An Amazing 'Canvas of Plenty!'

Down Memory Lane with Cornucopia!

Congratulations to Prof. DC and her vibrant team at the ELF for having brought out a pepped up vibrant version of Cornucopia – showcasing the creative vibes of our students.

13 December 2011, When the very first issue of Cornucopia
was released by our Principal in the presence of Shri Arjun C Bali

Takes me back down memory lane, to almost a decade ago, when we had back to back issues of Cornucopia, with Prof. DC doing the vibrant cover design and taking full charge of the host of articles of various hues, with beautiful, catchy titles for each and every volume! And yes! each issue was so unique in that, they had such an amazing splash of creative vibes from students present and past, who adorned the pages of Cornucopia with their talent aplenty! 

Cornucopia 2020 released yesterday!

And today happened to be such a memorable day, when Prof. DC gave me a pepped up version of a rejuvenated Cornucopia, done on a grander scale, with a committed, dedicated team to back her up in all her noble academic initiatives! Was so overjoyed to see such amazing talent dazzling through each and every page of this ‘canvas of plenty!’

Our Principal, flanked by our dear Ganesh Sir! [13 Dec 2011]

Way to go, team DC @ ELF! You rock!

Snippets from my little Prefatorial for y’all –

* Cornucopia has always been the pride, the delight and the creative domain proper of the Department of English (Aided) for almost a decade now. On this momentous occasion, it gives me great joy in congratulating team Cornucopia, on bringing out this lovely splash of creative vibes by our students. I also join all my lovely, vibrant colleagues in the Department of English (Aided) in appreciating Prof. Christina Dhanasekaran and her dedicated student team at the ELF and especially the student editors (Ms. Edwina, Ms. Shivani and Mr. Alan), for all their tireless striving in successfully bringing out this amazing ‘horn of plenty’. We wish team Cornucopia all success in all their amazing initiatives.

* From the Prefatorial note to the latest issue of Cornucopia

You may want to check out - 

A Report on the release of the very first issue of Cornucopia Vol. 1, HERE

The vibrant cover design of our back issue of Cornucopia Vol 3, HERE

A Call from Cornucopia, HERE

We hope to make available past issues of Cornucopia on the web quite soon!

In the meantime, please take some time off to read a sample past issue - July 2012 - of Eclectic Representations, a peer-reviewed International Journal from the Research Department of English, MCC, which we had uploaded online, HERE

'We the Students...'

A Seminar - Of, By, and For the Students!

I am so delighted to share with y’all, dear gentle readers, about a particular Seminar that happened this last week, which was so unique and a cut above the rest, on so many counts! 

Well, initially, I was all curious, and all surprised, when I received a mail from a college student that said – 

Dear Sir,

We the students from the Department of English (Shift – II) Sacred Heart College, Tirupattur District are planning to organize an invited talk on Postcolonial Studies. It is going to be a student-organised talk. We would like to invite you as a resource person for this invited talk… We would like to know when you are free, and give us some details about… We are waiting for the confirmation date.

With regards,

Organising Committee

‘We the Students’ was the catchphrase that made me so curious! I’ve never received an invite of this sorts, from the students of any Institution, in this manner! This one was hence special! This one was hence unique!

Added, I was so happy to see the enthusiasm and the vibrancy with which the mail was drafted and sent across to me. ‘This is something quite new by all means’, me thought.

Still curious, yet delighted and happy, I sent them a reply appreciating them on this noble endeavour, and giving them three probable dates in the month of February for them to choose from!

Everything went on like clockwork from then on, and the students (of I MA English) followed up on their mails and their calls with me with such alacrity and responsibility and fixed up on their date, Wednesday, 26 February 2020!

On my day of departure too, right from the time I boarded the train, at around 5 in the evening, they were keeping sweet tabs on me, through my journey all the way, and the moment I alighted, at around 8 in the evening, four young men were there, all sprightly and joyous, waiting to receive me with such excitement and dynamism writ large in their faces!

They then drove me up to my place of stay that they had booked for me - in their own private car! And soon, by 9.30 pm they were back again with a lovely parcel of food – ’Your dinner, sir’, – they said!

The next day, their own sweet Red-letter day, quite early into the morning, as is wont with me, I took a long walk down the campus, to see delightful banners and festoons placed prominently in campus, quite near the entrance, by the students themselves, heralding this, their own Seminar on Postcolonial Studies!

