A Cry

What kind of a world do we live in...

Where chemicals are our food
There are drugs for every mood
Water that makes you sick
And artificial foods to pick
Where Fashion and style is new
But spirit belongs only to a few

What a selfish people are we...

Breaking news is stories of distress
Of people in pain, hurt and stress
With a zillion mouths to care and feed
We only care for our unfulfilled greed
Entertainment is all on our mind
When did we forget to be gentle and kind?

What irresponsible monsters are we!

Nature is mocked every day
by our acts of violence and dismay
We take our blessing for granted
Dismissing the weak as unwanted
With blood on our minds we charge
At each others' throats at large

The purpose of life has been lost
For power and at what cost!
Simple, sacred, pure and whole
Rich with Being, Blessed with Soul
Such was our legacy, lost over time
Drowned in arrogance, violence and crime

What kind of humans are we to be
When we lose our sense of humanity.

What is so wrong with effeminate men?

A recent article about how to talk to little girls set me thinking on a somewhat gender related topic. I wondered how and why we perceive effeminate men the way we do.

What is so wrong with effeminate men/boys? Why is it automatically looked down upon in many cultures? So they have mannerisms that are gentler, graceful and much less rigid or "manly" than other so called macho guys. Is that the only reason for disapproval? That seems a bit extreme. I wanted to dig deep to see if I could understand how the general mass psyche works when judging these men.

Just being effeminate is not the reason, it's the so called "logical deductions" that society has associated with this quality that makes effeminate downright taboo, for some.

1. Association with being gay. Effeminate is almost an obvious link to being gay-is what is being conditioned into our society. And as we know it too well that being gay is not yet a completely accepted phenomena in a large part of the world for various deep rooted reasons. This explains the strong reactions that some people have towards effeminate men.

2. Deduction that they aren't truly "men" and that they should therefore not receive that respect. This is a downright sexist belief. Any other form of gender than a man's is somehow less respectful indicates that these people have low respect for females as well. Observe that not many people have a problem with girls being tom boyish. I haven't seen many girls lose respect for being a tom boy. In fact she gains respect from her guy friends who consider her to be "one of them" as if that's some stamp of approval that she's desperately waiting to get. I've been a "tomboy" during my teens (am possibly a little bit even now) and trust me, not once did I wish I was a guy! I liked playing sports, reading technical stuff, wearing easy, convenient clothes (jeans...T shirts). All this might make it look like I was trying to be a guy, on the contrary, I was just being too lazy to try and look pretty and had other interests which society associates with only men. That does not in anyways make me a man! In fact far from it!

3. Assumption that they will be wimpy, over emotional, clingy, annoying and not so tough. This I can totally and completely deny, since being "macho" does not guarantee that the person will NOT be any of these above. I know a few very typical manly men who apparently hate effeminate behavior for unknown reasons and they are ALL of the above to the point of frustration! Also, on a side note, I hate it when these qualities get associated with women, in general. Trust me, if you genuinely know the women in your life, you will know that they are far more emotionally strong and centered than most men.

So it might seem like most of these points have an underlying issue about women's equality and that we've heard way too much about that and there is nothing new in this article. I agree, but isn't that a strong indication that more and more of the social issues that we have today have the same deep rooted problem and that unless we genuinely want to deal with it, it will continue its quiet rebellion by churning out a myriad of other issues which are spin offs of the core problem.

Caught Off-Guard!

It’s not easy being in this position. But I can bet my ass on it that every person reading this has been in this position at least once in their lifetimes. So why am I writing this? Well I accidently, innocently and in complete naiveté, embarrassed myself in public. It wasn’t so bad, just that the constant recall of that incident has triggered cycles of guilt, shame and then recovery by pepping myself out of embarrassment one too often. So to end it all, I decided to pour out my feelings on paper and be done with it.

