Art of Living Course (Day 1)

Just simply overwhelmed, with the vast emptiness inside the mind. No more battles to be fought neither on the outside nor inside the convulsions of mind. It seems to have become numb. There is so much of peace today as I sit in the Bhavan after the end of Day 1 Session. The mind, body & the soul feels energized, recharged & rejuvenated. Simply put reincarnated.

The most scintillating part of the course today was the Shava Aasan after the “Sudarshan Kriya”. While lying down, the mind was completely blank. I could see a white background, with Gurudev in Saffron in the foreground. In him I saw a flashing glimpse of Lord Shiva. I can see Shiva when I meditate, but this was the first time that I saw Gurudev. After that my body slowly started to become numb, no reflexes, no sensation, neither of pain nor of soothingness. I fell into the slumber, or rather should I say it was just the awakening, of the soul. After lying down unmoving for about 20 minutes, I felt asleep. After I woke up from my sleep, that I was in for the last 27 years, I was having this overwhelming feeling, no happiness, no sorrow. It was as if I had attained equilibrium.
I went into a revitalization & purification process, where the mind rebooted completely? It was the break that my soul had desperately wanted. Was it the tiredness from doing the “Sudarshan Kriya”, that I went into sleep, or was it the empty mind, with no threads & processes to run.

Had I found the profound way to happiness, was I going to stay forever, now on. After all I had discovered what it took to be happy:

1. Don't expect. Expectations when not met fracture the emotional fragile human spirit
2. The moment to be happy is now. It neither was in the past, nor in the future. I am happy now.
3. Learn from the past, Live in the present, & Plan for the Future.

Feelings come feelings go, but I am feeling, happy, tranquil, solace, contentment, joy, fulfillment, belonging, oneness all at the same time. I hope this happiness, this tranquility & feel goodness doesn't wither. I hope the feelings stay on forever & ever & ever. The feelings of tranquility & contentment.

Art of Living Day 2
My day began at 5:30 am. The day was very special, it being Krishna Janamashtami (Birth of Lord Krishna) Even though I slept later in the night, the mind was still afresh filled with a lot of vigor & energy. It so happens when there is a lot of adrenalin rush, there is a freshness within, even though the body is badly tired. With that freshness of the mind I could climb even the Himalayas touch the pinnacle, & come down running bare foot.

Such is the power of the subconscious mind; it can make wonders for you. This explains how the Rishi Munis (Saints) in the past used to penance for ages, without even a feet of cloth covering their body, & lasting without food & water for ages. They could even communicate with the planets & the heavenly abode without even the use of satellites, or communication gadgets. They could traverse the whole space in their minds, with the power of the sun conscious.

I was back at the Bhakti Vishala (Devotees Classroom) to begin the Karmic Yoga session. But our Guru (Radha Ji), took us to the open lawn near the open Amphitheatre. The carpet of grass covered it, along with the, moistness from the dew drops. The sky never looked so beautiful with the clouds trying to embrace & fuse into each other. The wind flew swaying the hair sideways. Somewhere far off the birds were chirping, as if singing a melodious song in a chorus. “Mother earth is calling, Are you listening?” Morning never had been so beautiful & serene to me, but today it was, because I was adoring every speck of nature paying attention to every minute detail around me. 

We began our warm up, with joint exercise, & muscles flexing exercises. We laughed like maniacs releasing the smile endorphins, catalyzed other hormones. Because of the loud roar of laughter the clouds couldn't hold their endorphins either & started to down pour on us. Our laughter resonated & reverberated with the clouds & they reciprocated with the drizzle.

We moved on to the BhaktiVishala, to begin our Yogic Session. The session was followed with some pondering & soul searching. We revised the simple principles to lead a happy life to which we often turn a blind eye, or hush them under the carpet:
1. Take responsibility. You are responsible for your actions & in actions both. Responsibility gives a sense of oneness & belonging.
2. Do things with 100%, & you will love everythinhg that you do.
3. All that happens is by your own doing.
4. Learn to accept people the way they are. Also learn to let go, of them, don’t just hold on to something that’s not yours.
5. Don't be opinioned about people. Never make judgments about people too fast & too soon.

The session continued till noon with virtuous & enlightening knowledge. It was noon, & time to disassemble for the lunch. But before that, it was the time to get our Nivedyam (Prasadam). All of us got a grape each, & were asked not to eat it. We all closed our eyes, popped the grain of grape in, rolling it in the mouth feeling its texture, richness, softness & mushiness. It felt as if it was some precious pearl in my mouth. I had never before felt so much richness eccentric to a single grain of grape. I took a bite out of it with full consciousness, one after the other gulping it down my food pipe in 4-5 minutes. I felt so contented & satisfied. I was already satiated, not feeling hungry at all, felt as if I was already fed for days altogether. Alternatively I could have consumed a whole bunch of grapes but totally unaware of its texture, smoothness, richness, juiciness. I really relished this one grape. We also have abundant richness inside, like the grape, but aren’t aware of it, or keep on ignoring it thinking the external world’s roughness will bruise this richness.

After the session was over, I went on to the Bhavan again in the evening. There I was in my quiet to look for some answers. I didn’t get all the answers, but at least I could see the guiding light. The questions echoed inside me tossing up & down, sliding side to side relentlessly, but the mind was calm & at complete peace. Some questions got answered by self introspecting & the way to find other answers was paved on. The soot inside was blowing away, cleansing the mind & the thoughts.

I thought we always run after happiness, but we aren’t happy all the time, some part of it is sadness also. That is the balancing act that keeps things in equilibrium. But yes no matter what, whether happiness or sadness, we can stay contented, & satisfied, with whatever life offers.

Session had finished for the day, & it was time for Satsang (the company of the truth & the pure). Gurudev himself presided over the satsang. It was going to be a special satsang on account of Krishna Janamashtami. Folk dance performances were delivered by small kids on the Carnatic music, followed by folk dances by Guajarati folks. Guruji even shattered the curd filled (actually chocolates filled), earthen pot, which Lord Krsna used to break as a kid. This has been the practice since the last 5149 years, ever since Krsna's birth. The Satsang went on with melodious & soul touching Bhajans (religious good songs).

It was dusk & time for dinner, I headed straight to Kitchen with a handful of friends: Arjun, Abhishek, Vikash, Yogesh. We volunteered to serve food to the Bhakt’s (Devotees). There was a long queue of the people waiting for the food, & I couldn’t see much of an action in the kitchen. I presumed that the food was over, & even told one of my fellows that the food was over. But to my amazement what I saw was that trolleys full of food are coming out of the kitchen. Truly said that in the house of the lord there can be scarcity of nothing. It increased my faith even more. We folks worked in the kitchen till late, just before the stalls were going to close. It was our turn to have something on our palette but I wasn’t feeling hungry at all. There was so much contentment & joy in serving food to others that I forgot completely about my own hunger. It was a tiring job, but the enthusiasm level was the same. The spirit hadn’t damned a bit, & it never can if we serve those in need. After dinner I retired to my room. We had a brief discussion about very interesting topics ranging from life to death, mythology, science, & what not. We room mates vowed not to have Tea & Coffee for at least 1 month.

Art of Living Day 3
The day began with the Yogic Session, after which we proceeded for the breakfast. The food being served is really good. Satvik Bhojan (pure food) is served at the Ashram free of cost. The food satiates each & every taste bud, & even fills the belly with a lot of satisfaction & contentment. Thereafter the session began post lunch, & we could ponder over some of the soul tickling questions, that we never even thought about:
1. When did you come to this earth?
2. How long do you intend to stay here?
3. What are your plans to make this world better?

The session had in the curriculum the 7 elements that made up a human, their importance & how to control that: Body / Mind / Soul / Intellect/ Ego / Memory /....
The session went on with usual breaks in between followed by Sudarshan Kriya & Pranayam. We learnt that we shouldn’t be a football of other's opinions. If people know what annoys us, they just have to come to us, do act of annoyance, & with the wink of an eye, we are annoyed & bubbling with anger. Don’t give your remote control to people, which they can press & the channel on your face turns from happiness to sadness. We should not give people opportunity to do so with us, & this is possible if we don't take their comments or acts too personally or hush it off with laughter & make fun of the whole thing. Next time no matter how hard they try, your anger lid won't open, & hence you won’t be a football in their feet.
JAI GURUDEV

Things to Do Before I Die

From unconsciousness during childhood
To eye opening self realization during adulthood
Transitioning through all shades of black & white
With colors hidden under layers, in quantities just right

Casting my paintbrush on the blank canvas
Strokes taking form & shape without any fuss
Drawing seamlessly across the boundaries
With color vibrant, having their own crease

Building of my own castles
Watering my own greens transforming them into pastures
The tarmac transmuting into a flowerbed
Embracing one & all with open arms

Niceties & courtesies
Offered to comfort & please
Me, humane in all my acts
Plugging nulls & voids of the adversaries

The craving & the wanting to do more,
Exploring the unchartered, initiating new ventures
Preying the opportunity
& grabbing it like vultures

The Very purpose of existence
Meeting the obligations, fulfilling the predetermined duties
Me, just a medium to lay the tarmac
With pebbles, tar & the sand ruck sack

Enduring the edginess to live up to the name
Delivering on expectations, to win the game
Embracing & cherish the good & bad alike
Alighting cautiously after a great hike

Accumulating material gratification
Satiating on all the dreams & desires
Gradually transposing from scratch to lavishing
Keeping firm & grounded even with the riches so ravishing

Lending a hand to the one in need
Pulling up their spirit with the soul freed
Tread the path that's righteous always
Morality & ethics my only guiding rays

Praise just a pat on the bent & aching back
Soothing… yet compelling to go on with the same knack
High on morale, & eyes gleaming with hope
Tough times, just a weathering storm

Failure only making sweat, tears futile
The spirit unscathed, with the same bile
Me calm & poise, treading with an assertive tact
God & conscious watching over my back

Forgiveness for the idiotic defaulters
Compassion just a way of life
Seeking mercy for the committed crimes
Just tranquil felicity at the end of times

14 Days of a Butterfly

Butterfly, one of the most enchanting creations of God, full of vigor, brilliance, & vibrancy. Its beauty serenading the eyes, enchanting the heart, & satiating the soul with joy & contentment. Swinging & swirling as if intoxicated with nectar. Wings as if dancing, to the tune of the whistling wind, fluttering & cajoling. The miniscule hair on its body giving it, its wonderful color palette. So much that lifts the spirit instantaneously. Full of effervescence & bubbly natured life. Blending into the colors of the flower, while sucking onto its nectar as if an integral part of that flower. So much beauty filled in its each & every part.

