A very good friend ( in my son's kinder garten days he would say Bestest Friend), so my bestest friend sent me this list. I added some and deleted some and here is my wish list for the year 2011.
Health:
1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy
5. Make time to pray and read the bible.
6. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2010.
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minute walk daily. And while you walk, smile. Pay attention to the sights & sounds around you.
Personality:
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't overdo. Keep your limits. ( This one is definitely for me!!!)
14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. ha ha
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
Society:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything.
28. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
Life:
32. Do the right thing!
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. GOD heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
37. The best is yet to come.
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.
40. Love with abandon
41. Tell your loved ones you love them, you might not get a chance again.
42. Be compassionate with everyone
43. Dress well. Dont save nice dresses for occasions.
44. Blog more. Pour out your heart.
Hmmm.... thats a good enough list. will keep adding to the list.
See ya.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
I tried hard...
not to cry.. but the tears wouldnt stop. They were streaming down my cheeks. When I suppressed they streamed down my nose :-)
not to think of all that was said. but couldnt help it either. everything came back to me hitting me harder
not to be so negative - didnt help. every damn thing looked ugly
to eat - not a morsel would go down my throat. finally settled for a hot coffee. It helped.
not to search for your face in the crowd - that was the only thing that i was looking for. So I stopped looking at people
to be normal - the lumps in the throat kept choking me and I was far from being normal
to read dynamic relationships - I wasnt progressing beyond a line and anyway when eyes are full, vision is blurred.
strking a conversation with a old friend who I met after ages - and realised I was stopping every now and then and my thoughts were back to you.
to make sense of myself - nothing, absolutely nothing made sense
not to think of last time - I was only seeing mirages all around
not to be angry with myself - I was so angry with myself, if I had a chance I would have slapped myself for being so silly.
not to think of all that was said. but couldnt help it either. everything came back to me hitting me harder
not to be so negative - didnt help. every damn thing looked ugly
to eat - not a morsel would go down my throat. finally settled for a hot coffee. It helped.
not to search for your face in the crowd - that was the only thing that i was looking for. So I stopped looking at people
to be normal - the lumps in the throat kept choking me and I was far from being normal
to read dynamic relationships - I wasnt progressing beyond a line and anyway when eyes are full, vision is blurred.
strking a conversation with a old friend who I met after ages - and realised I was stopping every now and then and my thoughts were back to you.
to make sense of myself - nothing, absolutely nothing made sense
not to think of last time - I was only seeing mirages all around
not to be angry with myself - I was so angry with myself, if I had a chance I would have slapped myself for being so silly.
Counting my blessings this Xmas season !!!
It must the harmones that are playing havoc, as usual every month or it could be the games people knowingly or unknowingly play with your emotions and end up leaving you like an island in an unending ocean. Whatever the reasons are, this being the Christmas season, I thought it is a good idea to list down all my blessings in life rather than feel rotten about myself and choked with a lot of unwanted emotional stuff.
Here we go with my list…
Life … I am thankful I woke up alive this morning
A wonderful partner – hardworking, sensitive, loving, practical, responsible and a good father to our son
Fantastic Teenager – listens to what Joe and I have to say and tries hard to please us
Adorable parents – who think that their daughter is the best!!