'You will only end up living someone else’s life!'

Take Time to Reflect!

Darius Foroux for us all, yet again, dear gentle reader! He makes such-much sense, you see!

This post would discuss three salients from off Foroux and his seasoned-wisened musings gleaned from his little book titled, Thinking Straight: Change your thoughts, change your life.

These three salients then, would be his delightful little takes on –

The importance of having your own daily journal!

Having your own little rules for your money!!

And finally,

To improve the quality of your thoughts!!!

From Foroux for us, folks –

Foroux advocates or rather stresses on the importance of keeping a daily journal, and reading more books!

Says he -

We live busy lives. And sometimes there’s no time for thinking. When thinking is not a priority, make it one. If you don’t, you’ll end up like me a few years ago. I didn’t reflect on anything between 2012 and 2015. Result? All of a sudden, I felt overwhelmed and didn’t know what to do with my life. I had a true internal crisis on my hands.

Since I had no idea what to do, I started reading more books. And I noticed that many smart and happy people kept journals. They also reflected more on their life. More specifically, they reflected on the things they learned, mistakes they made, and the goals they achieved.

When I started daily journaling, I began with writing my own autobiography. It’s not meant for publication. It’s meant for reflection and learning. If you don’t know what to write about—write your life story. I’m sure you’ll learn more about yourself with every paragraph you write, says Foroux, Darius Foroux!

Secondly, he proceeds to explicate in a nutshell on his own ‘money rules’ for life! He’s all against people who attach too much importance to money!

Says Foroux -

There’s a simple solution to devalue the value of money. I live by these five rules, says Foroux, and then he gives his illustration on his own Practical Money Rules here, in his own handwriting –

That’s what I’ve done for the past three years. And I haven’t had a single thought about money. Actually, that’s not true. I still think about money. Everybody does. But as soon as I think, “I have enough money in my savings account,” I stop thinking about money. No matter what happens, if you have enough money to survive for six months, you’ll figure it out.

‘It’s agapeic in its appeal and clairvoyant in its charm!’

Born to Fly – Part 3

This post is a sequel to our mini series on the topic, ‘Born to Fly’!

And the initial spur for this post is a class discussion we had in the I MA Class last week, on Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, pertaining to the theme of friendship!

There’s this scene where a stranger comes in, and when Nora finds out that it’s her close friend Mrs. Linde, with whom she has not been in touch with, for about nine long years, she is so happy and thrilled now to see her! She is so caring and helpful towards her and makes her feel at home. 

Taking the cue, this blogger, [their teacher!] then narrated to the class about my own best friend and the impact he’s had in my life!

So yup! In this context, me thought of doing a post on friendship, and on how to choose good friends for life, good friends who will be there for you in every way, all the way, and help you get those special wings of yours!

And this one’s for friends, and friends alone! For lovers you better gotta consult with those love gurus of yore! ;-)

Well then, to begin with, a good friendship is mutual! Always mutual! It is not forced or thrust upon you in any way! It is spontaneous! So spontaneous that you so revel and excel in the presence and the words of each for the other!

As noted critic Scupin Richard rightly puts it, ‘It’s agapeic in its appeal and clairvoyant in its charm!’ Yes! There’s this unalloyed joy that radiates in you, at the very sight of your friend, when you meet, talk or even sit quietly in front of each other!

So well! how do you choose a friend, a bosom friend, a friend for life!? ;-)

This little post, from my very personal point of view, would be a prop and a guideline on that count, I earnestly hope!

First and foremost, a good friend is someone who ‘thinks positive, speaks positive and does positive’, in all that they say and do! Especially with you! ‘Yes you can’, is the vibes they always sport on them! This is the most important guideline and the fab of the five for choosing a friend! A friend for life!!!

These friends are of the sweetest types who tell you constantly, again and again that you are born to fly!

You should be quite choosy and very particular on this count, because, there are some ‘friends’ who always have tons of negativity on their tongues, and lorry loads of pessimism on their words, and yet they call you their ‘friends’! Such ‘friends’ can never ever be good and caring friends for you. 

