A CONTINUANCE TO : THE VISION

The children open a door of memories to your own childhood; a time when you expended with homework in the least possible time to race off to play with your friends, when tables were loads of elements to be memorized and recited over and over again, when the teacher gave you a stern look if you spoke out of turn or asked a bold question, and proclaimed that you were a wild kid who would have to be tamed! Then there were those rare teachers who put a smile on your face every time they entered the classroom; who inspired you to dream big and believe in yourself, who taught you to play with numbers and skip on the rainbow all they way to the moon; just to examine if the earth was flat or round!
A tantalizing aroma of coffee jerks you out of your reveries as you approach a glass structure that is glinting in the morning sunlight. An array of electric scooters and bicycles line the side of the glass cafe that is bursting with activity, it is called Ambrosia. The interior is surprisingly cool, and the serving area is dominated by a jolly, rotund man who is flanked on both sides by busy attendants. The customers are a curious mix of early morning joggers, sleepy-eyed students, lounging elderlies, chirpy kids, alert businessmen, dreamy artists and even a few construction workers! You wonder as to how the workers can afford a cafe that looks like it was sprayed with the colors of the rainbow; you wonder what such tough and roughened men could find in common with the the white collared executive they were chatting with as casually as if they were talking to an old friend, you wonder as to how those men could look at home in an environment you found yourself so much in awe of! You move closer and eavesdrop on the conversation going on among the men and the executive. You can't help but be shocked as you confront the fact that two of the men so casually dressed in overalls are well respected employees of a multinational company, and had donned the attire of blue collared laborers as they were going to help the actual construction workers build their own homes. The group huddled around a blueprint exudes an aura of suppressed excitement that is so unusual among adults that you find yourself smiling at their enthusiasm. As you watch the men pat each other on the back and exchange encouraging words, you find yourself wanting to be a part of a team that is so self willed and united; you find yourself aching to be a part of the adventure that the men are embarking upon, you find yourself eager to be ordered about by a few construction workers that you once considered beneath your station! The beauty of the situation startles you as you realize why the men who belong in an office as surely as a fish belongs in the sea were so excited to be in a domain that was so unfamiliar to them. They had been transformed into two young boys who were full of vigor and zeal to learn something new, to explore a whole new world that had just opened up before them. They were unafraid of making mistakes, because of the assurance that they would definitely make many! But the difference was that they would be free to laugh at their mistakes, make the appropriate changes and move on; they were unburdened of the fears that so many adults laden themselves with. They were free of the fear of failure, they were untouched by self-doubt or greed, they were motivated only by the desire to create their own home with their own hands, and that made all the difference in the world!

TO BE CONTINUED

A VISION

Have you ever observed children playing with toys? Let us suppose that 5 children are playing with different toys, and one of those children has a beautiful toy that everyone else admires and envies him for. He agrees to let everyone play with his toy and shares it quite congenially. However, one boy desires to obtain that toy for himself, he is envious of the other boy and decides to bully him into giving him that toy for himself. Once he is denied the possession of the toy, he might do one of the 3 things from the following:
1. He will sulk and cry
2. He will steal it
3. He will fight with that child and take it away from him

Does this situation remind you of our world today? There are so many people out there who are envious of others and who do not appreciate what they have. There are so many people who always want just what the others have. In the above case at least, the kid can be reprimanded and the unfairness of the situation can be explained to him. How do you do this with adults who are old enough to think that they hold the upper hand in every situation? How do you reason with politicians who are corrupt enough to think that they should have free access to the taxpayer's money. How do you rationalize this world and create a situation where everyone can live amicably?



The one solution that I can think of is to give every human a dream, a vision, a thought so compelling that he would help in any way to make it come true..........
The vision of a new world.

Let me show you a picture that has developed in my mind, that I improve every day. This vision could be OUR vision, this vision could be reality.

I christened this vision "ATLANTIS".

Envision a scene where you are walking along a road that is beckoning you towards a new land, towards new people and a wealth of knowledge. As you walk, the wind dances a tango with your hair, the misty sky sheds a tear or two on your upturned face that is being caressed by the cool breeze. You feel a tingle of anticipation as you walk around a bend in the road and come to your destination. The path now descends into a plateau, the swaying tall grass adjoining the path welcomes you cheerily and the flowers greet you with a fragrant kiss! You step onto a cobblestone path as you behold a fountain made of pure white marble, the water springing up into the air with a joyful glee, a symbol of freedom and an epitome of joyful abandon. As you move further ahead, you notice a child sitting under the shade of a tall oak tree. You go towards him, and perceive a few other children lounging in the garden; one is seated on the low branch of a tree while another is lying on his stomach on the ground balancing himself using his elbows. The environment is peaceful, the children are relaxed and carefree, yet you find some change in their behavior. You move closer only to find that they all are immersed in the extensive world of Maths! Yet another surprise greets you as you venture further into the garden, you locate the Maths teacher who is instructing a group of kids on how to build their own slide and see-saw! If you would have waited around to talk to the Maths teacher, you would have learned that the children were being taught to build everything with their own hands, they were being taught to be independent, they were being reared to fly!

