Every problem has a solution and it is for you to find it..

Don't be afraid to be good..

Smile

Did you smile  today ?
Did you fill your surroundings with warmth?
Did you brighten up someone's  day ?
Did you make a genuine  human  connection ?
Did you  smile  today ? 

I like people
Who are innocent . .
& capable . .
Who have ideals..
& are willing  to fight odds
For the causes
They consider worthy..

SUCCESS

Everyone defines success in their  own way..
For me success  means :
making positive difference  to someone's life..
inspiring someone..

To look good, it is not necessary to look young..

If you are not afraid of failure
and you don't care where the credit goes,
You can achieve a lot..

What excites me...

To find hope in hopelessness..

The belief that something can be done even in a seemingly impossible situation...

The possibility of making some positive difference in a given situation...

Pl find time to....

Pl find time to...

Listen to your thoughts

Feel your emotions

And be alive to life...

Is it possible. ..

Is it possible
not to be corrupt
& not complain
About other's corruption
& not take advantage
Of the corrupt system. ..

Not to be a source
Of conflict
& try to be
A peacemaker
For conflicting parties around...

Not to get angry
& respond to someone else's anger
Calmly..

Not to look for
A role model
But be a role model
For the self and others...

My Will

Sometime back I wrote my will. I thought I will share it with my friends..

When I die

Nothing will I leave behind

Except perhaps

A few fond memories in some hearts

And a few drops of tears in some eyes...

Reunion

The silver jublee reunion turned out to be much more than what I expected. It provided an opportunity to peep into the past with the present intact. It was as if we were transported into our past by 25 years by a time machine.

The visit to college was very nostalgic. I had tears in my eyes when Nikita Jhajheria madam welcomed us by offering that beautiful red shawl. Once again I had tears when Prof Raysinghani was singing while we all clapped like school children..

It was very nice meeting the classmates some of whom have changed beyond recognition.. Seeing them doing well in life and with happy families was very reassuring. .

Quarter of a century has gone by since we left college.  A lot has happened since then in each one's life. But one could connect instantly with those whom one remembered.

I will cherish these memories for a long time. I whole heartedly thank the organisers of the two get togethers that I attended. In fact I wonder why they took so much of trouble! !

Those 2+2 days whatever we did was royal.. The Chomu palace, hotel Mariot, City Palace, Sisodia Gardens ... It was as if we became royals from commoners for those days..

Hope to meet all of you once again soon..

There is an urge 

To rise above myself..

To overcome pettiness...

To expand beyond 

the confines of my body

And feel the cosmos

within me...

To look at things

from a broader perspective 

and not get hassled by 

small things....

To understand 

other's feelings

and to be able to appreciate

their point of view...

To figure out

the purpose of life

and live it purposefully ....

From Nightmares to Dreams

Many of the mothers like me would have gone through this : incessant worrying about the child's future esp when the child is crossing 11th and 12th standards, popularly known as crucial years.

 Till 10th std, my son showed more interest in basketball, dogs, TV, friends, phone and such other activities than studies. The school was a necessary evil and studies were to satisfy the parents. It was very difficult to talk to him about his own life. There was no clarity as to what line of studies he was going to take up. My worries about him at times would make the sleep difficult at nights. In nutshell, I had nightmares about his future.

To his credit though, he studied very hard towards the end of 10 std and got very good marks. My friends assured me that having once got the taste of good marks, he will now be on his own and that I need not to worry unnecessarily. Meanwhile, as I got a shift from Coimbatore to Chennai , he was put in a school which was academically very challenging.  Each day in the school was a challenge. His commitment towards studies improved but that definitely was not enough.

During his 11th std, my husband developed a desire of providing him the world's best education in the college and he set his eyes on America. After initial resistance for obvious reasons,  my son and I agreed to his idea. However, once we agreed, there was no looking back!!!

The aim of going to America brought us in direct conflict with the school. There were a number of tests that were to be cleared, the extra curricular activities to be built up, social service  to be concentrated upon. To find time to do all this in addition to the school, homework and tests was really really tough.  Probably we had chosen a wrong school. It would have been very daring to change the school halfway through. We have taken many daring decisions in our life but this risk was unnecessary.

While the  decision of going to America was met with universal disapproval, the decision to take one year off was filled with uncertainties - what if he does not succeed ? Writing exams after exams was not easy at all , not only for him but for the rest of us also.  On top of that, the results of the examinations were not always very encouraging. The times were difficult at workplace also for both of us.

However, all these happenings were silently shaping my son. His good marks in 12th std boosted his confidence.  With gentle nudge from my husband,  he learnt extremely good manners which made him a very endearing boy. The hours spent in the gym did not go waste. He developed a fine muscular body.

With all this going on in the background, the boy with whom you could not talk in 10th std about what he was going to study in future grew up, started taking life seriously and started talking about doing big in life : to build India through his construction company!!!

