I did it !! :) (Day 30)

Photos taken in Luxembourg in Jan 2007

:) :) :)
YOOHOOO....finished the June NaBloPoMo.
I am so happy with this accomplishment. It's not just about writing because so many times it was not a quality post(atleast i think so). i am amazed - How i would take time out to post every single day, How the thought of it remained in my mind all day, How I could keep up with the promise ! I am very glad and satisfied with this. (Not that i had many readers but still ok :) ) (Patting my back non-stop)

Let's celebrate my first ever month of posting regularly with this cake :)

And some flowers for the summer cheer...

This month made me better in so many thing

I regained my confidence that if I really commit I will be able to keep up to it.

I learned that if you really want to do something you will always find time for it no matter what.

I realised that spending that hr or half an hour every evening or so gives lot of time to think about things close to heart. You do not need a proper fixed time for that.

I felt that connection with the world which is actually physically miles and miles apart.

I liked the idea of sharing small-tiny achievements of life with the unknown world.

And Yes - my blog followership doubled :) it became 8 from 4 :) :)

Thanks a lot to everyone who took out the time to visit this blog, read and leave a comment too. :) I appreciate it a lot.

I will take 2 weeks break from now and come back with some nice posts after our vacation.

ciao ciao !!

Wishlist - Top 10 (Day 29)

Today since morning I have been thinking what to write for today's post. Many ideas came and were rejected with a "nahh - this is not nice enough"

Then read that beautiful beautiful post by Monika about memories associated with rain. (It's such a lovely post - you gotto go and read it yourself) I thought let me also do the post on same topic but then sooo much came to mind that I could not decide what to write and what not...

Then i thought of doing pictures/photographs post but could not find some nice ones from the collection.

Then i thought of writing about my baby but then this is not baby blog - there is separate one for that and i should update that instead.

SO after spending like whole day i could not decide what to write...and now i am running out of time...

The idea stuck me..and i decided to compile my wishlist...i keep thinking about doing lot of things and then do some, forget some and ignore some.

So here is my short list with top 10 things and this is valid life long :) - these are not things which i want to do this month or this year.

10 things i want to do before i die- in no particular order

1. I want to learn playing violin
2. I want to do bungee jumping
3. I want to learn professional photography
4. I want to be able to speak, write and read atleast 5 foreign languages
5. I want to have a painting exhibition of my paintings
6. I want to fly in a private jet
7. I want to become 50 kilos :) :) :)
8. I want to go on a world cruise
9. I want to do rock climbing
10. I want to sing on stage ( in front of huge audience)

This was top 10 and obvisouly the list is not limited to 10... its endless...I picked up things which need physical efforts and learning from my side :) There is a separate wishlist for watches, a separate one for shoes, another one for bags .... :)

You can take it as a tag and do it...What are top 10 things you want to do before you die?

Know me more...Tag(Day 28)

OK So saw the meme tag at Preeti's blog and immediatey agreed to picking it up. Got delayed by few hours but you would know the reason as you read below.

It was total fun :)

Hope you enjoy reading it too.

1. What curse word do you use the most?
~S#!+ (that's all i use)

2. Do you own an iPod?
~Yes and love it too

3. What person do you talk to on the phone the most?
~Sister and a friend (Spouses don't count in this, they are by default - right??

4. Do you still remember the first person you kissed?
~Ofcourse yes....always

5. Do you remember where you were on 11/9/01?
~Yes In Delhi and my husband - then fiance - was in air at that time flying to US.

6. What was the last movie you watched?
~Oh My God..i don't even remember...it's been quite a few days or may be weeks..umm...

7. Has anyone ever called you lazy?
~Oh yes...though only one or two people have said so

8. Do you ever take medication to help you fall asleep?
~Never taken till now

9. Has anyone told you a secret this week?
~YES..like Preeti I am full of secrets...for childhood till now.

10. What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
~Smile and way of greeting :) (Now my husband knows the secret behind being the fortunate one to become my life-partner :) :) )

11. What are you looking forward to?
~Vacation in Venice (Italy) - YOHOOO...can't wait...it's just 3 days away

12. Do you own any band t-shirts?
~Nopes..  Won't matter even if i had.

13. What will you be doing in one hour?
~Sound sleeping - hopefully..unlike yesterday..not a single minute of sleep for reasons unknown to me.