TO BE CONTINUED

The meaning of life

The dementors have closed in on me, but they are standing at a distance as there is a abyss between us; an abyss that has saved my soul, a soul that has been drained of all happiness, a soul that has lost its essence. And I feel bereft, I feel helpless, I feel lost and confused, for I believed that joy was the reason for existence, but I have been robbed of that very reason. The dementors are polymorphic tools of destruction, they can take on any form and shape. They will instill fear in your hearts, whether it is fear for your loved ones, or fear for your own life, and that fear will eat away your soul. These dementors are real, they exist among us today, their aim is to deprive you of your security, create chaos and wreak havoc!
Mumbai was rocked with blasts! Panic stricken people are now hiding in their houses in fear of these dementors, kids who have powerful weapons in their hands. They have no fear for their lives, their aim is to destroy, to taint the sanctity of the city, of our country. Their reasons are still unknown, their cause is yet undetermined, but what is certain is that they have penetrated into our lives with the surety of a knife plunged into a body and their goal is to leave behind pain and sorrow. It sounds dreadful, does it not? But it is true, that is exactly what they hope to accomplish. When we read children's novels, usually the villains are portrayed as different from humans as possible, it is because our subconscious will be unable to believe that a human can actually be that cruel. We can easily believe that a dementor is capable of converting a healthy individual into an empty shell, but a human destroying the soul of another sounds too horrendous to be true. I can still hardly believe it even after seeing firsthand exactly what man has become capable of! Even when we read about murderers and rapists, we classify them in a different category from all the other people that we know. Because I am unable to understand the mind of a person who is dedicated to destroy a thing of beauty, whether it is human being, or a building, or art, or a country. How can you burn down a beautiful building when you are not capable of constructing even ordinary one, when you are not capable of even visualizing an original architecture like that? How can you kill people who are doing their job, doing it well, doing it with creativity, with genuine love and joy? Each staff member in Taj who was killed, each police officer who was struck down, the son of a sweeper in G.T. Hospital who beheld the killing of his father, each individual harmed by this act of cowardice did not deserve it, they did no wrong. Goddamit, they were innocent men out to just earn a living! So how should I take this injustice towards my fellow brothers, how should I take this destruction of my city, how should I respect my government, how should I live to be happy once again?

FOOTLOOSE!!

This feeing comes over me quite a few number of times in my life, it makes a grand appearance just when my life starts assuming a routine pattern! The feeling just bubbles up within me and before I know it, I start exploring the different possible places I can pay a visit to on my day off! I usually get the Monday and Tuesday off every week, and I have been going to visit the different places in Belgaum over a couple of weeks every Monday. Though I did not go anywhere last week, I ended up doing quite a bit of gardening last Monday and that experience gave me a peaceful and pleasant feeling of euphoria! It was so invigorating to get my hands dirty in mud that was wet and fragrant from the slight drizzle that surprised us all last Monday! I thought of taking my usual trip to Belgaum today, but even that trip was taking on a familiar and boring shape and so I just chucked the plan.
So, the feeling persists. My mind flashes images of glorious sunsets on beaches, or a cozy cabin on the mountainside or even green fields that stretch for miles and appease my eyesight! And I long to travel to a new place, and have an adventure that will refresh my soul and rejuvenate my mind! I do not have any idea as to whom I have inherited this gypsylike trait from, it certainly has not come from my parents who are both homebodies! It just comes to me as naturally as one might feel hunger or thirst, and my mind reflexively starts exploring different avenues that might ultimately lead me towards an unforgettable experience. Ah! Just thinking of walking along nature in its form of unbridled beauty makes me want to break all the barriers and head out into the open spaces! God, I wish I could be a stallion just for a day, I would race the wind across the green mountainside and feel the adrenaline rush through my veins!!!
I could go on and on,..believe me! But I'll sign off here and wish you beautiful people out there a great week! Take care.

Drummer Boy

He has beautiful hands,the exact shade of dark mahogany, with long fingers whose tips are slightly rough(due to hours spent with the guitar) and shapely nails . And when I hold his hand in mine,I feel protected and secure and a strange kind of joy bubbles within me. His hand in mine evokes a feeling of fearlessness in me and I feel invincible. This feeling has been the saving grace in my trying times, for the warmth of his hands stays with me like the smell of the ocean that can never be forgotten. Those hands exude strength and I can spend hours tracing their contours and the distinctly visible veins that give them so much character.
But those hands are in character only when they are in violent motion, when they assume the responsibility of acting as the tools of a musician. Like the warrior who lives to hold a sword and take charge in battle, his hands were always meant to be strumming the strings of a guitar or beating a rhythm on the drums. For he, himself knows that it is his unspoken destiny to create music , to rejoice in the glory of knowing that he has the talent to compose a unique melody and to struggle and work to achieve the right to be a musician on a fulltime basis. But till then he continues to create one tune after another, be it in a cafe called Barista, or a Musician's mall or another music store called Furtados, or even at home, trying to drown out the expectations of the world with the resonating sounds of the guitar.
His passion is worth beholding, it is inspiring and I whenever i think of him,an image of him comes to my mind,it consists of him sitting with a guitar or the drums with complete concentration on his face and nothing but music on his mind. And when he has finally succeeded in building up a melody or a rhythm to his satisfaction, a dimpled smile crosses his face that has a glow bright enough to belittle the brightest star in the sky. Such is the beauty of observing a creative mind, a mind that has the capability of doing everything in a style that is original and exuberant.
And I miss that mind today,I miss those hands,I miss that smile, for till yesterday they were all by my side but now he is miles apart from me and all I have are memories to hold me till I meet him again. For I have realised that it is my unspoken destiny to walk alongside a musician with hands made from the purest mud, twinkling eyes dragged from the sky above, a smile dazzling enough to stop your heart and a mind that can keep you on your feet till you fall apart.

