The greatest achievement is selflessness.

The greatest worth is self mastery.

The greatest quality is seeking to serve othersThe greatest medicine is emptiness of everything

The greatest action is not conforming with the world’s ways

The greatest magic is transmuting the passions

The greatest generosity is non-attachment

The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind

The greatest patience is humility

The greatest effort is not concerned with the results

The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go

The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearences

Resource:Unknown

Iravil Viriyum Poo pole song

My latest favorite song ..

Happy Onam

Today is thiruonam, Happy Onam to my family , friends  and all Malayalees!

I got lots of help with pookalam yesterday as our neighbour stopped by with green beans from their garden. My neighbour is my very good friend and gardening buddy..Here is she and her daughter helping with pookalam.(in the slideshow , I am posting their pics with permission)..

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Day what ..I can’t rememeber..:-)

I made a pookalam everyday even though it’s pretty simple or small..Bythe time I bring my phone to take a picture  the pookalam won’t be there..magically disappears..and the culprit  would be standing next where the pookalam was, with flowers in her hands or clapping her hands  with a  smile on her face. So I cud not take any good pictures.

This one was from yesteray..

Pookalam

Clematis , Avente Garde is blooming now, it’s a beautiful Clematis, with dark pink small flowers, and leaves are small as well compared to other clematis.

Avante_Garde Clematis

Day 2 – Pookalam -5 minutes Pookalam

 

Okay, We made to the second day, it’s Chithira, use two colors and two rounds, not supposed to be too colorful..but I picked up some yellow as well without knowing and I did not want to waste it..so we have three colors instead of two.

Onam Simple pookalam design

Honarable mentions..

and here is my magic peach & red hibiscus, it some times has red blooms and today is peach day..you can see a red one getting ready for tomorrow..

Peach Hibiscus

And one more , from my summer bush garden , tall garden phlox (David’s), pee gee hydrangea limelight ,butterfly bush (Davidii)

Garden Phlox,Hydrangea,butterflybush

Day 1 -White pookalam -3 minute Pookalam

I am not sure if i will be able to make it , but i am going to try anyway with ‘Lord Mahabali’s blessings..:-)

Yesterday was Atham, the first day of Onam festival. Traditionally pooklam is done with white flowers mainly thumbapoo, on the first day..

 thumbapoo ..It’s a tiny  simple white flower. Offcourse, no thumbapoo here..So we used mallow (a type of hibscus), and white rose of sharon and some pee gee hydrangea flowers.It’s 3 minutes pookalam, 30 seconds to run to the backyard and 30 seconds to pick the flowers , and 1 minutes 30 seconds to arrange it? and what did I do with the other 30 seconds? find out?

 

And some pictures of the white mallow, Chinmay call it as ‘monster flower’ and some pictures of the pee gee hydrangea (limelight)

Summer mix in the backyard

Chinmay’s solar system garden in our backyard has 9 plants- Corepsis,Bee balm,Aster,Daisies,trumpet vine,lobelias,lily,Perennial Salvia and I can’t remember the name of one ..