All the World's a Stage

Very true. And we are mere actors performing to the tunes of the surroundings around us. One moment we exhibit charm, excitement, joy and the next moment melancholy surounds us.

The play changes as we change. Each day is a different story and our performances change regularly. As the earth shifts from one season to another, we shift from one mask to the other, each fitting us perfectly as the other. Masks of attachment, anger, appreciation, pleasure, hatred...We wear different attitudes, emotions, and feelings depending on the scenario we are in. There are no trials, no rehearsals. The journey is constant.

Our performances are lauded, our performances are criticized- all by fellow actors yearning to reach the epitome of success (being defined as the performance that brings maximum satisfaction).

None knows how long the journey continues for actors are replaced by others, fresh to the arena but perform with expertise.

All the World's a Stage...

A Contrast

I was waiting for the lift and as it arrived, I stepped into it. I found a foreigner in. As we proceeded to the ground floor he greeted me and asked me how my week-end was. He supossedly had spent it listening to classical rock, did a bit of driving, had a tough time finding parking space at Brigade Road and on the whole thoroughly enjoyed the week-end. And all this talking happened between the 4th floor and the ground floor. Made me wonder as to how easy it is to communicate with strangers. All it takes is just a warm smile and a 'hello'. It makes the beginning of a Monday morning good with pleasant things happening.

25 minutes later, I was waiting for auto. An auto stopped and onto it boarded a lady of who appeared to be in her early twenties. The autowalla agreed to take me also as we had to proceed in the same direction. I thought of initiating a conversation and proceeded to ask her where she was geting off, where I was getting off. And then it stopped. My attempts did'nt materialise.
She just bade agoodbye as she got off.

Made me wonder why we become stiff in front of strangers!

The Oasis

There is a beautiful lake beside my work place. It is serene, invites birds, fish. You can find ducks paddling in water. In the midst of so much concrete,with tall buildings mushrroming everywhere on the lane, vehicles zooming up and down, this lake appears to be literally like an oasis, ripples forming concentric circles, the breeze gently quenching its thirst on its way. And from my window, it is always a refreshing sight.
It's a pity that people hardly take time to notice this beauty on their hurried sprint either to work or on their way back home.
It's beautiful to take a stroll on the sidewalk adjacent to the lake, forgetting the mundane life, watching the water forming patterns and inhaling the beauty of the stillness surrounding the lake.

Children's Day- In touch with the child within

Nov 14- Every year used to be holiday. It used to be the day to look forward to after Diwali holidays. We were pampered with chocolates, games. As years passed, we slowly forgot the day as it no longer meant a holiday. And slowly we got used to the regular mundane that we seldom reconnected ourselves with the child we were.

Even today, very often, we feel like dancing to a tune that used to energise us in our good old days but we immediately get conscious of what people around would think. How many times have we felt like running down a slope, jumping in puddles, build sand castles but restrain ourselves bcause we think we have 'grown up'! And what do we gain?

To rephrase what learned people say, we allow these inhibitions to rule our life. Freedom, hence lies actually in each of us- freedon to sing when happy, freedom to dance when joy seeps in, freedom to eat chocolates, freedom to eat cream biscuits by sepearting both the layers of biscuits and licking the cream within...

It lies in each one of us to nurture the child within, let loose inhibitions and enjoy life as it is meant to be...

A touch of philosophy

"Pootukal potaalum veetukkul nirkadhu katru" - the melliflous voice of S. Janaki fills through my headphones.
This line translated to English conveys the meaning that 'even if you put a lock, the air would not stay within the house'.
This line knocked my philosophical bent of mind and made me realise the hidden meaning - an important ingredient of life- determination of the mind.
What the mind can believe and conceive, it tends to achieve it. It is the power of detrmination that sets one on focus onto something and concentrate and divert all efforts towards achieving one's vision. Thereby, the mind does not see obstacles but opportunities to achieve the goal.

Philosophy at 14 minutes past 7 p.m.

Jammed!