Free falling

We are all born with a sense of purpose, all of us announce our arrival into this world with a loud cry and a constant demand for attention. We were all once a bundle of curiosity, peering at faces and objects unknown to us with unbridled enthusiasm and we approached everything we had discovered with a joy and pride akin to the pride that Christopher Columbus must have displayed when he discovered the "New World", alike in the fact that we were also not the foremost discoverers.
Still, we managed to enthrall people and drown in their attentions by doing exactly the same things that millions of babies before us had done. Its the enthusiasm and childish innocence we displayed that gave our every action a magical quality to it and brought laughter to all those around us. We ventured forward like brave warriors out on a mission and tried valiantly to put one step in front of the other and once we succeeded, we were given rewards that would have befitted a king.
So, when did we lose that courage, that spark of independence that once prompted us out of our cradles onto the ground and then finally on our feet? When did we lose that glorious sense of delight that used to light up our eyes and fill us with a sense of wonderment at the mere sight of a butterfly? When did we grow up and why??
I feel sad when I think about today's youth. We have all been pushed around like puppets in a play, the only difference is that we feel those pushes, we feel the hurt. I am a happy girl today, working hard and trying to fulfill all my dreams, but I was just as confused a few months ago. I was reminded of that feeling today, when a young man who had just completed his Mechanical Engineering Degree came for an interview to our company. He wanted to shift from his mechanical background into an Electronics or Software background. His dilemma brought vividly to my mind the emotional trauma a young man/woman might go through when they are unsure about their career and their future life.
And there are too many students out there who are confused, who have a large burden of expectations on their shoulders which even Atlas would have found heavy to bear. So why can't we all be left loose? Why can't we all just be freed from all bonds of obligations that compel us towards a tedious life that gives neither satisfaction nor contentment?? It is a question all parents must ask themselves.
I can enumerate so many cases of students who are being forced into streams they don't have any interest in but they are sacrificing their free wills unconsciously to fulfill their obligations either towards parents or towards society. When did the world come to this? Do we truly want our future scientists, doctors and engineers to be apathetic towards their professions? Is it so important to have a child who has passed through one of the IIT's or AIM's rather than having a kid who is joyously and interestedly earning his living in an environment that he finds stimulating.
You cannot imagine how sad I feel when I look at a soul that should have been rejoicing in the glory of being born, in the glory of his ability to fulfill his dreams but instead is feeling the unmitigated sorrow of being bound in a train to a destination predetermined for him by others. That my dear friends is just not fair......
Our beautiful childhood should have been the launch pad to a carefree life where we would steer our own planes like valiant pilots into unchartered territories to write new chapters in history. Aim high dear friends, fly high, each one of us has obligations, but our foremost obligations lie towards ourselves. I love this song:

And then a hero comes along,
With the strength to carry on;
And you cast your fears aside,
And you know you can survive.

So when you feel like hope is gone,
Look inside you and be strong;
And you'll finally see the truth;
That a hero lies in you.

SMUG!!

If you could see my face right now, you would know the meaning of happiness. I am living and fulfilling a dream that has been so very important to me. Have you ever keenly observed a butterfly? A butterfly, whatever colour or shape it may be, is a beautiful creature who is always in a state of revelation, who flutters from flower to flower discovering something new at every instant. I feel like one such butterfly right now, discovering new facets of life and constantly learning about new subjects, from networking to electronics and even new languages, I cannot explain the feeling of euphoria I experience when I learn something on my own, or I devise a new idea or plan that has originated from the depths of my own mind. Today, I was to come up with an idea as to how to setup an experiment that would end up as an analogy to the working of a Cmos inverter. I had to use the apparatus of a water tank and pipes. I thought of an idea at first, and then tried to improve upon its drawbacks so that by the time I was done with it, it would be perfect, it would be a work of art. Devising that small experiment took up the time I usually invested in a walk, but my mind would not be satisfied till I had come up with a good plan. I discarded idea after idea till I came up with a setup that would suit the circuit perfectly. It was then that I realized the power of a human mind, I realized that every person has a mind that is capable of genuine creativity, if only every one of us expected the best from ourselves. I guess it is our expectations that ultimately decide our destiny. There is so much knowledge in the world and I am in the presence of people who expect the best from themselves here and there is nothing more exhilarating than knowing and believing that you can do whatever you set your mind to. There is nothing more fulfilling than wandering around in the hallways of science, examining and questioning different mysteries, many of them explored and explained by men, men who dared to question even the invisible lines of force that exist between charges. I admire these men but I am not awed by them anymore because they aren't as great as we have made them out to be. Yes, I dare to say that aloud. Every scientist you grew up learning about, every man whose name you read on the pages of your history book, every man you worshiped, every hero you idolized, they are not out of the world, they are not extraordinary. In fact they are normal men, they represent the common man, what is extraordinary is that we differentiate ourselves from them, we expect more from them then we do from ourselves. Why is that so? I agree that not all of us are blessed with intelligence but we all have some spark of creativity within us that is yours alone, and that spark cannot be dimmed by the sparkling glory of even the most brilliant mind. But the knowledge that is most important for every man is the knowledge of self awareness. There is nothing more important than understanding yourself, your every talent should have a pedestal, even though you are the only worshipper. Every quirky habit of yours has a sweet and unique taste, one that should be first understood and recognised by you. Your strengths and weaknesses are your own, embrace them and use them such that you are admired for your strengths and indulged and adored for your weaknesses. Wake up my friends, look within yourselves, you may find a scientist, or a writer, a leader, or a philosopher, or you may just find an individual happy to be himself, a butterfly enchanted by the world and delighted to just ponder upon the wonders in our lives.