It all started on a warm Tuesday morning. The weather was beautiful and blah blah blah. You get the picture, all was well in wonderland when Alice suddenly decided to embarrass herself. Unintentionally, ofcourse. So the routine was on, people engrossed in work, phones ringing, copy machines printing, warm aroma of coffee tingling one’s nostrils. Ah, the perfect busy day. I was settling into this comforting feeling of familiarity. Little did I know that my life was about to take a drastic turn!

So there I was sipping hot coffee and engrossed in work, when suddenly, without warning, it happened. Initially it was just a small, innocent hiccup, followed by another and yet another. I decided to ignore it for a while, letting nature take its own course to cure it. That, my friend, was my biggest mistake! The next thing I knew was this huge guttural sound, emerging from my own throat, resounding the walls of my cubicles and echoing the halls and corridors.

There was pin drop silence. Nobody spoke a word. They had all heard my enormous burp. The silence was so still that I couldn’t even hear Tim, the wheezer, five cubes away. Time stood still. Conversations stalled, phones halted in mid-ring, even chatty Chico froze for that one historic moment in time. Digressing for a bit here, have you ever wondered why, of all times, does a normally noisy, buzzing, ignorant, crazy office area suddenly go quiet at precisely the very point when you decide, as quiet as a mouse, to either sneeze, burp or fart? Well, I sure as hell was wondering why!

I was stiff, more so with horror than anything else. I had even stopped breathing. How had this happened. My usually feminine demeanor had taken a blow, out of nowhere! How could I face the world after all this. I wouldn’t be able to see eye to eye with any of my coworkers. I should probably sneak out of the office and go on vacation for a week, until the matter cooled down. If they asked, I would just say that some family matter came up or even better, say that I’m sick. Maybe not. By saying I’m unwell I’d only fuel their imaginations that may lead to unfortunate conclusions. I could hear them, ‘Poor girl, she was probably having serious gastric issues. I don’t mean to be rude, but did you hear that! It was like King Kong having indigestion’ Nooooo!!! I can’t let them think that! I could hear them whisper to each other as I walked past them down the corridors. They would stop talking the minute I’d enter a conference room. I felt like a social outcast. Why me, dear God! What had I done. What sort of sadistic pleasure had luck derived by putting me in this situation. I had no future. It would be best to switch jobs, start a new life and forget the past.

With a sinking feeling I took a deep breath, looked around. Work had resumed. Things seemed to have gone back to being normal. Ya, right! Like that’s going to happen! I could read their minds as they pretended to work away furiously. The rest of the day went back to being quite dull (thanks to the exciting entertainment I had provided, nothing came close enough to beat that, I guess). Slowly and gradually it’s memory faded from my mind. Towards the day’s end, I was almost cheerful. Almost, until I bumped into my boss on my way home. I usually see him only in the weekly meetings. His office is on the floor above us and I was glad to meet someone who wasn’t a part of the audience for that day’s unfortunate event. We exchanged greetings, caught up with work and wished each other a good evening. Just as I was turning to walk towards my car he called out ‘Oh and BTW, you should try Tums, helps with indigestion’, he said winking at me. I swear I heard him smother a giggle as I did an about turn and ran towards my car. WTF!! How in the name of the Lord did he know about it! If embarrassment were a cake, then this would have been the ugly icing on top. It was only later that I found out, my boss had been visiting our floor the very instant I decided to do a King Kong parody. With returning feelings of embarrassment , I drove home only half hoping that I would wake up to realize that this was all a bad dream.

Heartfelt

(Dedicated to my loving and wonderful husband. Siddhu, I love you very much :))

Like when the sunlight hits the grass
A hidden sparkle appears.
This very feeling, I experienced,
Driving away my fears.

Years a stretch, patience was my friend
Long and hopeful the wait.
Hoping someone like you would come someday
And stand before my gate.

Least expected moments of joy
Felt like a rushing wave
When the first exchange of casual words
Stirred in me something so grave

Slow and steady the feeling grew
We knew it was definitely mutual
Looking for reasons to talk for hours
Had almost become a ritual

Something about this that I can’t quite say
Gives me a sense of calm
Something so pure and full of light
Spreads its ethereal charm

A missing part of me was found
Something so unbelievable
I resonate completely with you, my dear
You make my life more stable

Time stands still and the world disappears
our bond grows into an epitome
As I gently rest myself against you
I can sense, I just reached home

Influence Bollywood style!