8:00 a.m...stuck up on Hosur Road.
10:30 a.m...jam on Inner Ring Road
6:00 p.m ...traffic pile up on Airport Road
8:30 p.m..traffic congestion at Majestic

What is the world coming to? Gone are the days when we used to find vehicles moving freely on roads, driving being a pleasure. We are in an era where we need to go to work early just to avoid being stuck up in the traffic? Is this called enhancement of quality of life?
And how are these jams created? Why don't vehicles follow traffic discipline and move in lanes and make it convenient for everyone else to drive?

A friend of mine made a very interesting statement, the statement being "driving is team work. If everyone, co-operates, everyone wins". Impressive and very true? Why do we fail to understand this?

The solution is simple. Instaed of cursing the country and the narrow roads, would'nt it be simple to follow what we had learnt? "Stop when the signal turns red. Move when the signal turns green. Do not overtake from the left. "
In pursuit for a higher quality of life, we are actually demeaning it...consciously yet unconsciously.

Imagine a city where vehicles stick to lanes, respect oncoming traffic, do not block 'U' turns.

Seems like Utopia.

Nature-Thy name reflect beauty-5

It was a warm Saturday morning. The sun seemed to be very enthusiastic and shone brightly. Being a week-end, the roads were relatively silent, with sprinkles of people here and there. We, a group of eight took to the roads to reach Anthergange near Kolar. The agenda of the day was cave exploration. We started off with rock climbing. Huge boulders lay around as we trekked up, puffing and panting and at the same time enjoying the journey upwards. The sky seemed so near the peak as we climbed through bushes, stones, rocks and stairs. As we continued to ascend, the sun’s enthusiasm seemed to turn to fury thinking that we were conquering his territory. And as we stopped, fresh breeze rubbed across our cheeks, happy at the prospect that we were no longer intruding into nature’s arena.
As we trudged along hoping to reach the cave we were supposed to explore, we came across beautiful view points from where we could see the city below. Yes, we were on top of the world, joy seeping through us as we spotted pockets of water, greenery, roads at a distance.
It was almost around noon time when we were announced that we had reached the cave.
As we peered into the hollow, we saw what looked like a steep entrance to the cave where we had to literally slide sideways to get into it. This was just the beginning of a series of adventures that we undertook into the cave.
The darkness seemed soothing to the eye after the stark contrast of the brightness outside. The stones reverberated with chillness that seemed breathtakingly refreshing. As we slowly felt our way through, we reached another hollow where we had to jump from one rock to another skillfully to avoid the gaping crater-like pit that seemed to beckon from below.
We climbed, held onto boulders for support; our legs hanging in the air, desperate to win over the gravitational force, exerting to climb onto the next rock that seemed far away from a hand’s reach.
At one point in time, during our course of exploration, we came across two rocks, gazing each other, one horizontal and one vertical with little space that would allow just a weasel to squeeze through. And we were told to slide through that gap!!
You can see the picture here.
It was a heart pounding experience, thrill seeping through the spine, beads of sweat rolling down in anticipation and yet excitement screaming aloud.
Have explored for over an hour, we were hungry for good food. It was a delight to see good food waiting for us.
Post lunch it was rapelling time. We again climbed on huge rocks to reach the top in order to perform this sport. It was fun, scary at the same time while standing at the edge of the rock that seemed like a cliff, and realize that one had to slide down through a rope. On the whole, it was a wonderful experience, embodied with lots of varied emotions, layered with tonnes of excitement.

Nature- Thy name reflects beauty-4

Continuing with my series of adventures with Nature, this time I went home and we decided to drive down to Kerala. It was around 2:30 in the afternoon when we set out to venture into God's Own Country. The weather was perfect for a long drive. The sun began to hide behind the clouds. As we entered the territory of Kerala, we were welcomed by showers of rain. Both the sides of the road were blanketed with greens, fresh with rain drops still lingering on them, nourished with health. It was a beautiful sight to fresh water lakes filled with ripples of concentric circles, the wind blowing gently above them, coconut trees standing with pride at a distance, houses covered with ivys and compund walls covered with moss, the road clean as concrete appeard clean, birds flying around enjoying the evening breeze. I inhaled the fresh air and filled my lungs with them. For a moment, I was tempted to perform Pranayama right there.
As the car rolled by, wipers lashing on the windscreen wiping the droplets of water, we came across fields brimming with prosperity. Advertisement boards hovered above them.
We drove down to Vadakkandhara Kaavu (a temple of Goddess Amman) and sought her blessings. Fresh water lay in puddles as we walked around the temple. A well appeared as we entered the sannithi of Lord Guruvayoorappan. I peered in and was astonished to see it almost full, I remembered having seen another well so full long time back at Palghat. Water plants grew around the rim of it. As we walked back, the clods opened up again and blessed us with showers antoher time.
The journey back was as beautiful as the onward journey as we halted beside a green filed and savoured hot rava kicchadi, sambar and filter coffee.
Truly, it was a week-end well spent in sync with nature.