Loving inlaws – who think of me as their own than as someone thrust on them
Siblings – who I can call anytime and ask for anything in this world
A house to live in – and I love this house, it beautiful, spacious and comfortable
Vehicles to travel – and not just one
A cute garden – plants that smile at me when I come back from work
Green thumb – when I plant they grow, no matter how bad the weather is
Fishes – that has been in our tank for ages and they still wait for the food I give them
Maids – who are dependable, who cook and clean, help me to focus in my work
A job – that allows me to explore possibilities, meet new people, allows me to travel and a one I like doing
Family – that thinks my career as important as other things in the family and supports me through and through
Intellect – to see wrong from right ( whether I use it is a different question)
Gift of the senses – though some are beginning to show signs of ageing, it is a blessing to have these faculties
Friends – few but very very strong ones. I need to think of them and they call.. no kidding eh
Cousins – who are emotionally attached and are wellwishers and so much fun to be with
Financial stability – both at family & independent level. I don’t have to wait for anyone to buy my anything
Neighbors – who are supportive and friendly. Nambiar Uncle treats me like his own daughter
Food to eat – don’t have to worry about what to eat next, the only controls are the ones I put for my own
Sensitivity – ability to understand others and be sensitive to others needs
Empathy – I feel I am generally empathetic
Ability to work hard – my attitude to work hard Impresses me sometimes
Clothes – a sea of them, I can go on wearing a different dress every day for 4 months without repeating a dress :-)
Shoes / bags and jewellery – ahem ahem
Ability to see goodness in others – no matter what there is goodness everywhere
Positivity – my greatest strength, I am able to see positivity in almost everything and in the most negative things
A Past in which I have no regrets – a protected youth and happy childhood
Education and a liking for books
Hobbies – like gardening, painting and blogging that can keep me going
Ability to keep the house spic and span including the wardrobes – many of my friends admire me for that!!
Grandmom – at 40 years how many people have grandmoms who think that hers is the best grandkid on the block?
Potta house – where I can still go back to and relive my childhood
Rubber estates – the dark canopy of trees that we can fall back on during our retirement days
A Greatl husband – who loves me for what I am, complete with all my shortcomings and of course the bulges :-)
Last but not the Least ( probably should have been the first)
My faith in the lord and gift of Jesus – I don’t even know the dangers that he has protected me from all through my life. Time and again proven to me that he cares for me and shown his presence in multiple ways !!
WOW !!! this is a real long list..
Life is certainly worth living and tells me how blessed I am !!!!
Here we go with my list…
Life … I am thankful I woke up alive this morning
A wonderful partner – hardworking, sensitive, loving, practical, responsible and a good father to our son
Fantastic Teenager – listens to what Joe and I have to say and tries hard to please us
Adorable parents – who think that their daughter is the best!!
Loving inlaws – who think of me as their own than as someone thrust on them
Siblings – who I can call anytime and ask for anything in this world
A house to live in – and I love this house, it beautiful, spacious and comfortable
Vehicles to travel – and not just one
A cute garden – plants that smile at me when I come back from work
Green thumb – when I plant they grow, no matter how bad the weather is
Fishes – that has been in our tank for ages and they still wait for the food I give them
Maids – who are dependable, who cook and clean, help me to focus in my work
A job – that allows me to explore possibilities, meet new people, allows me to travel and a one I like doing
Family – that thinks my career as important as other things in the family and supports me through and through
Intellect – to see wrong from right ( whether I use it is a different question)
Gift of the senses – though some are beginning to show signs of ageing, it is a blessing to have these faculties
Friends – few but very very strong ones. I need to think of them and they call.. no kidding eh
Cousins – who are emotionally attached and are wellwishers and so much fun to be with
Financial stability – both at family & independent level. I don’t have to wait for anyone to buy my anything
Neighbors – who are supportive and friendly. Nambiar Uncle treats me like his own daughter
Food to eat – don’t have to worry about what to eat next, the only controls are the ones I put for my own
Sensitivity – ability to understand others and be sensitive to others needs
Empathy – I feel I am generally empathetic
Ability to work hard – my attitude to work hard Impresses me sometimes
Clothes – a sea of them, I can go on wearing a different dress every day for 4 months without repeating a dress :-)
Shoes / bags and jewellery – ahem ahem
Ability to see goodness in others – no matter what there is goodness everywhere
Positivity – my greatest strength, I am able to see positivity in almost everything and in the most negative things
A Past in which I have no regrets – a protected youth and happy childhood
Education and a liking for books
Hobbies – like gardening, painting and blogging that can keep me going
Ability to keep the house spic and span including the wardrobes – many of my friends admire me for that!!
Grandmom – at 40 years how many people have grandmoms who think that hers is the best grandkid on the block?