Cut them off your life right away! As soon as possible! They will always have something to whine about, to cry about and to complain about YOU all of the time! Of such, flee away! Because they will always find fault with you for even the silliest mistakes that you do! In short, they can never ever accept you for who you are! And that’s something a friend never ever does, ain’t it? A friend accepts you for who you are, with all your faults, shortcomings, on the ‘just as I am’ credo! :-)

Added, you don’t have 969 years to live! ;-) It’s a kutty little life out there for you! Make it as joyous as you possibly could! Make it as precious as you possibly could! 

The second point follows from the first! A good friend is one who recognizes your strengths, your talents, your capabilities, your potential and usps and appreciates you for them all! They don't just stop with their appreciation for you, but they also encourage you with such cheerfulness and joy, to egg on, to press on towards your mark, towards your goals, towards your destination, by enhancing your motivation levels sky high in every little way possible!

These lovely friends help you get wings for yourself, and encourage you tons and tons to this end!

Thirdly, as the good ol’ saying goes, ‘A friend is someone who walks in, when everyone else walks out of your life’! You find umpteen instances to this count in literature! Jane Eyre’s is a beautiful case in point! In fact her whole perspective to life, her attitude to life and her motivation for life changed for the better-o-better once Helen Burns steps into her life! And Helen Burns walks in on her, only when everyone else walks out!

The friendship between Hamlet and Horatio is another case study on friendship! Tom and Huck Finn are another wonderful friendly pair who are there for each other in their goods and their bads!

Nothing short of an aggressive action is needed to fundamentally transform your relationship with technology.

I looked for someone among them…

Well, it’s been almost a year since we did Cal Newport’s take on a digital detox, on this past post of ours in March 2019!

And well, it’s that season of the year when you can yet again take up this challenge full-time! With the same zeal, the same enthusiasm and much more vibrancy!

Presenting the Grand Digital Detox Challenge, ladies and gentlemen!

Culled from Cal for y'all, here below, yet again,  yes! with a purpose!

The book is titled, Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World!

And Cal in a nutshell, teaches us to be mindful of the way we use technology!

Minimalism doesn’t necessarily mean being minimal in having clothes, or things or people around us!

Minimalism in essence, would mean, being mindful of what I do! A mindset that would make me choose what I do, what I own, and how they impact me and my way of life!

Minimalism, in other words would possibly mean that,

if I want to add meaning to my life,

I need to subtract the clutter!

I should think of what I want to remove!

And that’s exactly what Digital Minimalism is all about!

'To live, to err, to fall, to triumph, to recreate life out of life!'

Born to Fly – Part 2

Into our second-part ruminations on ‘born to fly’, shall we, dear and gentle reader, have a delightful little peek, yet again, into Du Bois's The Souls of Black Folk, which is, till date, considered a cornerstone of African American literature! And well, we’ve already done The Souls of Black Folk HERE, a year ago, albeit on a different note!

Chapter FIVE to this book is so lovely. It's titled, ‘Of the Wings of Atlanta’, where Du Bois talks about the vision, the mission, the scope and the hope ahead for Atlanta University, which, I guess, should be a real inspiration and an ideal for all of us, students and teachers at Schools, Colleges and Universities across the world, today!

Du Bois has noble precepts for the schools and universities of today! He resembles a Bertrand Russell or a J Krishnamurti at that!

Atlanta University, according to Du Bois, was doing a huge injustice and a great disservice to society at large, and to the South in particular, as it was training young minds to believe that wealth and materialism were high-priority for success in life!

Du Bois feels that, Universities sadly train the students in skills and in theory! But quite unfortunately, they fail abysmally in the most important aspect – to make a student a human, who’s humane enough!

And that’s when he says Atlanta can develop wings and fly high!

And once Atlanta is all geared up to fly, Du Bois now calls upon the students of Atlanta, to become cultural bearers of  ‘knowledge’ in the world in order to eliminate ignorance and encourage students [such as Josie] to remain students, committed to their own roles as cultural bearers.

What a lovely thought!! What a lofty idea!!! Ain't it? :-)

James Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as A Young Man is equally inspiring in this regard!

The protagonist of this novel, as a result of his lovely sessions of readings and reflections, one fine day ie awakened to discover his true calling - his artistic vocation! 

Now, having become aware of the power of ideas and the power of the intellect in transforming lives, he finds for himself that society’s norms are so stifling and stilted beyond redemption! (Akin to Du Bois’s grievance!) The political, religious and social planes were literally crumbling right in front of his eyes!

