Dew

On a conversation with a friend, I got to know that the Class 10 results are out and a common friend’s daughter was upset because she scored just a 95%. Apparently, she expected to top the class and missed it by 2%. Yes, 2% is lot in Indian schools. A hundred people may have scored over-and-above your score.  With three cheers to this obsessive compulsive disorder of worrying about scores ( I have once been there too!, I must confess.. in June 1996). I am writing the following list of thoughts that flash in my mind: Ask the value of a nanosecond to a Olympic runner. What matters is being the winner. The fact that someone ran faster in the race by 30 seconds, is a big ' Lost or Won’ , number!! Between 11:59 P.M and 12:01 A.M is just two minutes on the clock but two different dates, which means a lot when it comes to an admission in an extra-ordinary pre-school that admits kids born on or before 31st July, and your tiny tot was born on 12:01 A.M on 1st August!!! One...

On a technical document today, I read this acronym, TOA. I checked with my colleague if it meant 'Terms of Agreement' as it seemed to fit the context. Hours later, I got to know TOA expands as 'Token of Apology'. How different it was from my interpretation of the same!!! Misunderstanding the terms 'Token of Apology' and 'Terms of Agreement', is not acceptable in the context of the text I was reading today. My wonder-filled and wandering mind at once worked: Given that I can understand one acronym incorrectly, wonder how many more such things, people, situations, concepts can exist today amidst us?  For a situation, in the temperament of a set of people each with her own background/stress/personality traits/strengths/Weakness, people can interpret a concept very different from its intended meaning.  In such a complex scenario of many limits at play, each person can differently understand a point because the meaning, the intended meanin...

… Whenever I hear this word, my mind recalls the image of the seashore and a single file of footprints. The famous poem of Footprints is about how the child learns that the single set of prints are those of God who carried the child in times of trouble. It was a rainy evening in Bangalore, yesterday. I was listening to Rahman’s high-energy music and was literally dancing in my mind to the tune, with my feet racing and pacing to the notes in the song. I got drenched in the rain and happily so, after a long time. I was just enjoying myself thoroughly when I saw a footprint on the concrete pavement.  Just one file of footprints to me seemed to tell a history note -  of someone who had walked on the pavement, as soon as they had finished making the cement layer on the concrete pavement. How careless!! was the first impression. The concrete dried, pavement became operational, but the footprint stayed. I smiled. This morning, on my way to work, I got off the bus on...

On this Earth, for most human beings, comes unannounced and as a complete surprise!! Human beings have many priorities at the many pedestals they stand upon, in the various stages of their lives. In the pedestal of childhood, the most important stage is to make new friends and the highest priority besides cakes and chocolates is to play outdoor games. In the pedestal of adolescence, the most important stage is to leave home to go to University for most people, and the highest priority is to enjoy everything. In the pedestal of early adulthood, the most important stage is to achieve in education and the highest priority is to be independent. In the pedestal of adulthood, the most important stage is to find a life partner and the highest priority is to live a happy marriage. In the pedestal of middle-age, the most important stage is to keep the family happy and the highest priority is to find our own happiness despite the odds facing us. In the pedestal...

This morning, I was looking for something and found a piece of newspaper with a news article on a ‘No-brainer’ technique to something. Books say that we already use little of our brain power. More of automation, simplification, and 'no-brainer' tips/techniques/tricks may just end up in a rusty and lazy brain in us and the 'growing up' younger generation, is my subtle, yet, pronounced worry. While we want everything automated, simplified, and made as convenient as possible, we forget that we should have more time to live. Do we have that kind of time today? Without these luxuries and engineered lives we have today, how did our previous generation do it all, yet have time and live a better life than we all do?? The answer to this question is a simple realization I had: We always want more. With the underlying belief of always wanting more of things, people and their time, we have derailed from the path of what matters:   Contentment, Value Principles, ...

I think about someone who was upset when we spoke earlier today. I see a temple at the crossroads and say a quiet word of prayer for the person. I look down on the pavement and see an insect writhing, in an effort to be moving again. I drift off in thoughts... For some reason, I am able to connect the dots and see the Universe's message for me. The person is struggling too. A lot of pain it must be. I wish and hope it gets soothed and healed by a miraculous touch of the Universe.  I recall from school: Make me beautiful in your eyes; Make me truthful in your ears; Make me strong in body and in mind; Make me gentle, good, and kind; Help me, dear God, to do my duty always; Wherever I am let me do my part!. That makes me wish if there is something I must do, I better know! The Universe is what I trust in. As an afterthought... I did not help the insect back on its track. I have never done to date. Too bad, I realize late. Hours later, I get off a bus, headed homeward. ...

