More letters

So Slevin got in touch and explained that he is not much of a reader or a writer but felt compelled to share some thoughts. Because of my man of mystery approach he saw some similarities with The Dark Knight (Batman) after seeing the latest movie. High praise indeed... and kind of strange at the same time! Reason being, I recently purchased the flyest purple suit, so I have been feeling a bit superhero-ish, but in truth more like the Joker than Batman.

Don't you agree that character suits me a bit better? (Apart from the murder and mayhem he causes, of course!) Travelling back in time a little, I hope you guys remember the story I told about how I saved a baby bird from certain death one morning. Seems I am not alone in using my powers for good. One of my youngest readers, 10-year-old Pranav out in Fujairah, also saved a baby bird in distress, and it seems his little bird became one of the family.

They named him Piju (short for pigeon) and he even sent me a picture. How sweet is that? And with so many horror stories in the papers about cruelty to animals, it's so touching to be able to say that the majority have their hearts in the right place.

Like another writer, R. Ganeshan, reminds us, we should all follow Mahatma Gandhi's principle of ahimsa: "non-violence not only to fellow humans but also to animals at large".
The theme of friendship looms large in the letters of late. It's a wonderful thing that I write about often and it seems to strike a chord with many. Ms Nash was feeling something that I wrote on the subject.

So much so that it "made me nod while reading it... and I don't get those 'nods' very often!" Well I am glad that I made a connection with you and that you shared your feelings. Same goes for Ms Innocently Yours Hina who seems to understand my ramblings totally! She wrote that, "G*Nice seems to have no specific purpose in writing, instead it's like you are just chatting with him across the table while sipping a coffee."

That, my dear friend, is 100 per cent accurate. It's exactly how I feel when I start to pour out whatever is on my mind. As for sitting across from you, my offer stands: if any of you out there spot me in my haunts hammering at my MacBook, just come and say hello. Don't worry that I might seem to be in my own little world, nodding away like Ms Nash to the tunes on my iPod – I would love to have some Moroccan tea with you.

As well as causing nodding among my readers, it seems I also created a bit of head-scratching by admitting a few weeks back that I was experiencing a dry patch with my writing. Amazing, I know, because I have the licence to write about anything! (And
often do.)

Being a writer, Ismail could empathise with my plight. At least I was honest enough to admit it, and indeed since then the ideas have started flowing again like traffic on Shaikh Zayed Road in summer.

By way of a finish, I will reference a letter from Ms Tahera who posed the simplest of questions to me, "What did you do today?" The honest answer is that I watched a bit of football because the Premiership just started again, but most of all I spent some time thinking about my position in life and wrote about some friends of mine. Not earth-shattering, I know... but strangely rewarding!

Better Than Facebook-ingly Yours