Little Things

Do you cut your nails very short? If you do, you will definitely know the little annoying pain of that fresh skin underneath, exposed when you go a little over the line. Taken aback at first, it takes time to settle in to the new environment. But till the time it does, that irksome pain can wrench your peace. Little things they say. How they matter?

Maybe they shouldn't. We live in a world where the population is talked about in billions, there are more satellites in space than there are trees in some people's gardens. Asteroids bigger than Earth, stars larger than our Sun and probably so many black holes at the center of such so many galaxies. They all surround us, without us being aware about it. To think of it, we are a part of this colossal, intimidating vastness that is this universe. And we? We are just an infinitely trivial part of it.

Having had such a broader view of things, when we come to think of things, irrelevant small details, musings or vexations should not even begin to mark our concern. Then why does that under nail skin divide our attention? Why do we pay heed to anything frivolous and pointless at all.

Why do we care when someone doesn't return our calls? Why do we fret before meeting certain people. Why do we get happy to have had a chance encounter with someone we like? That warm coffee in the pouring rain, some of your favourite old clothes that you took off from the corners of your cupboard, old letters frayed at the edges with time and those colouring books you had as a child. All those little things, why do they bring you comfort and smile.

 That old song you first kissed to, remember? That message vibrating with your feelings which you never sent across, that old house you grew up in, where you mother cooked all the things you liked, why do they make you numb and speechless.

Maybe those little things in life matter too much to us than we realise. Little by little, one small memory after another they all come together to form a huge chunk of our existence. Momentarily contentment goes a long way too.

Like a clear road with no traffic in the early sun rise hours, your beloved ordering your favourite food without even been asked, an unexpected holiday, the last piece of pizza being saved for you, when your pen dries out at the last full stop of your last exam, these things count too. In their small trifling way they can lift your mood up. Too much to be thankful for. Isn't it?

So what are you thankful for today? For the not so crowded train, for the extension of the deadline or better, for all the little things that have created the timeline of your essential being.

Hope Of Love

It was a Friday Evening and I was a bit late to leave from office. Already late I thought I can take a late train the next day being Saturday and no daily chores. So I get a place to sit I was on my way back home and saw a group of ladies talking and discussing. I just waved and smiled.

“oh very late today?” I managed  to skip the tone and said “Yes just weekend”

On joining them I came to know the topic of discussion.

“That Uncle of a certain ***colony remarried! I mean Kids are settled , he has grand children and now … !!!

I was surprised , a big smile came on my face and I exclaimed ”Wow what a news. I mean…I would love to meet them. People like him are examples.  Really  Hats off to him. Isn’t it ?”
I was talking in my own excitement without realizing, that they were looking at me as if I am talking in Hebrew. I stopped myself and said “I will take your leave dear…I have to get down, already late today.”

I came home , had some water and was smiling , a smile which had no reason related to me and was not under my control.

I was smiling as among the daily news of broken and estranged  relationships  , I saw a gleam of hope!

I was smiling because among the daily complaints of age related issues , I saw someone taking  a challenge of age!!

I was smiling as it was proven that to live is to embrace life…..

I was smiling as I saw Hope of Love and Hope of Life……

I was really happy , even though I didn’t know the newly  wed couple , I wished them all the goodness of life.

Why are we as a society so negative and demeaning to people who are going their own way ?

Why can’t we follow the practice live and let live instead of just preaching it ?

Why are we so hypocrites, when it come to our children or our elders ?

Why can’t we , accept the change with a positive outlook and open arms ?

An elderly person , who lost the partner during a journey of life , held  the  thread of life with all grit to sustain as a single parent. For years he/she had life only for their children.

Another person had a sour relationship. Took the path less traveled and choose life over suffocation of  bad marriage. He/She   paved a beautiful path for their children so that they can have a lovely life of their own.

The little birdling’s are grown up now and flew away to make their own nest ! Now What ???

Why do we always expect elders of our society to accept and be sad due to empty nest syndrome? Why do we want them to always remember their kids and not have a life of their own ? Why only morning walks, laughter club , temples are considered appropriate for them ?