The egg of a female butterfly hatches to let the offspring come out of its shell. The wings at this stage are folded onto its body. The fluid from its body begins to fill the wings, letting them to spread & taking form. The wings are then left open to dry. Once dry, it springs into action to hop on to the flowers to taste the first suck of nectar.

Ever wondered what the life span of a butterfly is. My honest first impression was that it would be a couple of months. But the truth is that its life span spreads over just a fortnight, mere 14 days. Yet it leads such a beautiful life, even though its days are short. It makes more beauty & meaning in each day of its life, even if it is short lived. Makes those around, happy & fills them with pleasure & joy, soon rest follow suit too.

It is hard to believe that such a beauty is mortal too. Hard to believe yet so true, that this nature’s masterpiece meets rubble one day. Just like all other good things come to end, so does it. However during its entire life span its spreads only beauty, vibrancy, brilliance, happiness, & contentment around. A person can never get bored of watching its playful acts, its hops from one flower to the other. Always dances to the tune of the wind, swinging up & down, right & left, to & fro. It is never concerned about its mortality 14 days forth, & lives its life with so much of ado, beauty, serenity & penchant. Inspiring, attracting & serenading all around.

It is so much engrossed in sucking the nectar out of the flowers, that catching a butterfly is a child’ play. In my childhood days I caught many of them, with bare hands. But always made sure not to harm their fragile wings. The strategy is simple. While the butterfly is sucking on to the nectar, reach out for it in complete silence, & with 2 of your fingers cling on to its wings softly. Don’t apply too much force while holding it, else you may damage the wings, or the color may come off onto your fingers. After I admire its beauty up so close, I used to place it back on to the flowers.

Seeing its beauty would make my jaws drop, in awe & mesmerism. Nature has its own ways of exhibiting beauty. Beauty that is all around us but we are blinded to see it most of the times, being entangled in our own vicious circles. We also miss the beauty within & that on the outside, because we are engrossed with our daily chores. We often fail to appraise this beauty, often fail to make more meaning & beauty out of our life. We simply don’t have time to stop & admire beauty / people, because for us, life moves much faster than the hands of the clock. There is a lot that we miss this way. Perhaps a little metamorphosis in our lifestyle would just be too great a boon for us. Perhaps there is a lot to learn from the beautiful butterflies, who lives only for 14 days, but its beauty stays forever, immortal indeed.
Shali Amit

Inner Beauty

Trampled tampered torn apart
My feelings in this world so hard
Searching & introspecting for the
Righteous way to happiness

Happiness deep rooted embedded & planted
Now Lost, trampled, tampered and grafted
Lying somewhere deep inside
Omnipresent, yet so hard to find

Beauty serenading only the eyes
Goodness reverberating like echoes of cries
Escaping into the dark pitched voids
Sanity and purity, null & devoid

Wearing glitzy brands on the bod
Stylish and urbane classy shod
Inner beauty buried in the thickness of the shroud (Clothes)
Inner reflections no more profound

Orb a wild frenzied hollering howl
Voices choked from reaching the soul
Men choked, fooled, miraged, & camouflaged
Blinded to see the real beauty badged

Whispers oppressed, emotions smothered
Numb reflexes, deaf ears, blinded eyes
Fools pretending to be real
Just another example of the surreal

Impurity implanted, & corrugated self
Ego & superiority complex at a new shelf
Slackness & grunge inside chambered walls
High airs even during great falls

Pinches swerving body,
Yet unscathing the soul
Attaining happiness
No more a big brawl

Now ponder, was better as a kid
Full of innocence, righteousness, & playful acts
Helplessness, & distress were not my toys
Pain only physical, & yet soothing & nice

Shed the fake if you got to be a winner
Peep deep in to the environs & the inner
Glance the Beauty & glitz inside
Then the Orb will be a happy merry ride

Perennial Willow

The Willow had been there ever since I came to senses, it endured so much & yet never bulged or buckled. It stood tall & strong as a pillar from time immemorial. It withstood the wrath wreaked by nature’s fury & the atrocities of the Homo sapiens alike with a grin.

One day while it was peaceful around, with no noises, neither from my inside nor my outside. I overheard the Willow talking to someone. I was wondering if the willow was talking to itself. So I concentrated on, what was being said and done.

Voices came “Hey, Willow how do you bear Scorch of the Sun, the Drench of the Rain, the Drift of the Wind and deflowering in autumn and the Withering in winters? How come you bear the brunt of each season with grit & gumption & yet look so fresh and Youthful? What’s your secrecy of liveliness effervescence?”

The Willow grinned with a brow raised. Willow said “Experiences are either good or bad, mighty or small. You may go through glorifying or agonizing circumstances, some so dominant, penetrating your basic level of existence, consciousness, and well being. It may shatter you completely, but it isn’t capable enough to wipe you off the face of earth. Even after a severe battering & shattering you will come to terms with the hitches & stand tall one day glorious & victorious. That is the secret of my perennial being & eternal solace. Pain only elevates thyself & thy’s soul to Higher Consciousness, energizing the withered & lifeless self with a fresh lease of life.”

Taking the conversation forward, the Willow whispered a Humble Prayer in the Ears of the agonized, perplexed & confused soul. The Prayer was like a magic wand giving immediate relief to the pained & sorrowful soul. Having acquired the requisite blessing from the perennial willow, the soul retaliated by thanking the willow with words of praise & virtuosity. The Soul said “A consciousness prevails in me now, subtle, raw, unrealized, un-Evolved but strong and manifest.”

The Soul had knowledge of the secret of the willow’s, perennial being. The soul bowed down & chanted the words to the supreme, Lord Shiva. Soul sought to imbibe the Shiva Consciousness in itself that resides in every soul alike, but dormant & weak, with the accumulation of the dust & soot. The Soul bowed to the giver of the cosmic energy & quintessential substances for its existence.

Just like the flow of the water over a Parched and brittle piece of land can spring up life around it. From Raising Civilizations to razing civilizations, everything changes, except for the flow of water that stays perennial. Similarly the shower of strength & wisdom can flower a dead soul to life. Whole new breed of feelings (positive) will transcend, eccentric to it. Rest all will be a a phase repetitive, except for the perennial soul. Water & The Lord the only constant, giver & flourisher of life.

The Soul prayer everyday thereon, to give itself, strength of character & of material nature. This positive flow of energy let the soul be in complete control of the circumstances, both mighty or small. The soul steered itself towards enlightenment & the ultimate prowess. All its experiences, thoughtfulness, emotions, thoughts, pains, agonies and feelings, worked together in sync to help the soul attain enlightenment and unimaginable strength. Love & Feelings no more made it weak & bleak. Nothing was forceful enough to lurch it to darkness & disillusionment. The soul now only yearned for Illumination. The Pain, the Agony, the Grief even at its hilt or a hundred megaton forceful might, wouldn’t be able to shake it up. No flood would ever destroy it like it destroys the fertile land.

The soul now understood that Lord is the giver of Life and Rejuvenation to all the Plants after autumn and winters. Soul sough rejuvenation for itself the same way, & also prayer to absolve it of all Pain, Agonies and Rancor. The soul was now full of vigor, strength & a zeal for a fruitful life. It was evolving & making a complete sense of its well being & existence.
And then the blue necked trident holder, from the Himalayas touched the agonized Soul blessing it & turning it into a Perennial Brook, which flowed till Eternity.
Neeru {{nrkaul@yahoo.co.uk))

Jut your Gut

Material, spiritual and tranquil felicity
The Entirety I kept on dreaming of & working upon
Didn't vociferate for the precious
They would come, just a matter of time

Weary I was walking on paseo
Sweat ensuring the sang-froid
Pain challenging to supersede itself
Uncertainty my riding companion
Into the unknown, unraveled and the unexpected

Footslogging an unendurable exercise
The baggage making spine, invertebrate
Crunching & deforming my faith & trust
No gleam of hope, but mirages of the sun

Somatic sensations going numb
The brainy maverick stunned & stuck
Bodily temperature soaring
Frustration peaking the sear

Jut of the gut
Altered Mirage into a fresh water spring
The burning sun into cozy, cam & poise
Pebbles transforming into petals of daisy

Concreting my faith, inducing the spirit back
Concording & cohering me & my ideas
The conscious purifying the soul
Forbidding me from sins and foe's smelling foul

Learnt to differentiate pigs from the bears
Barbarian wolves in the mask of sheep
Biting in retreat when thrown a treat
The foe's acting & smelling foul

Asserting with the open eyes & ears
Sense the gush of blood, feel of the pulse
Scare complexion only to make vulnerable n hostile
Don’t lose nerve and act on impulse

Failures the slumped periods
Slimy, creepy, gloomy, shady
In contrast felicity always a golden mascot
Triumph glorifying the persona

Jut the gut
If need be, as hard as can be
To prevent from draining & drowning
Swimming to the bank, the moment of glorifying and crowning

Marvelous Maverick

Image by cloois via Flickr

I am definitely not a brainiac, but a mere plebeian with usual abilities as the kinfolks around. Still my brain has unexplored, unchartered, boundless capabilities which are beyond mine or someone else’s imagination. It naively belongs to me, alienated, unknown, estranged even from my own. There is so much that it can do, with its capabilities, prowess & the might. Only a miniscule of its capabilities utilized in an entire lifetime, underexploited & underused. A dormant super computer, with magnanimous computing performance, & yet its capability is never measured in giga, tera or peta flops. Largely because its capabilities aren’t known even to the most salutary scientists, leave behind the cold blooded humans. No metrics defined yet to measure its capability, except for measuring its IQ (Intelligence Quotient) or the newly coined EQ (Emotional Quotient). So much in the wilderness, dark, shady, foggy & cloudy environ.