Bollywood…..glitzy, glamorous, starry eyed Bollywood. The girls of our generation grew on it. It was our very first guide to tender love as we blossomed into the exciting and confusing teen years and SRK was its mascot. We dreamt of meeting the perfect one as we witnessed wonderful, playful and utterly passionately SRK romancing his heroines onscreen. While other teens were obsessed with studying hard, scoring the most marks, topping the classes, I had other dreams of my own. All these worldly tensions didn’t matter when the silver screen lit up with His presence. Yes, I use a capital H when referring to Him as a mark of utter and total respect for the one man that somewhat contributed to my personality. While there are important men in my life like my dad, granddad and my husband, of course, this one man, SRK, has always had a steady presence.

All his movies gave us, giggly teens, the hope that (ahem!) someone somewhere is out there for you…we lived on that hope and some of us still do. For me, it came true to the T. All his Rahuls and Rajs gave us the fodder to create our own dream boys. He provided something like a catalogue of qualities we’d like in our man. Every character he played had some pros that I’d absolutely love and some cons which were annoying yet endearing. Watching his movies actually helped me realize what I want and don’t want in my guy which finally led me to meet The Guy of my dreams who I instantly knew I must marry (and I did J. Though I don’t think he’d be too amused to know that SRK movies helped me pick my life partner :P ) What I’m trying to say is that his movies might be total chick flicks, rom coms, make believe stories, but his influence does make you stop and think. It makes you ask why you cannot have what you see on screen rather than accepting some glib, boring setup when making a huge life changing decision like marriage. His movies make you want to break the mould and search for that perfect one rather than accepting your “fate”. Laugh all you want at the childish idol worship but what I’m talking about is far beyond that. It’s a shift in your thinking process, however small it may be.

Just as I adored his on screen persona, his off screen personality also greatly appealed to my sensibilities. Be his passionate outlook towards his craft or his contagious enthusiasm, his charisma or his ability to dream The Dream, watching him achieve his dreams, in some ways, enabled me to fulfill my own. Seeing him steadily climb the ladder of social and economic success, especially starting out from humble surroundings gave me the hope to dream that dream which seemed so out of my reach at that moment. Now when I look back, those dreams seem quite achievable. But from my vantage point back then, they were pretty big ambitions.

Bottom line, what Mr. Khan taught me the most was to develop the abilities to dream bigger than what seems possible at that moment. You may not achieve those dreams instantly but you sure created a path towards fulfilling them. In some ways he cajoled me (no pun intended there!) into taking control of my own life and breaking free of practiced thought patterns when it came to determining my capabilities

Punked!

Disclaimer: The following verbiage lacks any kind of structure and is purely a flow of ideas jotted down as they occurred to me. It might seem like a mixed bag of thoughts and that's exactly what it is. My thoughts and ideas are an ongoing stream of wonderful and infinite possibilities which are far from being contained. Any attempt to contain them is futile and I'm thankful for that!

While warm, sunny weather usually attracts people out of their houses, I at times, prefer cuddling up and reading. Not just any light fictional novel but books based on science or technology. Not just any science but radical and, preferably borderline controversial, science. One such book talks about how science needs a fresh outlook and that it's time we start borrowing concepts to lead us into discovering spirituality the "scientific" way. Sounds cool, doesn't it! Well it is, that is, for those who can relax and look at fresh new ideas with enthusiasm. For the others, who aren't yet ready to overlook scientific dogma, don't bother!

