~ Prayer for a new beginning ~

New years come and new years go,

Pieces of time all in a row.

As we live our life,

Each second and minute,

We know we’re privileged to be in it...

At the beginning of this year,

Here's wishing you~

Love, peace and joy,

Faith over fear,

Strength in times of trouble,

A hand to hold when lonely,

A warm hug when the soul feels cold,

A smile for every tear...

Here's wishing you wisdom and learning,

Tolerance and understanding,

Days filled with colours of a rainbow

And moments filled with small joys of life...

Wishing all my blogger friends a wonderful new year,

filled with moments of togetherness with the loved ones...

HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR

Here's wishing that this year sees us becoming a better person

and this world a more better place to live in.

"Risk toh Spiderman ko bhi lena padta hai...

......... main toh phir bhi Salesman hoon” (Even Spiderman has to take risk, I am just a Salesman)..!!

Thats a line from the movie "Rocket Singh, salesman of the year", which I just saw ~ A simple but engaging and thoughtprovoking movie....

"Rocket Singh, salesman of the year" ~ The story of a fresh from the college graduate (Harpreet Singh) who joins the demanding, corrupt and target-to-be-achieved-at-any-cost world of sales. He's not able to mould himself into the corrupt ways of work. Hence, inspite of being talented, he's labelled a failure, a zero by his bosses and colleagues. He is insulted by his colleagues and made fun of. They keep shooting paper rockets at him to humiliate him. The story goes on to show how he fights the odds, makes his team and they go on to make their own new company, which shakes the empire of the company where he was working and was written off. He names his new company as "Rocket Sales Corporation" and becomes the biggest-hard-to-beat competitor of his older company.

The story was simple ~ the victory of good over bad, like they show in every movie. There was nothing out of the world in it. The location and picturization of the movie was also very down to earth. But the movie touched me. There was something in the way the movie, story and the whole concept was made, which was very basic and very close to the real world. I loved the character of Harpreet Singh, who is not shown as a superhero in the movie, but is shown as a common man who is full of heart and character. His never-say-die spirit, simplicity and honesty was appealing. But the story is not just about him. It has a universal appreal. Through his story, the concepts and ways of business these days have been explored. The movie showed that how a business can stand and also run on the wheels of hardwork, honesty, service and committment. That to earn money, it is not necessary to be shrewd, cunning or to decieve people. "Business is not about money, its about people." ~ is the ideology that Harpreet Singh believes in. And with this ideology he goes on to earn a lot of money, reputation and a huge clientele. I think its very true. The values of honesty, generosity and honour of word that make up the strength of a character have been rightfully glorified in the movie.

And Ranbir Kapoor looks very cute in the role of a sardar ~ very smooth and natural. And not to forget the colourful 'pagdhis' (turbans) that he adorns. They make his look simply amazing!

The movie rocked for me...did it for you..?

My chilli plant is flourishing...

.......and I'm loving it !

It had started off with this ~

To this ~

Then this ~

And finally, this ! ~

Oh, the pleasure of having witnessed and played a role in the wonderful phenomenon of how nature creates bounty..! A few miunte seeds getting transformed into a plant which produces chillies more than the need of our whole family... and the joy of using fresh-from-the garden chillies for meals...! It is something..!

If interested, let me know, I can parcel you some fresh from my garden..! :)

The Rising...

Rising from within is a voice,
A sermon, a call,
To the winds of the storm
Of the raging seas...
"Come to me oh gigantic waves,
Rise and engulf me in your doom.
Crush me and break me
To pieces infinite,
And then ~
From each fragment,
Let loose a melody,
Of a lonesome shepherd's flute,
Resonating in the meadows and reaching the skies.
Let those notes then
Merge with your vigour
And my shattered elements,
And let the world see~
Rising out of the havoc,
A form ~
Of the spirit of the fire
And rhythm of the soul,
Defying your might,
And rising to the unfathomed skies..."

He LIVED...

......till the day he died.

This is an ode to the man whom I used to call my dadaji (grandpa).

A month back he left us forever. He was 87, but had the spirit of a young man till the very end. He lived a full life and died a peaceful death.

Here are a few glimpses from his life and his last days with us...

His daily pooja...no matter what he would never break his routine of his daily prayer...

In the last days he had become physically very weak...so could not go out for strolls in the evening...so rather than doing nothing about it, he found a way out ~ he would sit in the parking area of the building every evening. Sitting there, he would chat with the people of the society he knew, reflect, have some fresh air and then come back as it would begin to get dark. Every evening as I would return from work, he would be sitting there, and wave at me. Now, as I return from work, I know that he would never be there with his smile and his wave.

A whole life lived, things collected and cherished...

But when it is time to go, you leave behind everything as your memory for your loved ones...

His whole world was in his cupboard...everthing from a safety pin to medicines to clothes to calender...everything that he would need in his daily life was there, neatly arranged in his cupboard.

Dadaji, the emptiness created by your absence will never be filled... But you will keep on living in our hearts always...

Let the light fill up our lives

~ DIWALI ~

The festival of lights...

May it bring everlasting moments of ~

Happiness and Peace,


Love and Togetherness,

For you and your family.

May there be peace and light inside and outside..

Wishing you all a "Shubh Deepawali"

I bond with the moon...

The moon is peeping through my window flooding the dark corners of my room and my heart. Its feels enchanting...especially today, as it holds a special significant, today being the 'Karva Chauth' night ~ the festival which celebrates the love and sacrifice of the relationship of a husband and wife. 'Karva' means clay pot and 'chauth' means fourth night after the full moon. The wife fasts the whole day without food or water for the long life of her husband. She breaks her fast only after moonrise. At moonrise she sees the moon through a sieve and then sees her husband's face through the same sieve, and only then does she take her first water sip of the day. The couple then lovingly eat food together.

The whole feel of the festival is fascinating and very romantic...loving someone so much that you sacrifice food and even water for a whole day to celebrate the love, togetherness and devotion to each other. And as the day enters into night, the couple waits together for the moon to rise and shower its moonlight on them for the bonding of the two souls...

Looking at the 'chauth' moon peeping in my room, I think of all this and imagine the happiness it must have spread tonight by peeping into hundreds of windows and balconeys where couples must be waiting patiently in love and togetherness for it to engulf them in its silver beams...

While I sit alone in my room, particularly aware of my loneliness, I wonder why is the moon peeping at my window tonight, when all there is in here is me, with no story of how I fasted the whole day and no face to see through the sieve and wishing that I had that special someone to get engulfed in this moonlight with. I keep looking at the beautiful moon and suddenly as if to answer my question, the moon shines just a little brighter, as if to say ~ "So what if there is no one? I am there in the sky, always with you...you just have to look". I smile back and engulf myself in that heavenly glow of the silver beams ~ and to celebrate the beauty, love and all that this day signifies, I bond with the moon.