Nature-Thy name reflects beauty-3

It was 4:00 am on Saturday. The outside was dark resonating with silence. I got ready for another trip to be in sync with nature. And this time, it was to Bandipur and Mudhumalai. The journey started with enthusiasm and cheer reverberating all around the car. We drove down through Mysore Road, had breakfast at Cafe Coffee Day located at a beautiful spot, overlooking the main road yet cozily resting in a corner surrounded by greens. We were right on time as we embarked on our journey after food. As we drove along, we spotted sunflowers smiling at us, blooming brightly towards the sun, waving alongside with the breeze speeding by. They continued for a long stretch that painted the entire left side with yellow. All of a sudden, our eyes caught a splash of orange on the right side from marigolds that sprung beautifying the concrete roadside.
The weather was just perfect with droplets of drizzle occasionally. The landscape slowly started changing from yellow to orange and to water. Tall trees slowly emerged at the horizon. There appeared lakes full with fresh water till the brim.
We started climbing the hills of Gopal Bhetta where we were literally tearing through the clouds. The moist in them stuck to our face as we inhaled the fresh air that seemed to carry with it the aroma of herbs. The steep continued for sometime as we slowly trudged along. We got out of the car, kicked a football that we carried along as we climbed and reached a Temple. Behind the temple, land continued to slide down towards a valley (which I presume must be the Bandipur forest). We waded through bushes and shrubs and trekked along to find a perfect spot to stop for lunch. Sitting on a huge rock, overlooking the forest, our legs hanging down, we relished the masala dosas and pooris we had packed en route.
We continued wading through post lunch through the mesh of shrubs and greens till we decided it was time to proceed towards Bandipur.
With anticipation and excitement, we drove through the forest area. As we proceeded from Bandipur towards Mudumalai, searching for some form of wildlife, our eyes suddenly caught a herd of deers grazing. What a beautiful sight it was!! Brown, spotted, graceful deers nibbled at grass with sharp alertness for any sound. Monkey scrambled close. What struck me was how they co-existed with harmony...made me wonder why humans could not be so.
Having relished this sight, we moved only to find a couple of elephants hidden behind an overgrown bush. We were careful not to make any noise lest we disturb them.
We reached Mudhumalai, hungry for good food. A stream gushed by, covering rocks with its frequent gushes. We took a safari ride that gave us a tour through the interiors of the forest area. It was a beautiful journey through wilderness, covering spots that were well hidden into some of the pockets of the woods. Peacoks seemed to be in absolute ease within this peaceful arena that they flew around in bliss.
It was time to take on the return journey. As we entered the car, we saw monkeys scampering around with mischief. We fed them with danish cookies and clicked snaps.
We took the same road back and stopped to take a few videos of a peacock crossing the road, elephants munching, deers proceeding back home at dusk.
You can see a couple of snaps below.

It was indeed a treat for the eyes and the soul that yearned to be back n touch with nature.