So, the other day as I was reading through this book, it struck me how similar we all are towards our approach of an established ideology. Be it science or religion, once we are convinced of a set of beliefs, its only a handful who would venture out of the ordinary to step into the unknown, to explore brilliant possibilities. It amazes me, how intelligent, reasonable men and women suddenly seem to lose their senses when it comes to religion. Not just their senses, what they lose is a prized possession, it's their inner voice. Even those who insist that they don't really care about religious rituals seem to give in to certain practices, purely because they aren't sure about what would happen if they shun those practices. Seriously! Do you really, honestly, expect to cause havoc in your lives, purely because you "messed" up some traditional practice! Geez!

I, personally, couldn't care less about religion, not my own, not others. What I do care about is appreciating all that I have (personally and globally), being a valuable resource to others and most of all, keeping myself happy, come what may! Yes, it's selfish and that's exactly my point! Being happy all the time has sort of gathered social disapproval. It seems inappropriate to do so. Especially being happy/calm/at peace when your near and dear ones are troubled is supposedly a sign of indifference or heartlessness. Many years back, I would have agreed with this view, but lately this idea doesn't resonate with me at all. I don't see how I can be of value to someone else when I myself have lost my balance. This doesn't mean I promote belittling others' concerns, worries or disappointments. Far from it. Being happy doesn't always mean grinning from ear to ear and frolicking around. Just being at peace and absolutely enjoying your current action, whatever that may be, can be a source of immense joy. Some people refer to this as their meditation and that is exactly what it is! Such chronic peace brings a kind of strength and stability that can be a source of wonderful inspiration to others in hard times (for them. B'coz once you have learnt to pave your way towards happiness, you pretty much set sailing through life at top speed :D) I've been on either sides of the equation, so I know!

So if it's all so easy and simple, why are we over complicating things? Well, for one, we love the drama of it. Face it, we are all one big global Bollywood family! We don't feel completely satisfied until we've "overcome" failures, faced "challenges" and dealt with "difficulties". Sometimes we get so into the character that we kind of forget the whole purpose of our being here. That's when it's a good idea to take a break, step back and view our lives from a distant perspective, quite literally, imagine looking down upon your lives from outer space. It appears oh, so small, minuscule and at times, silly! Yup, the higher perspective game helps me snap out of everyday drama and look at the bigger picture. And once you are there, the right words and right actions just come to you at the very right time.

So as I took you through my flow of ideas, what do you think was my point? Surprise, surprise! None, whatsoever. It was all for the joy of it, for the fun of it and purely for the exhilaration I felt when I wrote all of it down.'Wait, what!', you'd say. Read this again and you might just begin to see that statement applying to the bigger picture here. Have you got the cosmic joke yet?. It's not about the destination, it's all about the journey.

To Love....With Love

Today, my love, I've known one thing

That come what may,
I'm here to stay
Your hurt, your pain
I'm here to take away

Some moments of low
and then some highs
be it whatever
my love never dies
With each rising sun
and every passing day
Wishing you blessings
To God I do pray

There's so much I want to
give you and then some more
My heart bleeds pure love
in abundance, that I can't store
Will hold you in sickness,
In health, will walk astride.
Close your eyes when you need me,
You will find me by your side.

Engineering Spirituality

It's astonishing how my technical side ties into my spiritual side. It's always been there, waiting for me to take notice of it. I took this long to figure it out, well at least begin the journey of figuring it out. I'm talking about my job of being an electrical engineer opening up a spiritual doorway which I had overlooked for so long. Absurd, right? Not anymore!