14. Is anyone in love with you?
~Oh yes...many :)

15. Last time you cried?
~Yesterday

16. Are you on a desktop computer or a laptop?
~My Netbook - Eee PC SeaShell :) I loooooove it

17. Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos?
~No way.. never. i have ear piercings - thats enough

18. Would you ever date anyone covered in tattoos?
~Anyone else having those does not bother me..it's their wish, their choice and i respect that. Tattoos would never be deciding factor for liking or not liking.

19. What were you doing before this?
~Talking to a very dear friend after 5-6 years :)

20. When is the last time you slept on the floor?
~ 6 months ago in delhi

21. How many hours of sleep do you need to function?
~None. I can function well without getting any at all too. (Ok for few days - after that I would need 12 hrs at a stretch)

22. Do you eat breakfast daily?
~Yes. I can't do without it. Need it Need it Need it.


And that was it!! ENJOYED?

WE Robots - Guest Post by Saurabh (Day 27)

After a direct order (ok i should say a-slighly-strong-request) I could convince dear friend Saurabh to write guest post for me.(As if I gave him any choice to say NO) Now thats also a style for getting guest post besides the one Preeti suggested :)

Saurabh is a friend who has always been very cheering and uplifting. NO matter how you are feeling - he will never fail to make you smile for the rest of the day. He is one of the friends with whom I never feel out of touch - He will contact - no matter what. And I feel very fortunate and thankful for that. Thanks Saurabh!!

And Ladies and Gentleman - Here I present a guest post from this all-time cheerful person Saurabh...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


WE Robot!

No, it’s certainly not a Will Smith movie sequel, neither an acronym, at least not intended, but now when I think of it, it can be Web Enabled Robots, by which you already must have guessed what I am writing about today, it’s about the social, personal and professional life of the folks in IT industry like me. My typical day starts with uneasiness in my mind about 100 things to be completed today, that thought goes with me while I am brushing my teeth, taking a shower, having my breakfast, driving to the office and here you go, I have the detailed plan ready in the office parking which I have to execute for the rest of the day. The WAR begins… Team Meeting, Leads Meeting, Daily Sync-ups, Project Management tasks, getting some issues resolved (finally), evening client calls, status calls, analyze where we are today and clock hits 11 PM, time to leave. This goes on and on, like someone has programmed us to do this daily without fail. It’s not that we don’t have a social life, now you will ask when you actually get the time to socialize. Technology has very easily accommodated that within the stipulated time through social networking sites like Facebook. Yeah and that’s where we socialize, via liking a picture, comment on posts, share a thought, all Web Enabled. Most of us will agree that sitting in office and not meeting people is Social outcast than anything else and yes my friends, we live in a world where “Social outcast is a form of Social Networking”. I will continue this in my coming posts (guest or otherwise) :)

Missing it all ( Day 26)

One full week of being with my kid who' s down with chicken pox. I don't remember when was the last time i stayed indoors for over a week - not stepping out even once ( ok the back garden of the house does not count as outdoors - right?)

I felt fine so far. But now i think its catching up. I have started to feel different being inside for days on.

There are many things I have started to miss...

• I have started to miss that coffee i take every morning at train station after I have finished 1/3 of my commute ( My commute time to work is 1 hr 45 min one way :) )
  

• I have started to miss reading books in the train ( And that is the only time i get to read something)
  

• I have started to miss reading "metro" newspaper in metro ( only way i practice dutch and get to know whats happening in the country)
  

• I have started to miss seeing those passengers either bidding byes or meeting their loved ones after vacations and those tourists taking pictures at the airport. ( I change my train at station at the airport)

• I have started to miss exchanging smiles with those commuters i have been seeing for around 3 years now.
  

• I have started to miss that 10 min walk from the bus station to the office and the window shopping I did during that walk while walking through the shopping mall. ( ok ok...i accept i am missing window shopping more :) )

I never realised I would miss so much when I have actually been complaining about all this long commute and wishing I could get some respite from all this.

Now I am looking forward to going back to work  - ahmm...to so many thing - on coming monday.

Power of words (Day 25)

Moments of pleasure

come and bring joy

smiles are shared

cheer is spread

some get captured in words

to last forever

Ages later

words get deciphered

moments are relived

by another soul

another life

smiles are shared

cheer is spread

words... 

So is the power 

Of the words from the past

extolling the glory

forever they last

(c) Do not copy. Please ask before using it.