Why are we not open to someone, who looks out for a companion  with silver in his/ her hair.

Does life stops at 60 or 70 ?

Does life cease to seek a caring touch?

Does heart stop admiring beauty of life?

NO…..Than why are we so critical for people who dare to look beyond the assigned norm of life.

 Aren’t they the role models we need in today’s time? Shouldn’t we take a cue from their strength and conviction and love towards life ? Shouldn’t we say thank you to them for paving path for our friends….families and may be us too ?

Thank you for showing that evenings are indeed beautiful.

Life is not always about  following the rules….sometimes it is about following heart too!

There is No age for love, No age for companionship and No age to find a soulmate!!

Lets applause , lets smile and lets welcome all the duos who followed their heart and showed us the Hope of Love  and Hope of Life!!!

How it feels to be a Woman

Does a man ever realize what it’s like to be a  female , a lady , a mother , a daughter , a daughter-in-law , a wife and most importantly a woman ?

The responsibilities of these roles are not defined by anyone but being a woman …trust me we kill ourselves to not only perform and excel in everything but we also write new job descriptions every  single day , against each role , to make us better at it which is based on our previous experiences to make the life of our family better

Men talk about ladies being overly emotional ….….do they realize how much mental effort she is making to not show the intense turmoil she is actually experiencing inside herself , what is being exposed to them is only the tip of the iceberg . She gets hurts emotionally umpteen times and only ever reverts back a few

Men talk about wives not being accommodative with In-laws… do they realize how difficult it is to live with someone who treats you like a step-child every day for the entire year… year after year  ….and still pretend to be a happy wife as the in-laws look after their precious child.. 

Men talk about females behaving funny on periods …do they realize what it’s like to have multiple hormones causing havoc in your body every 5 weeks in a month , every month ..for most of your life and still go about doing your day & night job as if your body is infused with only happy hormones.. 

Men talk about a Mothers being always obsessed about their child’s every aspect ….do they realize that mothers live in a constant fear that either something might happen to the baby or she herself might die before her baby becomes a mature adult and hence all her actions are to nourish her child at all levels and make her child as independent as possible. 

Men talk about a daughter behaving funny and kid like when she goes to meet her family …and she does not behave like a mature wife of his ….do they realize that it’s only in this house ..her parent’s house … this small piece of heaven.. that she actually feels stress-free …in all true sense…. Alive.. 

Trust me we women did not ask God to give us the responsibility of bearing the child , of making our body a cocktail of hormones we are unable to decipher …of making the bond with a child so difficult to put in words … but that’s what we have got …so… If only a man could just try seeing it from a woman’s perspective even if it is to understand just one role for only one day in a year … you would be able to understand us better

To all the men out there who mock and pass funny comments like “Oh we don’t understand women”  … I can only say one thing … I hope in your next life you become a woman and then trust me you would know “

Happy Birthday to me!!!

I am an year older today. To be true, I don’t even know why I am writing this post. Maybe  because my Birthday is a so-called milestone. Maybe because I am loving the idea of calling myself a 29 year old.  

When I sit to write a post, I always have an idea as to how I want the post to turn out to be. Today, I have none. So this is going to be my first unedited post. Yep. No cuts, no pastes, no edits. I write while I am still drunk on the thoughts of being 29.

Do I want this post to be something like - what wrong things I have done in my twenties? Or what lessons I learnt? May be the good times I had? The regrets of things not done? I have no idea. So I am just going to write whatever comes to mind. May be all of it. May be none. 

I also know that I am not going to be a changed person suddenly. I shall not suddenly start showing different personality traits. Because the changes in you as a person happen only when you are not looking for them. That’s what you call growing up I guess.

When I look at the last decade, all I see is naivety and passion. The naivety of believing in people and passion of loving them with all my heart. I lived the last decade with so much precaution. Doing all the right things. Behaving the way I was supposed to behave. Shielding my heart from hurt. A life without risks. A life with caution. But that’s the worst part of it. Even the life lived with least friction couldn’t stop me from getting myself wounded. I was broken and bruised, tired and tattered. I got hurt and didn’t walk for some time. But eventually I did. Eventually. One step at a time. 