Added, he finds these burdens act as weaves and traps that devalue the life of ideas, intellect and the imagination. His critique of the educational institutions of his time is pungent! He calls them ‘calcified institutions’!

That’s when he longs to escape from these traps that burden his pretty little wings!

‘I will tell you what I will do and what I will not do. I will not serve that in which I no longer believe, whether it call itself my home, my fatherland, or my church: and I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can…’

And Art ably provides him with his much-longed-for wings! - The wings of imagination and creative freedom!

And that helps him draft his beautiful manifesto that’s now become so immortal!

To live, to err, to fall, to triumph, to recreate life out of life!

There he feels, lies the purpose of his life! There he feels, lies his calling!

It would sure take months to ponder over the blessed import of line, you bet!

Especially the phrase, ‘to recreate life out of life’!!!

To be continued…

image: penguinrandomhousedotcom

'And how do you keep your feet on the ground, When you know That, you were born to fly!'

Born to Fly – Part 1

Sara Evans has real got you hooked bigtime, - to her voice, her words and her music, - when she soulfully brings out the truths eternal within her pretty, powerful and profound album, ‘Born to Fly’, [which incidentally happens to be her best-selling album too!]

This amazing country music singer is such energy and such joy to listen to!

Do watch the song on YouTube here! And please don’t forget to focus huge on the last three lines of this lovely number, while you do!

And well, er… um… as is usual, please make yourself a cuppa coffee, – double strong – and get yourself reclined regally on your most comfortable sette! And now… you may press the play button rightaway on Sara Evans’s Born to Fly!

Giving y’all the lyrics of this pretty inspirational number – [chances are, you might get some Pink Martini connect at places, but shoo it away, quite gently at that, folks! This one’s much more impactful I say! ;-)

Sara Evans for y’all -

I've been tellin' my dreams to the scarecrow

About the places that I'd like to see

I say 'friend, do you think I'll ever get there?'

Aww, but he just stands there smilin' back at me

So I confess my sins to the preacher

About the love I'd been prayin' to find

Is there a brown-eyed boy in my future, yeah

He says 'girl, you got nothin' but time.'

how do you wait for heaven

And who has that much time

And how do you keep your feet on the ground

When you know

That you were born, (you were born, yeah), you were born to fly

My daddy he is grounded like the oak tree

My momma she is as steady as the sun

Oh, you know I love my folks, but I keep starin' down the road,

Just lookin' for my one chance to run

Hey, 'cause I will soar away like the blackbird

I will blow in the wind like a seed

I will plant my heart in the garden of my dreams

And I will grow up where I want, wild and free

how do you wait for heaven

And who has that much time

And how do you keep your feet on the ground

When you know

That you were born, (you were born, yeah), you were born to fly!

‘The refrain to this song,

And how do you keep your feet on the ground / When you know / That you were born, (you were born, yeah), you were born to fly’

Well, that's something that I found so lovelyyy!

‘How do you keep your feet on the ground’ – is highly suggestive of the pulls, the pleasures and the pressures, mostly of our own entanglement, that we voluntarily and willingly yield ourselves to, that make us keep our feet on the ground, which then, scuttles bigtime our chances of flying! Leave alone flying high and lofty!

These burdens wind themselves around us, sturdy and strong, with such a thickety train, in such a complicated weave and in such a confused knot, that it’s hard, quite hard to come out of its snares and traps that easily!

And these wary traps act a great burden on our sweet little wings, she says!

My all-time favourite poem from Ezekiel, Nissim Ezekiel titled, ‘Enterprise’, deserves citation here!

It started as a pilgrimage,

Exalting minds and making all

The burdens light.

It’s a beautifully innate human response to a voyage or a journey, ain’t it!?

When the very thought of a journey or an excursion or a pilgrimage is announced, how excited we become! The kid in us comes alive, dances full throttle, and paints the whole little town red! ;-)

That’s one reason why Ezekiel says that, even the very thought of the journey was able to make their burdens light! Indeed, for a journey to be highly successful, the burdens should be light-o-light, ain’t it?

And well, metaphorically too, the poem has implications galore for us all!

It makes a lot of sense if we could introspect a bit, take a minute off, to look upon ourselves as travellers!

