Fatherhood…!

No Sunday in my life till yesterday was in so pure Black and White…! Only two primary human emotions of absolute anguish and gross gratification prevailed the Sunday. Such a strange and profound mixture of emotions that sets you on a roller-coaster would either build a much strengthened persona out of your being or has all the potential to shatter you apart and feel more aloof than attached. I am counting on my endurance and hoping for the prior possibility with crossed fingers as I just hate to get abandoned by the powerful flow of negative emotions. In fact I hate the negative energy so much that I am very much positive about getting it released in the ether of outer space beyond the gravity…!

Anyway, I will just report the two incidences responsible to take me on this roller-coaster and I won’t get into detailed analysis of either as there is a serious threat of me being getting so engrossed in those overwhelming sentiments once again that I might lose the track of everything around.

The Sunday started normally with all the morning chores until I received a call from my best friend asking me to come to the hospital that I have never heard of. The urgency and shake in his voice warned me of the imminent and the detailed knowledge about his father’s situation only deepened the concern. Although I tried to reach the unfamiliar hospital with the best possible human effort, it was late and my friend has lost his father already. A chilled gust went through my spine as I headed to see his father and however deaths on the hospital bed I have seen till date; I felt like remorse this one with all the vigor for three reasons –

1. ‘Appa’ was my, probably only living and reachable Idol and I used to paint my own developed personality by borrowing shades of his well-read, all-composed and almost yogic persona.

2. I never had the real interaction at length with him that I always imagined since I first met him.

3. The falsifying concept of ‘Karma’ that doesn’t seem fair anymore with the undesirable, unexplainable and very grievous conclusion of such an intellectual noble and selfless being.

All I can do now is wish and thrive to inherit values from his disposition like serenity and pursuance.

In the White side of the Sunday afternoon, it was my daughter’s First Stage performance of her passion for now – Bharatanatyam – that she really seems to enjoy and endure. Being a kind of unorthodox middle-class father, as my wife likes to put it, I never cared about my daughter’s academic reports except for making fun of the marks, remarks, evaluations and handwriting's of the teachers authoring those, which both of us enjoy thoroughly with her furious mother overlooking. As I always preach Mark Twain’s philosophy of not allowing the schooling to interfere with learning, I can pity or have mercy at the most for the parents running around their pupils irritating them for the numbers in Report Cards. I prefer to celebrate my daughter’s otherwise achievements like her expertise with PowerPoint presentations or even FB, creativity put in preparing Greeting Cards or even any mundane school project, practicing badminton for a reverse shot, mastering riding a bicycle, having a great eye behind the camera… the list would eat-up all the space in the post.

Her recent initiative of Bharatanatyam was just a curiosity for me as I used to see her hurrying to attend that class with a fervor and enthusiasm. I never imagined that she will be performing on the stage so soon with her Tai and other dance-mates and will enthrall, awe and gratify the father in me…! It was an experience and I never felt like a typical father before and when the senses returned the pain of the morning also returned with exhilarating force as at this moment I was enlightened with the epiphany of 'fatherhood'…!

Stay tuned and maintain the B-A-L-A-N-C-E…!

First Day...!

What more can you ask for than the First Day of the New Year falling on a Sunday...! We decided to extend the Celebration fervor little longer to envelop this platinum opportunity of spending the Entire First Day of The New Year with family. Could you ask for more…? I guess not.

This time our adventurous excursion took us to Ramdara, a place about 40 KM from Pune with a serene beauty and once again my favorite deity Mahadev along with Ram, Sita, Hanuman and Dashavtar. Like Nilkantheshwar, this was also less populated relatively and has no ‘urbane’ facilities to offer either. I am keeping my fingers crossed for these places to retain their originality and serenity as long as possible.

The quacking Ducks, the Green water lake, the smell and feel in the atmosphere of cooking on ‘chool’ – a cooking arrangement made with local materials like stones and dried tree branches – add to the absolute exotic experience to the gadget-savvy urbanites. 

The best part is the very short distance of it from the concrete civilization in a sense that you can spend more time with nature than in traffic and still can reach for your usual sophisticated necessities within couple of minutes.

If you have even half a day at your disposal, don’t miss to take a right turn just after the Toll Plaza at Loni on Pune – Solapur Road and within minutes you will forget almost all the mundane worries with the absolutely tranquil welcome of Ramdara. 

Stay tuned and keep E-X-P-L-O-R-I-N-G…!

PS - For more photos click on the title.

Goodbye 2011...!?!