Whatever I am today, I am because of the falls. And I wouldn’t trade my current self for my younger self at any cost. I don’t want to go back to being what I was. When I heard older ones say this, I used to laugh. Why would anybody not want their younger selves? I mocked thinking this was like the sour grapes incident. You can’t have your youth back? So why not say you don’t need it anymore.

But when I say this today that I don’t want to go back to being a younger version of myself, I say it with conviction that only comes with age. I know I sound like I am 60. But that’s the truth of it. I never thought I could write such a pensive post. I never thought I would write serious things about me on the blog. And yet I sit here doing the same.

I don’t wish to preach people in their twenties anything. We all know there are enough posts about the topic and some of them are really good. Plus I am not somebody who is good at advices. To each his own. That’s what I believe.

In the societal version of myself, I should have been settled in a marital bliss by now. But I am not. And I don’t regret it one bit. I know I would do that eventually but not because it is the right thing to do in the eyes of the society but because I would want to.   

If I had to say something to my younger self, it would be this.

·          Read. Read whatever you can lay your hands on. Read because you are going to love it. Read because sometimes it would be the only thing that would save you from drowning. So read.

·         The second advice to myself would be this – Take risks. At the most it would turn out to be a wrong turn. But so what? It would at least add to the experience.

·         Travel a bit more. That’s one thing you haven’t done at all. So go for it.    

So if the above is what I wanted to do with my last decade, I hope I shall be able to do the same in the next. So when I sit down to write a post a decade later, I hope I would have followed the above and will have new advice to give to myself. That is of course if I am still around that time ;)

Now that I have given advice to my younger self, let me share some for my future self too. Like let me just say what I want to do next. I don’t know how much of it will actually work out, but still, here we go.

·          Learn to express yourself. I know, that coming from a writer is weird. But yeah, I suck at expressing myself in person. Whether it’s expressing love or being assertive.

·    

 I don’t know if this post makes any sense to you. Its unstructured and all that.  I don’t know if it would make sense to me if I read it again some time later. All I know right now is that I am 29 and I am loving it ;)

This is what it feels like..

I leaned on your shoulder,
And felt your hand against my cheek,
The heat in your palm,
Comforted me in the shivering cold,
Aaaah..
This is what home feels like.

You pulled me close to you,
And balanced me with your hands,
Then you twisted me around,
And gave me a warm hug,
This is what belonging feels like.

You took it up as your responsibility,
To make sure I was motivated enough,
To do the right things,
You heard my calls for help,
And attended to it immediately,
This is what being watched out for feels like.

You made sure I was happy,
To the stars you went,
To ensure a smile on my face,
When I got angry,
You patiently listened to the reasons for my anger,
Never did you raise your voice,
Or make me feel small;
You're my true inspiration,
You're a beautiful person, in and out,
And yes.. I can whole heartedly say,
This is what love feels like. 

SRK ki Paathshaala

SRK rocks!! He is simply the best.

I have a huge crush on SRK since the time that I can remember. Even today just one glimpse of him on the TV screen can make my heart skip a beat. Till date he makes me feel like a gawky teenager with those cute brown eyes of his and that lovely dimpled smile. For me he epitomizes love. The way he gives a glance with those caramel eyes and flashes that sweet smile which leaves goey feeling all over, the way he blows a kiss and then waves his hand leaves me completely dazed. I absolutely love all the songs and dialogues from his movies from the bottom of my heart and have watched all of them like a zillion times over and over again. And there are a choicest few which are very close to my heart for different reasons as I have learnt something from them. 

In this paathshala SRK is the professor of Dil and Dosti giving us very important lessons on love and friendship in life through his movies.

Happy Learning!

Presenting

SRK ki Paathshaala

Lights…Camera….ACTION!

Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge – Trust your love and have faith in the strength of your love.