Nature-Thy name reflects beauty-2

Another drive over the week-end. It's a great feeling to wake up early on a week-end and look forward to a drive with friends. This time, we wanted to look out for fields absolutely in sync with nature and have a good lunch. It took over one and a half hours to find the exact location. The road seemed to be winding up and down into oblivion as fields stretched alongside waving to the tunes of the breeze swinging by. The sun subduedly shown, making the weather perfect for a drive. We located a beautiful spot, slightly off the road, submerged in green, beckoning us to visit. Big haystacks lay at the forefront. It was perfect for a snap:) Cows lay lazily chewing hay and relaxing in the afternoon sun. Trees loomed around providing the shade for us to sit down for lunch. As we started unwrapping the packets, two hens tip-toed and looked invitingly at the food that lay before us. It was fun to feed them, over- looking the fields that seemed to reveberate with prosperity. Post lunch, we walked to the greens, lookng the women planting the crops. We suddenly spotted a stretch of orange that presented a beautiful contrast to the green. Orange and yellow flowers grew into a beauitful bed that compelled us to propel in their direction. We sunk into the sheer beauty of nature with absolutely zilch commercialization. It was a beautiful drive that reinforced the fact that one always feels at home with Mother Nature.

The Zing...

I miss inter-collegiates. The buzz, excitement, thrill and energy generated was something that made me look forward to going to these fests. Three years of college life were largely spent in going to various competitions, competitng, winning, making new friends, learning, encouraging...I made some of my good friends during these competitions.
It used to be great fun competing in a competition against the same people whom one would meet in different inter-collegiates. This was largely true for debates. We had the same set of 5-6 teams coming to various colleges. And of course, by the time, I came to the second year, I was familiar with each of their styles of debating, the way they would think.
Debating indeed gives spontaenity to thought. Given the time span of hardly two minutes to think on a topic on which one would be speaking for the next five minutes, it surely kept a person on his/her feet.
Creative writing was a contest that was conducted in a few colleges. It used to be funny to see the items displayed on which a story had to be chalked out. The items would be as varied as a mosquito mat, a blade, a cross word puzzle.
Dance used to be celebrated. Some college teams were known for their costumes. The atmosphere in the auditorium used to be filled with squeals, applause, enthusiasm as this much awaited event as well as the fashion shows used to take place.
There has hardly been an inter-collegiate that I have missed attending. Thanks to my Scooty, I used to be there right at the time of registration.
College life certainly is colourful with these fests adding a zing.

Into a Different Era...

This is what i used to do after school hours when I was a little girl.
Build castles out of mud
Ride my cycle on the colony road
Play cricket
Climb trees
Play 'Hide and Seek'
Climb sun shades, water tanks
Visit the colony park and swing and slide
Play ‘Pandi’
Play ‘Running and Catching’
Play ‘Cut the Cake’
Play ‘Kallaanga’
Play ‘ Trade’, Chess, Carom, Shuttle, Tennikoid
Play ‘Countries’
Read Phantom comics, Mandrake and Lothar
Skate on the colony road
Try to clumsily water the plants
Run barefoot across the platform and climb compound walls

What do today’s children do after school hours? I see most of them carrying loads of books, running from one tuition class to another, crib about tonnes of home work being given, mug up pages after pages for the examination and most of all, sit in front of the computer!!!!

I am glad I was born in an era when life’s pleasures were simple, where we could find joy sans technology.

In touch with the Divine...

It was a beautiful June, Saturday evening. People were out on the roads to celebrate the week-end. Vehicles soared to holiday destinations. The weather turned pleasant as though it was waiting for this week-end to arrive.
I, along with my family visited the Anjaneya temple at Peelamedu. I was going to that temple after quite a long time and this time it was after a puja that was performed at home. It was around 6:00 pm and the sky was turning orange with a tinge of pink.
Lord Anjaneya was dressed in “Raja Alangaaram’ (like a King). The green stone from his necklace stood out and indeed seemed to vibrate with radiance. He looked every bit royal but still retained that look of innocence on his face. The crowd at the temple were rejoicing the occasion and relishing the puja that was done meticulously with grace. It was indeed a pleasure to sit down with everyone and keep looking at the flowers being decorated, aarathi being shown, and mantras being chanted.
The pujari asked all of us to pray for world peace and chantings started.
Lord Rama and Goddess Seetha were offered respects and then Lord Anjaneya. It was a treat to the eyes to watch the rituals being conducted with precision and devotion.
This is indeed one of the pleasures of life – to sit in a temple, listen to bhajans, the aroma of vibhuthi and tulsi lingering in the air, prasadam being distributed, the mind at ease with no qualms and worries.
The most beautiful sight was when the pujari started throwing flowers in the air that presented all of us with a sight of flowers raining on the Lord.