It is 31st Dec 2011... The last day of the YEAR 2011 and everybody is excited to bid a farewell to 2011 and Welcome the 2012, however dreadful it's been painted in rumors and movies...! Today I have to share with you a simple, small yet spirited parting message from 2011…

"PUT YOUR IDEAS INTO PRACTICE

AND THE ROAD WILL

REVEAL ITSELF TO YOU…!"

Stay tuned and R-E-S-O-L-U-T-E…!

Pilgrimage…!

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans… John Lennon said once. It is not that I have realized this for the first and not even the last time, I believe, but the most recent if I can say so. I had, why, still have, other plans for the Xmas vacations, but I didn’t see this exciting, enchanting and somewhat exhausting weekend getaway coming at all. This must be what they refer to as joy of small things…!

 

The idea germinated on Saturday night around 10:30 PM and within 12 HRS, we were on our excursion to this little known and rarely visited place called 'Nilkantheshwar' in the midst of Panshet and Varasgaon dams. The reason for it being little crowded and therefore more clean and unsoiled than other Pilgrimage places, is not only the altitude (900’ from sea level, almost 90 storeys building without a lift or even stairs but a steep earthen ramp if you can call it, for your kind information urbanites) but absence of any charismatic stories and Chamtkars related to it.

No doubt you have to take frequent stops to catch the breath but once you have made justice to your passion and spirit of exploration, the spot where you reach is just short of Kailas with Lord Shiva himself greeting you accompanied by hundreds of Deities and Saints, including a Sleeping Hanuman, an extremely rare site.

The moment you glance at the place you have reached, you forget the cramps and strains in the legs and also in stomach for some…! The view from the tableland at top is astonishing as one can see backwaters of Panshet, Varasgaon and Khadakvasla dam with a backdrop of Sinhgad from here.

The hundreds of sculptures associated with Hindu mythology and made of cement by Sarjemama, a forest ranger who found the Shiva Linga on this hill and built the temple around it. The newspaper cuttings in the temples say that Sarjemama is also associated with 'Vyasan Mukti Abhiyaan' and he has successfully rehabilitated 4 to 5 lacs of alcoholic people.

Now this is social work, I salute. The no. of sculptures and the span of their subjects from Dashavtar to Shivaji Maharaj are mind-blowing and all you can do is bow before the creativity and zeal of this personality.

There is no sophisticated or star facility around to eat-drink-and-merry and that is one of the best features contributing to forestalling of fashionable tourists and hypocrite pilgrims from invading this spot and making a commercial tourist center out of it. The villagers also seem determined to practice what the place preaches, being content and detachment from material prosperity.

In general I fancy all the places of Shiva for some unknown or unexplainable inner connect I feel with this Destroyer GOD, owing to, may be, my obsession for transformation. Or, as the name ‘Nilkantheshwar’ suggests, I would prefer to drink all the poison to make the surroundings an unadulterated and better place…! Only HE knows better…!

All in all, it was a great and insightful expedition and a place one must visit to discover that divine connect…!

Stay tuned and D-E-V-O-U-T…!

PS - For more pictures click on the title 'Pilgrimage'

Eight Lies…!?!

The Christmas and New Year time is just round the corner and the fervor of festive season can be sensed in the air all around. For various personal, professional or pragmatic reasons, few of us are not fortunate enough to be with their family, especially Mother, this season. Here is a story for all of us to remember, respect and love Mother for now and forever…!

This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we hadn't enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, Mother often gave me her portion of rice. While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say "Eat this rice, son! I'm not hungry."

This was Mother's First Lie...

As I grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house; she hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me a little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make fish soup. While I was eating the soup, mother would sit beside me and eat what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten; my heart was touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopstick but she immediately refused it and said, "Eat this fish, son! I don't really like fish."

This was Mother's Second Lie...

Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a Match Factory to bring home some used matchboxes, which she filled with fresh matchsticks. This helped her get some money to cover our needs. One wintry night I awoke to find Mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said, "Mother, go to sleep; it's late: you can continue working tomorrow morning." Mother smiled and said "Go to sleep, son! I'm not tired."

This was Mother's Third Lie...

When I had to sit my Final Examination, Mother accompanied me. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang, I ran to meet her. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my Mother's love, Seeing Mother covered with perspiration; I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said "Drink, son! I'm not thirsty!”

This was Mother's Fourth Lie...

After Father's death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job; she had to fund our needs alone. Our family's life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation. Seeing our family's condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house came to help us solve our problems big and small. Our other neighbors saw that we were poverty stricken so they often advised my mother to marry again. But Mother refused to remarry saying "I don't need love."

This was Mother's Fifth Lie...

After I had finished my studies and gotten a job, it was time for my old Mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she was steadfast and even sent the money back to me. She said, "I have enough money."