One day our race will get behind this mesh of neurons, breaking the Pandora’s code, thus cracking the mysteries involved. It’s these carrier neurons & the impulses that make us feel happy, pain, sorrow, joy, madness, fear, frenzy and other human attributes. Brain carrying electrical impulses relentlessly with the speed of 120 meters per second from one end of the body to the other, unstoppably.

Last I remember of my Nous’s unfathomable capabilities was on the morning of 8thMay09. The day when I was coerced to believe that I was getting ready for the day, when I was actually lying in my cozy bed, enjoying my nap. Wakeup alarms on my 2 phones had buzzed 5 times between 6:30 to 6:55 am but to no avail. Having retired late to bed the last night, waking up early in the morning was almost next to impossible. Atleast for me! The late night movie "How to rob a Bank", was intriguing & enchanting making me stick to the idiot box, without moving a part.

The first hum of my phone nearly woke me up from my slumber, but the beats weren’t shrilled enough to break the fortress of my sleep. It was a semi coma state. I had to be in the office early, for an early morning meeting. The central processing unit, made me to get up in but only in the virtuality realm. I was awakened, brushing up my teeth, taking a bath, dressing up, picking up my rucksack & starting for my office. But I was actually lying in my bed, still dreaming and visualizing it all in the dreams. Nothing of it was happening in reality. Suddenly my alarm came alive again, & it was already 6:55am. “Ohhh my, missed the cab” I frowned breaking free from my slumber trammel!! Again the master mind took charge & directed, hey, be laid back & take your own vehicle to the office. It even directed this semi awake torso, to change the time on the timepiece to 8:30 am. Adios world, the teeny weenie brainy is again going sleepy. Let the alarms go off relentlessly but brain is its own king.

Other incidence was that of that during the childhood days. We used to retire after a tiring, playful day at school. When we would wake up, it would be dusk already. If we happened to see through the window, the drowning sun, we would think that it is Dawn. Then we would say “ohh, we have to go to school, are we late, what is the time?” The brain would be completely lost after waking up from the deep slumber and would need some environmental corrections to get itself back on track. But it would be caught unawares again, with volatile previous memory. Everyone around would burst into a croak of laughter, seeing the dumbstruck brain doing it again. It was just so stupid of the master mind to be playful & do the frenzied madness.

Brain ohh my little Marvelous maverick, what wonders you do, just take mE by surprise, off my feet.

People Come People Go

People come people go
You tread the path that's righteous, you know
They will diffuse and dispel in directions galore
You align and steer in the direction of the fore

Don’t you follow thee,
Till u don't know the way thee went
Thee may have departed the defunct and corrupt way
But you stay firm & never go astray

Clothes just a shield from your naked own
Your soul free and open, owning no gown
Just armor, nothing superb or gallant
Your affable soul the only thing valiant

Carry your search through the guiding light
Letting it purify you of all rot
Don't be lost, don't be taint
Stay virginal, unscathed and quaint

Take the virtuousness, & the richness of the supreme
See through the truth and the lightening beam
Kneeling & draining you of all your negativity
Inducing in you vitality and beauty that's serene

Only pure & the unscathed will lead the way
Penance & the wisdom will prow you to bay
Soiled & moiled clothes don't matter much then
What matters is that now you stellate a new ray

Radiating the warmth & the happiness around
Those in proximity, following the suit
Infesting the vicinage at a fast pacy race
Making the whole orb a happy merry place
(Pic: Vindhesh's Gallery)

The Bond of Love

He was all of 9 years old, with not much agility & flexibility either in his body or his arms. His structure was skinny with a layer of epidermal; no extra flab; just the translucent skeletal, and a transparent crystal clear heart. He had inherited his father’s fortune as inheritance. His father’s business and life support was going to be his new venture. Studies were never his forte. He would do anything in this world to give up his studies; his master’s rebuking; pressure from his parents and leg pulling of his peers. Leaving his studies didn’t mean just leaving school; it also meant no more books; no more friends and no more school games and fun. But he had accepted the fact in good spirit, that he was pathetically pathetic at studies.

Shyam had taken up his father’s job and was now the new proud newspaper vendor with monopoly in Sectors 1-10. Waking up at 5:30 am was a religion for him now. Donning his stylish pullover, classy slippers he would head in the direction opposite to that of his school. Finally he had managed to turn his back on his school. Shyam's father was bed ridden because of damaged kidneys, attributed to the excessive alcohol consumption. Shyam was too small to face the world but then somewhere had inner strength to face the riff raff of life. Life spared nobody and it didn’t spare this less privileged kid as well. But that’s what he had sought from God & from life. Lucky he!! He got what he wanted from God & life, freedom from studies.

Shyam was enjoying this new life, every part of it. Even though it was thrusted on him he has accepted it with both arms. School was monotonic and mundane, but newspaper delivery was far more fun. Those were different days, & these are different days now. It was more fun also because of the girl in the corner white house; sector 2; besides Aradhana Cinema.

First time they met, it was a coincidence, coincidence of a collision followed by an explosion. Shyam had thrown the newspaper as usual in the balcony. But Radha was watering the plants that she had planted 1 year back on her birthday. Before going to school everyday she would make sure to nourish & nurture the saplings with a fervent motherly love & caring. Her head was in range of the newspaper’s projectile. The paper landed directly on her head. The newspaper delivered all its kinetic energy onto her head, with a thud. It wasn’t much paining, but more of a shock and seizure. Radha blurted out loud, grabbing attention of her parents.

Shyam stalled, realizing what damage his throw had caused. Radha’s father who had come to her rescue, asked her, what had happened!! Radha pointed towards Shyam. Radha's father with furious eyes, directed Shyam to come upstairs. Shyam was scared, that he would be rebuked, and maybe beaten up too. But it wasn’t Shyam's mistake altogether. Shyam reached the door steps, and Radha's father, who was already at the door, started scolding him. But, he was cut short by Radha, seeking forgiveness for him. Radha's father stopped getting mad on Shyam, and went inside. Radha asked Shyam to wait; hurried inside ans came out with some chocolates. Shyam didn’t accept them at the outset, but Radha forcibly handed them over to him. Radha gave him a smile and then went inside.

Radha had touched Shyam somewhere deep inside, where no body had touched him before, or even tried to!! Shyam had a swarm of feelings for Radha surging in him, the feelings that he had felt for nobody else, ever. Suddenly everything was pleasing and warming for him. Shyam was very happy, often singing; whistling; day dreaming and even dancing when nobody was around. He felt a new wind in his head, often raising his feet up from the ground. He felt like flying.

After his delivery and the house chores, Shyam would come in front of the Aradhana Cinema to get a glimpse of Radha. Seeing Radha walk up to her home with her friends back from school, was an ecstatic and soothing feeling.

One day Shyam summed up enough courage, to give Radha a bundle of roses that he had plucked from the nearby rose park. Radha not only recognized him but also accepted the roses with an innocent smile. Radha introduced Shyam to her friends, as a hero who could javelin throw as far as the horizon. Shyam felt elated and so proud of himself. He never thought of touching the horizon, but now he wanted to do it, and flatter Radha by proving his strength and mettle. He went to the hilltop in the outskirts of the city, and started throwing stones as far as he could, until his slender arms started to ache. He returned home at the fall of dawn.

Radha once asked her father why Shyam didn’t go to school. To this her father simply hushed it by saying that Shyam had the job of collecting all the news in the world and then giving it to all the people in the world. She was so swollen with pride, for her new found friend. She knew that not only was Shyam a good boy, but he was also doing a great job!!

Shyam continued his work of newspaper delivery, and most of his day would pass happily. His feelings for Radha had only become stronger and stronger. His affection so pure and serene, just like that of Lord Krishna for Radha. There was so much that he wanted to tell her, how she had changed his life; bought in a lot of happiness; and transformed him completely. But that day never came, as fate had something else in reserve.

One day Radha's father called up on him, asking him to settle his account, as they were moving to a new place. Shyam was shattered and battered. He settled the accounts with Radha’s father and bought chocolates out of that money. After all, that’s what Radha was fond of. Next day he delivered it to Radha with the newspaper; into the Balcony. Coincidentally Radha who was watering the plants, =picked up the pack. She cut it open and accepted the gist childishly. She waved bye & even whispered thank you Shyam. That was the last time he saw her. Within a week Radha was gone along with her family.

