all the heartbreak and sadness that was in your life", said Hans.....
.. ..
"But it still follows the same formula. She expects her Prince to whisk her away and then the man breaks her heart! Typical!"....
.. ..
"Ok" said Hans. "You tell me what I should have written in this fishy tail", ....
.. ..
.. ..
"Well it's true I want legs, but only to travel the world and see people on dry land and to write my books one day. I want to be a famous writer. I would have liked to have been a travelling gypsy and to tell and sing my stories to the whole world by a burning log fire in a gypsy camp in the dark twilight evening on a midsummer's day, not waiting for a handsome Prince to take her to his castle! Mind you that Prince was well thick! Didn't he realised I saved him from that storm out at sea and the way he goes on about that other woman – man it would have bored my ears to death! I gave upeverything for him? My family, my fishy friends, my beautiful singing voice too and sea harp to become a mute, I guess my writing as well and my lovely golden tail??? I would never give up anything for a human man! HE HAS TO FIT IN WITH MY LIFESTYLE NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND! See the same old formula. A woman gives up everything for her man! In this case I did not even get him! Anyway you like my tail Hans but in your story you say that the Prince only likes smelly feet instead!"....
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
"Also let me add my friend Beauty liked her Prince staying the Beast. She now misses stroking his hairy head! Sleeping Beauty tells me that she wishes that she never married her Prince because when he kissed her it was his bad breath that woke her up after a 100years and she's now stuck with a man with halitosis. Cinderella wanted to run a guesthouse. She wanted to run her own business after learning how to run her step-mother's household. But because she is a Princess it s not "proper" for her to do that anymore!! Snow White loved her life with the Seven Dwarves and being in nature. None of them wanted to be whisked away by handsome Prince! ....
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
"Little Mermaid you have a dry sense of humour", observed Hans. "In my story you gave everything up for love. You risked everything for love but in the end you are not a slave to that love. But sometimes in life we have to take chances at things. I think the Little Mermaid was brave". ....
.. ..
.. ..
"How?" The Little Mermaid retorted. ....
.. ..
"You left behind the confines of your underwater home and customs to do what no other mermaid had ever done before in Mer history. You grew legs! You walked on those legs even though it was so painful for you! With that you were able to go places and meet people with your Prince. You learnt a lot about yourself but you weren't afraid to take a chance at life. Yes you left a lot behind and you sacrificed a lot but in the end you came out the winner. You ended up being free of the love you had for your Prince. You weren't a slave. You could have ended the Prince's life but you did a noble thing. You let him go and that is what it means to love someone", said Hans. ....
.. ..
"Hmm… I never saw it like that before!" said The Little Mermaid in deep thought. ....
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
"A story can be told in a thousand ways just like music", Hans reminded her. ....
Anyway you women do like your men, money and chocolates, but you also want your own identity. You want your own passions and individuality and I think that's a good thing!"....
.. ..
.. ..
After a short pause Hans Christian asked the Little Mermaid a simple question.....
.. ..
"Do you like the story now and can I have it published for children to read everywhere? Children will delight in this story."....
.. ..
"What, you mean children around the whole world will read it?" asked the Little Mermaid eagerly.....
.. ..
"Yes of course. You will be made famous by my story and a fortune teller told me that one day they will build a statue of you sitting by the ....Copenhagen.... harbour in honour of this book!" said Hans....
.. ..
"Ooh I like that! I will be famous as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White and Beauty and the Beast?" asked the Little Mermaid.....
.. ..
"Yes you will be and no woman can resist that can they?" said Hans with a cheeky smile. ....
.. ..
"I see your little game Hans. You are trying bribe me aren't you? Well I stand up for my principles. I will NOT be whisked away by a handsome Prince. So there!" said the Little Mermaid in defiance.....
.. ..
"Oh Little Mermaid you are so stubborn", said Hans and now he looked very sad. He really wanted to have this beautiful story published.....
.. ..
.. ..
The Little Mermaid felt guilty. She did fancy Hans and she had learnt so much about the art of writing and storytelling from him. Then she had an idea.....
.. ..
"Hans look at me! Look at me! I will let you publish the story on me on one condition", announced the Little Mermaid.....
.. ..
"Really? What's that?" said Hans.....
.. ..
"If I grow legs I want to come travelling with you. I want to see the world and I want to write my own stories and tell them everywhere. I want to continue to learn from you and listen to your wonderful tales. So what do you say?" said Little Mermaid.....
.. ..
"I would love you to accompany me, but what about your family, friends? What would your father say? You will be leaving the whole of your Mer world behind?" said Hans.....
.. ..
.. ..
"They will be fine. Just like the Little Mermaid in your book I want to take a chance at life and love. I am grown woman now and I will visit them. Besides unlike The Little Mermaid in your story you won't leave me for that other woman would you now?....
You are going to help me become a great writer like yourself and I also hope we can become more then just friends. I want to get to know you properly", said the Little Mermaid blushing. ....
.. ..
.. ..
"Hmm", said Hans. "I get to publish my story. I get myself a girlfriend and companion who loves all my writings and who wants to learn from me how to be a great writer and storyteller. I think it's the best offer I have had all day! ". ....
.. ..
With that the Little Mermaid gave Hans Christian Anderson a beautiful smile and that's how the Little Mermaid got published and became a world bestseller. ....
.. ..
..COPYRIGHT SUBRATA SAHA ( MARCH 2011)..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..
.. ..