A few minutes after I published the last post R woke up from the night's sleep. He had high fever. 39C. He took some medication and drank 200ml of oral rehydration salts, bit by bit. That should help for a while. The sequence went like this: a week ago R got a cold. L caught … Continue reading The Old Macdonald story has a part two
Author: natasha devalia
Author Poetry and Art books: ‘Tears and Grape Seeds’ 2025, ‘one touch of the rope’, 2024 and ‘Unseen Veins’, 2023
Zambian of South Asian descent, living in Thailand.
I write poetry, perform, and I’m currently an MFA (painting) student. The themes of my art whether expressed through movement, poetry, painting or as interdisciplinary forms include identity, belonging, mental health and family life.
Old Macdonald’s “E I E I O” inverted
Rahul sings the chorus "Ayi Ayi O". Ayi in Chinese means aunt. It is what he calls one of his most dear people xiao He, his nanny.
Bob Dylan in Shanghai
A couple of Fridays ago we flew to Shanghai, hung out in a hotel room for a few hours, then took the crowded peak-hour metro to the Shanghai Grand stage. Bob Dylan was performing. The crowds in the subway on a Friday evening could overwhelm anyone. I don't know how L and R made it without … Continue reading Bob Dylan in Shanghai
Upsy Daisy…Upsy Daisy…
Leila loves Upsy Daisy, a character from her new favorite TV series In the night garden. She first used to call her"Dai", then "Dai-dy" and now she says "Daisy" clearly. It is very sweet to hear. Lately she says it often. Each episode of the show begins with a parent telling their baby a bedtime … Continue reading Upsy Daisy…Upsy Daisy…
Ashtanga lite
L and R are almost a year and a half now, and my practice is developing as they are. As they grow more independent I have more time for it, for the grounding of the big toe, awareness of mula and uddhiyana bandha's, fuller breaths, and deeper savasanas. Asana details: I have very slowly built … Continue reading Ashtanga lite
Rahul practices to Sharath’s live web class
This evening Sharath (Pattabhi Jois' grandson - the late ashtanga yoga guru), had a live internet broadcast of his class in NYC. We tried to catch it. It was 7pm our time. We were half an hour late. We saw was a picture of the class in ardha badda padma paschimattanasana or half bound lotus … Continue reading Rahul practices to Sharath’s live web class
Savasana confessions
Savasana aka corpse pose, final relaxation, or just "take rest" as Pattabhi Jois used to say, is usually practiced at the end of a yoga session. Lie on your back. Let your legs separate slightly and roll out. Keep your arms along your body with the palms facing up. Allow the floor to support your … Continue reading Savasana confessions
Pacifier connoisseur
Rahul knows pacifiers! The fact that he is almost a year and a half and is still hooked to one is another story; but since I brought it up here is an interesting little thing. A friend who recently moved to Switzerland said she sees three and four-year olds there still sucking on them. Continuing … Continue reading Pacifier connoisseur
Down dog at dinner
How do you explain to a toddler who loves her down dog, that yoga is best practiced on an empty stomach? For every mouthful of her heavy pasta dinner Leila performed a deep down dog for us. I doubt it was comfortable, and certainly far from blissful!
My not so controlled, not so scientific experiment.
Our sleeping arrangement is as consistent as everything else is with me lately. L and R share a room and have a crib each. For the beginning of every night they are in their room. Some parts of some nights we have one of them in our bed, and sometimes much more rarely both. Having … Continue reading My not so controlled, not so scientific experiment.
Natasha Devalia 