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!!!