Shyam couldn’t even bid a final good bye to Radha. He was feeling so down trodden, and broke. He felt sluggish, sad and rarely smiled. He was completely caught unawares, and had completely lost focus of his work. He was at a tender age, where his emotional drain could easily make him go haywire and ruin him completely. But the hangover remained for a week or two. It had to go, life had to come back to normal. Life has its own designs of taking you up, and then bringing you down in a vicious circle.

"Change is the only thing that is permanent." He realized this, a very sweet way. It was when he came across Padma, the girl in the blue colored home, in sector 5. He had felt a stronger streak for Padma the moment he saw her. His days returned back to normal. His life had come back to square one, the only difference being his focus shift from the house adjacent to Aradhan Cinema to the new Blue house in Sector 5. Radha was definitely the beginning, but never the end. Shyam was again back on track.
Shyam the boy who delivered newspapers.

"It's just that Love is all around us, we just need to sense it, find it, feel it and fall in it. It is alluring, contagious and irrestibile". Shyam had found love again, without fail.

When rain drenched the Soul

Image by nyki_m via Flickr

Clock had stuck 6 pm, & happy time for the rookies to go home. Suddenly the Sun was shadowed by dark dense clouds, & soon the sky was filled with blitzkrieg. The wind started to blow & the temperature had dipped considerably. Next 15 minutes the Nature’s fury was evident with the heavy lightening & thundering. It was deafening, but not of the same intensity, as the power house at my home. It was a golden opportunity to electrocute and bake your chicken, with the thunder storm. Jokes apart it had become pretty dark but pleasant.
Soon droplets of water started accumulating on the glass panes of the office building. I packed my stuff, & rushed towards the door. I wanted to reach home before the drizzle became a down pour. Marching on my feet, I had become partially wet. The people were running helter-skelter for shelter. In a few moments the rain started to get heavier, & I was completely drenched now.

Water started dripping out of my hair, & I was fastening on my foot, now starting to run. My pace had risen, & so had my breathing. I didn’t know where I was planting my foot, while running. It was as if someone was after my bloody life. Alas!! My foot slipped & the cakewalk had come to a stall. I fell on both my hands on the muddy water. My clothes had gone for a toss, now with mud smeared all over. I stood up, looking for the soiled clothes, & if I had any bruises. None! I thought that now it was no point running back home or trying to catch a taxi back home. Rain was beating hard on my skull, as I trying to play Tabla (musical instrument). I gasped my breath, & controlled the random breathing due to running. I stood there as if the whole world had come to a stand still. the rain drops tried desperately to drench me. But I was already drenched, even the entire sea couldn't drench me anymore. The rain drenched the soil, & the effervescent smell starting arousing out of the Sun baked soil. The smell was so pleasing, that it filled up all the senses.

Clipping all the strings attached, I let myself loose. It was only in school days or college days that, I used to enjoy getting drenched in the rain. Those were different times, but these are different times. But I thought that what had changed, it was the same me, it was the same rain. It was my mind that was blocking me from getting drenched. I told my brain to hush up, & go to sleep. The sound of the rain drops falling all over was like a zillion musicians playing chorus. My feet started to get into the trance, & so did my complete body. Dancing in the rain has its own fun & frolic. It started to wash off all my worries, anxieties, and sorrows. It rejuvenated my soul. I was feeling like thumping & pumping in the potholes filled with water, splashing it in all directions. The Vehicles just passed me by. Other Passerby’s giving me strange stares. Probably my attire, & wasn't mixing well with what I was doing. But little did I care, as I was deeply engrossed in letting myself loose. My clothes clung onto my body. I hadn't even given a thought to my cell phone, which would be the first gadget to get short circuited. I didn’t care about the currency in my wallet. I just had two waterproof things, my epidermal tissue & my Casio Chronograph. But who gave a damn what was waterproof & what wasn't. My arms opened wide towards the sky, welcoming the clouds. It was an invitation to let the clouds drip & gush some water through me & my soul. I realized God gave us arms, to welcome the things with warmth. But with the hectic, monotonous & the vicious life, we had forgotten about the protocol, the warmth & the passion. We had become more of androids, following the same regimen over & over, with little emotional intelligence left.

Both my Shin & skin were wet, but it didn’t give me shivers. It was cleansing all the soot & the dust in my heart, mind & the soul. It just made me more serene & cleaner. It was a complete transformation, a metamorphosis. Somewhere deep, I had got disconnected from my inner roots, my soul, & today the clouds had watered my roots, bringing them back to life. I decided, not to let my soul wither to death, for lack of the life giving water. The kids nearby just wanted a catalyst to jump into the potholes & the stagnated water on the roads. I was their stimulant. Soon the roads turned into a water bed. But the water would recede in some time. I stood there wondering if the feelings would recede too. Or they will stay in my heart, my mind, my soul & my life?

Happy Mother's Day (10.Apr)

Saying goes that "God could not be everywhere, so he created mother". A Mother's love or her kids is unconditional, selfless, boundless, tender & all serene. She shares an infinitesimally unbreakable bond with her kid. She would go to any degree to protect her kids form unwanted danger. Push her to the extremes to give to her kids the best education, values, ethics, morality & upbringing, nourishing & nurturing a sapling, hence letting it grow to a tree. No matter how ruthless or naught the kids are, a mother can never adopt brutal or tyrant methods of mending towards a kid. Remember a father does it often, more often than the mother. She always acts as the armor and shield for her kids, protecting them from any wrath or undesired environs.

We humans learn the first lesson of love by the kiss of out mother. Her hands rock the cradle & life alike tirelessly. Even while giving birth to the kid she goes through a pain of 56db decibels. Human body has an endurance level of 45db (decibels). Even after enduring so much of pain, her joy knows no bounds, and still she is all smiles. Mother is the giver of life. She is the symbol of love, warmth & harmony, strength, patience and all other characteristics. Even if she is stern and strict with her kids, it will always be for the betterment, of her kids. She would never want or like her kids to go haywire. It wouldn't be wrong if we say that "God is omnipresent with us all, in the form of our mother.” No child can ever repay the mother.

Throw out the UPA

Rs 87153.12 crores Looted By The UPA Govt.!

Read the following to know the reasons to throw away the PRESENT Govt.
Lets have a look at where the TAX we pay is MISUSED by PRESENT GOVT.
Do you know what 1Crore looks like? I mean just how many zeroes it has?
1,00,00,000

1) Rs 87153.12 crores is missing as reported in chapter-2 of Comptroller & Auditor Generals report, an official government agency (http://www.cag.gov.in/). And this is just for the years 2007-09! Over the years, how much of our money has been stolen from us?
This is OUR money folks. What we paid this government as tax! Where have they put it? There is simply no answer forthcoming!

2) Aid of Rs 3000 crores to Afghanistan for economic reconstruction. This includes 150 bullet-proof watch towers, 2,500 protective vests, and a lot of mine clearing equipment. Bullet proof watch towers and protective vests are economic reconstruction?
(http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htproc/articles/20061223.aspx)

3) The absolutely pathetic state of the educational infrastructure of all government run institutions hits one right in the face. Now, while education systems are in doldrums, our government gives out money to Harvard and Cambridge universities! How much money? To the tune of Rs 50 crores!
(http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1150356)
Now have a look at how PRESENT GOVT is promoting TERRORIST activities in INDIA.

1) Remember the Mumbai train blasts? Well, around that time India gave financial aid to Pakistan for earthquake relief… Rs150 crores of it! (Aid to the ones responsible for blast!!!)

2) While Pakistan and some other Islamic nations are closing down their Madressas, there is talk of granting CBSE status to Islamic Madressas in India (about half a million in number). Madressas are breeding ground for radical fundamentalist Islam, one that produces terror…
This will ensure that we don't just have corrupt thugs ruling us, we will have well trained jihadi terrorists in parliament AND the bureaucracy!
(http://www.indianexpress.com/news/madrasa-certificates-will-now-be-cbse-equivalent/404478/ and http://www.sanghparivar.org/join-madrasa-why-sit-for-tough-cbse-board-exam)

3) PRESENT GOVT has decided to give pension and jobs to the families of all "Kashmiri Terrorists" who were killed. No help for the Indian soldiers and citizens who have been killed by the terrorists. They say they are being "humane"!! Not for the families of the army people who were killed… not for the families of the kashmiris who were massacred… (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK6xwFRQ7BQ)

This has to stop, before INDIA becomes the new SAUDI of the planet.
And any government that takes decisions like these needs to be kicked out of power. I don't think even resilient India will ever be able to recover if the present government comes back to power this year.
THE VERY THOUGHT OF PRESENT GOVT COMING BACK TO POWER IS SCARY....
Victory Margins Narrowing, So Every Vote Makes a Difference…..

This is a sincere request to take few minutes of busy schedule to go out and VOTE and VOTE FOR CHANGE.

(By)
ROHANDHARESH@yahoo.co.in

Mad Dog Rush

Why do we carry the burden on our backs all the time? Why the glances on the clock all the time? Why do want to rush to office in the morning, & back to Home in the evening? The answer is “Time”. Time is the binding factor, constraint to the execution of anything in this world. It is a factor both quintessential & critical to any mission, whether small or big.

We hush up & avert things. Without giving heed to the time critical things that are stringent, & should be done right on the dot. Time lost is never found again. The only exception being the time machine. That in itself isn’t a reality, just theoretically proven.

