Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Happy Shiv Ratri

Its Shivratri today. One of the only days that I have been keeping my fast pretty meticulously. On this day of the year am always reminded of my sis. It was way back in 90's and it was Shivratri. My kid sister and I were observing fast as was the rest of the family. My neighbor Pooja was celebrating her birthday that day. We were a good friend of her so we decided that we would attend the birthday party though we wouldn't eat anything. My cute lil sis and I went to their house in the evening. Both of us saw the goodies there and were extremely tempted. Why should her birthday be today is the thought that ran across both our heads instantly. But both of us stuck to our guns and decided we are not going to break the fast. Cool kids eh? I must barely have been ten. My sis obviously even younger. Then she saw pav bhaji there and told me that she is now going to break the fast :) And of course I didn't stop her :)

I am reminded of this incident every Shiv Ratri. Feel like giving her a hug right now. Want to call her right away and tell her how much I miss her but then I have to wait till sun shines in India I guess. Happy Shivratri sis :)

Friday, October 17, 2008

Indianism

Context: A friend is in the US for the first time, is a little home sick and is in a "Missing you all", "India is great" "Indian festivals are great" "Indians are great" mode ;)

 

What Transpired:

 

Me: Give yourself a couple of years and when you are back I will hear you say "uffff these mosquitos", "ufff people here have no road sense", "aaaaah the stench", "eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew Indians" ;) and all and all

 

Fren: U r completely wrong. And all u ppl know that what are we :)

 

Me: You will know what I know only after you go through what I said. That means, come to India after 2-3 years and then talk.

 

Fren: The same sentence applies to u also...Did u also do the same thing when u returned back to India?

 

 

Me: Don’t live in an imaginary world. I very much said so when I got back to India. That’s the reason I am telling you. Moreover I was in the US for a very brief time, 5 months. It took me 2 minutes to get used to the size of the maruthi 800 car in India. It took me 2 weeks to get used to the mosquitoes ;) The rest of the things are the ones told by people when they visited India after a longer duration.

 

Well, it was friendly conversation and neither of us holds anything against each other. I however continue to ponder on the same and did have things to say about it.

 

"You people know that what are we" - This really got me thinking. What did that sentence really mean? Are we the ones who would never complain in life? Well, I for sure am not one such ;) But that’s besides the point. Let me state my point with an example. For instance, if there is a drainage around (which is pretty common to find in India :D), I wouldn’t think twice before I say aaaaah the damn drainage is stinking. And I would just not take it hands down if anyone would question my patriotism when I say that. NO! If I express my thoughts on a fact which is there for everyone to see, there is nothing derogatory about it. It’s just about the damn drainage and got nothing to do with anything else.

 

There are certain things in life that we can talk about only after we go through similar things. Without experiencing things, our opinions would be diametrically opposite to the ones we express after we go through them. This is one such. However there is a lot I would like to talk about this, but that would be another blog post altogether :)

 

“The same sentence applies to u also...Did u also do the same thing when u returned back to India?”

Here the person is assuming that I couldn’t be like that. That’s more because the whole thing is being positioned as how patriotic you are than how one looks at things.

 

I was reminded of an incident in life. As a kid (sometime in middle school), I had been to a friend's house. While we were talking her mom came to give us something to nibble upon. Aunty was talking to us when my friend (I don’t remember the context) said my mom is the most beautiful person on Earth. I instantly thought "No, my mom is the most beautiful person on Earth" :) While it is true that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, I am sure everyone thinks that their mom is the most beautiful person on Earth. The beauty here though is a reference to the value that one associates with it.

So, while I do consider my mom the most beautiful person in the world, I wouldn’t stop from saying something like mom so n so thing is not nice, change it or anything to that effect. And when I do that, it doesn’t mean I appreciate her beauty/value any less :)

 

So while I can’t let anyone question my patriotism, I wouldn’t stop from calling a spade a spade.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Strike a chord

A couple of lines that struck a cord in me from the latest Dostaana (Its called Jaane Kyun).........

 

When you smiiiiiiiiiile for me world seems alright. Yeh meri zindagi pal mein hi khil jaaye, jaane kyon

Jaane kyooon dil jaantha hai, tu hai tho I'll be alright.