Image courtesy : http://fysop.wordpress.com/

The rest of our life... (Day 24)

Life is all about ups and downs-sometimes it makes u feel the happiest and the greatest in the world and next moment u feel like the most unfortunate one on earth.

It's all about balance And there is the need for a proper balance in everything in life..Just everything...

I always wondered why am i the one always picked up for all the bad happenings in life until I started paying more attention to the good-happy moments too.And i realised that at those rejoicing moments i actually get the maximum possible happiness...It might not last like that forever but the traces stay on. Learn to count those moments rather than the ones which cause pain and break u into pieces...

Faith is the strongest power. Keep the faith and u would win over every situation.

It is not about having lots of friends or a lover or a partner to be there by your side throughout that roller coaster ride that u are on...It's about holding tight to that seat and not letting yourself fall off. You need that inner strength- strength to keep holding on to your beliefs and faith and to the hope that u would soon come out of it safely and smiling.

It's on us to decide what kind of life we want to have - an average one where people will have to spend sometime to remember who we were or the one that would bring smiles on faces at our mere mention. And this all is possile with how much smiles we spread in our life. How much smiles we spread around depends on how much we believe in ourself and rejoice in every single moment.

There are reasons to smile all around us....a child's smile, a beautiful sun or a cloud with a silver line, some giggle, colorful flowers, raindrops, those busy streets with people laughing, shops full of things we love, that sale somewhere on our favorite store, that new favorite food restaurant just around the corner, a phone call from home, an email from friend, favorite player scoring a goal in soccer, weekend after every few days :), those flights to book for vacation, that countdown to visiting home.

Look around and you will have many reasons to smile and be happy !!

New and cheerful (Day 23)

It's been quite sometime that I had that template for my blog. Now that i have been blogging for last one month i felt like changing it to bring some cheer and life to the blog.

I always end up using shades of pink ( no prize for guessing pink is my favorite)

What with kid being ill, no blogging for very long, too much self-pondering - this blog definately needed some change.

Hope you like it ( If and when you visit my blog)

And to add to this cheer, i showcase here some pictures from the beautiful tulip garden from Netherlands.

How much flowers can cheer someone is evident by the smile which gets pasted on our lips when we see them. All the colors make our life so much more lively. Ever since I have moved to Nethetlands, i have not missed a single year to go and visit this beautiful garden. I look forward to the month of march every year when this park (Keukenhof) opens for 3 months.

When i came to NL, the greenery and the rows and rows of colorful flowers were first things that I noticed and they still do not fail to cheer me up everytime i think about them - even in those dark, gray winters.

Wish life remains full of colors and joy !!

Tests of parenting (Day 22)

Parenting is a life long process. As I had mentioned in a post about being mother, it is also something that we learn as we go through it.

We have to go through a lot in this process. It has its ups and downs. We have to give so many tests to be sure we are doing it all right. (Though there is no right or wrong in this process - we as parents have to decide what is right and wrong) One such test is the test of patience. We have to give this test repeatedly.

One such test is when your child is unwell. When your child is sick, child's mood is unpredictable, Your child would ask you to make diferent things but will not eat any, your child will cry non-stop through-out the night and not sleep and so many such things. You willbe tempted to loose your patience at every other action but something in you does not let you do so. There is no way you can be impatient seeing a child in pain. There is no way you will fall asleep when your child is crying and is restless. There is no way you will say no to anything your child even gives a hint that he/she would like to eat.

Thats how we as parents develop this most useful quality of patience. And its useful for the rest of our lives in whatever situation we are.

Children keep us in check. Their laughter prevents our hearts from hardening. Their dreams ensure we never lose our drive to make ours a better world. They are the greatest disciplinarians known to mankind.
-- Queen Rania of Jordan, Hello Magazine

Parenting teaches  lots of lessons and each of them makes us grow as adults. lessons that go a long way and help us at every step.

 It's not only children who grow. Parents do too. As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours. I can't tell my children to reach for the sun. All I can do is reach for it, myself.
-- Joyce Maynard

Unwell (Day 21)

Prisha is still quite unwell..chicken pox is so annoying both for the kid and the parents. Itching makes it worse.

Its really difficult to decide what to do. Million opinions makes it even more difficult.


I am so glad to see how much patience my little girl has. (Touchwood)

Just wishing good health comes her way soon. Its been quite some time that she has been ill with something or the other.

