Trot...Trot...She Went...

Come day or a night... trot trot she went...

Seasons changed...people too...trot trot she went...

Up on the mountains...down on the beach...

Trot trot she went...

Her world turned upside down yet trot trot she went...

Just about when her passport was to expire...

Trot trot she went...

Here, there, everywhere...

Trot trot she went...

Her soul was that of a gypsy...

Couldn’t halt when she had to...

Thus the One Above signalled...

She didn’t need to...

A visit to the mother city...

Or a trip down under...

A ride across cities...

Whenever she got a chance...

Trot trot she went...

Almost half a year, off to new corners of the world...

Trot trot she went...

New faces, new experiences lined up to be her friend...

At the brink of welcoming another year...

Trot she goes again...

What does the coming year has in store for her...

Only time will be able to tell.

Soorma...

This year has been so crazy that it seems as if it has paused my ability to express whatever, whenever.  The more thoughts that raced in my mind, quieter I became - by choice or by chance? Maybe both. 

What is life but a series of endless crossroads. You think - “Hey! I just crossed one!” And that very moment the other one is waiting right at the corner. I thought I was just walking away from the crossroad that the beginning of this year brought and suddenly, right in front of me I saw another one shaping up just in time. 

It’s the same old story! Personal and professsional. I’m at a point where a new challenge awaits. If I conquer it then I would soar high but if I slip, fingers won’t shy away from pointing at me. Something never done before. I have seen many firsts in last 18 months and this would be the next one. Nervous yet excited and that has always worked for me. 

Personally, the lesser said the better. On a lighter note, I feel like the one above is playing chess in full spirit and I’m the favourite pawn. I could write a sassy book about it. 

Nevertheless, I have seen myself in such situations quite often and I would like to believe that like every time I will unleash  the spirit of the Phoenix and rise above. Bollywood has always been very kind to me and has always slipped across an anthem that gets me going when the going gets tough. 

This time around this anthem is called “Soorma”. I urge you all to listen to it as well. Close your eyes (Not while driving you idiot!!), deep breath and let the Soorma bring out your spirit to rise above all odds and fly high.

Trust me, we all have that trait but it just needs a little nudge!! Currently on loop every day, Soorma is what brings out the Phoenix in me. 

Cheers!!

Rest In Peace...

Two weeks back when the world was celebrating the Eid festivities, I got news that a dear college friend lost his father.

I am someone who seldom gets tongue tied and would always have an answer to any question thrown at me. The only exception to this is when the unpredictable life throws the question of life and death. As a beautiful new being makes me speechless with joy, the loss of a dear one also leaves me at loss of words.

Yaara I wish I could help ease out the pain that you are going through right now. Takes me back 15 years when I went through my personal ordeal. Don’t forget to breathe slowly coz some nights would be dark, some days would be blank, time would stand still around you and only you would be able to break through this cycle. 

You will take your time to heal and come to terms with the reality but my promise to you is that you will not be alone in this journey.

Rab Raakha!!

Get Your Act Right...

Few weeks back, a once dear one called me. He wasn’t drunk dialling me but was definitely several pegs down. He was generally catching up. While he was talking about what’s going on with him, I (a critique of how he usually acts) was slowly shredding apart his actions. 

After a while, he came to a point where he said - “Sonal! I am beginning to think that I don’t have it in me to deal with what’s going on. I’m not competent enough to manage what I have gotten into.” 

I wanted to say then and there that- you fool, don’t you see how you are being forced to learn a long overdue lesson? But then I stopped myself from saying this out loud. This was something I had been telling him for a long time. I had tried to explain this to him many times during the past few years but couldn’t get it through because the dear one in question is stubborn and hard headed as a mule.

I don’t know if this post would be of any help or not but that won’t stop me from penning it down. I can only hope against hope that this would get some logic into your brain and help you get back on track. 

So here’s what you need to understand and accept-

1. We mortals are not perfect beings and that’s why it’s said - to err is human 

2. That’s why the circle of life states that we must learn from our mistakes and not repeat them. It is also ok to make a new mistake as that may lead to another learning

3. When we try to act smarter and ignore the lesson a mistake is trying to teach us then the one above will through that learning at us till the time we see it and accept it

4. You , my friend, are stuck and point 3 and that’s the reason you are in your current state of mind 

It’s time you understand the above and bring about some much needed change so that you don’t end up driving yourself against the wall and the people around you as well. You need to learn the following and your time is running out so the sooner you understand and accept the better is would be for you- 

1. Respect other people - from all walks of life who take out time and connect with you personally or professionally

2. Do not forget courtesy - learn to follow basic rules of courtesy and communication. You are not the busiest human alive on this earth. Everyone else may be equally busy as you but if they can extend basic courtesy then so can you. You must be wondering why am I saying this? Returning calls, fulfilling commitments made, responding to texts, say only what you mean and mean everything you say... am sure these ring a bell