Imagine there's no country, Nothing to kill or die for and no religion too. Imagine all the people living life in peace

What pulls us all as human beings? What arouses us to commit fatal errors and glorious achievements? What arouses our passions?
These questions have been aroused in my mind by a book I am reading currently, it is called "Redemption" and the author is Leon Uris. In this book he has explored the bond between an Irishman and his motherland, and has portrayed that a person is bound to his/her motherland by invisible chains and that even though a person may try to escape and break those bonds, he will stick to his roots until his last breath. The story includes a man called Connor, a man who has great strength of character,who knows the value of honor, whose every action glows with the aura of a talent that is exceptional but also radiant with his personal charisma. His persona is enough to inspire confidence,love and glory. What then does such a man have to grieve for?
One thing that was denied to Connor by his father was the freedom that he craved for, and so he broke away to follow his destiny. On the other hand, his younger brother who craved the attention of his father and ached to fill the void left behind by Connor was treated with disdain and he ran away too. The old man was left with a broken heart because he failed to understand his sons and his sons were left with a legacy that compelled them to despise all that their father stood for and yet love him with an intensity that confused them. Its a saga that will leave you contemplating and cursing men whose erroneous decisions lead to unhappiness that extends to further generations.
The other element in the story that provoked my thoughts was the passions of these men, passions towards their motherland, passions towards their women. Connor, for eg. was a man who loved his motherland, but tragedies compelled him to leave Ireland to escape the ghosts of his past. He ran, but couldn't stay away for long and returned home. But this is Connor before he fell madly in love. For when he fell in love, he gave everything. Yes, the love of Connor and his sweetheart was enough to inspire all those around them and to personify the purity, depth, and understanding that love stood for. It was a love worthy of the likes of Connor and Shelley, who both were like warriors, brave and tender, strong and noble, glorious and humble. They deserved to live in joy, but the rebellion in Ireland drove them apart. So ultimately, they both became martyrs and were immortalized but the future of Connor and Shelley remained a dream
What binds us this way to a piece of land? Why should anyone be expected to give up their lives and happiness in the name of a country or religion? Is there truly any need for sacrifice among men? What do these borders between countries stand for? If the men brave enough to die on those very borders were allowed to live and work for mankind, imagine the accomplishments they could achieve; if only they were allowed to hope instead of facing the despair of death. Because these are the men who dislike sitting around and waiting for others to take lead, they are ready to face the consequences of their actions. When men like Connor enter the battlefield, its because they have a conscience that compels them to take action rather than wait backstage for the drama to play out.

The borders between countries were erected because of the differences among the people, if these differences were accepted and embraced, and all men lived to achieve happiness, would there still be anything to fight for? But there are downfalls to this theory because men have begun to have a natural flair to cheat a fellow human out of his rights.
We need to savor our freedom and recognize the right of another man to savor his. We need to erect boundaries not between countries but between individuals, so that no man can ever have the audacity to violate another. We need to stop evaluating the economies of the countries and start evaluating ourselves. God save us if all the Connor's of this world are sacrificed, for who will inspire us then?