PS: I wrote this post yesterday and after clicking "publich post" i went away. And only now i saw that it was still hanging on that page because of an error and had not gone through :(

Today (Day 20)

Today I have to do with this hastily written post. Though i feel like writing a lot. Perhaps I will write more some other day.

My little daughter is sick and down with chicken pox and we have not even taken a nap since day before. Whole night she has cried in pain. Its heart-breaking to see her like that.

A father's day of a different kind. She is not letting us go a single second and is continuously sticking on me and just wants to be in my lap. It's tough, very tough. Such a helpless situation to see your kids like that.

And going through all this made me realize what all my parents must have gone through for me. 

So on this special day, I thank you my dad for being there always and most of all for being my dad.

For you (Day 19)

He is always good and He is never bad

He does what he should and makes everyone glad

He never screams and never fights

He looks after us night after night

He is the guiding light

and shows the path which is right

He holds the hands

and always understands

Without him i would never be what i am today

he gave a strong foundation

which no one can take away

He is always there to listen and share

with his utmost warmth and care

He brings so much pleasure

and that i will always treasure

Today i admire and everything is clear

Those sentiments fill me each day of the year

And Today my dear dad i want you to know

your values and lessons will continue to grow.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!

(c)Please do not copy. Ask before using it.

Career confusion (Day 18)

What is the way to find out what one actually wants to do in life. Aren't there so many factors behind that liking. I am unable to understand how some people know exactly what tgey want to do inlife. May be i am lacking in some really important quality. Can it be called strong decision making so as to decide on one, give it your best and stick to it. Or is it open- mindedness OR straight forward nature OR extrovert OR anything of that sort. I dont know what it is.

I am working for a decade now and still i feel confused about what i actually want to do in my life. Of course such thoughts come and go in phases. But then if they keep coming back, i keep thinking about it. Sometimes my brain works overtime and i get loads of ideas about what i want to do and each one sounds more exciting than the other.

Sometimes the artist in me wakes up and i want to take up designing as profession. Then i want to become a photographer. Other times i feel like becoming a full time house wife. Again there are times when i want to design and stitch clothes. I also have a strong urge sometimes to do interior house arrangements. (is there anyone more confused than me?)

all this confusion brings me back to continue being a software professional. Perhaps the safest of all considering that's what am doing for a decade.

It's so unfair to live a proffesionally confusing mind :) (is there anything like that?)

perhaps its once again just a phaae and will be over soon.

Be careful (day 17)

A sunny day
a windy day
a lovely day
which turns into
a dreadfulday!

I was in tram going for a expat women evening when i herad a bang and the tram stopped. The tram had hit boy who was playing next to the track and came in front of the tram atvthat very dreadful movement just to catch that ball. He got hit and landed few meters ahead on the sude of track. He was lying there conscious but unable to move. Within 5 minutes police was there and in less than 10 minutes ambulances were there. Questions had been asked and witnesses were narrating what they had seen.

It was such tense atmosphere.

How a split second's mistake almost costed that kid his life. It made me think- however small an action may seem , do not ignore it and do not underestimate how much a second can change.

Be careful ALWAYS. For your own good and for all those around you.

Mini world-Madurodam (Day 16)

Madurodam - As they say it's the tiniest city in Netherlands..I would say it's the country in itself. Yes, the miniature city built on 1:25 scale. It's a quick trip through Netherlands. Typical dutch houses, canals, historical and other important buildings, airport, boats, harbor, sports, fun - all in one place. 

I leave you with some pictures to get the glimpse of this miniature world. 

Happy Birthday! (Day 15)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!

Today is my dad's birthday and i cannot explain how I am missing everyone.

It's not just about birthday - it's about missing every single special occassion. Its about not being able to be part of the celebrations in person, its about missing out on that fun of selecting a gift, its about having some delicious food together to mark the special day, its about waiting for the moment to wish and see that happiness, its about participating in all the fun and frolic, it's about sharing sweets, it's about laghing together over silly jokes, it's about asking mom for some special dish for the special day. It's about so many such things. All these together make that day a very special and memorable one.

I miss everything thats not part of being away from home in a foreign land. Home is where heart is and at the moment my heart is somewhere back in India.

come stai? Sono felice. (Day 14)

Did you get that?
:)

How are you? I am very happy.
And it's in italian.