[Raj goes all the way to Punjab from London without even knowing what Simran feels for him. He had faith in the strength of his love.  He trusts her to be waiting for him]

Yes Boss – Never compromise on your dreams and your loved ones for your success. Success may and may not be yours forever. Your loved ones along with your dreams will always be.

[Raj’s love is at stake when his boss wants her in exchange of giving him his dream office]

Phir Bhi Dil hai Hindustani – Love your country. Don’t crib about the flaws – do something about it. It’s YOUR country too.

[Ajay Bakshi might not be THE BEST in all that he does. But when it comes to fighting for the corruption in the nation he is all game for it and gives his best.]

Main hoo Naa – Let your feelings be unconditional for your loved ones.

[Major Ram had a step mother and step brother who hate him – but that doesn’t deter him from loving them and trying to unite with them]

Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gam – Like Karan Johar said,” It’s all about loving your parents.” Love them and every time they spread their arms beckoning you-don’t waste a moment in rushing!!

[Rahul gets married against his parents’ wishes subsequent to which he is thrown out of the house. After many years when he is asked to come back, he goes, letting bygones be bygones.]

Kal Ho Na Ho- Live life to the fullest. You never know when could be your last day.

[Aman is diagnosed with cancer, but that doesn’t deter him from living every moment spreading love and happiness all around]

Chalte Chalte – Never take your loved ones for granted.

[After their marriage Raj takes Priya for granted and vice versa which lead to a string of misunderstandings ultimately questioning their love for each other]

Chak De- It’s never too late to prove your mettle. Let your actions speak to your critics

[Kabir Khan loses the world cup to a rival country for which he is criticized and his integrity questioned. After many years he gets a chance to prove his mettle as a coach for the team and win the world cup again. He doesn’t think twice before accepting the challenge.]

Om Shanti Om-When you wish for something very strongly the entire universe conspires to bring it to you. So make a wish and pray hard.

[Om Prakash Makhija wants to be a superstar and marry his dream girl. He wishes for it so much that after he dies, he is reborn as Om Kapoor and ultimately meets his dream girl.]

Rab Ne bana di Jodi – Your loved ones are created because God couldn’t be everywhere. Love them; shower them with all the happiness of the world.

[Surinder Sahni is in love with his wife Tani who unfortunately doesn’t love him back. But that doesn’t stop him from loving her and giving her all the happiness he can.]

There are many more such lessons awaited. SRK is like an old wine – the older the better. He will never get antiquated.

And to end it in truly SRK style: “Aaj..... Aaj ek Haseen aur baant loon.... Aaj ek Dua aur mang loon....Aaj ek aansoo aur pee loon... Aaj ek Zindagi aur ji loon...Aaj ek Sapna aur dekh loon.....Aaj..... Kya pata Kal Ho Naa Ho!!!"

A lesson in humanity.

There is an elderly man that i meet on my way to the station from home. I am on very good terms with him and we talk very often.

Though on and off I had come across incidents where I would find him calling an ambulance for an injured dog lying on the road or sharing his lunch with the street kids some afternoon. I didn’t know that someday I would look upto him as an epitome of humanity.

Every morning he comes to greet me at the auto stand and we exchange pleasantries. One day when he came to wish me, he was exceptionally happy. I could make that out from his face. Before I could ask him the reason for the same, he immediately told me that his eldest son is engaged to be married in next month. I congratulated him and then he started telling me about his would-be-daughter-in-law. That’s when I came to know that his would-be-daughter-in-law belonged to a different religion. Given the fact that he himself was a very religious person it was very obvious for me to ask if he was happy with this match. And trust me his answer shocked me.

He told me “I am more than happy for my son. He is getting married to someone whom he loves and who loves him in return. She is a very nice girl from a decent family with a proper upbringing. What more could you ask for.” What he said next was an eye opener. He said “Love is the feeling that just develops and you don’t have any say in that. It’s something as natural as breathing. You can’t force yourself to love someone. I know these days, everyone tries to understand the caste, creed, family background etc etc before falling in love with a person. But then that’s what you do when you are out to buy any commodity. Love is not a commodity. And incase this is the way you find love than I am sorry to say that’s not love. It’s a business (a sauda). And remember “Pyar main sauda nahi hota.”

