Arsenal & the Arsenal Way

Here we stand today after surrendering another 2 goal lead, this time at home against Fulham, going from 2-0 up to 2-3 down to finally drawing it 3-3 having missed a penalty in the last kick of the game. The voices calling for the head of Arsene Wenger have gathered a louder noise. The voices shout that, gone are the days of Wenger, and a radical aggressive spending policy for transfers and employee wages is the only way to ensure success (read trophies).

I would like to calm down the fears, yes these are dire times, but the reason is not tactical. Let me try and break it down to you.

Our team at this moment is:

GK:  Vito Mannone – deputizing for an injured Wojciech Szczesny

RB:   Bacary Sagna – returning from long term injury (fractured the same foot twice)

CB:   Per Mertesacker – consistent this season, curse of the 1^st season seems over

         Laurent Koscielny – returning from injury

LB:    Thomas Vermaelen – playing out of position because of injury to Kieran Gibbs

Mid:   Mikel Arteta – consistent and reliable performer, showing signs of tiredness & burnout

          Jack Wilshere – returing from long term injury (17 months!!)

          Santi Cazorla – playing his first season in EPL

Fwds:  Lukas Podolski – playing his first season in EPL

           Olivier Giroud – playing his first season is EPL

          Theo Walcott- (umm…yeah) has developed his game, but embroiled in contract issues

The Invicibles (under Arsene Wenger)

Class on the medical bench:

Abou Diaby – showed earlier in the season his talent and capabilities, unfortunately also showed he is still injury prone

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – the prodigy and (one of the many) future of England

Gervinho – played hot & cold again before getting injured

Tomas Rosicky – nicknamed lil Mozart for a reason, showed glimpses of earlier talent last season before getting injured again

Aaron Ramsey – gets some stick for his performances, but in my opinion is still coming back from his broken foot, a former captain of the wales team shows talent exists

I think you get where I’m getting at. As to how we manage to have the longest list of injured player in the league, I don’t know. But it is the same squad that one month ago had the maximum clean sheets and was thrashing opponents in classic arsenal manner. And the voices then murmured the hopes of winning everything this year. Nearly a month later, in all competitions the stats stand, P 7 W2 D2 L3. And the crucifiers are out again.

A squad that could conquer all, now seems thin and pressure is being put to spend money a.k.a. Manchester City, PSG, Chelsea, ummm… Malaga, Celtic??

There is a need to strengthen the position of LB with a quality backup, but the need to sign midfielders and forwards in already competitive positions seems more like a cry of panic.

There is a reason why Arsene Wenger is le professeur, he is Arsenal and he is the Arsenal Way - the obsession to do things right at all costs. In the modern game where financial obscenity has become the name of the game, the financial fair play rules seem like an age away. Even in such times we have a club in Arsenal wherein the focus is on development of the youth, the players and of the game.

Crying out to go obscene with money and buying trophies (like some of our ex-players), if this is your solution to all problems, then you are better off supporting Manchester City and the likes. We are not doing that, we are not even emulating Liverpool. This is Arsenal, and this is The Arsenal Way.

All said and done, top talent leaving the club every year is a grave concern. I find myself wondering of a team with Fabregas and Na$ri with a fit and firing RVP and what could be. (sigh!)

At the end of the day, the bare minimum I expect from Arsenal this season is

1. Finishing above the spurs (like always)
2. Competing for the EPL title (champions league football next season)
3. Minimum one trophy this season

I believe this is shared among all gooners. All you need to do is believe.

Arsene Knows. In Arsene we trust.

 Feel free to tell me how you feel in the comments

Them & Me

The devil and me, we walk hand in hand,

Not a word is spoken, yet his voice is in my head.

It says to me, give them pain,

Do whatever you must, be it a dishonorable gain.

 

An angel sees my tears; she flutters over to my ears,

Her voice is soft; the devil disappears.

She says to me, you should be free,

Of all your fears; dry them tears.

A gush of wind, notices my bleeding feet,

It blows around me; it dithers, and talks in whispers,

It promises places I've never seen,

It pushes me forward; it takes me where I've never been.

The sun finds me huddled in a dark spot,

It shines bright and sends a ray shot,

To clear the eyes of my mind,

To make me see, all that to which I have been blind.

They guide me to a better place,

Make me into the man I need to be,

They are always alone, yet they’re always with me,

We are all but one, them and me.

Oh Brother, why bother!

So life, it has come to this,

You stand alone and the walls around you are falling, 

Yet you stand and do not move. 

I’m not sure whether you are calm or shell shocked, 

all I know that you’ll be dead soon.

But halt my brother, 

heed life’s call, 

live and die this day, 

live and die some more. 

For yet you have not seen what is still to come, 

and have not felt what you should. 

For life hasn’t yet made you what you are destined to be; 

not yet, but everyday a lil’ more.

So many faces you haven’t seen yet, 

and so many you shall see no more; 

but not before you have seen some more, 

come brother, live some more.

For every life that goes, 

one more is born; 

if incomplete you go, 

then an incomplete man shall be born.  

You ask me why I bother, 

but brother I’m you; 

I’m the spark trying to stop the darkness from engulfing you.