3. Keep things crystal clear in personal and professional relations. Do not keep conversations grey and open to misinterpretation. Be the first one to nip a potential miscommunication or misconception in the bud. Don’t expect that this should be done by others while you sit back and enjoy the confusion

4. Put problems of dear ones that may arise from your actions at equal pedestal as the problems in your life, if not higher. If you are the reason for someone’s troubles and woos, don’t take much time in resolving them. And if for some reason there is a delay in resolution, be courteous enough to face them and tell them the same with a humble apology. You will not become smaller by this act. In fact the other person will respect you more. You cannot fathom the hurt that is caused when we become the reason for tears in the eyes of our dear ones. Every tear costs us blessings and makes our karma a bit dirtier. Trust me my friend- this is the easiest way to attract God’s wrath

5. Take a moment to look at what’s happening around you and be there for people (at least who matter) in their times of need and don’t just whine about your problems and how you are unable to think beyond them. This is when you earn blessings and that helps us forge forward with determination

6. The rule of life says that our dear ones would let us down several times in our lifetime. You are no exception but atleast don’t do that when a dear one is already at a low point in their life or don’t be the reason because of which they would reach the nadir

7. Try investing respectable amount of energy in your key personal relationships so that these become your strength in the journey of life. From what I know, every month in every year, you are not on talking terms with atleast one dear one. While I am no expert but any one will tell you that this is an extremely poor record of managing relationships

You need to earn good karma my friend. All your ongoing challenges are God’s way of breaking you down to understand all the above mentioned behaviour that you exhibit day in and day out. Till the time you won’t clean up your act, your challenges will not reduce but they would worsen further. When the almighty would see that you are genuinely attempting to be a better person, he/she would ease out your life path and in turn help you succeed. So before it is too late - 

“GET YOUR ACT RIGHT!!”

Period!

With Them...For Them... Forever...

I came across this ad few days back and it brought a smile to my face. I dedicate this one to all my dear friends who have someone significant in their lives - spouse and spice both. 

Often, as years of togetherness passes by, we take each other for granted, we don’t make enough time  for them or we let the love dry out. This is a wake up call. Before all this happens, make a conscious effort to be together and make everyday a special one for your partner.

We all have one life to live. So live it as if there is no tomorrow. Making it special for them, makes it even more special for us. 

I see and hear about so many relationships breaking up every day but still there are some that make me hopeful. When two people want to make it work, they will move mountains to do so.

And so should you...

As for me, what’s my favourite part of the above video? The smile that flashes on the husband’s face when the wife hugs him...priceless...that sums it all...

When The Mighty Falls...

I am guilty of giving into daily rigmarole that life threw at me this year and not investing enough time  in what unwinds me instantly- penning down my thoughts. So here I am, back again to where I belong - the world of my words.

This one is about the Mighty ones. Each of us have few of them in our lives. We build our world around them and center everything around their happiness, likes, dislikes etc and forget our own selves in this journey. And then suddenly one day, appears a crack. It starts with small signs here and there. An unanswered call, a message that was never replied to, streaks of selfish requests, not being available when one needed the other one, running away from candid conversations and the list goes on.

The mighty one knowingly or unknowingly start exposing a side of theirs which was never known to the ones who hold them close to heart. Either it’s pretence to get away or it’s actually their reality that they cant hide any more. Usually it’s the second one. 

And then comes the fall from grace. Once the mighty one falls, the world that the ones who loved them, built around them ...crumbles. There’s no looking back after that especially if the mighty one don’t realise that they were at fault. Acceptance never comes easily to them and denial takes their dear ones even farther away. 

To all the mighty ones who have fallen from grace in front of their dear ones this year, this is all I want to tell you- 

“Close your eyes and bend your head to think. It takes a lot for the one who loves you, to the core, to let the world they built around you shatter in pieces that cannot come again together. It takes a lot for them to finally say enough is enough and decide to walk away. Put yourselves in their shoes and for a minute just try and imagine what they might have gone through because you chose not to mend your ways. You may not be able to bring them back in your life but atleast have the decency to do right by them so that your karma gets cleansed a bit and it may decide to haunt you less.”

This song speaks the story of a fallen one so aptly and maybe... just maybe it will teach you the lesson that you should learn first on the road to redemption.

Happy Birthday Bandhu...

Dear Bandhu,

I should have written this letter to you many years back but better late than never. Well as fate would have it – it was in our stars to cross each other’s path and I definitely didn’t know back then, how our lives would change.

In 6 months from now, our journey together would turn 12 years old and that’s simply remarkable. We have seen many crests and troughs that life threw at us but we faced each of these together and emerged stronger. 