Finally,  years of hard work paid him. Now, he has joined one of the best Engineering schools in US. While sending him away, I did not worry at all. Why should I? He seemed capable and confident of handling his life and studies well : all by himself. At last, the time has come for us to dream : of a very bright future for him. I know from the bottom of my heart that he deserves every success in his life!!!

I come from a middle class family. When I was a child, the money was in short supply in the family, a fact which we did not realize at that time. There was an intrinsic understanding between our parents and us children about our financial position. My parents always provided what we needed and we never asked what they could not afford. I suppose their love and support never let us feel the lack of money...

Keep Smiling !!!

When I got married, I could hardly speak Tamil. My mother in law knows no other language except Tamil. I was also scared to use the scant vocabulary of Tamil with her lest I use some words in some way which may be offensive. So, how did I manage ?? Simple - I simply smiled whenever I happened to look at her and she smiled back. A lot of things got conveyed this way. If ever I needed words, my sister in law (mostly) or my husband (occasionally) pitched in and translated. 

Now I am very comfortable in Tamil and me and my mother in law talk on every subject under the Sun. But through my initial experience with her, I have understood the power of smile!!!

Falling in love...

Falling in love is an oft repeated phrase in literature. However, those who have experienced love would know that one does not 'fall in love' but actually 'rises in love'. Love ennobles. .. Love makes a person a better human being...

Naming of my children

Each name has a history or at least a story. I want to tell here how both my children were named.

My first born is son. Me and my husband decided to name him after a great Indian king. We short listed few names - Ashoka, Kanishka, Vikramaditya, Harshavardhan, Rajendra ( of Chola dynasty ) and Rajaraja ( also a chola king). Kanishka was straightaway rejected as there was an ill fated aircraft by this name which crashed killing all passengers on board. Asoka and  Rajendra have become so common that they no longer remind of the original kings. Rajaraja did not sound very impressive. So, we were left with two choices both equally appealing as far as virtuosity of the kings go. What tilted the scales in favour of Harshavardhan was the literal meaning of the name - one who increases the joy and the relative ease with which the name can be pronounced. So, our son was named Harshavardhan.

Naming the daughter was pretty simple. Before marriage itself, my husband told me, " if and when we have a daughter, she shall be named Rajeshwari (after his sister)". So when after much wishing and prayers, our daughter was born, she was promptly named Rajeshwari amidst mild protests from my sister in law.

Walking to fitness!!!

These days, lot of people talk about staying fit. I also seem to belong to that crowd. But wait, I was not like this always. Long years ago,  I used to be a very studious, bespectacled person ( I still wear spectacles !). Then one day, unexpectedly,  I joined IPS. Things have never been the same after that!!

Needless to say, there was an overdose of outdoor activities during training. I was surprised to find that I could do all the activities quite well. I, who never ran even 100 mts, was now running 8 kms ( though with some effort and few pauses). Infact,  running was the only activity  I found difficult- several others such as horse riding, route marching,  trekking, rock climbing and last but not the least , shooting- I enjoyed and did quite well! 

Well, the training got over but the desire to stay fit continued. First I tried my luck with running as my husband is an avid runner. Since it never was my forte, I soon gave up and settled down to simple walking. I am sticking to it ever since. Not a day passes without me going for a walk. To say that my day is organized around my walking will not be an exaggeration. 

These days, out of laziness, I have been walking in the evenings. There was a time nearly 10 years ago, when I and my husband used to be at Chennai Marina beach by 530 am - I for my 5 km walk and he for his jog. Walking on the beach early morning was a lovely experience. Many a times, I felt that I owned that beautiful beach.

However,  with the birth of my daughter, I provided myself with good excuses for not getting up early in the morning and tried various other schedules. While posted in Coimbatore, I loved walking on the race course, sometimes in the morning but mostly in the evening.  Coming back to Chennai, I started going to a nearby park as the traffic near the beach road increased intolerably.

I feel compelled to go out for walk in the evenings.  It connects me with my surroundings and nature.. I find the walk relaxing and invigorating at the same time. The regular rhythm of walking soothes the mind and stimulates thought process. Solutions emerge automatically of pressing problems. Thoughts get sorted out in a way. I also make use of the time to talk to my family members and friends. Walking has become a kind of passion, so much so that if I am not able to walk for more than a day, I  feel I would go crazy...

From my experience, I can say that all it requires to stay fit is a pair of walking shoes and some road to hit. We can walk to fitness and get the thoughts organized - for free !!!

There is certain charm about...

There is certain charm about...

Standing on your own feet
Even if the platform you could reach
Is of lesser height...

Facing difficulties with dignity, and
Not minding loss/harrassment for a cause...

Living a frugal life...

Loving someone wholeheartedly
And not trying to possess him...

Putting your best into the work
And not bothering about recognition...

Living life fully, and
Quitting quietly
When the call comes...