All missions have a time line attached to them. But in maximal cases the time line slips. This leads to a lot of hue & cry putting everything in extreme jeopardy. As we near the completion of the thing with the slipped schedule, we realize that the time we had earlier was the golden time. That time should have been used judiciously, so as to avert this last minute rush. There is a very popular saying that goes as "If you are thirsty, no point digging the well at the eleventh hour". If you are feeling thirsty, you should start digging the well from the first hour itself, & not wait for some miracle to happen. An oasis won’t spring out of the barren. You procrastinate assuming that clouds may drip a drop or two to quench your thirst. Only at a later point of time you realize that the thirst is getting on to the nerves. Impossible to bear anymore, you start digging the well. But when the thirst has battered you, the scorching heat shattered you, how well can you dig the well? When will you be able to get water out of it? In the process you didn’t lose anything (neither your thirst, nor the effort) except for those 11 hours. Mad Dog Rush.

Procrastination is other evil that leads to the mad dog rush. There is a lot of stuff to be done, in a little time already, & you just sit back & chillax. When it comes the nearing time for deliverables, we have none to offer. It only gives us some more frustration, agony, anger, dissatisfaction, tension, anxiety & stress. It’s a severe folly not to use time judiciously. It is the callousness, & carelessness that makes the things messy for us. Had we not been so casual in doing the things, things would have been in better shape & form. It always comes back to us, to haunt us. Exactly similar to the conservation law of energy. Energy transforms from one form to another, it is neither created nor destroyed. Same way, the tasks will remain the constant, they won’t change. But at the end you will have no time to do the stuff that you had to do on top priority. It will create a gory ugly scene in the end. You running pillar to post to get the things done, but messed up big time.

So next time if you want to avoid Mad Dog Rush, pull up your socks fold up your sleeves, & get back to work. Begin when the water is not neck deep. Start flushing the water, so as to save yourself from drowning. Let’s get back to work to kill the Mad Dog Rush.

Strive & Stride

Strive & stride
For the things that are hard
Execute them the way
That none has ever heard

You gotto
Push a little further
All the strength in one shot
You gather & discharge

Just work won’t do
Push work is needed
Hard work is ok
Smart work you need to heed

The plans will be soiled
The readiness going to be foiled
The intentions spoiled
But, never think that the hard work is toiled

Fury in the eyes
Fire in belly
Strike the gong intensely
Make a big noise

Body is drenched
Sweat quenching the thirst
Don't pity yourself
Don’t you rest

Reaching there first
Winning the ascend
Is not the thing
Reaching is first, winning the second

Bruised knee, broken bones
Sighs in voice, pain crossing bounds
Still trudge on
Carry the stuff

No space for distractions
No place for interactions
No enjoying the pleasures
No mesmerizing the desires

If you feel heavy
Empty your head of negative thoughts
They are no good
They just stink & rot

The way may be tough
But you be even more tougher
Don't lay down your weapons
When success is about to happen

The pinnacle is there
Waiting to be conquered
Don't kneel when you reach there
Stand tall, shout & conquer all the fear

Its time to enjoy & rejoice
The climb & the fight
You got what you deserved right
Strive & Stride, Strive & Stride

I am what I am

I am what I am
With my goodness,
With my badness
Accept me as I am

I can’t keep on changing,
Every 2 steps that I walk
Surely not for the people
Backless with no spine

No skin no shin,
Full of mire & grime
Slimy bodies
Soot filled hearts

They say to me all rot
Tell me things that I am not
Don’t they understand?
To them I don’t belong

I don’t explode at their outburst
Their condition is worse than the worst
I hush it all, beneath my feet
Simply frowning in retreat

The only mould that can cast me into form
Is the mould of love
Love with no bounds
Love as mad as the hounds

The mould is cast
Forging me into form
Now I am tensile & ductile
The mould of love giving me a form

Let the mould
Cast its spell
The spell & its charm
Making me transform

Love me the way I am
Love me for what I am

Feel of the Instant

The feelings will come
The feelings will go
Try to be happy
Coz you never know

Life is so short
Things to do a lot
So keep your cool
& you worry not

Don’t look to the top,
When you are only half way around
Just keep in your mind
Where you want to ground (reach)

Don’t see others else you may be sad
For them it was easy, for you it maybe hard
The way to glory
Is no cozy story

Some sail with the wind
& go astray
Some swim against it
To get to the bay

Why are you gloomy?
Why are you sad?
Why the cribbing?
Why are you going mad?

Remember the first day u fell in school
You weeping the same way now, you dumb fool
That day you got up, all by yourself
Without any patronage or any help

Hold on hang on,
That’s all I say
Things will fall in place,
Some day some way

The feelings will come
The feelings will go
Now you be happy
Ohh!! my good friend

Tree of Desire (Kalpa-Vriksha)

Desire is the fuel, the stimulus that drives us humans. Desire & emotional intelligence is the one thing that separates us from the flora & fauna in this world. Animals too have desires, still a debatable topic. But we humans have desires + animal instincts. It is these animal instincts that drive men into crimes & shadowy things. Desires crop out of the five sense that we have. Vision, Hearing, Touch, Taste & Smell. If humans didn’t have the senses & intelligence (mental as well as emotional), we would be no better than dead as dodo androids.

There is a lot that this whole world offers. With such a hostile inviting environment, there is nothing wrong in craving & desiring. In fact this whole is like a Kalpa-Vriksha (The Wish Fulfilling Tree), which can fulfill all our desires. Whether it is the fruits, flowers, shade, oxygen or its own bark, & pulp. Mythology also has reference to the “Kalpa Vriksha”, tree that is the fulfiller of all desires. Even the Australopithecus with no intelligence at all desired to be strongest & the explicit species. Otherwise how can one explain the invention of wheel, fire or the usage of metals to make weapons for hunting? It all came from the desire or one of the instincts.

The tornado of desires keeps us battling & fighting for the things that we want truly, madly, & deeply. Desires from the core of every man’s heart, buried deep inside. Not to be seen, not to be shown, jut known to the person. Everyone right from the kids to the old have desires. Kids desire to be sporty, pampered & adored all the time. They throw tantrums when they don’t get their dose of chocolates or the toys. Don’t they hold you up for a ransom, when they have to do their homework? “Give me a chocolate, and then I will do my homework”. This all comes from desire, & a way to fulfill your desires. Adolescents have the desire to have sex, date the best girl in the batch, to live on the edge, achieve the impossible. Adults have the desire to have a cool, cozy & comfortable life. Others are driven by other desires both on the sane plane, & insane plane. Old people don’t have so much strong a desire. Except for their desire of, getting love, respect & caring from the younger lot. All in all, they all they all have this insatiable desire to be important, to be popular & to be the one with the golden spoon in their mouth. They all want to carve a niche in this world. So, desire, desire, desire, humans.

Desires can be good or bad, real or bogus, strong or laid off. Varies from person to person, depending on what desires are being tamed & cultivated in the deep confines of the heart. Desire it, Achieve it. The desires are predominant, in the people who use a lot of “I want”. This is inferential that, they desire or want many a things from life. They may just crave & desire at all times, not really converting their desires in virtual space, to realities in the materialistic space. Desires when strong have a lot of power that can help us achieve our goals & targets. Goals in the shorter span & targets in the longer span of time space.

Desires without action, are just futile dreams, bound to crash onto ground, & only create rubble. Actions without desires also tend to go haywire. Desires drive us further, propel us, and direct us to the sought out, & the wanted things. Desires help us attain the unachievable, unknown & the impossible. So hold out your hands to the “Kalpa-Vriksha” & let your desires be fulfilled by it. Desire it, Do it, Achieve it.

Till death do us apart

As a kid Arun was very naughty & a menace for the people in and around the society. Arun & I stayed in the same society, studied in the same class in the same school. Having him around had its fair share of advantages & disadvantages. We walked to & fro from school together, like good pals. Yet he would steal my stuff from by pencil box. My pencil, rubber & even my scale wasn’t spared. One day, in sixth standard, during the games period, he took out my lunch box & ate it all, even without a burp. It was not that, he was famished, but another prank to bully at free will. He didn’t stop there. He stuffed the tiffin with grass, & stones. During recess when I opened the tiffin, all the boys who were waiting to see my expressions, started giggling. Expert comments began pouring in “See Neha’s Mom doesn’t love her, she feeds her grass, & stones”, “No Doubt why she is so dumb”, “Is she not her real mother”, “Step Mom’s packed Tiffin”. Being sensitive kinds, I could not bear the humiliation. Yes, I could not bear the brunt of the taunts, & tears started rolling down my cheeks. It was effortless, the hydraulic flow. They say it can even move mountains. I was hurt with the taunts & it pained my heart. It felt as if someone punctured my heart with an arrow.

My emotions were evident. I didn’t revolt, or shout. I was calm & poised except for the tears, making me look like a loser. Arun came over, hushing the boys, & offered me his handkerchief. He said softly "Sorry". I looked up at him, he looked really apologetic with a gloomy face. Smile that was there on his face a while ago had vanished in thin air. I always considered him a good friend, & I least expected him to do this with me. We were still pals thereon, not the best ones though. We had our share of fighting’s & leg pulling. But, he was always watching over my shoulder. When something went out of control, he would come to my rescue, either directly or indirectly. This friendliness was more in actions, than the words.

In ninth standard, his focus had diverged, from studies to sports. Even though I was an above average kid, in studies, but by any means far better than Arun. We, being in the same class, & I being better than Arun in studies made matter worse for him. He would get his dose of scolding & yelling from his parents, always comparing me with him as far as studies went. They would say “See Neha she just fetched 85% marks in the exams, why don’t you study with her, & take help from her… blah blah blah”. Therefore I had become the official bench mark for him. Parents in India usually compare their kids with other’s kids, preaching them, scolding them, or guiding them. No matter what the way, they pressurize the kid to excel & perform better than their counterparts. But that preaching & yelling rarely impacts the children. Even though I was the official yardstick for him, but least did he pay heed to what was spoken.