He smiled and left as i got into the auto. But whatever he said left a very strong impression on my mind. What is that this person who is not even educated beyond a 10^th class could understand love so deeply and we equipped with all our degrees couldn’t understand this basic fact of our lives. How many times have we been compassionate towards our other fellow human beings leave alone towards an animal lying on the road? And how many times have we analysed love in the manner in which he did?

Its true…….God teaches us lessons in various forms and I learnt a beautiful unforgettable lesson in humanity and love from this “Chacha” as I fondly call him!

I surrender

I surrender to:

• A world which if full of hypocrites and back stabbers.
• People who have no conscious and sleep peacefully at night after hurting someone.
• Those selfish hearts who are alive with their heads held high
• Inflated egos and heartless souls

I surrender because:

• All they can give me is pain and all I can give in return is my smile.
• They can’t take anything from me unless I want them to.
• It doesn’t mean I am weak. It means I choose to stay unaffected by them.
• I accept them with their flaws.

It's a free world!!

The person who said,” Nothing is free in this world” was highly mistaken when he said that. At least in the Indian context there is something which is definitely free and most of the times unasked for. You guessed it right – ADVICE!!!

If you are surrounded by many well wishers who are more than willing to share their expertise with you doling out advice after advice even when you might not seem to need it, then I would like to say,” Welcome to the Indian Fraternity”.

From childbirth to death ceremony, from marriage to divorce, from health to wealth these people seem to “KNOW-IT-ALL”. There is no topic under the sun on which these people have no information. Many a times their advices tempt me to answer them sarcastically but I don’t as I am reminded of my mom’s cold stare if I would just say that.

Pouring my so-called frustration out here I present some of the most common phrases along with my most quirky answers possible to them here:

“Oh you have grown up!!!”

[As if we were supposed to remain small always.]

“Oh my God you have put on weight.”

[Well you have not practically shrunk yourself either.]

“You should get married now.”

[Just because you are undergoing something doesn’t mean you make other go through the same.]

“You should not deal with it like this. I have seen it before just do as I am saying.”

[I didn’t know you were Adam/Eve who has seen the world evolve in front of their eyes.]

“It’s high time you planned a family.”

[Why??? Is the world coming to an end tomorrow?]

“Oh! You are suffering from acne. Don’t worry…do something….take a pinch of blah blah blah…… it will surely vanish.”

[Some homemade remedy for rescue which is definitely not tried and tested]

The list is endless and equally hilarious. I don’t know what these people derive by giving such free unsolicited advices but I definitely derive loads of enjoyment from them.

I am thankful to them for giving me a reason to smile and am hopeful for much more….CHEERS!!!!

Elderly couples

Have you ever noticed those elderly couples around? The ones with withering bodies, the ones hanging onto each other for support! I happen to notice a few of them around. The first thing that strikes me about them is their composure and calmness as a couple. They seem so comfortable in each other’s presence. Neither is the wife worried about her husband’s hovering eyes nor the husband over protecting her. No going overboard with showing their love for each other amidst public places and no hassles or haggles in handling each other as a couple. Just a state of pure comfort!

What is it that makes them so confident about the other person that they seem to be in state of perfect harmony? Of course, it is because of the amount of time they’ve spent with each other. May be, there is some unknown bond which probably only time can create. They know other person well, their weakness, their needs, their attitudes and may be that’s how they have adjusted themselves accordingly.

The other day while in the bus,  I saw an elderly couple seated at the first seat. The bus was crowded and I stood near them. The conductor came by and asked for the place for the ticket. The woman opened her purse, took out a few notes and mumbled something to the conductor. The bus conductor couldn’t understand the name of the place she mumbled about. Hence he asked her again. Her husband got the clue and he mentioned the place to the conductor. I wonder how effortlessly the husband realized that her wife’s mumbling can only be understood only by him! The entire route, they sat in almost silence. Yet the comfort within them was so very throbbing. While getting down, the husband asked her to be careful, even telling the bus driver to not start the bus until she gets down. His concern, so evident in his voice. It made me smile seeing their beautiful chemistry.

