Poetry from the diary of a girl next door

CHENNAI:  We've all come across this common expression 'Is the glass half full or half empty.' It is used to indicate an individual's world view, whether it is optimistic or pessimistic. "Why back off when its a negative emotion? Can't we all just sit back and listen to what the person on the other end has to say and empathise," says Jayashri Ramesh Sundaram, who recently made her authorial debut with the book The Glass Half Empty. The 23-year-old city-based author has a degree in journalism and masters in international relations. She currently works as a communication officer in an NGO.

Like every other adolescent, Jayashri had her own share of an emotional roller-coaster ride. "During early 2015, I went from being an extrovert to a someone who did not want to talk to anyone for more than five minutes," she shares. What started out as a personal record of everyday expressions eventually paved way for a book which has 78 short poems with simple verses and illustrations that complement each other. "I decided to post these personal writings one day on social media. The fear of being judged did not stop me from doing it. But the response I received was tremendous. A lot friends whom I was not in touch with got back to me after seeing this. That was when I decided to write a book and it was a cathartic experience," explains the author who realised that there were a lot of people who were feeling the same way she did and wanted to connect with other similar people.

Jayashri who has been battling depression since early 2017 wants her book to be relevant to the present day audience to come out and share their problems. She loves reading but she is very picky about her choice of books. "I love to put myself in the shoes of the protagonist of the women-centric books like Women in Gulf and Pakistan," she shares.

Her recent book launch, she says, was not to celebrate the success of her first book but her first step to reach out and connect with people through emotions. She would rather hear out the person's problem completely instead of saying 'It's okay.' She plans to conduct an event on May 20 called 'I am stronger than that phase.' This event at Writer's cafe is an initiative to bring in authors and people who have written or spoken out in public about their hard phases. "During the discussion we look forward to cover the topics apart from our spontaneous ideas. Ain't some ideas instant like our emotions?" she wraps up.

The Glass Half Empty is available on Amazon and Flipkart for `180.