Four words later.

So I went to a protest a week ago - a human chain of citizens objecting to a monstrously expensive steel flyover that would kill over 800 trees and scar our Garden City forever. The organisers suggested we carry signs that simply stated: No.

But somewhere in my head, that old copywriter lurks, and these four words popped into my head. I painted them on a sign, and off I went.

THOU SHALT NOT STEEL.

I knew it was a good slogan, but I never expected the response I got. People up and down the chain were giving me the thumbs up, telling me they loved it. The media loved it too - two newspapers used it as part of their headlines, and a few others posted pictures of my sign and me. As an added bonus, the Economic Times described me as "a woman in her thirties" (I'm 51). A few days later, at a public referendum, the historian and author Ramachandra Guha ended his speech with it, praising it as the most brilliant, succinct and moving critique of the flyover issue. Lovely, he called it.

Praise and compliments are great. As is the knowledge that my words resonated with so many people. But the best thing these four words did for me, was to jolt me out of my apathy. They reminded me that I am a writer (who does not write much any more). They reminded me that I had a talent for words that can get people's attention, communicate and convince, and inspire change. They reminded me that 14 years I ago, I left a fun and financially delicious career in advertising because I wanted to use that talent to sell more than luxury cars and fizzy drinks.

So today, along with the #SteelFlyoverBeda protesters, who have been accused of "waking up too late" on the flyover issue, I'm awake too, with that voice in my head repeating clear:  thou shalt write.

I shall.

Lying down is not good for the soul.

No writing, no planting, not much of anything, of late. I've spent the last fortnight in bed with a bad back or hip (still not too sure which, doctors love being mysterious with their diagnoses .. and their handwriting, too, so I haven't been able to decipher the scrawls that explained my pain).

Lying down is not good for the soul, not in this large dose, at any rate. It's left me pain free but also lethargic and low. Despondent and pessimistic and very frustrated at not being able to leap about at will. Not that I've been able to leap about since my thirties .. but you know what I mean.

So really, I have nothing to say today.

Four months later ..

and I realised that I have not blogged for ages. I have been busy forever, mostly with taxes. I've also moved home, sort of. And I've been busy organising my high school batch's 35th year reunion (in less than a fortnight, I get to reconnect with girls I last met when we were just 16. Now we're all 50, but judging from the barrage of Whatsapp messages, we're all pretty much still a bunch of giggly girls - at least on the inside!)

Best of all, I've been planting trees!! You're going to hear a lot about them. But not today. I've been up since six and I. Am. Exhausted.