A letter sprinkled with the magic dust of heaven

I received my first letter today, miles away from my friends. I am living in a place where the native language is as unknown to me as the depths of the ocean, where the people live a different lifestyle from the one that I know and their thinking is equally apart from mine. But what binds me to the people here is the love of knowledge, a knowledge we aspire to achieve not by just reading books, but by analysing every aspect of life that we have understood and taken for granted till now. But I will talk about that some other day.
Today I just want to revel in the feeling of being loved, being loved by a person whom I love equally. I am talking about a friend of mine, a friend who is crazy, sweet, downright audacious, stupefyingly witty and dangerously perceptive. I received a letter from him today (yes, a letter – the one that you write by hand and send through the post office), the feeling of surprise was soon overcome by a feeling of warmth that enveloped me as I opened his letter and saw his handwriting. At that moment, even if a catastrophe would have occurred in my vicinity, I would have cheerfully smiled my way through it. I could not stop smiling as I envisioned his face and read his words, his wicked smile and his twinkling eyes brought back to me the moments I spent just trying to understand the devilish schemes cooking in that ever-active mind. The “King of Angmar” had deigned to send me a letter and I was as pleased as a cat who had been given an everlasting supply of milk!!!
How can I describe the relationship I share with this magnificient specimen of a human being? His thoughts will provoke you, inspire you and most of the times they will make you want to burst with laughter and mirth. His principles are strong, his thoughts are uniquely different and fresh and its a pleasure to argue with him, to pit my mind against his, all the while knowing that both of us are as stubborn as mules and will not give in.
His letters and messages and calls transform me to a plane where I can revel in my joy for an indefinite amount of time. Small gestures like this make my life worth living. i just want to tell all my friends and loved ones, that all my hard work, all my sincerity, every thought and every flash of discovery in my mind, I dedicate all this to you, because all I want is to be happy, and my happiness lies in you. I am doing my duty as a person by follwing my dreams, I am doing my duty as a student by working hard, and I am sure as hell trying to do my duty as a friend by aspiring to earn your respect and love as a friend. Coz you deserve to have as your friends only the best people in the world, and that is what I aspire to be. I miss you all every day and I hope you know that my life is dedicated to treasuring the gems that I have collected along life's mysterious paths. You are one of these gems, shine on me, you crazy diamonds.........Love you guys.
PS: Tubby, you are the best fried a girl could have! Your words have burst in my mind like delightful fire crackers sparkling with such an intensity that I am sure this glow will not fade as long as I have you in my life. Love you dude!!! Keep smiling.

A Table for Two

I have this inherent ability, such that varied thoughts keep entering and leaving my mind, and I am always in a whirl, with my emotions varying as fast as the the colors of a chameleon. Love has given my life an entirely new perspective.
Imagine waking up early morning, watching the sunrise while sipping a cup of your favorite filter coffee. Then going to work to a place where everyone loves you, and you love everyone. Imagine the bone deep satisfaction of doing your job well, of doing something creative that is beneficial to the world. Imagine going home to a playful, loving family and living in a dream house that you helped build. Evening walks on the beach with a golden Labrador, who looks like a streak of sunbeam blazing across the sand, would be an integral part of your day. Imagine the amount of happiness and satisfaction you would feel just before you closed your eyes and went to sleep. Put all this happiness in to a bubble and try, just try to measure it. That is the amount of joy I feel when i see my boyfriend's smile. When i see his face light up with laughter and his eyes look tenderly at me, i feel all the world fade away. Every silly joke I tell, every funny and quirky habit of mine, all my hard work, every tune I compose, every song I sing, earns me a reward more precious to me than anything in the world. I had never thought that one person's smile would mean so much, but it does. Love has given me a peaceful, easy feeling that would remain with me through everything.
A cool breeze wafted cheerful tidings into my ears as i dressed my best, leaving my home for a romantic evening with a handsome young man. I walked for a while, then took a cab to our meeting place. He came armed with a smile to melt my heart and flowers to captivate my soul. We walked, hand in hand to the restaurant and argued about who would pay the bill. I finally gave in (for the first time) and we declared peace, sealed with a kiss! (hehehhe)
We asked for a table for two, and he opened the door for me, the door to the most romantic place I have ever been to! It was dim, with small lights on the ceiling casting a light glow on the room. We sat down, and the waiter greeted us with the satisfaction of knowing that a good sum of money would be extracted from us by the time we got done with dinner! But for the first time, we didn't care. I looked into his eyes and I saw the beautiful soul of the man I love. Our relationship, our bond, our friendship, our joy made the whole room so much more beautiful, so much more magical, and I told him so. There is one thing that I love about my sweetheart, he is so warm that even when I am almost freezing in a room where the temperature is dangerously low, his body remains as warm as if he is sitting beside a fireplace and is as cozy as a bug in a rug. I can hold his hand for hours and feel his warmth seep through my skin, it feels like heaven.
It was one of the most beautiful evenings of my life, and the food was delicious! The music was like the chirping of birds in the wood, inconspicuous and yet so beautiful and soothing. At that moment, if you could have gauged my joy in terms of music, you would have heard a symphony so true that it would have melted your heart too.
Well, sorry to disappoint the food lovers but there was no room for desert in our stomachs so we just topped off the evening with a walk by the sea. I think i fell in love with my man all over again today! I think I am truly getting nauseatingly mushy so I had better sign off with a warm hug to all out there...........Keep Smiling.