Yet another day, an elderly couple boarded the bus. (Well you see, I happen to travel on a lot by bus; not that it's my favourite mode of travel, but I happen to). The husband boarded the bus first and grabbed the first available seat. The wife followed and he stood up to allow his wife to sit. There were a few seats available, though not near his wife’s seat and hence the husband chose to stand near his wife rather than grab a seat for himself away from her. The wife kept on pestering him to go and sit somewhere or sit at her place. But he refused. The best part of their conversation was her coaxing and his refusing which they did in the most adorable manner. The comfort and the bond was so very alive between them.

It just warmed my heart to witness that pure comfort and bliss of togetherness. At times, I want to go and hug them for their adorableness. 

Do you find such elderly couples adorable too?

To be or to not to be

Sometimes it gets difficult to decide -

To be bluntly honest in our opinions to people around us?

                                     OR

To be a very good liar and talk behind their backs about their flaws?

This is a choice I find very difficult to make as I prefer being in the former category while people around me are always in the later category.

They force me to rethink incase I wrong. I believe in being honest because I feel that it strengthens the relationship rather than a lie which tomorrow might cause an irreparable damage to it.

I am still wondering............

Growing up at what cost?

At the age of 10, the only thing I wanted to do was to grow up. I was tired of listening to various excuses like, "You can do this when you grow up." "You are too young" for almost everything that was on my To-Do list. A grown up was the most enviable person for me at that stage

On the contrast today when I am all grown up I could do anything to trade it for my childhood days. Such wonderful times - no worries, just fun and frolic!!It was so good to see life is only black or white shades. Everything could either be good or bad.

Though my most desired dream of growing up has come true I feel that I have paid a very heavy price for it. I have lost those simple pleasures of playing in the with  friends on a rainy day. I don't recollect the last time I did star gazing, cuddled up with my teddy for company. I want to wake up lazily someday with no worries about tomorrow but ample plans of how today would spent. Those summer holidays spent with friends listening to stories, playing hide n seek, taking long walks to discover something new. It is all gone. Thanks to our hectic schedules today we barely manage to speak to each other leave alone meeting.

Not to forget those various fun filled activities in my home vicinity which used to keep my creative juices running. I always had my thinking cap on with the fear of being left out in the competition. These days the only things i can think of is deadlines, calls, submission and projects. My creativity has gone into a rut and it needs a real hard attempt to come up with an idea. Writing for more than a page seems cumbersome and I try to find shortcuts for everything possible. Believe me actually there have been instances where after goofing up I start frantically searching for CTRL+Z. :)

I don't know where this is leading to; the only thing that comes to my mind at such a time is a song from the movie 3 Idiots. It is just perfect for the occassion:

"Give me some sunshine ,Give me some rain;

Give me another chance I wanna grow up once again!!"

A purr…rrr…….rrfect world.

I feel that “perfect” is the most misused term in English dictionary. There can’t be one definition of perfection. For arguments sake one could say nothing is perfect in this world. On other thoughts if I let my thinking horses run wild and put on my rose tinted glass I might be able to see a perfect world

.

A world where there is no jealousy or hatred, where we all co-exist with respect for each other ; a place where we are all surrounded by mutual love and trust. We are able to voice out our opinions fearlessly. We are not scared to say of who we are, which caste of community we belong to. We respect the values and beliefs of each one.

We are not under any social pressure to outdo each other in pleasing everyone. We do things because we want to and not because we need to. We are helpful without any expectation in return.

We don’t judge people and accept the as they are unconditionally. There are no shortcuts only pure hard work and passion. Where every I resonates “we” and the concept of “I, me and myself” is demolished forever. A place where are surrounded by joy and enthusiasm rather than greed and malice. Where we gift smiles and live in a joyous world. 

That’s my perfect world….but there is something amiss…wait…..a ha… now that I remove my pink glasses the world is back to normal .As such perfection can exist maybe only in my dreams. I wish this dream of mine could come true someday…..

