The American Nightmare The American nightmareWhere children are murdered in their classroomsWhile the police wait outsideWhere black and brown people are murdered in broad daylightby police pointing guns at their backs and up-stretched armsWhere women are forced to birth children they cannot raiseMother and child fall deeper into chasms of inescapable povertyWhile rich white politicians…
Tag: writing
March 2022 Books
“Peaceful Parent, Happy Kids” by Dr. Laura Markham is an audiobook I’ve had in my library for years but never finished. I think I started it when my first child was still a baby, but I did not feel it was applicable at the time. Fast forward six years, and things have definitely changed! I,…
February 2022 Books
I only got through two books in February: one audiobook and one hard cover. However, both of these books were well worth the time it took to finish them. Both took the full 28 days to get through, and oh were they incredible! Without further ado… Clocking in at 32 hours and 51 minutes, this…
South Asian Authors I Love
Over the last two years, I have become more intentional about reading/listening to books written by a diverse array of writers. I seek out books, new and old, written by authors of color, not only for their different perspectives and outlooks on life and the world around them, but also to show solidarity for people…
Hitting Refresh
For many people around the world, 2020 became a time to re-evaluate, reset, and delve into creative outlets. For others, it was a time to figure out how to survive (in more ways than the obvious). I fell into that latter group for sure. Though I am grateful for the countless ways in which my…
Dr. Abraham Verghese on the Importance of Touch
Sometime during medical school, I heard about a book about treating patients during the onset of the AIDS epidemic in America. I was surprised and delighted to learn that the author, Abraham Verghese, was Indian, and, like me, his roots were from Kerala, India. Given my deep interest in HIV medicine and Infectious Diseases at the…
An Open Letter to Jhumpa Lahiri
Dear Ms. Lahiri, It has been about two and a half years since I’ve read a novel from beginning to end. Residency sort of interferes with leisurely reading, especially when one’s mind is occupied with reading journals, studying for exams, and staring at computer screen trying to absorb a patient’s entire health history in a…
For Jyoti Singh Pandey
This is a poem I wrote several years ago. It resonates with me each time a tragic headline or untold personal story of a woman comes to the surface. Today, I dedicate it to Jyoti Singh Pandey, may your brave and strong soul find moksha. We Are My first lesson in gender inequality Came at…
The Lotus
A resonant chant sung by voices Rich like her roots Divine like the secrets of a goddess Devotional Pure Heard only by the soul tumultuous and yearning Behind closed eyes A sacred lotus Untainted by the dirty water it floats in Thus is she seated there on the floor where millions pass each day Breath…
Hurricane Isaac
Since moving to New Orleans two years and and two months ago, I have experienced plenty of rain, heat, and flash flooding. However, I experienced my first bona fide hurricane when Isaac paid a visit to Louisiana, commemorating the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. I had heard the many stories from patients, coworkers, attending physicians,…
pen . paper . storm 