Enjoy Life! What could it be really?? On a casual yet, planned conversation yesterday with a friend of mine, he mentioned: "Somewhere along the way, we have forgotten to enjoy life". The ‘we’ referred to most people in the Indian sub-continent. I could not agree more. An hour ago, in the Monday morning traffic, window-seated in a bus, I was listening to a very famous Tamil poet’s song: Chinnanchiru Kileye sung by a voice that practically can stop me on my tracks: Unnikrishnan. Oh! it was divine - the whole experience! I watched the fresh green leaves of the Gulmohar trees lined up on the road, sway in a perfect choreography to the tune. [I enjoy Bharatanatyam, the South-Indian classical dance, so much that I start mentally choreographing some really good musicals as I listen to songs. I did not chance to perform in twenty plus years now, still, the love of Bharatanatyam has not faded one bit in my being.] The experience was all the more engagingly enjoyable and ...

From the anthill to the hallway to the sugar cube to the anthill is a long way for an ant. From the farmers to the market is a long way for the rice grain. From the egg to the chick to the chopping table is a long way for the chicken. From the bed to the bath and back to the bed is a long way for an ailing elderly person. From the bed to the bathroom to dining table to school gate to class is a long way for a toddler. After an overwhelmingly occupying morning with the kitchen and kids, from the bath to the dresser to the dining table to the vehicle through the traffic to the office campus gate to the elevator to the desk to the login is a long way for a working mom. So, when we say, "I’ve come a long way", could it really mean that we have been through some experiences worth our while? Dreams take us a long way than the Waking hours. Struggles take us a long way than the Effortlessness. Failures take us a long way than the Successes. Understanding tak...

All of us are built to be positive. We do not need someone to make us feel positive.  Going by electrical polarity, current flows from positive terminal to negative terminal. Electrons flow from negative to positive. Just run a search to know more, if you want to convince yourself of your lessons from high-school science classes. Recall Math lessons? Plus x Minus = Minus. We are inherently positive people.  By the Creator’s design, we have a certain mental energy level, which in different theories of Times and Geographies, have been manifested as aura, strength, shakti, positivity and many more of beautiful verbiage in spiritual diction. All of these refer to the inherent drive to live life positively with a purpose ( which we may or may not know ) that each one of us being born in this world will eventually and definitely meet.  This may be why are able to attract Negatives (Our thoughts, words or deeds may be negatively influenced by something that...

The Hindi movie, 'Yeh Dil Hai Mushkil' was a total chance click on one late night movie time. After quite a while, I sat for a Karan Johar movie. I have not been watching too many movies so I don't know if the industry has got some changes in thinking like my own mind has, but I can say that I saw this movie from a different perspective than what I saw on the screen. Age catching up? Or Wisdom teaming up? Or am I becoming more 'accepting'? I don't know which one is true, but I liked the movie for the unsaid thoughts. The storyline is simple: An attractive boy falls in love with a very attractive girl. The overly expressive girl shares some affection for the boy, but it is more of a 'care' than the romantic love( which is usually the expected outcome when two people give a really long deep look into each other's eyes on the screen ). They part ways as they find their 'love' nests elsewhere. Or so they think. In course of time, they ...

My five-year-old daughter taught me a very interesting lesson in life, the one that I always knew but forget to recall often! It was a very early start for us this morning. I was in the kitchen making her breakfast while she was in slightly an exploratory mood, or so it seemed. Unusual for mornings, she was intensely examining some toy car, drawing something that only she understood and basically did not have time to waste. Since there was no noise at all from the living room, I came out of the kitchen to see the door was open. I asked her if she knew why the door was open or who opened it so early in the morning, given that it was still dawn. She simply said, "I don't know amma. I did not open it either. I just turned this knob." The answer came as a beautiful thought: Intention is different from Action and definitely different from the Outcomes. She wanted to explore the doorknob - Intention She turned the knob to see how it is working -Action The door open...

Slow down.... Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In the heavy traffic, to let a fellow on the road take over you. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In the midst of a chaos, to breathe deeply and consciously. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In the mad rush to success, to ask yourself if its really your success that you wish for, or a win over someone or something. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In your busy work calendar, to just smile a greeting to a colleague. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In your craziest of temper, to look the other person in the eye for ten seconds. Once in a while, Slow down a bit.. In the middle of a complex work assignment, to talk to a friend. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In racing with the clock, to check if its the clock that decides your actions really or yourself. Once in a while, Slow down a bit... In a restaurant while being served your meal, to ask if the server has had his meal. Once in a while, Slow d...

Some things in life, come Natural. Some things in life are seen and learned. Few other things come by practice. Yet other things come by listening. Some things come by going through experiences. Some things have to be felt deep down, at an unfathomable depth of the mind. Yet other things can never be understood  in this lifetime. Teaching things to people, in my opinion is an attempt. Learning is an effort. Lesson and Memories are the gifts!' Some people never change, in spite of all these, because, its just not their way of life or may be the nature has not crafted the path of change for them at the moment. 