The most fundamental principal of electrical engineering is taught to us, all of us, right from school, in physics. It's the law of the materials regarding flow of electricity. That every material has some electrical resistance of its own, depending on it's individual characteristics, is a well known fact. Depending on whether the resistance is large or small determines whether the flow of current would be less or more. In other words, higher the resistance, less will the current flow and vice versa. Now what has this basic principle got to do with spirituality. If a correctly drawn analogy is applied here, this principle has every thing to do with the basic laws of spirituality as well. It is so clear and obvious that I am pretty sure almost every engineer (or non-engineer) misses this basic point. I'll say it again, higher the "resistance", lower is the flow of current or energy. Does that strike a chord yet? Think about it, what could this simple statement be pointing to with reference to our human existence. What's the conductor, what's the energy and what's the "resistance"? It took me 8 years to figure out that the very first thing I learnt about electrical engineering is the most fundamental sutra of life. We all must have experienced this throughout our lives and we still continue doing it. Doing what? Offering "resistance" to the very life force that is so eager to flow through us. All it needs is a "go" from us. And how do you think we resist this energy, by our thoughts, our staunch beliefs, our "logic", everything that stops us from having faith in the Creation. Everything that questions our ability to just fling ourselves free and into Life with the complete and utter faith that we are loved by It. I got this feeling when I experienced sky diving. The thrills and rush are only a form of Life force flowing through me abundantly. I was surrendering myself to gravity, to nature, both literally and figuratively.

What do I get by "conducting" do you ask? Well, what do you think? Isn't that something for you to experience and find out? Words are only a tool to express distinct forms of thoughts....What does one do when the Thought is Life itself and is so magnificently All-Encompassing that the words fail to express this magnificence.

Serendipity-The Parody

(NOTE: This one is a sarcastic take on my previous post called 'Serendipity')

Serendipity-the windfall, stroke of luck they say
The guy in front just won a car (damn!), while you still had to pay!

Walking down a (ridiculously) boring road, if you happen to find some cash
Oh no don’t get excited, most likely it’s fake trash.

Thinking of your favorite person, makes you stop in your track,
You hear a sound right behind you, S*&^!! The cops are back!

Some hot chick smiles her sexy smile, You think ‘I must be cute’
Only to realize, Darn! she was waving at a guy behind you.

Things like these make you skeptic, doubting everything you do
It’s hard to trust God showering love, and it's certainly not upon you!

No surprise, that luck is defined, as something so very rare,
When others encounter events so cool, it almost seems unfair.

You never get anything great and definitely no chance with pretty!
Luck, for you, is a distant dream, it’s more like ‘Ser-(end in)-pity’.

And the secret is.....

(Note for readers: The following post references ideas in the books on ‘Law of Attraction’ by Abraham Hicks. )


I just realized the key to make it work. Hold your ultimate desires in balance with your excitement to live each day.

What do I mean by that? Many people just send out eager anticipation and rockets of desire and then wait, so after a while when their perfect mate/job/house/car doesn’t arrive they start feeling a twinge of negativity. Hopelessness creeps in and they are back to self pity/sadness/disappointment. My friend, it isn’t about patience, it’s about eager anticipation for LIFE in general. While you make your desire the most dominant vibration, also give yourself variety, by appreciating and being excited about what you intend to do in your daily life. For example I can shift my focus to things like my job, making more friends, exploring places on my own, rekindling joy and love into existing relationships with my friends. All this without over burdening myself with responsibility towards other’s emotions and pressure to make them feel better because of my actions. If I bake a cake for my friend, it's because I wish to cheer her up one day or cook a wonderful meal because I wish to share my feelings and joy of cooking, with a friend. I focus on spending every minute of my life enhancing it and making things more valuable just for the joy of it. This way every time one thinks about one’s deep desire, the very last emotion on that topic is a highly positive one. That positive note is attracting bundles of joy and similar vibrations to actually manifest one’s desire.

By distracting myself into exciting everyday opportunities and rendezvous with life, I also provide least resistance to my utmost desire. Also, because of my joyful demeanor, I think of past relationships and past events in a very positive light. I see joy around me, in people and very good qualities in people are highlighted. I can bring out the best in people and be really proud of that ability. If things change on me and I’m caught off guard, no sweat, all I need to do is change my train of thoughts to something that once again makes more joyful bubbles arise in me than letting any sort of negative emotion. Seems easy, doesn’t it. Know what, it IS easy!

Practicing joyful living is a process not a destination.