The plight of a mother

My dad is the Deputy superintendent of his hospital and hence quite a variety of people come to our home for advice or suggestions. This weekend, in the morning I opened the door to find an old lady asking for my dad. I replied to her that my dad was sleeping (he takes his time to get up on Sundays) and hearing that, she then asked for my mom (who is also a doctor and would be able to assist her as well). I called my mom and stood aside wondering at what peril had brought the old lady to my house at 7.30 am in the morning. I soon came to know.......
The old lady told my mom that she needed a death certificate. She said it in a casual manner which brought a chill to my bones and truly startled me. But I should have seen the grief behind the casual facade, because after saying that one statement, the old lady broke down into tears. It was as if she had promised herself to be calm while fulfilling her duties to her dead loved one, but I guess she realized the finality of her statement and couldn't control the flood of emotions that threatened her senses.
And what mother could have? For it was her daughter who had passed on leaving her behind to face the sorrow of loneliness that is inevitable after the departure of a loved one. She wept as she told us that her daughter had become skin and bone due to her ailment and that she had not been able to even consume water. Her voice was heavy with grief, her shoulders bent, her eyes wet and I saw her pain, heard it, but I could not think of a single thing to say. And I realized that she just wanted to be heard and so we remained silent and acknowledged her pain, her courage and silently prayed for her daughter and her family.
The old lady left after a while but not before she had left an indelible print on my mind. I wondered, and i wondered....
Imagine the pain of seeing a loved one fade right in front of your eyes, imagine seeing your beloved experience pain without being able to do anything about it because everyone told you there was nothing else left to do. Imagine the ache in your heart when your beloved is forced to give up food and drink and cannot intake anything and all you can do is hold her hand and pray. You feel so helpless and angry that someone you love is suffering, that this person that you love hasn't committed any error to suffer this way but was inflicted by disease either by accident or bad luck or just randomly. God, I swear I just couldn't stop thinking about it............
I just want to dedicate this small space on my blog, and a large space in my heart to all those who have lost loved ones..........please be strong because when you feel pain, i see it and feel it too, maybe not as much as you do, but enough to know how it feels, enough to care, enough to admire all those who pick up their lives and move on after horrendous losses, enough................
God bless you all.

Dear mother, when you cry,
and your eyes brim with sorrow;
Dear mother, when you weep,
for those who will not see tomorrow,
I ache inside and wonder
at the injustice of it all,
I grow angry at your loss
for you deserve much more than this grief laden upon your soul.
For who will ease those lonely nights,
that you spend reliving the past?
Who will caress and calm your agitated soul,
when all are asleep but for you, the nights don't seem to pass.
And one day you'll look back after the daily chores of the day are done,
and you'll see how everyone around you has changed;
All of a sudden they will all seem strangers,
and you will look at yourself and wonder when you were left behind.
But i hope you don't surrender,
I hope you achieve peace,
God, i hope i can see your smile again,
Radiant as it once was, shining down upon me.

Ignorance is bliss???

I saw the movie "An Inconvenient Truth" with my dad the other day and it shocked the hell out of me. What stunned me was not the extent of global warming, i already had an idea about that (though it worried me) but what truly saddened me was that people have the ability to disregard what they consider trivial or unimportant or anything that does not affect them at that moment.
Al Gore said in the movie that he thought that with statistics, information and his teacher's knowledge he would be able to convince Congress of the gravity of the situation. He thought that they would make a new discovery and help the world to become a much better place. But he was wrong, they did not believe him............. You should have heard the sadness in his voice when he said that. It was like he had suddenly woken up to the fact that failure was a word in most people's dictionary. Up till then, i don't think he had even thought about failing.
Imagine the frustration of being called an emotional fool, when all you are trying to do is make the world a better place to live in.
I felt his pain, i felt his frustration and i felt like calling the world a bunch of fools. So many wasted years behind a cause that people should have woken up to a few decades ago. So many wasted years by a brilliant man, whose efforts would have and should have given the world so many other achievements, but all of these years and all of this talent has gone into trying to make people open their eyes to the truth. What a waste!! What a shame for mankind! I wonder what a man like that should ask from the world for all of the years he spent trying to save them, but most importantly i wonder what we would give him?.....
The greatness of this man shines through the fact that he yet hasn't given up. He is still relentlessly giving seminars in all parts of the world and working for a cause so unimportant that our future may depend on it. But of course, what else can you expect from an emotional fool, right????

WooooooooooooHoooooooooooooooo

Guess what?? My dream came true! I went to Matheran with a couple of friends and my dearest boyfriend!! It was heaven!! We walked all the way up the mountain (approximately 8 kilometers) to Matheran! At times we searched for our own routes and climbed some parts of the mountain! I felt like an adventuress out to conquer the mountainous terrain!!! Awesome fun!! When we reached Matheran though, it started raining heavily and the hotel we had booked in didn't have running water as their motor shut down due to the rains! So our little group trudged through the rains and had a hot lunch which immediately soothed our weary, drenched and shivering (but still cheerful) souls. It was one heck of an experience! By the time we finally managed to find appropriate rooms, the better part of the day had passed us by! But we were warm and cozy, and we had a really good view and a crazy company. In short we continued to have a blast!!
We spent 2 days in an atmosphere full of fresh air and spunky jokes and then made our way downhill today morning. I just soaked in the cool air, the unpredictable rain, the prevailing fog and an adventure i had ached to be a part of. I felt so free that i was able to analyze every thought in my head, every dream in my mind, every sparkle of mischief in my imagination, every twinkle in the eyes of my amazing friends, every little mystery of nature, and all that makes life worth living. I have come back to the city today and i felt sad saying goodbye to Matheran but i feel like i have gone through a cleansing, a cleansing of my spirit, and i feel rejuvenated and at peace!
At one point when we were coming downhill, we just sat at the edge of a hill and gazed down at the valley below and thanked god for reminding us how lucky we are, to see and feel nature in a way that is enough to make anyone feel an inner sense of peace! We wondered and marveled at the beauty of the mountains before us, the calmness of the environment around us, the caressing sounds of the trees as if they were trying to soothe all your pains and sorrows, the simplicity of the people living in and near the hill station, and while i was looking and feeling these things i realized that unhappiness is so unnecessary and that we can deal with it by considering it to be trivial and temporary, coz there are so many beautiful people to meet and so many places to explore!! So, i decided that i don't really have time to be sad, every day of my life is packed with action and romance and every moment is a opportunity to discover new and exciting doorways that ultimately lead to joy!!
I would be glad if you would tell me about any adventures you have had!! Stay beautiful and keep smiling!!