Most email users today know about unsolicited emails. Deleting emails that don't intend any sense to me has become a practice for me these days. There is always one of these emails to delete: Some insurance company selling policies that talk about the cash benefits. Some pregnancy related website telling me what to do when my baby cries too much. Some school website talking about entrance exam coaching and admission tests. Some property website talking about the latest to-be-launched apartment project that I can buy for just 99 lakhs only.. Note that there is a just and a only in the line. Some philosophical web site talking about how life is to live easy and for that I have to think like I don't exist, talk like a saint and walk the path of the Good God. Some shopping site talking about many things that I may never want in my lifetime. and the like.. Today, I came across a new kind of email which I am hoping that one of you would support. Yes, I am practicing le...

If we have to always be optimistic, then why does the opposite exist? When I read some ten lines in a temple that spoke about being optimistic, I naturally liked it. For those who know me, this is no big news. I am known to be positive most of the time, but then today, you may not believe, I thought a little different. Why does everyone talk about Positive so much? Why does the opposite of it never welcome?? We all know that opposites are unavoidable. If there is a high, there has to be a low. If there is a fast, there has to be a slow. If there is a possible, there has to be an impossible. If there is a 'can', there has to be a can't. If there is a far, there has to be a near. If there is a love, there has to be a hate. If there is a crest, there has to be a trough. If there is a success, there has to be a failure. If there is a positive, there has to be a negative. If there is a good, there has to be a 'Bad'. We all know that what we don't ...

Gravitational force is good. Imagine what would the world be like without it!!! So staying grounded is only but natural. If you feel your mental balance is fluctuating, then just remind yourself that it is important to come under the control of the gravitational force of your mind. Just stay grounded until you know you are ready to make the next move. And how do u do that? Simple. Keep quiet for the moment. Clarity will surface in a calm head.

In the context of health, we are hearing many things these days. In olden days people never seemed to need as many lessons on health like we do, because they were all naturally healthy. At least that is what I keep telling myself. As a general concept, man tends to talk about what he doesn't have and is never happy. Most of us are not really happy about our health and so we see umpteen resources online about health. Here is one simple way to good health I heard today: Wake up early in the morning, which is between 5:00 A.M and 7:00 A.M Have a filling breakfast between 7:00 A.M and 9:00 A.M Do not eat or drink anything between 9:00 A.M and 11:00 A.M which is the late morning time. Drink water, beverage, soups between 11:00 A.M and 1:00 P.M Have a moderate lunch between 1:00 P.M and 3:00 P.M. Do not sleep in the horizontal position, as in do not lie down comfortably on a bed. If your system is working fine, your eye lids will automatically close at 2:00 P.M. Recall a bori...

I wonder Why? I wonder What? I wonder Who? I don't know When.... I have just had my baby boy and could do one small change to help myself tide through my third trimester ante-natal term and the post-natal term. I STOPPED READING OR WATCHING NEWS. Then, when I finally thought it's high time I got back to the real world, I started lending a listening ear to the news items that came floating by from friends, channels and paper after six long months. I have still not made up my mind to read them though. Guess what are the first things I heard ?!! - 1. Inappropriate behavior towards a six year old in a popular Bangalore based school. 2. A murder of two people who were last seen welcoming friends inside the house for dinner. Among many more were robberies, plane crashes, inflation rates, hospital mishaps and like oasis on a desert terrain, I did hear about the lesser problematic topics - politics, education, social service and religion. My questions to no one in particular ...

Of late, my views on news channels have changed.. They keep changing often though. The current state of mind is this : News is not only about what is happening in the world around us but also about how much the news channel hypes up each news item. There is all day coverage of whatever news item the channels decide to mark as KEY. I simply dont understand the meaning and relevance of statements like ...." So and So has left his residence at 11:00 A.M for the trial in such and such a court.. "... " So and So didn't answer any queries from the news correspondents prior to the hearing "... " So and So did not offer any opinion"... And all these for some news item that is just not too important in an otherwise chaotic world. All day we get to see some news items getting repeated. This I agree, because it probably is important for anyone who switches on the TV at that hour. In such instances statements like the aforementioned don't really m...

The first time I heard this was in my Chemistry Lab where I was learning to use a pipette for the Titration. I still remember wondering "why in the wide world should pipette be such a complicated equipment and will I ever get this teacher to say, " It up to the mark" when I measure the liquid?" Many times from then on, the phrase " Not exactly up to the mark" kept popping up. Over the years I understand that Nothing really is up to the mark, its just that we define what the mark is... Whether it is the way you do things or the way you feel about things, it is up to us to fix the mark. The more out of reach we keep the mark ( read as goals) the more we will have to listen ( or feel ) that phrase: Not exactly up to the mark!!! So lower your goals first, achieve them.. Reset the goals to the next higher point, achieve them.. and at the end of every achievement never forget to say : Yes it is up to the mark!!! Your inner sense of confidence will feel li...