Travellers of the types that Atwood or Patrick White would suggest, travellers who are so mindful of what’s ahead of them, that they risk their everything to somehow make it successful on their journey!

Hamlet’s soliloquy comes to mind, where he compares humans to travellers, and death to an ‘undiscovered country’ from which the traveler can never return!

‘The undiscover’d country from

whose bourn / No traveller returns’

[Act III, Scene I]

Well, this scene also has one of the most immortal quotes of Shakespeare too!

‘To be, or not to be: that is the question’.

Coming back, Sara Evans has got an amazing thought for us all, when she says,

how do you keep your feet on the ground / When you know / That you were born, (you were born, yeah), you were born to fly!’

Sara Evans means to suggest, that, as a traveller, we've got two options before us! Either to travel light, so that we can fly, or be burdened tight, only to look grudgingly, longingly, and enviously at the free birds who fly! ;-)

To be continued…

image: amazondotcom

'I’m struck anew by invisibility!'

Go ‘Incognito’ | Akiko 

Just an hour into the wild woods, and I’m ‘struck anew by invisibility’, says Busch - Akiko Busch, renowned nature writer, famous especially for her book titled, How to Disappear: Notes on Invisibility in a Time of Transparency.

Well, personally, it took me a full fortnight to be delightfully done with this 200-page unputdownable read! And like Eliot, I would set out again, yet again, on yet another voyage  of sorts, into the pages of this book for yet another joy ride of sorts! ;-)

Such-much is her appeal! such-much her charm - in every word and every line of her insightful ruminations in this delightful, compact read!

The normalizing of pathological narcissism in 20th-century culture, has resulted in a crisis of perspectives in people, which makes them feel that, ‘success in our society has to be ratified by publicity’ and that, ‘our lives can be measured by how we are seen rather than what we do’.

Quoting from Egan’s 2001 novel titled, Look at Me, she says that, the central character in the novel desperately feels that, ‘Being observed felt like an action, the central action - the only one worth taking. Anything else I might attempt seemed passive, futile by comparison’.

But Akiko begs to differ! This false sense of projecting one’s better self on the public domain is a psychological condition that’s symptom of a larger malaise, she says!

She adds to say that, ‘When identity is derived from projecting an image in the public realm, something is lost, some core of identity diluted, some sense of authority or interiority sacrificed’.

Some of her thoughts are real jolts and bolts from the blue, that can spur you to action, and to practice the art of disappearing as fast as could be! 

Contemporary interactions and exchanges over the phone might have a particular kind of ‘joylessness’ to it, avers Akiko!

Moreover, when the private self is offered for public consumption, there is a huge devaluation of the interior self, she opines!

Says Akiko –

The phenomenon of Facebook depression, one result of this ceaseless exposure, refers to the anxiety induced by social comparisons and the feeling of being less attractive or accomplished than other users. But it also alludes to the more general disquiet that comes with relinquishing - unreservedly and unconditionally - the personal information that is key to retaining a sense of identity.

There are also antidotes [that double up as therapy] to the inconspicuous life, in going unseen, undetected, or even overlooked in this new world, she quips!

And these antidotes are the invisible friends whom we have all along ignored in our lives, she says! 

Says Akiko –

Invisible friends are today recognized as more treasured consorts. Arriving in the shape of humans, animals, fish, clouds, trees, or some other fantasy form altogether, they can teach empathy, invention, compassion, and comfort, she adds.

So yup! Akiko’s premise is quite simple –

Becoming invisible is not the equivalent of being nonexistent. It is not about denying creative individualism nor about relinquishing any of the qualities that may make us unique, original, singular... 

Camouflage in the natural world is not some exotic and picturesque trait. It is nuanced, creative, sensitive, discerning. Above all, it is powerful.

Sadly, ‘We are captives of the information age. The perpetual exchange of data - whether through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, or Pinterest - is now part of ordinary life. Where there was once the evening news, there is now the twenty-four-hour news cycle!’, says Akiko.

And hence it is that great minds all over the world, find an appeal in anonymity she says!

To conclude, this book is a must read for anyone who’s interested in celebrating their own personal space on incognito mode!