While in tenth standard, a little bit of maturity & sanity prevailed in Arun, & he started to take his studies seriously. For him serious study was to sit back with the book for not more than an hour. Studying beyond one hour was like overworking your engine, with no fuel left in the tank. He would say that the engine (brain) is over heated & that it would explode. This wasn't going to help him much, & he decided that the easier way out was to do combined study with me. That way he could extract from me the net knowledge, assimilate what all he wanted & could assimilate, & discard the roughage. He was smart at people skills & knew exactly how to take people in his confidence. No doubt he was the most popular guy of our batch. I agreed to the combined studies with him. It helped me to understand the textbooks better, while I would explain it to him. Also it led to my revision. We would begin the studies on a serious note & wind up in a hilarious & sometimes riotous mode. In the process we became very good pals at school as well as in the society. Completely confiding in each other, protective & possessive towards each other. The next 2 years continued like this with our share of fun, frolic, & friendliness. I scored better than him, but his scores had improved a lot. All credit to me, even though he would never admit that. My parents used to nudge me, "Neha combined studies are affecting your performance, & draining you out". But it never was the case really. Combined studies had now become a way of life for me, & what made it more exciting was that, it was with Arun. They say it is not the journey that matters, it’s the company that matters. I had a good company for keeps.

In tandem to the board exam preparations, it was high time to look ahead, & start planning to undertake a professional course after the twelfth standard. Arun as usual had no focus of what he wanted. But yeah, as a kid he always wanted to be a truck driver. He told me once that the trucks are so gigantic & so super, & that only super man or a super hero can drive them. I really don’t know if he still tamed that weird ambition. So I confronted him with this question one day, as to what he is going to do after school. To this he said “Engineering or Medicine isn’t my cup of tea, I will try my hands at being an Air Force Pilot”. I thought that he was overtly being too ambitious, & roared in laughter. He hadn't expected me to behave the same way his parents would behave. He felt very inferior, insignificant & worthless. I sensed the changing color, & muted. He was clearly fed up with people misunderstanding & under estimating him all the time. His parents, relatives, & now me. I couldn’t think of anything at that moment, but I wanted to apologize. I couldn't sum up enough courage to say anything but opened my arms to him, & letting him slide into my arms. He looked on for a moment & finally slid in my arms. The hug had comforted him. He held me back. The hold was warm & compassionate, but friendly at the same time. I whispered in his ears “Sorry Arun”. He just whispered back “Don’t say anything”. We wound up for the day & he left for his home. He didn't attend school for the next three days, nor did I see him anywhere in the society.

After three days I was there at his apartment, knocking at the door. His mother opened the door, & I enquired about Arun's welfare. She directed me to his room, & there he was lying in the stock pile of books on Aptitude & General Knowledge. He said slowly “Air Force is going to recruit, & I am filling up the form. I am going to be a fighter pilot”. His parents were completely unawares of this next move. Being the only kid, he knew he would never be allowed to join the forces, & that there will be lot of hue & cry over this. I confided in him, & encouraged him to give his best shot to it. He was overwhelmed, seeing the compassion in my eyes. He paused for a while & said, “Neha I Love you, I can’t imagine living without you”. The three magical words felt like honey in my ears, my heart skipped a beat, it felt as if the whole universe was revolving around me. It was the happiest day of my life. I ran out of words, perplexed & happy at the same moment. It was like a tempest, where you swing up like skyrocket, & then come down with a thud. I couldn’t say anything. He said “Neha take your time, if you don’t feel for me that way, I will accept the hard fact”. I wanting to shout out loud in jubilation blurted out “Arun I don’t have feelings for you, what are you saying??? Arun I think of you all the time. You are always on my mind than anything else in the entire universe. I love you Arun”. Things were a little different from there, the causal friendship had now become intimate friendship. We shared the study assignments, lunch, the bench in school, confidential stuff, & all the good things. We had our fair share of happiness’s, triumphs, & low times.

Entrance exams pressure & the twelfth standard exams had begun to take a toll on both of us. Arun was preparing to join the Armed Forces & had filled the form. He was fit physically, with a tensile strength unmatched to anyone in his school. He knew in the heart of his heart that he was going to make it. Neha’s support had only strengthened that faith. I was preparing too, for the medical entrance. Finally Arun cracked the Armed Forces entrance. It took him more effort to convince his parents, than it took to crack the Armed Forces exams. With a heavy heart they gave a go ahead to him. In the mean time I also got admission for the MBBS course in one of the reputed colleges in Delhi. I was elated at getting into a field of my choice & that too in my hometown. Arun had to join the National Defense Academy & be inducted for the Air Force Training at one of the Training Stations in India. We both had to tread different paths now, but we vowed to keep in touch on regular basis. We had become a part & parcel for each other, but with his stringent military training, Arun wasn't able to keep up the vows. Life went on like this, some vows were met some broken. New vows made. The communication barrier was getting deeper & deeper, with Arun’s demanding training & my burdening MBBS studies & the practicals. But we still loved each other, beyond egos, beyond demands, beyond selfishness. Not a day went when I didn't think of him, or miss him.

Time flew by & Arun passed out as a Fighter Pilot from the Academy. It was a day of jubilation & celebration. He had applied for a leave of 1 month, before he could be commissioned with one of the troops & be allotted his place of reporting. Finally we were together again. The old times, joys, unsaid words they were all coming to the forefront. I bunked my classes just to be with him, all the time. So much was to be said, & time seemed to just fly by. His presence made me feel complete, filling all voids in me. I felt on Cloud #9. I felt so secure & so happy with him.

During that 1 Month, the tension between India & its neighboring archrivals Pakistan & China had mounted to unsurpassable levels. Both the sides were treading on a thread that would break loose anytime. The borders had become a complete battle zone. Militarization of the no man’s land had begun. All the defense personnel were ordered to report back to their bases. Arun also received his orders to report at the Neoma Air base in Ladakh. The war on the border had caught momentum, due to the infiltration into the Indian side, by Pakistan from North West side & Chinese Militia from the North East. The situation along the Pakistan border was under control, but India was losing to the Chinese Militia on the north East side. The weather was rough, & the terrain even rougher. Arun knew that the return may never be. But during his 3 last days of stay with his parents, he didn't even sigh about it. I could sense that something was bothering him. I asked him, but he hushed it under wraps.

I was accompanying him to the airport, from where he was to catch the military plane to Srinagar, Kashmir. He was his usual self, all the way to the airport. He made sure that I carried good memories back home. He bid bye to me & I hugged him so hard, so as never to let him go. His eyes became damp. I pestered him to tell me, what was bothering him. He held my hand & said “Neha there have been heavy casualties in the Indian Air Force. Air Force is losing out because of the strategic positioning, advanced artillery & anti aircraft missiles of the Chinese. They are wreaking havoc. Neha I don’t want to say it, but there seems to be no return for me”. Neha was dumbstruck, & paralyzed, knowing not what to say. Going to the war front meant, making a death wish that would get granted too. She was helpless & in pain. She couldn’t move a part. He left my hand, & said “Neha I want you to know, that no matter what happens, I will always love you.............”. After a pause he said “Till death do us apart”, & he went out of her sight.

Lemonade

He was panting & sweating heavily, as if about to collapse. But he was feeling elated, happy & rejuvenated even after running the stretch of 40kms. His pain & the lactic acid could not overcome the happiness & the adrenalin rush he was feeling. He felt a slight pain in his left ankle & the right knee. Who won’t after running continuously for 40kms non stop? It took him 4 hours & 20 minutes to complete the entire stretch. A feat that would never have been possible, without the life saving, zingy & zealous Lemonade. The blood in his body now gushing through the veins at double the speed. Normally it is 300km/hour, but now it was at 600km/hour. The onlookers were cheering him & the other runners who had completed the entire stretch of 40kms.

The race was part of the charity for the thalassemic patients in India, who relied heavily on blood transfusions for a fresh supply of red blood cells (or the hemoglobin). Thalassemic patients have improper synthesis of the hemoglobin molecules, in turn causing anemia. The marathon was a noble cause to spread the awareness about the people who live with this disease, & yet lead a normal life. For whom blood supply is as quintessential as water supply is to any living thing, Arun was more so elated that he was able to sell 50 tickets of the race, to his friends, co workers. He had raised a handsome 25,000 rupees, along with his donation of 10,000. In a few moments from now he was about to receive the appreciation from the State health minister, who had inaugurated the run & had been kind enough to serve the runners during the race, being a renowned doctor himself.

But everything didn’t seem to be normal at the beginning. After running 5kms Arun was feeling exhausted. He felt that he had reached the threshold, his lungs about to explode, accompanied with his heavy breathing. His t-shirt was all wet, because of the sweat. He wanted to just hold the side bar of the road & lie down on his back, so that he could gain enough energy to get up at least to see another day. He realized that not having participated in any of the sports activities for the last 3 years, had made his body rusty, fragile & ductile. His physical endurance had reduced drastically. More than that, it was his mind that had gone numb, letting him go into a complete seizure. Blame it on his work commitments in a big software conglomerate that he had joined 3 years back. The work left him with little time & choice for his childhood love. Sports!!