It was bliss!

Dancing My Way...

I was reading my friend's blog yesterday wherein she had mentioned that writers are able to look at various perspectives of life. I agree with her and would like to state the same about dance. Here, I talk about classical dance. Dance gives expression to life. It enables one to connect to the world around. When a dancer emotes, he/she is able to feel the emotions. It could as simple as relishing the sight of a beauitful flower. Picturise a dancer doing the same thing. You would note that dance brings out each and every aspect of this situation, there exists a range of emotions starting from looking at the flower, being astonished at its beauty and then glancing blissfully at it. In ordinary life, would we realise that we actually go through these feelings? I guess they just happen in a matter of seconds that we hardly realise this.
Dance brings discipline to life. Classical dance requires a good amount of rigour and practice to get flexible and in shape and to get the right postures. A dancer requires the right combination of these to carry off well what he/she expresses. And most of all, it brings grace. I have seen that it is easy for classical dancers to grasp other forms of dance easily. When I mention other forms here, my exposure has been limited to folk, western dance form. Probably, it is beacause of the flexibility that has been built in.
I would like to write more on this subject- something I am passionate about..probably sometime later on.

Are We Balanced?

Today is 06/06/06. Let me write something to make a mark on this day.
Ever since I started working, I have seen loads of people who sink into work that they forget what their family means to them. The number of hours they spend after work hours trying to complete more work just leads to reduction in time spent with family. Why does one work? To earn and lead a comfortable life!! With whom? With loved ones!! But what's the use of earning so much when one cannot be at home, talk about routine life, spend time with family? What is the point in slogging so hard at work when all you do the whole day is wake up, rush to work and return late in the night only to hit the bed and wake up the next morning and rush to work again?
We need to stop in our tracks and look at the world around. Let us take a look at people who need us, who are with us. Let us realize that each day brings with it, lovely moments to cherish and opportunities to grow. One must maintain a work-life balance.
I certainly do not agree when people say that one must stretch and work for longer hours during the early years of one's career in order to lead a good life later on. Who knows how long one is going to live? Rather, I believe that a lot of learning should take place during the early years to be a thorough professional later on. For this, one need not stretch at work. Passion to learn and enthusiasm to exhibit this would do. Not stretching at work does not mean shirking work. unfortunately, that's what people think!
I wish people resolve and realize that the quality of life lies in quality time spent with people whom you love, doing what you love, creating small, constructive differences rather than slogging and accumulating a huge bank balance!

Paraphernalia

It's been a while since I posted something here and let me think as to wht I should write about..
I had been to this shopping mall the other day where I saw a small jute exhibition put up. I love jute. It gives a very ethnic, classy feeling. I bought a jute handbag and a few accessories.
Jute gives a very earthy look. I strongly recommend jute with cotton wear. If you are wearing something in cream, you could try wearing a contrast jute accesory..probably jute with orange, jute with maroon. You could also match it with wooden accessories.
Teracotta is another which I like. Teracotta pieces look very good in gardens, in the verandah, balconies... I love these pots that are exclusively teracotta made. Again, these also give a very traditional look. I tried hand painting a small pot and made a few flowers with 'M- Seal' and painted them orange and pink. It does look good.
How about floral bed spreads? I love bright flowers- blue, yellow, green matched with floral curtains. They brighten the room as well as spirits.
I love interior decoration. It gives me a lot of energy and satisfaction when I spend a day cleaning, re-aligning furniture and taking out show pieces and moving them around.

After all, your home reflects what you are!!

Probably Tomorrow...

I would have loved to blog today but I am held up with something here...hope to write something tomorrow.
I wanted to write something on Carnatic music..guess will do it on a later date.