In other words, Akiko’s book vouches to the fact that, there’s power in being unseen and invisible! And this disappearance helps one to emerge a ‘transformed’ being, ‘with new hope for the possibility of a surer, quieter, more humane way of being’!

Well, folks! Are you ready to go incognito!!!? ;-)

If yes, ping me rightaway! You’ve got company!!

‘Not all those who wander are lost’!

There is Wonder in the Wander | On Trails

Just this past Wednesday, I was exhorting my First MA Class to go trekking, hiking or to ‘wander’ deep into the wild wilder wildest woods! To enjoy and to relish the world as it appears to our eye lens (not the lens of the camera!), and to inhale the pure unadulterated fresh air of the woods!

And this, when we were having a discussion on Lamb’s essays in class!

Robert Moon, oops Robert Moor, a thru-hiker, has done something almost on those lines but with a difference! 

His book of 340 pages titled, On Trails, is a fascinating account of his descriptive sketches on his explorations through trails of all hues! His premise is quite simple: Trails help us understand the world and make sense of our life in this planet, much much better!

To this end, his adventures are of the high-octane variety!

His pages are aglow with such engaging snippets that range anywhere from the literary, to the philosophical, to the historical, and to the scientific, thereby giving the reader a very simple proposition! Noted critic Scupin Richard puts forth this proposition on behalf of Moor, thus -

There is Wonder in the Wander!

No wonder, Wordsworth ‘wander’ed with the clouds to feel, to taste, to inhale and to relish Nature’s bounty all for himself, in the bliss of solitude!

Indeed, quoting Tolkien, then, it goes without saying that, ‘Not all those who wander are lost’!

In our technocentric world, where every one of us is blued, glued and wooed to our mobile phones even while walking on busy thoroughfares, Moor, Robert Moor advocates the ‘vibrant’ wanderer to keep their eyes focused on the ground, on the earth! Being mindful of what they step on, or stamp on!

Interestingly, literary allusions abound throughout this lovely Exploration!

Jack Kerouac in his novel The Dharma Bums calls this walking as ‘meditation of the trail’ says Moor!

Robert Moor then proceeds to trace through the trails and the footpaths of some of the ancient indigenous societies - like the Cherokee, - which he says were highly inconspicuous, as they were no more than a few inches wide! However, when Europeans invaded North America, they slowly widened parts of the native trail network, first to accommodate horses, then wagons, then automobiles. Now, much of that network is buried beneath modern roadways, though remnants of the old trail system can still be found when you know where to look, he quips!

Trails are of various moulds and various kinds, observes Moor, Robert Moor! Some trails he calls them the wisest ones!!! And he then proceeds to give his own observation on these ‘wisest trails’! 

Says he –

‘What unites the wisest trails, I have found, is a balance of three values: durability, efficiency, and flexibility. If a trail has only one of these qualities it will not persist for long: a trail that is too durable will be too fixed, and will fail when conditions change; a trail that is too flexible will be too flimsy, and will erode; and a trail that is too efficient will be too parsimonious, and so will lack resilience.’

There is an interconnected inclusivity in his approach to the trails! And in this interconnected ‘Web of Life’, Moor, Robert Moor says that he is able to see the world from a radically new and liberated perspective of sorts!

Says he -

‘When I was younger I used to see the earth as a fundamentally stable and serene place, possessed of a delicate, nearly divine balance, which humans had somehow managed to upset. But as I studied trails more closely, this fantasy gradually evaporated. I now see the earth as the collaborative artwork of trillions of sculptors, large and small. Sheep, humans, elephants, ants: each of us alters the world in our passage. When we build hives or nests, mud huts or concrete towers, we re-sculpt the contours of the planet. When we eat, we convert living matter into waste. And when we walk, we create trails. The question we must ask ourselves is not whether we should shape the earth, but how’.

No spoilers for ya, dear reader!

Well, and that’s because, every page of this book is such fun to read! Such joy to relish! Such happiness to cherish!

Just go ahead! Take the most pretty little cup that you have, in your hand! Now, gently pour yourself the bestest coffee (tea, for lesser mortals!) ;-) into your pretty little cup!

Then you may now proceed to take on you, gently, so gently, Moor, Robert Moor’s On Trails on one hand!

Now now now…. with Moor on one hand, and cuppa on the other, what do you call it?

Joy unleashed! Happiness unbounded!  Ain’t it? ;-)