He sat down partially, bending on his knees, & trying to gasp some air, amidst the runners who were passing him by. Some had iPods plugged in their ears while others were just focusing forward. Everyone wanting hard to cross the next milestone. They looked all the same, running towards a common goal, with a lot of gleam in their eyes. At the instant Arun felt so weak & bleak, & his mind told him to quit. He thought that, maybe he was not fit enough to complete the race, & that he should give up & make way for the other runners, who were overtaking him. He started walking to the nearest booth, with a lot of disappointment, & his heart aching even more. He was at the first land mark booth at 5kms, & waiting for his turn for some refreshment drinks & a fresh lease of life. He decided to quit after having the refreshment drink.

As he reached the counter, a fit looking boy about 15 years, was serving the lemonade drinks, & Arun asked him, “Hey why are you not running”. On hearing this, the boy said, “I am a Thalassemiac & can’t run, but I would love to some day, & that day I will beat them all”. Hearing this Arun was taken aback & felt sorry for the kid. The kid offered Arun lemonade that went down his throat partially splashing it on his t-shirt. He asked for one more glass of lemonade, & gulped that too, as if he had been thirsty for ages. While gutting the drinks, his eyes were constantly watching the boy offering drinks to the runners. Arun felt a chill run down his spine, & new wind brushing his air. His energy level & motivation soaring. He choked & blocked all the pain in his legs, & said to himself “Come on Arun you have to do this, not for yourself, but for this boy”. He bid bye to the boy & thanked him with great compassion. He jet set his feet on the track.

Arun did not stop for the next 10kms & kept on running, sometimes jogging slowly, sometimes sprinting & sometimes running, adjusting his pace. His pain had vanished or just that he had found a way to overcome the pain. Pain was now his companion not choking his mind & thoughts. If he felt some pain, he found out the means of overcoming the pain, by thinking of that thelassiamic boy who wanted to run but couldn’t. After all, only pain can overcome pain. The next refreshment booth that he stopped at, he met another boy whose name was Vikas. Vikas too was engrossed heavily in offering the Lemonade to the runners with great fervor. Arun was gazing at him, & the boy thought maybe he needed a spray or first aid. Vikas asked Arun promptly as to what he wanted. To this Arun Said, “Give me Lemonade with a pinch of your passion added to it”. This made the boy giggle. Vikas made actions of sprinkling something into the glass of lemonade, supposedly his passion & energy. Arun tossed it down his throat fast & thanked the boy. The boy was even more smiles now, & so was Arun.

Arun had got his kicks. Now no distance seemed far or no road seemed tough to trudge. He had pushed himself to the extreme, & that too with a light heart. He had made up his mind to finish the race no matter what may come. The Ambulances were standing by, but they weren’t going to be his chariot today. He was only going to ride the chariot of victory & triumph today. It was his victory over his inhibitions, pain & negative thoughts. The Ambulances however were rescuing people who were in dire straits, because of not following a good exercising regimen, bad working habits & to add to that, bad eating habits. Arun was sometimes looking at the ground seeing the road, as if the whole road had become his treadmill, just passing him by. Sometimes he just gazed at his fellow runners, & motivated them to keep up, by shouting “Come on Buck up”!! or “Run Boy Run”!! “Run for your heart”!! Others acknowledged his energy & effervescent calls by nodding their head in complete acceptance.

Soon Arun passed the land marks at 30kms, 35kms & 40kms. At each booth he had lemonade sprinkled with lots of energy, gusto & motivation. The lemonade had a personal touch to it. It gave him a new toss & a new zeal to fight the battle & live to the extreme. He was happy to cross the line at 40kms with just a few runners. Arun thanked the Lord, the Lemonade & the Thalassemic boys who gave him the strength to achieve what he earlier thought was unachievable. Arun had just felt the extra ordinary Lemonade had given him a fresh lease of life. Life full of zing, just like lemonade.

I love Odds, Cos they maketh me stronger

Success
Has no Address
Has no limit
Has no call
It is always 1 leap ahead
But the path is tough one

Many will take the elevator
But I will take the stairs
Many will get there faster
But I will get there stronger

Adversity will be my riding companion
To maketh me work
& passeth me through
Alas!! I will strike the goal

Insults, taunts & abuses
Gathered on the way
I’ll scatter to the birds
Because it was not of my consideration
It will make me feel lighter
From outside & deep within

My blood, sweat & tears
Sleepless nights & countless thoughts
& well wishes
Will share the joy

When I get there
I will be feel happier & contended
For then
There will be no more odds to conquer

Odds that made me succeed
& reach there stronger

That will be the day
To pray to God
To grant me strength
To withstand the burying force of guilt consciousness
To forgive me for the sins
That I may have committed

I love odds
Cos they maketh me stronger

(Source : Anon)

Mother's Heart Cried

Mother’s love for her kids is unconditional, selfless, boundless, strong & with no expectations what so ever. There must only be an exceptional mother who would not love her children.

As a kid I was nasty, mad & uncontrollable animal. Anyone would get goose bumps seeing my acts of brutality. This would pain her a lot. Then she would hold me back like her cub & pacify me by narrating this folklore to me.

There was a kid, who was very bad. Not only was he bad, he was raunchy, spoilt, arrogant, & ill behaved. He had got into bad habits of smoking, drinking, & gambling. He was small but big spoilt enough to be a sore on the face of the society. He would get into fights, learned rotten language, with nobody to control him, as his father had deserted them, even before his birth.

The poor lady would try to mend his ways, by locking him inside the home, praying to god that he give him sense, but all in vain. She was distressed, sad, but helpless. She would work from dawn to dusk so as to feed herself & her son. The lady was fed up with life, & would have ended her life, but for her son, she was treading this tough life. Life was tough & the miseries only multiplied by the consistent complaints of the people.

One day the kid was gambling with the goons of the locality. He was trading with marbles. He had put all his marbles at stake, & was losing them slowly. Soon he was completely broke, having lost all the marbles, but wanted to play more. He asked the goons to lend him some money, so that he could play further. They lend him some money to buy a dozen marbles. But on the pre condition that he offer something as collateral. He had nothing to offer, & couldn’t think of anything to put at stake. Sensing his dilemma, one of the goons told him that he can keep his Mother’s heart as collateral. He thought for a moment, & gave in to their demand.

They started the play, & he lost once again. The goons were making fun of him, laughing at him& aggravating his temper & distress. They told him to bring his mother’s heart to them before the fall of the dawn, failing which they would cut him into pieces, & offer his chopped body to stray dogs. Ashamed, angry & humiliated he left looking for his mother.

He was scared, panting & fearful of what would come of him, if his mother refused. His eyes were red, wanting to taste blood. He was fiery & had lost his nerve. On seeing the lad like this, the mother got scared, & asked what the matter was. He asked his mom to swear by him, that she will give him, whatever he asks for her. Mother did the ditto. He explained everything. On listening to this he said, mother I want your heart. The mom was taken aback. But she had sworn by him, to give him anything that he asks. She took the knife nearby, & stuck it in her chest, slowly boring a hole in her heart. She withered in pain, blood oozing out of her chest. She cried & smiled at the same time, seeing her son. She was not able to gasp her breath, turned pale, & was about to breath her last. She told her son “No matter what you do to me, I will always keep on living for you”. She instructed him, to pluck the heart from her chest. She was lifeless, choked, & numb.

The boy extended his hand, & slipped it in his mother’s chest & plucked the throbbing part out. Without even looking back at her mother lying in the blood pool he turned back & started running. He kept running faster, harder & harder. Suddenly he hit a stone on the road, & fell down, his face banging the ground with a thud. He was blinded for a moment, & the mother’s heart fell some distance from him. From it came a sound “Beta chot to nahin lagi” (Son did you get injured?). The heart start to rant in pain, even more than when it was being plucked from the body. The heart cried more now……………

Stillness of the mind (The Meditation way)

Devotion helps the energy traffic going from the divine (head) to the self (heart & the rest of the body). Meditation activates the parts of the mind that were unused & dormant with little or no activity. Scientists say that humans use only about 10% of their mind power, in their entire life cycle. They simply neglect & ignore the full capability of their brain. Even Lord Krishna said to Arjuna “Hey Arjuna the skills that you won’t use, will get destroyed one day”. Krishna transpired it to Arjuna in the context that “Hey Arjuna if you don’t use your mastery against your enemies, that mastery is of no use, & gradually it will diminish over a period of time”. Same way if we don’t meditate we are bound to become numb, volatile, fatigues, helpless, low on confidence, lost & other fatal symptoms. Brain the processor house of the body also needs some soothing. Meditation can even arouse the cells of the brain that are dead & destroyed. It acts as a stimulant to the brain, helping it to tackle confrontational situations, & deadlocks more effectively & efficiently both in the personal & professional life. There is a persistent need to meditate not only for the brain, but to continuously improve on yourself. Exemplarily a rope made of fibers, when new & raw isn’t very strong, but on fabrication into a rope its rigidity & tensile strength increases with the persistent usage. The fibers rub & run into each other, holding each other even more tightly. It increases the coupling & the cohesion within the strands, hence improving the strength & life of the rope. Brain is similar to this rope, which is very fragile & prone to tensions, & with meditation, brain finds a way to be calm & peaceful in these turbulent circumstances. This is only possible with the pushes & pulls of meditation. Without these pushes & pulls the brain will be like a silken thread, on the verge of rupture. Meditation also helps the brain to maximize its utilization.