Limitless

Disturbing thoughts engulf me, I'm there but not quite there,
What is it I yearn for, why the longing? Restlessness is taken over by despair.
I stop myself time and again, I know I can go beyond….
Then why do these limits hold me back, I fail to see what's wrong
At this very moment I feel like screaming, to break free from every bondage
The very thought of being restricted brings out in me a burning rage.
Able as I am, reservations set in, when orders are thrown at me
I don’t need to prove anything, I'm perfect the way I can be
Speechless, thoughtless, confused and fuming, nothing makes any sense
Feeling so limitless has its own limitations, its simple and yet so dense.

Moments

Tender moments, etched in time

Deep bonds, growing stronger

Close friends, full of warmth

Simple gestures, touch the heart

Genuine smile, makes it worth

Simple kiss, gives a rush

Heartfelt hugs, lift the gloom

Bubbly laughter, refreshes the air

Silly giggles, creates some fun

Gentle touch, says I'm there

Loving glances, brings relief

A soft cuddle, makes one blush

Holding hands, so intimate

Appreciating this, is the true essence

Life, after all, is not, without love.

Serendipity

Serendipity-the windfall, stroke of luck they say
An unexpected surprise, one fine summer’s day
Walking down a boring road, you find a wad of cash
The glitter of a lost diamond inside a bag of trash
Thinking of your favorite person, you stop right in your track
A sudden tap on your shoulders and he’s there behind your back!
Meeting someone totally new, you feel a strong connection
In a matter of days, hours or minutes, it grows into affection.
It’s tough to tell, what it is, that makes you want to stay,
To have faith in the power unknown, believe in what you pray
Something so sudden, so very great is always a doubt for you,
It’s hard to trust God showering love, hard to say it’s true.
This human tendency of doubting good, has made one believe
Its less stressful to think of the worst and much easier to grieve.
No surprise that luck is defined, as something so very rare,
When one encounters events so cool, it almost seems unfair.
But then again if everything was good and sweet and oh so pretty,
Luck would lose its charm and worth and wouldn’t be called serendipity.

Slumdog No.1

Before I start with the actual post I must mention the inspiration for it. It's the latest Brit-Indian venture called 'Slumdog Millionaire'. Considering the current display of 'exceptional talent' in the movie industry, this one is a sane, well crafted, structured....in short a fantabulous effort! As we sat, totally satiated after this unique movie experience, my roomie and I were suddenly struck with this crazy idea. We began putting together a story with the most outrageous cast and crew. Kind of a spoof (mind you, its a spoof of the hypothetical star cast, not the movie! I wouldn't dare to dishonor such great movie making effort). So here's how it goes:

Title: Slumdog No.1

Director: David Dhawan

Cast: Govinda (What a surprise!), Some new Bimbo-wanna be actress, Sanjay Dutt, another new bimbo -wannabe, Mahesh Manjrekar (Yes, he can fit into any niche!), Johnny Lever as the goon's side kick (trying to force out laughter from the audience) a few knuckle cracking, mean looking gundas and a few dozen extras (we need them for the songs...duh!)

Story: It would start off with the most eclectic looking slums of mumbai. Overtly emotional and loving slum dwellers, family oriented beggars and kid loving Gundas. Awwww. All's well in slumsville untill terror strikes one fine day. Religious riots hit the area and people are killed. Young Govinda and older brother (young Sanjay Dutt) are seperated in the brawl. Their sad looking mother is killed right in front of young Govinda's eyes. Actors are hamming and the audience is yawning. Ho-hum....

Zoom into the present day scenario.....suddenly they have all grown up into hefty 40+ oldies who, for reasons unknown, will always be 25 year old naujawans on the wide screen. So here we have an ever gregarious, oversmart Govinda, donning multicolored garbs and wooing the moholle ki choris. He is a smart ass and supposedly better than most others in his moholla. Although he earns his two meals conning people, he has a heart of gold. Meanwhile in another world, not too far, Sanjay Dutt has evolved into the reigning don of the underworld. His faithful, stupid and desperately-trying-to-be-comical sidekick Johnny Lever is stuck to his hind side all the way. This don is smarter than most dangerous dons, better than Bruce Lee in martial arts and still a romantic at heart. Mind you, despite all this he STILL has a heart of gold...After all he shares blood ties with his philanthrophic little brother. It's in the blood!