 

 

 

 

 

Monday, October 6, 2008

About love by swami Vivekananda

A Nice Article about Love: (by Swami Vivekananda)

I once had a friend who grew to be very close to me. Once when we were sitting at the edge of a swimming pool, she filled the palm of her hand with some water and held it before me, and said this: "You see this water carefully contained on my hand? It symbolizes Love."

This was how I saw it: As long as you keep your hand caringly open and allow it to remain there, it will always be there. However, if you attempt to close your fingers round it and try to posses it, it will spill through the first cracks it finds.

This is the greatest mistake that people do when they meet love...they try to posses it, they demand, they expect... and just like the water spilling out of your hand, love will retrieve from you .

For love is meant to be free, you cannot change its nature. If there are people you love, allow them to be free beings.

# Give and don't expect.
# Advise, but don't order.
# Ask, but never demand.

It might sound simple, but it is a lesson that may take a lifetime to truly practice.It is the secret to true love. To truly practice it, you must sincerely feel no expectations from those who you love, and yet an unconditional caring."

Passing thought... Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take; but by the moments that take our breath away.....

Life is beautiful!!! Live it!!!

"I Will Remember that person Not As The One Who Broke My Heart, But As the One Who Taught Me How To Live With A Broken Heart and how to love!!!!!"

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Life's Little Instruction Book

Have a firm handshake.

Look people in the eye.

Sing in the shower.

Own a great stereo system.

If in a fight, hit first and hit hard.

Keep secrets.

Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen every day.

Always accept an outstretched hand.

Be brave. Even if you're not, pretend to be. No one can tell the
difference.

Avoid sarcastic remarks.

Choose your life's mate carefully. From this one decision will come
90per
cent of all your happiness or misery.

Make it a habit to do nice things for people who will never find out.

Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all that they have.

When playing games with children, let them win.

Give people a second chance, but not a third.

Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.

Loosen up. Relax. Except for rare life-and-death matters, nothing is as
important as it first seems.

Don't allow the phone to interrupt important moments. It's there for
your
convenience, not the caller's.

Be a good loser. Be a good winner.

Think twice before burdening a friend with a secret.

When someone hugs you, let them be the first to let go.

Keep it simple. Be modest. A lot was accomplished before you were born.

Beware of the person who has nothing to lose.

Don't burn bridges. You'll be surprised how many times you have to
cross
the same river.

Live your life so that your epitaph could read, No Regrets.

Be bold and courageous, when you look back on life,
you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the one's you did.

Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.

Remember no one makes it alone. Have a grateful heart and be quick to
acknowledge those who helped you.

Take charge of your attitude. Don't let someone else choose it for you.

Visit friends and relatives when they are in hospital; you need only
stay a
few minutes.

Begin each day with some of your favorite music.

Once in a while, take the scenic route.

Send a lot of Valentine cards. Sign them, 'Someone who thinks you're
terrific.'

Answer the phone with enthusiasm and energy in your voice.

Keep a note pad and pencil on your bed-side table. Million-dollar ideas
sometimes strike at 3 a.m.

Show respect for everyone who works for a living, regardless of how
trivial
their job.

Send your loved ones flowers. Think of a reason later.

Make someone's day by paying the toll for the person in the car behind
you.

Become someone's hero.

Count your blessings.

Compliment the meal when you're a guest in someone's home.

Wave at the children on a school bus.

Remember that 80 per cent of the success in any job is based on our
ability
to deal with people.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Good news?

Situation: I am wearing a new dress. Apparently the dress looks good (or errr I look good? ;) )

Context: Quite some people have dropped by my desk or spoke to me when they spotted me. Almost invariably everyone said the same thing. Herez what they said:

 

Friend: Hey new dress? Its pretty nice. Any good news. (Good news?)

Me:   In an attempt to make a rather drab day a lil interesting, I wore a new dress K

 

Their expression: Ohhh!!!!!!!

I think: Weird girl eh? ;)

 

 

Friday, July 11, 2008

Dont loose the loved ones....

The Socrates Triple Filter Test

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem.

One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?"

Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything, I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called

the Triple Filter Test."

Triple filter?"

That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a

moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test.

The first filter is TRUTH. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."

All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter

of GOODNESS. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?"

No, on the contrary..."

So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain it's true. You

may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left: the filter of USEFULNESS. Is what you want to

tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"

No, not really."

Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to

me at all?"

Use this triple filter test each time you hear loose talk about any of your near and dear ones