spoilsport!!

The rain has ruined all my holiday plans this year! I finally got permission from my parents to go to a hill station with my friends, but the early rains have caused such havoc that they will be inaccessible after this weekend! I was just aching to go somewhere this time. I just feel like releasing my soul into the great wide open.......... I just feel tired right now, tired of all things petty, tired of doing what everyone expects of me, tired of routine. I just wanna go crazy, i wanna stand on a hilltop and sing at the top of my voice, i wanna gaze at the stars for hours, i need to cleanse my soul, i need peace. I thought of even getting a tattoo done, but my budget created a barrier that could not be easily overcome! So, i played my keyboard for hours yesterday just trying to find a release, trying to find my wings to fly again to soar through the blue sky, to be free!!!
I just had a week where everyone around me was demanding to be pleased! Is there anything more irritating than explaining to people why you are the way you are, why you do the things you do??? GIVE ME A BREAK PEOPLE!!!
Thank god i have at least 2 people who always support me through everything, who never ask why i didn't call, why i am so careless etc etc. These 2 saviors are my saving grace and i just love them to pieces! Thank god for them!!! Take care all! Hope you have a great week ahead of you!!!

Bubble burst!

I was super excited about making this blog! Believe me, i was in a bubble of joy and my feet wouldn't touch the ground because i thought that i had finally found a way to expand my creativity. I thought that by making this blog i would be able to interact with people who would be able to kindle a new spark within me, and that i would be able to enjoy meeting new adventurous souls with whom i could delve into mysteries abound! Sadly, this hasn't happened yet!
So, give me a hand to hold, a smile to behold, a tear to dry, a few laughs to help time pass by. I gazed at the stars, the moon and the sky, but man is the most revered treasure in the artist's eye.
Tell me your story, sing me your song, are you feeling lonely or are you with someone you belong? Have you found the secret, the secret of your smile? Just whisper it to me, i want to make you smile for just a little while................

Exams.............

Hey, all you people out there. My exams are going on and i decided to study with a vengeance this time so I am limiting the time i normally spend blogging. By the way, I regularly take a look around at other people's blogs and i am continually amazed to see so much interesting stuff out there! I leave a few appreciating comments and sometimes i drone on about my feelings on the blog! So all you people out there who love life and dream big, and just enjoy being their quirky selves ( I love noticing quirky habits of different people, its so cool when people are just themselves. You can notice their slight mannerisms and smile that set them apart from anybody else. One day i want to go around the world, catch hold of 1 person at a time and tell them that for an hour they can do exactly what they want and be what they want and then I want to see what every person does, coz that would be the true indication of their personality. What an amazing feeling that would be, to see people being carefree, unique and filled with joy! Now that would be worth writing about!!). Anyways, as i was saying, cheers to all of us who love being happy. Take care all!

Marine Drive

I took these pics just before sunset! Hey Bhushi, i know you're green with jealousy!

A walk to remember.................

Hey! I had described to you the beautiful scene i witnessed when i went to Marine Drive on May 12th. I saw the lights of Wankhede stadium reflected on the sea which was quite a sight! Overcome by this joy i went back to Marine Drive on a day i knew the lights would be on and i tried to capture a good image of this magnificent view!

Just a thought.........

When do you feel proud of yourself? I thought of this when I received compliments from my friends for writing this blog. When they complimented me, I felt happy, ecstatic, like sunshine had suddenly burst forth from me, I felt humbled because they understood what I had written and I felt my heart grow even fonder of them. But I did not even once feel proud of myself!
Do you want to know when I feel truly proud of myself? It’s when I am actually penning down my thoughts, when I put two words together such that they create a meaning apt to that situation that I want to describe, I feel proud when I complete writing a poem which I wrote just to express my feelings without thought as to whether anyone would like it. I write to please myself and to express my doubts, fears, joy and happiness. I play the keyboard to feel the joy that I can create music (Am still learning though, but I still love it!!). And that makes me proud, that is the moment I feel pride in my work, in myself.
I have written a few poems that I have shown only to a couple of people, one of those poems expresses sadness and despair due to fact that I thought that I don't fit in anywhere. But that poem that others may conceive as a sorrowful one is truly the poem that best describes my strength! The feeling of pride that I felt when I wrote that poem truly can be rated among my top proud moments!! Hehehe.......
So do you tell your kids that you feel proud of them when they get an A grade? Instead tell them that you feel proud of them when they study, when they learn something new!! That is my opinion! Please feel free to tell me about your proud moments! I would love to hear about them!! Keep smiling :-)

Lucky me!!!