Angels – Made in Heaven

Angels are those cute little winged creatures with a halo on their heads. They are very helpful and loving by nature. They also have a characteristic of being magical; just a glimpse of them makes you smile and forget all the troubles. If you are lucky enough to go to heaven after your death you will definitely be surrounded by them. But not many of us know that even while we are on earth- very much alive we are surrounded by them. No I am not talking about our imagination. I am talking of reality. Yep!!! We all have a special category of people in our lives when we can actually call as “angels”.

Though their halo and wings are invisible, their other characteristics are very much there. They are magical in nature and they seem to have solution to all our problems. Their helpful and loving nature makes us feel blessed to be alive and special to have them in our life. I must confess I am very lucky to have such wonderful angels in my life and I am fiercely protective about them. I just love being around them as they have the powers to make me forget my worries with their smiles even if it just momentary. Just a hug from them gives me all the strength to face any storm bravely. 

I will tell you another fact; these “angels” are not aware about their magical abilities and therefore are very ignorant of the charm they spread around. But I don’t leave a single chance to acknowledge the gift that I have got in form of them and try to make them feel very special. This is my way of saying “Thanks …for being there!!!”

Are you looking out for your angels??

25 Most Beautiful Moments of Life

1.    Clearing your last exam

2.    Getting your first job

3.    Your first pay check [ suddenly makes you feel all grown up and responsible]

4.    Being surrounded by true friends who accept you as you are

5.    Meeting a very old friend after ages and realizing that nothing has changed

6.    Waking up early in the morning and realizing you could sleep for some more time

7.    Seeing your loved one smile and knowing you are the reason behind that smile

8.    Living your dream and having a “THIS IS IT” feeling

9.    Finding something just at the moment when you had thought that you had lost it forever

10.  The smell of air after it rains

11.  To love and being loved in return

12.  Curling up on your bed with your favourite book and your favorite snack on a rainy day!

13.  Feeling the first drops of rain

14.  Getting nostalgic and visiting old places to know you are still remembered

15.  Accidentally laying hands on your childhood stuff and trying to connect with “that child” in you.

16.  Having that sense of belonging when you meet your loved one.

17.  Trying to do something after a long time and knowing that you are still good at it

18.  Hugging your loved ones after a long tiring day

19.  Hearing “I am proud of you” from people who mean to you.

20.  Having someone come upto you and say “I want to be like you – You are my ideal.”

21.  Crying your heart out in front of someone – not having to explain anything – knowing that he/she understands perfectly how it feels.

22.  Seeing a new born baby smile

23.  Being with little children and being with the elderly people living their second childhood

24.  When a loved one assures you to love you forever and time and distance will not matter

25.  Doing something you love – following your heart – just being yourself.

I love Ice-Cream

When I was a child, everytime my mom took us out out for an"ice cream outing" I used to be very excited about the new flavours I would get to eat there. And on reaching the destination (Ice cream parlour) taking my own sweet time to finalize my flavour. But by the time the ice cream was in my hand, I always ended up feeling that every body elses' ice cream flavours seemed to be more better than mine. However much of cajoling or convincing by my mom wouldn't make me change my mind.

Today life seems so much like that to me.Just a few moments back I was looking at other people's lives and wondering how lucky they are to have such plain, simple and happy lives.I would do anything to have such uncomplicated lives. And suddenly I thought, "Ewwww....!!!"No.....I would never trade my favourite sundae full of nuts, chocolate sauce, jelly and wafers with a plain vanilla ice cream for anything in this world.NEVER!!!

I like my ice cream like that...crunchy-sweet-sour-colourful- full of surprises !!!!

On second thoughts - yes I love my life like this. Rickety - with its usual ups and downs - some bitter -some sweet surprises.....and above all the different colours I have around me which make my life beautiful. I would not want to trade it with anything . :)

Dear God.

P.S: It's filled with various questions that struck me through the day.