By now you already know about the curve ball that life threw at us when the fate planned our friendship. Of all the coincidences that I could think of, this one never ever crossed my mind and thus I was bowled over unexpectedly. Well to be precise, not in the happiest of ways. ​

Post us becoming friends, when I got to know that your birthday coincided with the day my father had passed away, it felt as if someone had pulled the growth beneath my feet. Honestly, I was stunned. This was way back in 2006 and my loss was way too fresh and raw in my mind.

I ended up treating you unfairly for several years after this revelation. While you waited for your best buddy to greet you on your birthday, the so called buddy (that’s me – guilty as charged) kept running away from this. She didn’t have the balls to do so back then. I would just say sorry and go quiet. 

But you my friend, never felt bad and always comforted me that it was alright. What touched me the most was when you said – “Sam it doesn’t matter whether you wish me happy birthday or not. As long as you are my friend, every day is a celebration.”

Bandhu! I must have done something right in my previous Karma that I got you as my friend. Over the years, as I learnt to accept my loss, I also learnt to accept that it was unfair to be absent on your most special day. And then I changed that streak few years back. While I cannot really make up for the lost birthdays but now, I try and ensure that I make your birthday as special as I can.

So here’s a special birthday wish for you – 

My dearest Bandhu!! You are a gem of a person and it would not have been possible for me to sail through, had you not been there in my life. Just like yester years, I hope and pray that we would continue to stand by each other, come what may. I will keep troubling you with all my madness and moodiness and you have no other option but to deal with it (wink wink). I will continuously harass you, should you become negligent about your health and work life balance. PS – you know what pain in the a** I can be on this front.

And last but not the least – may this birthday open the gates to a healthier, happier and a prosperous world for you. May you shine like the brightest star from the midnight sky and if ever you need any help – sabse peechey hum khadey.

I don’t know for how long would we be together in this journey of life, but with each passing day, this journey is becoming memorable, fulfilling and a tad more nostalgic than it was yesterday.

Happy birthday Bandhu!!

In You...Is Me...

Every year as the month of January moves towards the 27th, my mind tends to race back to what transpired 15 years back. Actually, no day passes by when the thought doesn’t cross my mind but the D-Day is the craziest of all.

In the wee hours of the day, I sat quietly on the sofa in front of the television - sound muted, just staring at it and my mind was elsewhere. I kept thinking around where in the land of souls would he be now? Heaven? Hell? Is there any other world? But I couldn’t find the right answer. How was he? I didn’t had an answer to that either.

I silently sent my thoughts to him – “I understand that you are no more but then you came to meet me right before my exams so as to pacify me but why have you never come to meet me after that? Couldn’t you do it just once? I have waited to 15 years for something like this to happen again. What else would it take to have you come back to meet me?”

The television screen kept reflecting on my face but my eyes were closed and God knows where my mind was. I kept thinking again and again about the words I sent out to him but I wasn’t getting any answer.

I might have probable dozed off in front of the television only, just like most nights, and then suddenly my eyes flew open. Don’t get too excited folks because he didn’t actually come back but it was as if he sent back his word.

My mind was suddenly filled with an answer that maybe he wanted me to have. And here is what he probable said – 

“My darling daughter!! I am not far away from you. In fact, I am always around you. It is just that you are too busy to notice me.”

How so? I asked.

He continued – 

“You see, I am in you because you came from me. The stubbornness that you exude with pride is something you got from me. Your perseverance to never back down till the end, once again comes from the time I braced all odds to achieve a winner. You are mostly serious but you know how to have fun once in a while – how could you forget this since you used to tell me the exact same thing. While it doesn’t happen so often but my dear, you do have a temper like me. 

You have the perfection bug and would you like to guess, where do you get it from? You think many times before taking a risk, not because you fear failure but because you want to calculate it before you plunge into it? Does that sound familiar? I heard your mother saying the other day – oh her writing is just like her fathers’. I can tell you that I was beaming from ear to ear. While you still have a long way to go professionally but you have covered a lot of ground and had I been around, I would have probably be known by your name and not vice versa.

Our food preferences match, our penchant for timelines match. Oh and we both exhibit similar seriousness towards having a secure future for ourselves and our families as well. There is so much more to say and I could go on and on but what I am trying to tell you dear daughter is that – I am here only. I reside in you, as you. In you is me but you have been so busy searching for me around that you never did notice.

So pause for a minute, take a deep breath and think – through which trait of yours would you feel me around you today or on any given day. And once you have your answer, there is no way that you will feel alone. ”

When this thought concluded, it felt as if a grey cloud had cleared from my mind and I had found the answer to my dilemma.

Though 15 years have passed but I still count each year as if it was yesterday and probably I would never stop. But at least, I am at peace since I now know that you are just around.

Stay blessed dada!! You are always on my mind! May you rest in peace…