Yaaron dosti badi hi haseen hai...

With the extended weekend and hubby down with cold (yeah, he can catch a cold in the hottest of weathers), I took up the daunting task of cleaning the bookshelves. We both are ardent readers and consume atleast two books a week each, in addition to the magazines, newspapers, e-papers and blogs. But I digress... So, as I was cleaning, I came across a bunch of albums - my school days' photographs. All thoughts of cleaning flew from my mind as I opened them to relive and cherish the priceless childhood memories...

I loved to play 'House-House' with my elaborate kitchen-set. Even while my bro was very young, I used to make him the Man of the house, give him an empty brief-case and send him to office while I took the skins of peeled veggies from my mom and would cook meals, hang clothes to dry on ropes tied between windows.

I had (and still have) this childhood friend of mine (let's call him H). Now, H was in my school and while returning home, we would hand our school-bags to our mothers and run off ahead, climb the staircases of other buildings and hide till we would see our mothers pass from below. Then we would race ahead and surprise our mums by hugging them.

We played in mud but didn’t catch any germs; played in the pool but didn't catch a cold... It used to be a regular feature for both H and me to try and beat each other in swimming.

H used to have these birthday parties with the most awesome 'Aam-Raas' (Mango pulp / juice) I'd ever eaten. His birthday would also have the most craziest of punishments for 'Passing - the - Parcel' - climb a tree, drink 10 glasses of water, jump over the gate etc.

In school, the last period of the day used to feel like the longest. We used to eagerly wait for bell to ring & to run off to the play-ground / auditorium to play. PT (Physical Training) periods used to become TP (Time-Pass) for all of us.

We used to write in the best of our hand writing only to get a star in the class work copy.

I used to play a lot of DOS games. PC-MAN, BRICKS were my favourites.

I have played dozens of pranks. We were a group called Chunky-Monkey' group - a gang of sorts and we used to have immense fun.

It was a matter of pride to become the monitor of the class. And I was the undisputed monitor from Standards three to ten since I was one of the most talkative student around.

We used to be the happiest when teacher wrote those four words in our diaries -Tomorrow is a holiday. It was the best purpose of the school diary.

There are lots of memories where these came from... Vibrant, energetic, innocent and pure fun - school days were some of the best days of my life.

Rock On!!!

When you come to the edge of all things that you know, you must believe one of two things: There will be earth on which to stand, or you will be given wings to fly.

I was browsing lazily one summer afternoon, when I read this line. And it stuck on! What appealed to me was that it glowed with positivism and strength. As a recent advertisement puts it : the edge is just the beginning... a place to fly from...

Now a bit about myself. I’ve been generally having a very 'exciting' life from the time that I can remember. As someone had put it - my life's like the roller-coaster ride - full of ups and downs; thrills and adventures!

And in all of this, I've learnt a few lessens as well :

• There are only a few things that truly count for a happy life. I believe, everyone should make this the main purpose of their lives. To be content and happy. And pleasantly, happiness and peace of mind can be achieved by giving them to others. It is the simplest and easiest way to a good life. I believe one should do essentially whatever it takes, within ethics and limits of one's personal beliefs, to be happy.

• Know when to try harder and when to walk away. Having lived through my life (and living, as I speak), I’ve realised that, in retrospect, most of the things don’t matter. So much of what I got excited about, anxious about, or wasted my time and energy on, turned out not to matter. I am a perfectionist and there have been tonnes of times, I've been reluctant to let go of a project or a situation because I was not happy with the outcome. But I've grown to realise that there are very few things in life that you really have a control over and those are the ones that really count.
  

• Life hurts at times. Endure. Grieve. Move on. This has been, till date, my biggest learning and I'm still grasping it. I understand the first. I do the second and third. But I invariably get stuck at step 4. The moving on bit is still something I need to come fully to terms with. It takes enormous amount of will-power for me to let go of situations where I feel life has been unfair to me. And all this despite the fact that it is crystal clear to me that the only person who suffers in this is me! The mind, inspite of all its intelligence and rationality, can be very incredibly stupid at times! So, know where to go... be it to your best friend... or a charming inn in the woods... when your soul needs soothing.
  