Nature-Thy name reflects beauty-1

I happened to travel to Bangalore, once through a route I had never taken before. The journey was longer than usual but I must say it was one of the most beautiful routes I had taken. I think I saw some of the most beautiful places one can ever see. It was an almost empty stretch of road with fields on either side, grass swaying to the tunes of the breeze, droplets of rain falling on the windscreen and rolling down, birds flying to their nests….it was breathtaking.
As the road ended, a mountain appeared and the journey continued on the hills. There was a small forest region through which I went. It reverberated with silence and the sound of the car seemed to echo from everywhere. Large trees loomed around and the aroma of herbs floated in the air.
It had stopped drizzling. The road was wet and clean. It curved, sloped and continued to stretch for quite sometime. The sky had gotten cleared and sunshine seemed to stream with gentle ease. As the forest region seemed to reach its border, I entered a small village. And I realized how beautiful nature could be. There were empty pieces of land with fields in between them, mountains bordering on end of the field, tree houses on top of small trees, small brooks running below the road into quite woods, people harvesting crops, tractors carrying people to the fields, goats running merrily, the atmosphere wet with moisture….I felt like settling down right there. People live in sync with nature there.
They might not know what Siebel meant; they might not know what a laptop is; they might not have plush sedans; they might not have malls or multiplexes; they might not have restaurants with valet parking; … but they had something valuable and precious- the gift to live life as it should be- entirely with Mother Nature herself and yes- on top of the world- on a hilltop.

Into the World of Books...

Imagine the smell of freshly printed sheets of a book. I love books. They are definitely a world in themselves. With the advent of retail stores like Cross Word and Landmark, a variety of choices are being presented to the readers.
I love going to Cross Word. It is a beautiful place to sink oneself in the deluge of books around.
Here are some of my favourite books.
Nothing Lasts Forever – Sidney Sheldon
Code to Zero – Ken Follett
You can Win – Shiv Khera
The Monk Who Sold his Ferrari – Robin Sharma
Sri Sri Ravishankar’s Books by the AOL Foundation
The Fitness Instinct- Peg Jordan
Marketing Management – Philip Kotler
Chicken Soup for the Soul
Sai Satcharita
Spouse- Shobhaa De
Grow Younger Live Longer- Deepak Chopra

Indeed, a gift for someone you love...

I love chocolates. Chocolate sauce, chocolate ice cream, chocolate brownie, hot chocolate, chocolate bars, chocolate coffee, chocolate cakes, chocolate burfis, chocolate powder, chocolate biscuits….And I never felt guilty gulping huge chunks of chocolate. Life is to enjoy. And chocolate was created for that purpose- to indulge, relish, sink in the feeling of ecstasy.
I have had this habit of biting into the bars of ‘Barone’ or ‘Five Star’ whenever I felt low. I do not know how I got this habit but it used to make me feel good.
I remember once when I was in my first year of college, there was this lecturer who scolded me for something on which we did not see eye to eye. I was interested in participating in competitions and won many a prize but she would not approve of me doing that. She wanted me to attend classes.
That day, she shouted at me for something similar and that was very harsh on me. I remember sitting on the stairs of my college, chewing into ‘Barone’ and promising that I would win loads of prizes and do well in studies so that exactly after one year, she would change her opinion about me. And I did it!!
I felt good biting into that bar of chocolate. It relieved me of my pent up anger and emotions. I always believed that chocolate was an anti-depressant and would help to settle the mind.
And I was surprised to see the theory in some articles I read that chocolate is indeed an anti-depressant. Wow!! Now that’s some co-incidence. While there are contradictory theories that chocolate is not an anti-depressant, I am clear. Chocolate makes me feel good.
Chocolate is for joy. Chocolate relives you of depression. Chocolate transports you to a different world of sweetness. Chocolate helps you melt in the moment.

Hail the Cacao Bean!!