Dear God,
I have a lot of questions on my mind. I've been having a bad day and I need to know some basic facts of life. Why do you put me in such a situation that I feel I can't solve? Don't you love your child enough to keep her in your safe hands? Do you want me to electrocute myself on cross-wires and come back to you?


God, why is it that in today's world people can't speak what's on their mind? What is the necessity to pretend to be someone nice, naive and understanding, when in reality you are not? Doesn't that make one a hypocrite?


Does luck exist? Does karma really exist? Will every harm I do to people and vice-versa really retrace its path back to the bad doer?


Why is life so complicated? Or is it us, mere mortals who complicate it? Was life meant to be simple?
When I read your holy book, I felt peace. Isn't peace the main goal of life, my dear God? What are the goals of life? And why is it so difficult to be happy? Can you tell me the path to happiness?
Somebody told me that if I surrender myself to you, I will be able to feel utmost peace and happiness. They also said that you will take care of me. Will you teach me how to do that?
Why is there such a huge barrier before achieving anything in life? Why can't people learn to respect each other? Why is there such a wide gap between the rich and the poor? Aren't all your children equal in your eyes?


What are relationships, God? Why do we have them? Why are they the best and the worst things in one's life? How do you choose the right people to invest your time on? How do you define trust? How do you know if they're worth it? Can I please have a trust-o-gauge? Why do people not lend a listening ear, a warm heart and healing words to people who are low and disturbed? But why do they flock to share a person's happiness? Aaaaah, the ironies of life that I shall never understand.
God, what is ambition? Is it right? Isn't that why Julius Ceaser was killed, but Alexander flourished? What was wrong with Hitler? He had the best brains. But why didn't you mould him right to use his knowledge, skills and courage responsibly? Is it his fault or yours?


My dear Lord, I have a lot more questions buzzing around my head. But till my random thoughts and questions take shape, this is all I have to ask. I hope you answer, after taking into consideration my maturity level. I love you with all my heart and I hope you always guide me and give me the strength to do the right things in life.


Help me to remember Lord, that nothing is going to happen that you and I can't handle together.

Never judge someone, until you walk a mile in their shoes.

"She wears rags instead of clothes."
- Maybe because she's poor?

"She is so fat, why can't she bloody exercise?" 
- She might have thyroid or any such disease.

"Why does have to wear clothes that reveal her cleavage? She must be a slut."
- She could be from a decent family, trying to find her identity, while stuck between her peers.

It's effortless to judge. It's easy to assume that fat people are lazy. It's even easier to assume that they're ugly. But until, you know someone's story, don't judge. Someone once asked a fellow traveller how u could be sure that a particular fat person had thyroid. In all honesty, she didn't. She didn't know her name, forget her medical history. Maybe she was lazy - but what would she get assuming so?

I get judged a lot. I'm talkative and I'm loud. But I don't talk to everyone easily. I've heard people say I have an attitude problem when I do that or their common statement is, "Oh, so X is out of Nanets league." I could deny it, but I don't take that effort. I don't go around proving to everyone how I am. I don't find the necessity to - maybe a reason why they shouldn't find the need to judge me.

Judging a person is a deliberate decision one makes. It's not human nature, it's not natural. If it comes naturally to you, please control the urge to judge. Remember that you don't know her story. If you want to conclude something about a person, talk to them and find out about them. Get to know them. Bask in their warmth. Enjoy their company. Sometimes, there is a sensitive heart beneath a built body and layers of love to share beneath layers of fat. Find that.

Never talk about a person behind their back. Just because half the world does it doesn't make it right. I find it more comforting to be called whatever you judge about me on my face, rather than from someone after it has passed through fifty pairs of ears. Don't defame words. They're meant to spread hope, happiness and love. It's through the power of words that suicide attempts are prevented. It's through words that one feels beautiful. It's words that give one the power to make or break a person's day - sometimes even their life. Use them wisely.

I'm sorry if I'm giving out advice here, but I admit I'm not perfect. I have a very short temper and can get angry at a snap. I'm neither the most patient. But I have a heart that cares, a hand that will hold my loved ones and two ears that will not just hear, but listen.