• Be a free spirit. I think laughter, the sparkle in one's eyes, the radiance and glow on one's face when one is happy, is the best panacea for all ailments - physical and mental. I would always want to be a kiddo in my heart.

• Keep up the excitement and the enthusiasm. Climb the tallest mountain, swim the longest water body you can find. Picnic at midnight. Take up a new hobby. See new places. Or simply take a midnight drive to the beach and stick around for dawn. My point is to take advantage of what you have: energy, idealism, enthusiasm, a willingness to experiment, a lack of encumbrances, a desire to learn and grow.

• ...and finally, friendships are the best relationships one can have in this lifetime. They heal the heart, soothe the soul and provide laughter and support when you need them the most. I believe a loyal friend stays loyal under enormous amounts of thoughtless abuse and I am blessed to have such great friends in my life. They help me remain sane in the craziest of moments and double the happiness in my craziest of moments as well. :)

The choice is yours...

I’ve hit rock bottom so many times that at a point, I’ve just reconciled with the fact that I’m destined to have an exciting life and present the world with a very charming autobiography at the end of it! And I'm glad that all of the above, my life experiences, will find space and meaning in it.

A New Beginning...

A New Beginning - it seems like a new start - can almost smell the freshness of a brand new blog; the virgin white background, the dark ink, the thoughts flowing freely without any barriers... to put it simply - it feels good!

Hmmm... so what should I write about? Should I describe my pillars of strength and sense of identity – my family? Or should I talk about the unconditional support and encouragement that all my friends-who, I feel fortunate to write, are too numerous to name-provide me time and again? Or perhaps I should pen down the chronicles of my Alma Mater and the various educational institutes which have given me and still continue to give me so much, not only in terms of academics; a part of which I’ll always carry with me wherever I go.

But I guess, a topic that has always remained closest to my heart is friendships!... After having so many friends - guys particularly - so close all my life, I have asked myself a million times how the hell am I going to maintain my commitment to their friendships after I marry and if I can't, then is there any sense in investing so much of my feelings, emotions, time and energy in nurturing these very relationships which I may have to uproot in a few years. And every time I've asked this, they've told me just one thing - enjoy this moment - this moment is your life! They always tell me it really doesn't matter whether we'll be able to be friends forever, whether we'll be always able to share moments, thoughts and problems with as much comfort and ease so long as we are together now. And thatz what friendship is about na - it transcends all boundaries of age and time. It just avows the fact that whatever be the distances between us, whatever be our compulsions, our obligations, our helplessnesses, we'd be there for each other. Friendships give tremendous strength and I guess its reason enough to give it one's all.

What I've shared with my buddies is really truly wonderful. I really don’t think I can define my relationship with my buddies or give it a name…its much beyond friendship and dare I say, beyond love… its this quiet confidence and trust that we share…this comfort zone that we have where we can actually discuss anything.. this small voice in our hearts which keeps reminding us that no matter where we go, who we are with, what we do… anytime and anyplace, we always have each other.

My buddies have given me everything - from life’s lessons to getting me to face myself. They’ve been my bestest friends and worstest critics. The've never made any decisions for me, only gently nudged me towards the right decisions and even if I have gone ahead to choose the wrong one, they’ve stood by me like a rock through all the troubles ‘coz of my wrong decision. And they’ve always pointed out where I’ve gone wrong... If I’ve gone to them with any of my endless troubles, they’ve always spent more time telling me my weaknesses, my short-comings instead of just telling me a way out…in short, they’ve been what I’d call ideal friends! They’ve sat through my endless cribs, my tantrums, my stubborn views, my childish ways, my whims and fancies, my ‘taking-for-granted’ incidents, my tears, trials and tribulations with infinite patience and sensitivity and understanding. These are guys who have helped me live my life, who have shown me how wonderful life can beand have strongly reinforced my faith in the goodness of friendship!!! All I can say is : Somewhere Someone must be very happy with me to have given me such AWESOME friends!!!!!!!!!!!!!!