So then there's the whole Hindi movie masala, drama, brothers meeting, exchanging lockets, realizing they are brothers, crying over their dead mother and swearing on her grave to drink her muderers' blood...(oops, there is also meeting their lady loves, dancing around trees on lavish locales in the most untimely placed awkward song sequences) they finally reach the sets of KBC (somehow!...please dont ask me to elaborate on how they got there.......I wouldnt be surprised if the show host invited them himself.....its Bollywood!)

So then with much luck.,...actually all luck (that too outrageous luck) they manage to reach the final question.....when they are stumped....Having lost all their lifelines they have just one hope.....in the middle of the crowded auditorium they fall on their knees and start off with the most devotional bhajan you've ever heard.....and then the Divine blesses them (probably in an effort to get them wrapping up their ridiculous performances) in the form of a monkey showing up out of nowhere clutching a piece of paper with the answer......Huh!...Lost? Dont worry, you lost me too!

Ofcourse, during this final song its revealed to the audiences (and to the heroes) that the game show producer is, in fact, the main ganglord who had killed their mother years ago and was looking for the two brothers to settle scores with (talk about timing!).....So then there's the final predictible fight where everyone attacks everyone except the two heroes and ofcourse the two brothers kill the ganglord with combined efforts! Y ou would probably be praying for the goon to die...hoping that would somehow end the movie sooner....

So then with all the extravagant costumes, sets and performances...the movie finally ends (whew...there's always hope!) and we, the audience, are set free!!!!

Ofcourse, inspite of receiving a number of critical, negative reviews the film still manages to bag the filmfare award with the director swearing to the masses that he will continue directing more movies like this which are much better (read more hamming and more mind numbing)....... and just as we find ourselves recovering from the blow of this one....the final wave hits us when we read that this piece of 'artistic mastery' is India's entry for the Oscars......Long live Bollywood!

That's right! An awe inspiring, heart wrenching story.

Passion

Recently, an experience led me to write this. While I was waiting for a friend, I accidentally ran into an acquaintance the other day. As we were catching up over a cup of coffee I realized that a lot had changed for her. She was into various 'activities' for the need of fitting into the 'cool and hep' culture. She was justifying her actions which were definitely 'shocking', as one might call them. And throughout the talk I had a feeling that her experiences were utter waste of precious time, talent and life. From my perspective this isn't how life is to be utilized. Probably what she is doing makes more sense to her. But then the question remains that what exactly drives, rather pushes us, to the extremes of trying to fit in? Be it a group, a class, a community, a city, a nation or a species, we always want to fit in. Conformity, of all sorts, is the key word here. In this struggle to gain public acceptance we forget the bottomline of life. Very few people question their reason for existance and even fewer strive to find the answers. If you ask me, it's a process. Initial questions lead one to think and wonder, then when one starts digging more into his/her life, wonderful new insights are unearthed. I've personally gone through this initial process of restlessness and unanswered questions. Through all that, I realized one thing. It is so important to find one's passion in life. It really is. This might sound totally disconnected from what I've been saying, but it actually has a direct connection to what I've been talking about. When one has a passion in life, he makes his own path. He is sure of what he wants. He is centred. It's ironic how passion can actually make one dispassionate towards other trivial issues. With a passion in life the mind is more focussed on fruitful actions than presenting superficial facades of self projected to the world. There is a definite purpose in everything. Passion is a force that pulls us out of the viscious circle of meaningless existence. Channeling our energies towards the correct passion can do wonders for us and for those around us. Why, then, do people still prefer the typical existence of trying to fit in like a jigsaw puzzle piece? I would say, to provide us with examples. Contrasting lives of others stimulates one to search further till one arrives at the lifestyle he/she truly wants. Perhaps all this is just another piece of philosophy or perhaps others out there are meant to be examples of monotonous behavior so that more like me can find our passion. Afterall, it might not be such a bad thing that most of us live the way we do. It might just be a blessing, still in disguise.