Potta house – where I can still go back to and relive my childhood
Rubber estates – the dark canopy of trees that we can fall back on during our retirement days
A Greatl husband – who loves me for what I am, complete with all my shortcomings and of course the bulges :-)
Last but not the Least ( probably should have been the first)
My faith in the lord and gift of Jesus – I don’t even know the dangers that he has protected me from all through my life. Time and again proven to me that he cares for me and shown his presence in multiple ways !!
WOW !!! this is a real long list..
Life is certainly worth living and tells me how blessed I am !!!!
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Where has Trust gone ?
I was flying to Bangalore today. The day didn’t start well for sure.. I don’t know if it was the day that didn’t start well or the night that didn’t end well. Whatever.
I missed the flight – Yes, for the first time. And you know what ? I wasn’t hassled. I was cool. For a moment I was upset though, then, I thought what the heck. I have been working like mad and this is fine. I quickly booked myself into the next flight which was a good two hours later, and was all set to enjoy my solitude in the maddening crowd in the airport. I love observing people and of course thinking.
With Dennu having exams this afternoon, mom and dad coming home to be with Dennu, Joe going on a trip, my porgramme being affected by the delay, I was a more than a little preoccupied. I decided to put all these away for sometime and go on and take life casually, atleast for a day.
With all these thoughts filling my mind I was in the queue for the security check and saw a middle aged lady in the queue. Wrong queue. She was standing confidently on the queue where the men go their public physical smothering .. the physical security check. The first thought was she will find out she is in the wrong queue when she reaches the end of the line. But the good Samaritan in me realized that she is not a frequent traveler and might need some help and so I volunteered and told her, you need to come to this line and you are in the wrong queue. She turned around and looked a little doubtful, moved out of the queue and then whatever came over her, suddenly asked me, with a tone like “ who the < bleep> are you to tell me to move out of this queue” but the words came out were a loud “ WHY?” for which I answered, this is the queue for checking your baggage and move to security check. She didn’t budge from her queue. Kept standing her ground in the wrong queue.
I realized the ladies behind me were giving a look that said ‘ you asked for it’. I continued in my queue and she is hers. The woman who by now was kind of convinced that I might be planning to con her, got input from another passenger behind her to move out of the queue, so our lady walked the opposite side and to get to some other queue and not join the queue that I was in. I knew by then, wherever she goes, she got to come back to my queue. With Chennai airport being so small, there is just one queue for ladies and other queue’s would definitely shoo her away to the ladies queue.
Right enough, she came into my queue after a little while, with a real sheepish smile.
That was when I saw a easterner ( Korean or Taiwanese) in front of me very smugly standing in front of the ladies security check. I should have by now learnt from my earlier lesson with the short fair lady, which I didn’t, so I went ahead and told him, this is for ladies and pointed to the other side saying “that is the men’s queue”. I guess he didn’t understand. He smiled, nodded his head and stood his ground. Second googly for me.. actually third. Missing the flight was the first one.
I guess it is language issue or so I consoled. But someone else from other queue told him the same and he moved to the right men’s queue.
This left me thinking. These people, both the short fair lady and the easterner had an idiot like me offering help with a smiling face, and they were not willing to take help. I am not even looking at the gratitude that they should have displayed, for a stranger who came forward to offer help. They both just didn’t take the help, continued to stand in the wrong places, and realized their folly a little later.
Was it an issue of trust diminishing in general public or is it apathy for free help coming your way. I just decided that today is not my day but that shouldn’t stop me from offering help wherever / whenever it is needed, especially so this christmas season.
Thursday, December 02, 2010
If...
If is a wonderful, meaningful and thought inspiring poem by Rudyard Kipling. I just love some of the lines here...
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And – which is more – you'll be a Man my son!
Phew !!!! what a poem and what truth in every single line. I really enjoy reading this again and again!!
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And – which is more – you'll be a Man my son!
Phew !!!! what a poem and what truth in every single line. I really enjoy reading this again and again!!
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