Not utilizing our mind power will sure make us dumb, numb & eventually dead as a dodo. On the contrary our mind becomes totally volatile when faced with the circumstances which we aren’t strong enough to tackle meticulously. In such circumstances our evaluation system also shakes up from the root bottom. We may not even be able to hush these trying times with grace. In this utter frustration, helplessness & desperation we look up to the supreme power (that we call God), looking up to him for his help & sometimes even going to the extend of bargaining with him. Hey lord you grant me this wish, I will donate so much money in charity. Whom are you showing the prowess of the money, the one who gave it to you? You could have landed up in a miser & poor family & then you would have nothing to offer but yourself completely to the lord. Different people have different interpretations of the god, for some its just a source of enlighten, light, motivation, for other the purity, & for some just a source of attaining material, for some it’s the destiny that they call God. Meditation is a way to reach to the god. It is peaceful, calm & serene way for sure.

Meditation not only relaxes the mind, but it relaxes the heart, the breathing & thus the whole body. Meditation controls the blood flow in our body, giving us a soothing sensation & the feeling of the stillness. It makes us break from the mundane & monotonic way of life. Sure it helps us to connect to our inner self, & to help us know the better person inside us. By meditating one can traverse the space that was unscathed & untouched. It helps in achieving peace, & tranquility. Stillness of the mind also comes in handy.

Mind is actually bifurcated into 2 halves, the conscious mind & the sub-conscious mind. Even while sleeping the sub conscious is active. That is the part of the mind responsible for imaging & staging the dreams. Meditation has so much strength that the Rishis & Munis (Sages & Saints) in the old times, used to meditate for years altogether & even ages, without even having food or water, even battling the tough environmental conditions. Meditation is a sure way of escaping the conflicts inside & that on the outside too. It puts everything to a stand still & at peace. It not only gives oneself the peace of mind. It is one step further to that, & helps us relax, ease, & flex ourselves.

True Friends

Are we friends
or are we not?
You told me once
But I forgot

Tell me now
and tell me true
so can I say
I'm here for you

Of all the friends I've ever met
Your the one I won't forget
And if I die
before you do

I'll go to heaven
And wait for you
Just to prove
My friendship is true

I am Lucky
To have a friend like you

((Source : Web Post))

Yesterday I saw a dream

Yesterday I saw a dream
It was a gory scene
Nothing in it was serene
My memoir of it, still clean

My mom also used to have these
There was nothing to appease
It even made her freeze
Same dream, every night to tease

I was cold & numb
It made me feel crippled & crumb
Please don’t think that I am dumb
You can sense the chill on my thumb

I had a goose bump
In my throat a big lump
My heart going thump-thump
It was my worst slump

It gave me a shiver
My temperature rose
As if I had fever
I lost my nerve with a jitter

I wanted to grasp onto something
To come out of the vicious ring
But, all I could do was to crack & cringe
My body completely jinxed

Dream was about the Exam Time
My hands full of grime
I knowing not a word
Pen looking like a sword

The questions are the simplest
& I have studied only 30 percent
How will I pass?
Knowing just a pinch out of the vast

Frenzy continues for 5 minutes
I am desperate & distressed
All hope lost
Things gone for a toss

I running pillar to post
Knowing not what to do
Looking for ways to clear the paper
But can’t think of a way, out of this mouse trap

Fear rises till the threshold
Till my mind gets a jolt
My eyes split wide open
& with them opens the big illusion bolt

I wake up
& recollect the dream
Ohhh !! Not the dream
But the nightmarish scream….

I am Strong but Broke Off

Today I Wrote You a Letter that You may Never Receive,
Baby I'm Sorry but I had to Leave.

I must let You Know You have Bruised my Heart,
All the Passion & Love we Had,
That could have Last us a Whole Lifetime,
The love you Claimed was Only From My Side.

Cuddling you all Night,
Sweet little Play Fight,
Everything in Life seemed so Right.

Leaving you behind was a bit of a Shock,
Now I Sit Back & Ponder,
How we Got Together I Wonder.

In all the ways that we compared the Same,
I still remember the things we Shared,
You did your best to show that you Cared,
But Alas this World you Feared

If You Would Standby the World Would See,
What Love is & How Strong it can be,
But you be there & It is Fine with me,
& be the way you want to be.

Never think of those old little Times,
Never remember those little Crimes,
Those were different & Now These are different Times

We used to be Friends
But now we don’t talk
We used to be close
But now we go apart

So Go Away as far As you Can
Go Away From Me
Go Away From My Life

I am Alive but my Soul is Dead

I am Alive but my Soul is Dead....
I am not living just surviving....
I am battling to keep breathing,
whileas my heart is smoldering....
I remember the frenzy atop mosque megaphones....
The sound of the Guns & Bombs
still raging in my ears....
The Blood stained Roads.....
The Closed Schools.....
My brethren Killed....
Freedom Snatched.....
My Childhood Snatched....
My Land Snatched.....
Women raped....
Men killed...
Even children were not spared...
Temples destroyed .....
Houses burnt....

I was all of 10 years, when turmoil in the valley engulfed the valley. I could hear the azaan from the mosque all night long, commanding Kashmiri Pandits & all Hindus to flee from Kashmir. "Nalay Taqdeer, Allah Hu Akbar". Till date I don't know what it means, & this formed the crust of the bloodshed by the terrorists in the valley. Noise of Cross fire or a Bomb Blast had become a common thing in the markets, roads, buses & any public places. Temples were razed down, houses were burnt.

Where the mind is without fear

Where the mind is without fear
Where the thoughts are all clear
Where the heart is set upon the goal
Where spirits soar deep in the sky

Where you let go all your ego
Where you do, what you are destined to do
Where you have a clear understanding
Where you have some space to breathe

Where you think you can
Where you do, what you think
Where success touches your feet
Where you know failures lie beneath

Where you work for somebody else
Where you live for loved ones
Where love, feel reigns supreme
Where materialism doesn't exist

Where you live each moment of your life
Where you rejoice to the fullest of your heart
Where you know somebody's standing by
Where you know that he is there to help out

Known by all courageous and brave

Known by all courageous and brave
Life's a journey from
Cradle to grave
And all we do is crave, crave & crave

For love and affection
Praise and affection
And miscellaneous much more
Unaccounted for

Some do work a lot
To reach their goal
Some are mere fools
Striking onto same pole

It was a little tough
Right at the start
But it did work out
When I worked on hard

Although these years
I have learnt a lot
And have come along
Mine good and bad

I lost a little
But gained much more
I disbelieved a little
But believed much more

I know them all
Who would lend
A kind helping hand
Whenever I cried for it aloud

I was broken in spirit
Someday, someway
Though I was boosted of it
To go along my way

Lots of pains
& tears it took
To enable me to stand
On the pinnacle

That day I can say
That I did it all
Did it all, my way
And that'll be my life's best day

That’ll be the day
Not to listen anymore
But to say it all
What I wanted to say

Life

Life is the greatest puzzle
That none can ever solve
Sometimes stormy
Sometimes sunny

It resembles an ocean
At times quiet & at times angry
Some keep along the bay
So as not to sway

But this sure makes life a zero
to go along the waves
So try & change the path of the waves
To show you are a real hero

For man it is projected victory
That may prove to be a dejected defeat
But try & retry to understand it
And that's what life means

A piece of Shroud

Life as I remember
Told by an elder
A mysterious venture
From cradle to grave

Just a span of darkness
Very difficult to live
There’s nothing you can do
Because this is differnt

Just a drop of tear
From a heart that did care
About final wear
Of the very dear

Just a piece of cloth
From bottom to top
Wrapped all around
I fear if it is a shroud

Only one man lying
All others weeping
Only one man motionless
Rest all mourning

Just a word of sympathy
To console dear ones
From the ones
Who came up the loss?

Just a piece of shroud
Makes you feel cheated
Just a piece of shroud
Makes you feel defeated

Just a piece of shroud
Makes you collect all past
That you wouldn't have cared for
But for the final depart

Just thickness of shroud
Gap between death and life
It is all in his hand
And a call from the grand (god)

Is white in color
Symbolizing purity
Hiding your deadly sins
Rubbing all biasing

What?
Just a piece of shroud

Friendship

Life with its idiosyncrasies plays a very bitchy part sometimes. People often complain that others aren’t the same, & have changed. People change with time, their configuration changes, their priorities, and mindset changes. After all, change is the only things that are eternal in this universe. But it’s not really the people who change, or who are to be blamed for their behavioral transition. It’s the company they keep, the environs they dwell in, & the mindset of people they interact with, that enforces this change in them. It completely changes them over giving them a new individuality, & personality.

The ones, who were very attached once, become detached, & in this transition those who were distant become near. We gel with the like-minded people, whom we can relate with. Even though the individuals are north pole & South Pole, but if the mentality & the mind sets match, they make up a good pack, for the world to see. These people become so close that you can ultimately share your happiness, sadness & almost all daily activities with them. In other words you confide & surrender to them. But that's mutual & is healthy, till they don't indulge in each other.

We don't choose our relatives, but we choose the friends that we have. Friends that one has are a real imitation of you. People with same situations, priorities, & thought process are more prone to gel up well. Such people even reciprocate your energies, most likely the positive energies. So once such a protocol is setup, there is a vibrant flow of information & energy. Consider the case, that you have had a tough day in the office, & get back home tired, burnt out & drained, badly wanting to retire to bed. Suddenly a friend calls, & invites you over for a party. You are all revved up & charged, & end up in the party, having a complete blast. On the contrary some 1-hour back your instincts, energies, & motivation levels were down to sub zero, but a friend’s call lifted your spirits. Friend is for sure a soul lifter and a mood lifter, they’re to cheer you up, & take care of you. They act as a balm when you are in dire straits. They may not carry your load, but you knowing that they are there, makes a lot of difference, & makes your journey through life easy & comfy. Bon Voyage in this ship of friendship.