Evening walks to Marine Drive have become frequent (i have moved to a place close to it) and even more precious to me. There is something about the sea that i find utterly irresistible and it pulls me towards it like honey to a bee. So i went for a walk by the sea again today and just sat in peaceful contemplation (listening to November Rain by GNR) for some time on the parapet. Then i noticed that the sea was illuminated with bright diagonal lines shimmering on the surface at certain intervals while the rest of the sea was its usual dark mysterious self. I got up to investigate the cause of the incandescent glow on the surface of the sea when i noticed that the lights of Wankhede Stadium were on! The stadium lies behind a row of buildings but the lights are tall and look like inquisitive children peering over a fence. Well, radiations of light were streaming from the gaps separating the neighbouring buildings and fell onto the sea like silver dust from the wand of a fairy!! Oh, you should have seen it, the shimmering bands of light met at a point far away in the sea and looked like ethereal paths promising a magical journey to all those who had the courage to walk upon them!! It was beautiful, and i could not stop smiling. I just wish i had a camera to capture that moment, but at least i have that image locked away in my mind! If anyone at that moment had told me that the fairies from the faraway woods had come for a visit and had left these mementos, i would have readily believed them!! I am lucky to live so close to the sea!

A Musical Concert by the sea

I have just returned after attending a musical concert that has stolen my breath and given me moments of clarity and beauty so pure that I just can't stop myself from penning down this magical reality.
I was one of the hundreds gathered to witness this phenomenon, and I don't think any one of us had even an inkling of the effect this performance would have on us. I have been to live concerts before; I have stood among thousands of spectators and sung along with them. Standing there, among several kindred spirits, I have felt a harmony with myself and my surroundings that usually eludes us in the mad rush of our lives. Usually a live concert is a crowd of bodies who are shifting from one foot to another in an effort to find some comfort in a stifling atmosphere. Most of the black t-shirt clad bodies around you are drenched in sweat, and are stinking of alcohol after standing in a queue outside the concert grounds for hours, just waiting to be let in. But when the music begins, all the discomfort vanishes with every thought in your head. Awestruck, and numb, you can feel the reverberations of the music within your soul, and you realise that this moment could be the on were living for.
But at this particular concert today, I felt isolated. I did not feel united with the other spectators, I did not feel their joy mixed with mine. Today, I didn't care. I just felt the eternal music, I felt it lift my soul above to a place where I could feel nothing except the emotion that I was alive, that I was free. I felt my desires, my ambitions and I acknowledged that I would fight to make every one of them come true, that I would not give up the smallest dream; because every dream is a little flame of hope that gives me the strength to envision a larger dream. I acknowledged my strengths and my weaknesses as I gazed up at the sky, I acknowledged the people I love, I acknowledged my teachers and I saluted mankind. I saluted every person alive because man is glorious, he is a multi-faceted creature whose creativity can extend as far as the horizon. Yes, I felt proud, proud to be a woman.
I attended this concert a walk away from my place, a musical concert by the sea. I stood on the parapet, I stood as tall as I could and I gazed at the sea as if by just staring at it I could compel it to perform for me. And what a performance it gave me!! The lilting tones of the sea emanated a calmness that I have never found anywhere else, the crashing of the waves against the rock sung a song of perseverance and strength that helped me face my fears. The dark sky and its bride, the moon accompanied the sea to create an atmosphere of peace that crackled with joyous energy.
And I stood there, transfixed just listening to this harmony of love and I felt like I had witnessed a sight that everyone saw, but few understood. I felt blessed because I had the vision to behold a mysterious entity, a beauty bound by land and yet so free.
I finally recovered from the spell I was under and walked back home under a canopy of trees, smiling to myself, confident to have been the only witness to a concert by the sea. Until the fluttering leaves whispered their ancient knowledge of my secret to me.

A scene from Madagascar...................The arrogant King Julian at his charming best!!! HEHEHE..

RETROSPECTION

What is this bond that exists between two friends?
What is this love that blossoms between two lovers?
Are these just feelings or do they have a deeper
meaning?
Do these relationships have a reason worth revealing?

Is respect not the first step towards any
relationship?
Is admiration not the essential ingredient of any
relationship?
Do a person's thoughts not reflect his character?
Then why do we say that a person's mind and heart
differ from each other?

Can people with different tastes stay together?
Can their superficial wants really hide the principles
that really matter?
Can a CEO and a clerk not have anything in common?
Does dedication supercede ambition?

Is the sacrifice of self respect worth the adulation
won by false pretences?
Is it fair to term confidence and self esteem as
arrogance?
Is accumulation of wealth the only sign of a life
lived well?
Can questions say what answers can never tell?

DANCING IN THE RAIN

This pic always makes me smile!