That was Mother's Sixth Lie...

I continued my part-time studies for my Master's Degree. Funded by the American Corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but Mother didn't want to bother her son; she said to me "I'm not used to high living."

That was Mother's Seventh Lie...

In her dotage, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit Mother who was bedridden after an operation. Mother tried to smile but I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but Mother said, "Don't cry, son! I'm not in pain."

That was Mother's Eighth Lie...

Telling me this, her eighth lie, she died. YES, MOTHER WAS AN ANGEL...!

"M" is for the Million things she gave me,

"O" means Only that she's growing old,

"T" is for the Tears she shed to save me,

"H" is for her Heart of gold,

"E" is for her Eyes with love-light shining in them,

"R" means Right, and right she'll always be,

Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER" a word that means the world to me. For those of you who are lucky to be still blessed with your Mom's presence on Earth, this story is beautiful. For those who aren't so blessed, this is even more beautiful.

Stay tuned and C-L-O-S-E…!

PS - Written for someone special on request

Mistake...!?!

A king who did not believe in the goodness of God, had a slave who, in all circumstances, said: My king, do not be discouraged, because everything God does is perfect, no mistakes!

One day they went hunting and along the way a wild animal attacked the king. His slave managed to kill the animal, but could not prevent his majesty losing a finger.

Furious and without showing his gratitude for being saved, the nobleman said "Is God good? If He was good, I would not have been attacked and lost my finger."

The slave replied: "My king, despite all these things, I can only tell you that God is good, and he knows "why" of all these things. What God does is perfect. He is never wrong!"

Outraged by the response, the king ordered the arrest of his slave.

Later, he left for another hunt and was captured by savages who made human sacrifices. In the altar, ready to sacrifice the nobleman, the savages found that the victim had not one of his fingers, so he was released. According to them, it was not so complete to be offered to the gods.

Upon his return to the palace, he authorized the release of his slave that he received very affectionately.

"My dear, God was really good to me! I was almost killed by the wild men, but for lack of a single finger, I was let go! But I have a question: if God is so good, why did he allow me to put you in jail?"

"My King, if I had gone with you in this hunt, I would have been sacrificed for you, because I have no missing finger, therefore, remember everything God does is perfect. He is never wrong."

Often we complain about life, and negative things that happen to us, forgetting that nothing is random and that everything has a purpose.

Every morning, offer your day to God, don't be in a rush.

Ask God to inspire your thoughts, guide your actions, and ease your feelings. And do not be afraid. God is never wrong!

The path of God and his word is perfect, without impurities. He is the way of all those who trust in Him.

Stay tuned and P-U-R-E...!

Fear...!?!

Today let us deal with a root cause of almost all the psychological problems and their material manifestation. A single feeling that has the potential to ruin everything. It is F-E-A-R...! Let us try to understand the nature of fear.

When we have to start a new venture, we often feel fear of failure. Before exams, we feel fear of low marks or may be failure! At times when we have to decide between two or more choices, we feel afraid. Fear of failure is natural and overcoming this fear is natural too...! People feel the fear of failure at different stages in life.

So the question is 'Can we overcome this fear of failure and HOW?

We can learn from those people who successfully overcame the fear of failure and have shared their experiences with us. One of the person who has shared the technique of overcoming failure is an Olympic athlete Guy Drut.

This is a story of a French Olympic player Guy Drut from Mark Mc Cormack international best seller: 'What they don't teach you at Harvard Business School' which guides us on one of the most important tools to overcome the fear of failure.

In summer of 1976, he was the only hope of France for win in Olympic track-and-field medal. Naturally, he was afraid. He had the burden of carrying nation's pride on his shoulders. One of his friends Jean Claude Killy advised him how to overcome the fear of failure.

Killy's advice was very simple. He asked Drut to repeat a few words in his mind over and over again. Killy told Drut that he was the only one who can use his body and mind for peak performance. He should keep on saying to himself -

"I have done every thing to get ready for this race and if I win, every thing will be great. But even if I don't win, my friends will still be my friends, my enemies will still be my enemies and the world will still be the same"

Drut says that he took Killy's advice to his heart. He repeated this sentence in all his practice exercises, during breaks and in between the semi-finals and finals. He kept saying the sentences to himself over and over and it blocked out every thing else. Drut says... "I kept on repeating it to such an extent that I was still repeating it when I went up to receive the gold medal...!"

We all can get benefit of this advice. Our self-talk reflects our expectancy from our lives. Positive self talk is more than a positive mental attitude. It is an evidence of determination in our future.

Stay tuned and continue your self talk without hesitation...!