Summer night's sail

Summer night's sail. The stars shimmer in symphony with the howling wind. The old man rows the boat as he watches his grandson stare at the night sky in wonder. The boy raises his arm and wades the fishing pole across the sky, trying to catch a star. No luck!
...the disappointment in his eyes quickly changes to delight. The old man smiles as the little one turns to the stars in the lake.

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Inspirational Tidbits - 1

When life throws a challenge at you, what do you do? 

One fine morning, you wake up to a whole load of work staring at you in the face. You know that things are only going to get worse if no action is taken. But you cannot get yourself to work. You are afraid..afraid of not being able to do it. You get all worried. You feel hopeless and frustrated! You do nothing about it, sit and worry the whole day. Where does it leave you? It saps all your energy to the extent that you lose all your motivation and interest. You feel less confident and depressed. 

Instead, choose to stare back at the problem in hand. Plan how to go about it. Having a definite plan always helps. There is nothing that is impossible to achieve. There is nothing more powerful than the power of human spirit. Work, and work hard. Hard work always pays and you will be happy that you did it. 

It takes the same amount of energy to worry as it does to believe. Use your energy to believe! You will amaze yourself with what you can do! Start today.

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Happy 2013!

Another year winding down and I must say that 2012 has not been a great year for me. It went by in chaos, confusion and dealing with a lot of things together. I hope 2013 is a happier year. I hope we all get more of these 3 things. As a new year resolution, I just want to promise myself to do things that make me happy :)
I read this poem by David L. Weatherhead, sometime back on the net and absolutely loved it. I am putting it down here. May the new year bring the best for everyone. Welcome the new year with open arms, with great zeal and happiness. Let go of all the things that pull you down and just dance it away! Happy new year :)

Slow Dance

Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round?

Or listened to rain slapping the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?

Or gazed at the sun fading into the night?

You better slow down..

Don't dance so fast

Time is short

The music won't last.

Do you run through each day on the fly?

When you ask "How are you?", do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed,

With the next hundred chores running through your head?

You better slow down..

Don't dance so fast

Time is short

The music won't last.

Ever told your child, we'll do it tomorrow

And in your haste, not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch, let a friendship die,

'Cause you never had time to call and say hi?

You better slow down..

Don't dance so fast

Time is short

The music won't last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere,

You miss half the fun of getting there.

When you worry and hurry through your day,

It's like an unopened gift thrown away.

Life isn't a race, so take it slower

                   Hear the music before your song is over.                

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My Wish List

The three things I badly wish I could have are......

If I could have three things, I'd wish for the following that make life worth living. They are the best gifts anyone can have. They are-

          

Love

"The one thing we can never get enough of is love. And the one thing we never give enough is love"

-Henry Miller

Knowing you are loved is a sweet feeling. It adds smiles to your day and shine to your eyes. It adds more color to your life and more life to your years, a swing to your walk and a rhythm to your talk. It gives you the confidence to stand up for yourself. I wish that my life is filled with more such love! :)

Peace

I wish to be at peace with the people around me. The world is full of different people. It is a huge task in itself to handle all the differences. There are many more lessons to be learnt and unlearnt. May I always have the strength and sapience to deal with people. 

I wish to be at peace with myself. May I always have the courage to pursue what I love.

Happiness

Happiness follows love and peace. I wish to have my share of happiness in life and more lovely people around to share it with. I do not wish to have a lot of wealth but I wish to be content with whatever I have. I wish each day ends with a new lesson, a new experience and wonderful memories of love and laughter, to be treasured for a lifetime! :)

This post is in response to the prompt given here-  http://www.justamotheroftwo.blogspot.in/2012/12/the-secret-wishlist-wednesdays.html   by Preethi Shenoy, as part of the launch of her fourth book- 

Preethi Shenoy's writing has a warmth and simplicity to it, which I admire a lot. Here's wishing her great success with her new book :)

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A voiceless scream

                                                           Pic courtesy: Google
She sat there in the corner, her head buried between her knees. Her feet twiddled as she tried to fight back the pain. But the mental wounds hurt her far worse than the physical wounds. She sensed a constant beeping sound in her left ear. She wondered if he had hit her that hard.  She had been a victim of physical abuse, many times before, at the hands of her husband. Each time, it was the mental pain that hurt her more. She cried over her helplessness and the invading pain.Tears streamed and she threw her head back in a voiceless scream. She wondered what she had done to deserve this kind of treatment..

"Bhabhiji..Isn't that Mohan bhaiyya? Who is that woman with him?" the sabjiwala had asked her, pointing towards a faraway bench in the park where a couple sat intimately embracing each other. "No. That's not him. He's at home. You please hurry up.." she'd collected the sabjis and left from there. On the way home, she'd cried like a baby. She'd then gathered the courage to question him when he came home.. Yes, that was the crime she'd committed! She'd questioned him..

Thoughts came flooding to her mind. She'd done everything possible to build a good relationship with Mohan. She'd given up her blossoming career after marriage. She'd compromised on her dreams and on who she was, just to survive the marriage. Now, all she knew was looking after her family. Yes, that's all she knew! Many a times, she thought of walking out on her husband. She was well-educated and she could independently look after her kid and herself. But she was afraid. Afraid to face the society, afraid of the kind of questions people might ask. She felt devastated and drained. She shut her heavy eyes and tears rolled down, the salty water burning her sore cheek..