For every tear today, 

remember the 5 smiles that have been, 

and the ten more that you will never see, 

all you need to do is breathe. 

Life passes with every breath, 

this too shall pass, brother, just breathe.

I promise you, a day will come, 

I’ll ask no more of you; 

but that day is not today, 

today you must live. 

OMG – Oh My God!

At first glance, the title of the movie and the cast, prominently featuring Paresh Rawal and Askhay Kumar, would lead many (like myself) to write it off as another silly comedy film; the trailers and the posters don’t help the case either. But caveat emptor, there is more to this movie.

The movie is an effort to question the blindness that religion has become. It is an eye opener which, I hope, will lead to soul searching & introspection for many a “believers”. In a country obsessed with religion and “faith”, where the only way to reach the masses is through either cricket or movies, I am glad that in OMG – Oh My God, we finally have a movie that shall reach masses and would lead to more than just box office collections and breaking the 200 crore mark (yes, I’m referring to Ek tha Tiger).

OMG – Oh My God, with its own dosage of humor, is a logical case against the businesses that temples, mosques, churches and other “religious buildings” truly are. It brings forth the true nature of “theists” today as god-fearing rather than being god-loving. It highlights the basic necessity of being human and humane as the pedestal to being religious. It goes further and questions the self-proclaimed babas, mahapurushs, sidh-pandits and the likes as to how close to moksha they really are while they travel in their BMWs and Mercedes and wallow in obscene luxuries. The acting of Mithun Chakraborty is commendable, while Paresh Rawal is at his best and Akshay Kumar does justice to the role of God. It is a movie which is worthy more for its concept rather than the story.

The theme of the movie is in line with the concept that God is Omnipotent, Omnipresent & Omniscient and yet God should not be feared but loved, and God loves those who are truly righteous. It focuses on being spiritual rather than being religious. The movie relays to the concept of One God and that in essence the Bhagwat Geeta, Quran, Bible and the likes all have a common underlying theme of what life means and the key to attaining self-actualization; but like any other book, the meaning and story is understood only when the entire book is read and not by merely reading passages.

In Conclusion

I want all my friends to watch this movie. If I had kids, I would want my kids to watch this movie and learn from it. It is a must watch. The fact that the movie received objections from “religious” groups prior to its release provides further proof that this movie is even more necessary for our country today.

A Mother's Heart

Trickling rain fell from sky,

was it filled with grief,

coz my heart it cried,

and the ground it shook,

with movement of my trembling feet.

            My mother is hurt, wounded, scarred,

            burned, dissipated by her own kin.

            Was the reason me or

            was it my own some forgotten sin.

I blame not my father, nor god nor time,

I blame myself for all that’s done.

Had I not had that chocolate cake,

maybe I could have changed her fate.

            I pray to god, and I promise him every night,

            I wont ever have that chocolate cake again,

            if he just would make things right.

Love is humane & human is love,

but maybe animals are all above,

in understanding how love is done.

            Another poem composed by me;

            Is it filled with grief

            I dunno hows it done,

            I dunno even how to weep.

They speak about a mother's heart her son had to steal,

and he broke it into a thousand pieces, still

her heart only asked for the son’s well being

            I can not break my mother’s heart,

            so I run with trembling feet,

            hoping god will save,
            what man has tried to kill.

The Man under the Tree

I was fourteen. As I sat in our new car, I happened to see an old man sitting on the footpath under a tree in a make shift structure.  He was using a broom to clean the area. It took me sometime to realize that the make shift structure was his house.  It was half the size of the car I was in. I observed as the man sat around performing his daily chores. He was cleaning the area, removing the leaves that had fallen from the tree that acted as the roof of his home.

I wondered if he was content with life, whether he wished for luxury, or was he so busy fighting for daily necessities that luxury was not a part of his thought, or whether he had given up on the idea of life all together. As I thought about that man under the tree, my own life and perceptions changed.

I wondered if he had any friends, if he had anyone to talk to, if he had anything to talk about. As I looked around his house, all I could spot was a dirty old mattress rolled and kept aside, a small kerosene stove, a single broken utensil and a dirty glass, an Indian version of a Chinese hand fan, and the broom. Then from somewhere he produced small pouches of supplies. He started the stove and made tea for himself. I just stared as he slowly sipped away. It seemed like it was the only thing on his menu for breakfast. I was filled with shame for myself, for all the demands I kept on my family regarding what I would and wouldn’t eat.

The broom he was using seemed to have come from a dumpster; it had outlived its useful life. I wonder if the same was true about the old man. As time passed I wondered where his family was. I always knew that no matter how the time might be, my family would always be with me. That was the thought that kept me going even in my weakest moments.
As I sat inside my world, looking out to his world, everything changed. My dream had always been to have a huge house on top of a hill, a garage full of cars, all the luxury that money could buy and more; looking at him, I was just glad to be where I was, for what I had, and that I was not him. It was the first time that I actually felt grateful for what I had. It was the first time I thanked god, it wasn't the last.

You

All I ever want is you,

but for you, I'll be never enough.

There is so much more to me,

but that's something you'll never be able to see.