Comical as it is now...

Comical as it is now,
Wasn't the case back then,

The story of a man
Who stood against it all,
His bravery beyond measures,
Refusing to take a fall.

His urge, his burning fire
Set him on a journey long
His search, his endless battle,
Was he really that strong?

Slowly and steadily it grew
His urgency, his desperate need
Looked for the door to his freedom
To the Lord he began to plead

How long can a man really take this!
It can happen to any sane chap
Doomed is the one who has to
But can't find a place to crap!

For my dear friend: Prajwal

So here's the thing I'm supposed to do
Not so easy, help me out, will you?

I have a friend, he wants me to write,
a poem for him in black and white.

Shud I praise him, tell the good stuff?
But that would be a half truth….kind of a bluff :P

I'm just kidding, I'm sure he wont mind,
He's a sweet guy…he's the cool kind.

Mimicry is his virtue….he's the best!
Imitates everyone in fun and jest.

Life of a party, dances like a pro,
Makes it happening….makes it a show!

Grins through it all…praises or booing,
Flirts with the girls... "How you doing?" ;)

Despite the fun times, he has his share of lows,
Perhaps u haven't noticed, perhaps he never shows.

His own natural self is much more endearing,
Than the front he puts up to gather all the cheering.

I wish he knew, that we'd like him much more
Only if he trusts himself and brings out his core.

You deserve more than you think, give it a bit of thought
Enjoy life as it comes…come on give it a shot!

Let go of your worries, they aren't worth ur time.
Revel in ur glory days, live it, its ur prime!

Off and On

Dreary morning,
No!! More work to do
Don’t want to go.

There on my side,
The little kitten sleeps in peace,
Warmth fills me

Heavy work traffic
Noise, heat and pollution
Grey smog looms.

Boss on vacation
A relief spreads through me
Joy makes me dizzy!

The phone rings loud
My boss dumps more work
He’s such a quirk

The clock strikes five
How quickly the day ended
Wow! I’m leaving!!!

The sun sets on me
A lonely evening, once more
My heart sinks low

The doorbell rings,
Those warm eyes make me sway,
He just made my day!!

To be or not to be….

Thousands of ideas race through my mind…..
This monotonous life is a bore.
Should utilize all my abilities
Create fantasies and some more

I could be an artist,
It’s a wonderful, creative start!
And if I can’t paint for nuts
We shall call it modern art

I could be a sci-fi actor
It’s fantastic what they do!
Like in Matrix, I'd change forms
And dodge real bullets too!

I could be a chef!
I am fascinated by food.
Of course, it’s for others!
I won't eat it (gulp), how rude!

I could be an accountant
I ‘m good with numbers, you know
A little Math revision won’t hurt,
Isn’t five times five twenty four?

I could be a salesperson,
I can make the best speeches
Can sell a fridge to an Eskimo
And heaters on the beaches!

I could be a beautiful model
Do I need to lose weight?? Lots???
Oh shut up, I am perfect,
These clothes are made for tots!

Thousands of ideas race through my mind…….
Too many choices for me,
Lets focus on what’s in hand
After all, Consistency is the key

Cynically yours

Clickety click, the keystrokes go,
Out comes verbiage from a cynic’s mind
Beware its content, its sharp and poison
Sure!! You expect him to be kind! ;)

They fret and they fume over worldly matters,
Nothing really suits their style.
But wow! What great critics they make!
They spot nasty stuff from a mile.

Perfectionism, is our true virtue,
They say with utter pride!
We strive, after all, to correct all the faults
Bear with us being rude and snide

Attitude!! Attitude!! They sure seem pompous!
Suffer from a syndrome called “I am the best”,
Looking down upon mere mortals,
We rule!! Two hoots to the rest!

As I ramble on for hours about their critical natures,
It becomes apparent, I can see.
Slowly and steadily I become one of them
I’m cynical of cynics around me!


-Poonam