"Mamaa.." She stirred at the voice of her little one and hurriedly wiped her tears with the back of her hands. Munna tugged at her saree, "Mama.. You please don't cry. I am not going to eat any of them" he squeaked softly. She did not understand. He slowly unfisted his hands to reveal white peppermint balls. "Suri and I found a 2 Rs coin on the street and we bought peppermints with all the money. I know it's bad to eat so many chocolates. I won't do it again. I'm going to throw them right away Ma, look!" he stared at the chocolates for a long time before throwing them away. She marveled at the innocence of the little one. She gathered him up in a hug, still crying. She knew the kind of effect the incidents at home had on the tender mind. She was putting her little baby's well-being at stake, by being a coward.

She felt a strange sense of determination emerging in her. She thought she should not let people's opinions determine her self-worth. She was not ready to let the emotional burden, of being answerable to the society, ruin the happiness of the innocent heart she held in her arms. She promised herself that she would protect him!
"We'll be fine, baby" she whispered to him as they set on the journey towards a better life.


"There are millions of women in our country who are well educated and hold good jobs. Once they are married, they have one problem or the other and they suffer throughout their lives. If providing education is empowerment, then why are so many women still crying? If economic independence is real independence then why are they still suffering?
    As a teacher, I feel that apart from academics, it is very important to teach students basic code of life. Education means more than scoring good marks in exams or receiving certificates. Life is an exam where the syllabus is unknown and question papers are not set. Nor are there model answers. There are various types of questions that can come from any direction, but one shouldn't run away. Education and financial independence are tools that can help us face difficulties, but confidence must be developed throughout life."
-Dr. Sudha Murthy in 'Wise and Otherwise'

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Life, or something like it..

It was around 2 o' clock in the afternoon. This summer has been very hot! I was walking to the bus stop, sweating under the scorching sun, when I saw this old lady(very old.. aged above 80, I guess) walking ahead of me. She had two handbags by her side and wore a thick pair of spectacles. Her back was hunched, her gait, slow. I felt pity for her..thought she may be returning to her home. I walked past her but kept looking back to see if she was alright.. She was too old and weak to walk in that burning sun. I noticed that she was begging for alms. She did not look poor, maybe she had lost her way, maybe she needed some help.. I walked back to her.

"What happened Ajji?" I asked. "Nothing ma.. I've grown old, you see.." she replied. I gave her some money.. I couldn't think of anything else to do and walked to the bus stop. She continued begging. It was not obvious that she was begging, unless one observed carefully. She did not go to anyone. She just held her hand out and walked slowly. She reached the bus stop too and  found a lady she knew, almost as aged as she was and started a conversation with her. Ajji, her friend and I got into the same bus. She sat in a seat next to me and opposite to her was her friend. The lady sitting next to the friend enquired about Ajji.. "Does she work as a maid too?"(I learnt from their conversation that both the old ladies seated opposite to me did domestic work for their living). "You think she can do household work? Poor lady, she does bhikshaandehi(begging for alms)" she replied. Ajji who heard this, said, "Don't go by the good saree I am wearing. I beg for alms and somehow I'm managing to pull through my last few days."

When I got down from the bus, I asked Ajji's friend as to why Ajji had to beg. "Doesn't she have any kids to look after her?". She replied, "Ayyo, she has a daughter ma. But she beats her up for money. Everyday Ajji comes at around 6 o' clock in the morning and starts begging. At the end of the day, they beat her up and snatch all the money from her. Now, look at me only. I too have kids, but I do domestic work for a living. All aged people face the same ordeal." My eyes welled up. I gave her some money too. But I wish I could do more than just giving them money, talking to them or blogging about it.

"Cross the road carefully" she called from behind me as I walked away..

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Attitude difference

I was traveling in a BMTC bus one morning when this happened. I was engrossed in a song I was listening to when I heard loud voices in the bus. I turned around to see that the conductor was shouting at a lady as she was not ready to buy a ticket. She was in her late 30's maybe and looked capable enough to buy a ticket for herself. "I had the money in my hand..it has fallen off somewhere. I don't have the money to buy a ticket" she explained. "Why don't you fall off too. Why do you come here everyday and give me a headache" the conductor snapped.  When she did not oblige to buy a ticket, the conductor started pulling the basket that she was holding, to get her out of the bus.  I felt really bad for the lady and thought I will pay for her ticket but the conductor explained that it's a daily story. The lady gets into the bus everyday but doesn't buy a ticket. When he asks her to buy a ticket she starts swearing him. I saw that it was true. She swore the conductor with all the bad words until the conductor got fed up and thrust a ticket into her hand without taking money.

A discussion on this started in the bus and in no time everybody joined in. "You should buy a ticket while you are travelling in a bus" , "The bus is not your dad's property. It belongs to the government"," What will the God you fear think of this. Will he forgive you..!" all kinds of remarks poured in from different ends. The lady looked towards the window and did not seem to care for anything that people said. Just when I thought it was all over, a quarrel picked up between the lady and two other girls who were sitting opposite to me. I did not understand how and why the argument started and what they were saying to each other as they were talking in a language that I don't understand. It got so heated up that one of the girls got up and barged in to hit the lady. The war of words went on and as if to give a dramatic effect the lady started singing some devotional song saying God will always be with her.. "Yea right..!!" I thought.. fight, swear, do all the wrong things and then expect one song to cover it all up!

While all this was going on, the bus halted at a terminal and an old woman struggled to climb the steps to get into the bus. Another aged lady who was seated inside the bus slowly got up from her seat and extended her hand to support her. I was moved. I saw two completely contrasting pictures here-
an attitude of action and an attitude of over-reaction!

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