War over the Benches

This morning, there was an interesting debate going on air. Radio City’s two RJs, Vasanthi and Rohit were debating as to who were more successful: front benchers or back benchers.
That was quite an innovative topic to discuss in a radio station and indeed kept me engrossed to listening to people’s views.
What have I been?
To be frank, I have been an all bencher. During school, I used to shift between the last rows and middle rows (mainly because of my height). Whenever I used to sit in the front row, I was asked by the teachers to move back.
I have had my share of fun in the back bench. Eating good food, reading a digest of Archie’s comics, writing messages to my neighbour, drawing, having my own conversations….it was a world in its own. I guess it was more of a cult to be in the back bench.
During my under-graduation, I sat in the front bench throughout. I guess that was mainly because, I was most-of the time outside college participating in inter-collegiates that when I used to attend college, my gang of friends reserved a place for me in the front bench. I never cribbed about it. In fact it was fun there too. But yes!! One had to pay attention even to the most boring of the classes.
During my post-graduation, I mostly sat in the back bench. I had my laptop too. So, it was easy to hide my face behind the screen. I remember during one of the sessions, I was busy making a presentation for the next day and did not pay attention to what my professor was talking. I spent three hours behind the laptop screen converting my summer project into slides, diagrams and giving it a shape to speak about the next day. I must say it was a productive effort that brought me laurels. Thanks to that marketing class that I never paid attention to. (Sorry, Professor AKD. You were good but somehow that was of a higher priority.)
Are front benchers entirely studious? Or to put it in a different way, do studious pupils sit in the front row?
To some extent, yes!
I used to wonder as to how some friends of mine could extend their attention span even to the most boring of the lectures without batting an eyelid. And ask doubts!!! And take down notes!!
But they were the saviours for all photocopies to be taken before an examination.
Hey! Being a back-bencher, I have paid attention to my classes too…in fact asked doubts too.
I guess people should experience these two vastly different arenas of a class-room.
One aspect has been proved throughout my academic life and these are my opinions.
Back benchers have been more out-going, participative in events in school/college and seem to have a buoyant spirit.
Front benchers have been disciplined in their academic life, serious and observant.

So what am I??

Change!

It is strange how people sometimes change- change in the way they speak, change in their attitude, change their way of life. It is experience that sculpts every individual. But what is that causes short term changes in trust? Why is it that someone who has been extremely friendly for a period of time suddenly withdraws? Why is that somebody who has been loving and showing so much of trust suddenly accuses you of being untrustworthy?
Last evening, I was reading a book that gave out the message that every day presents windows of opportunities. Isn’t it better for everyone and for the individual to utilize these opportunities to create a positive difference?
These small positive differences would enhance the quality of life, create more positive energy and happiness to everyone around.
Yes, we all know this . Despite this, many a time, we succumb to the situations and allow them to take control of us. What happens then? What happens to our rationale when we stop thinking about how to make the situation better? What happens to all the positive thinking, resolutions we have taken when a situation threatens to take control of us? It is difficult to remain calm and composed and say “I will not let this deter my spirits”. But it is not impossible.
One can restrain from throwing words that can cause indelible wounds.
Thiruvalluvar said
“Theeyinaal sutta pun ullarum aaradhe
Naavinaal sutta vadu.”

Translating into English, it means that the wounds/injury caused by burns due to fire may heal but those caused by harsh words would not.
How true!!

What is Happiness?

Last evening, as I was going back home, a thought suddenly crossed me. It has been going on in my mind for quite sometime. Why do people go about in search of happiness? Why don’t people enjoy what is available? Why do they set standards for happiness?
Many a time, happiness is of a comparative nature. People look at another person and feel that things should move on as it has moved for the other person and only then would they be happy. Why? Happiness is right there in front of each of us. Happiness is there sitting along with us waiting for us to engulf it, savour it, be with it. So what if life is not the same as that of the neighbor? So what if one’s son studies Commerce instead of Medicine like his cousin? So what if one person decides to settle in a town unlike his neighbour who is in the US? What is the basis for setting these parameters? The saying “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence” rings well in these cases.
I am a firm believer of enjoying each day of my life. I believe that everybody has the power to create happiness for himself and the people around. Happiness lies in the small things- waving at school kids in the bus, spending a day off with family, enjoying a fresh shower, sipping hot coffee, writing an article and sharing it, gifting a hand-made gift, cleaning the room and relaxing on the freshly made bed, adding colour to your work station, sending a beautiful birthday message to a friend who is least expecting it, surprising a loved one with a bouquet of flowers, teaching someone who is not literate…the list is endless.
We are full of energy to spread cheer.

I am here...

I have been intending to create my own blog for quite sometime now and I finally did it!! Congrats to me :) Random musings, refelections, opinions...well..I ought to write them all.
Let me get started today with what I wrote when I got to work. Probably that should be next blog.

Happy blogging to me:)