Yes, perhaps you guessed it right. I am learning italian. Learning to speak basic level of italian. And i am enjoying it so much. So many sounds are familiar to hindi. The accent is easy for a hindi speaker. So far the most difficult things have been to learn numbers and days of week. Week days sound similar to names of planets.

There are not too many rules and exceptions unlike dutch which is a language of exceptions. Dutch is full of rules and there are more exceptions than actual rules :)

Afteri learn basic italian, i want to learn french- he preparation for which has already begun. I have always wanted to know different languages and am happy i am finally doing it. Hope I am able to keep up.

Image courtesy : http://edweb.tusd.k12.az.us/sabino/library/subject_area_links.htm

I owe (Day 13)

Few days back NaBloPoMo had  this prompt - "Do i owe an apology to anyone" And i started thinking...
Do i owe an apology to anyone - Oh Yes - i do and to so many.


May be its time i should apologize atleast for my own self ( The selfish us never dies - right? )

I owe an apology to my parents for not listening to them when they would advise me about my career and further studies

I owe an apology to all my friends with whom i could not keep in touch even after all those childhood promises for being in touch all our lives

I owe an apology to my sister for making her drink my glass of milk (not just once but many many times) and threating her for telling that to mom.

I owe an apology to my parents again for pretending i am very sad about scoring less in exam in one of the subjects and then not eating to show my sadness when i actually ate after my sister secretly got me food in the room.

I owe an apology to my brother for shouting at him so many times when I actually knew it was my fault.

I owe an apology to my little daughter for getting angry at her and for not being there for her all the time. I Wish I could!!

I owe an apology to my husband for being so short-tempered ALL the time.

I owe an apology to myself for not keeping the promises i make to be more careful about health.

Change (Day 12)

Most of my posts till now have been around THEN and NOW situation.


I get a strange feeling when I suddenly remember all the things from “THEN” and compare them to how they are “NOW” How things change with time ! How people change! How habits change! How tastes change ! How opinions change! How friendships change ! How relationships change ! When I say “change” I do not mean negative or positive of any of these. I am not implying that all these have changed to become bad or worse or negative in any sense. Change as one gets older is - as you all know - known as growth. People change as they grow. So may be we can say it as - they do not change but they grow. They become more sensible to things and other elements of life (atleast I choose to believe they become sensible – you have all the right to differ from my opinion) I would still take all this as a change.

Some changes are for better , others are for worse.

The reality is that changes are coming... They must come. You must share in bringing them.

~John Hersey~

Somewhere on this path of growth, we leave behind what we thought we were and walk towards becoming something else. Everything on the way – knowingly or unknowingly - influences how we grow or what we become. Million factors influence the change.

And what I believe is – every change is for a purpose. What that purpose is - is for you to discover. Important is to embrace a change rather then detesting it.

William Shakespeare said

We know what we are, but know not what we may be.

Doing Learning Doing (Day 11)

There are things which cannot be learned quickly, and time, which is all we have, must be paid heavily for their acquiring. They are the very simplest things, and because it takes a man’s life to  know them the little new that each man gets from life is very costly and the only heritage he has to leave. – Ernest Hemingway

One beautiful day - I became a MOTHER.  And the world changed. Atleast I thought I became mother. It was no later that I realized “becoming a mother is a life long process”  You learn being a mother with every passing day.

No one tells you how unnerving it can get at times. How “out-of-control” being a mother can be at times. How being a mother means lot more than  just  that word. The word “Mother”  engulfes within itself the depth of ocean and the vastness of universe. Noone just becomes a mother – you learn being a mother by being there and by going through all the over-flowing emotions (Yes  only a mother can experience that level of emotions) The unconditional love – Had heard this word many times but I only got to experience this when I became a mother.  You do things and you learn – that’s how mothers grow.  It takes lifetime to learn being a mother.

Patience, Love, Care, Multitasking, cooking, singing, painting,  writing, reading, story making – all – absolutely all “virtues” are developed in the process of becoming a mother. Of course you master at least few of them as you grow.

If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?  ~Milton Berle

Isn't it such an apt question ? :)

The process of becoming mother lets you have so many new experiences. You learn to experience love and pain  with equal intensity and also what it is like to experience these through another life. In the process you learn things  that hurt, things that delight, things that cheer, things that confuse, things that are memorable, things that are warming and things that are cold, things that are huge and things that are small, things that are unconditional and things that just happen.

And each one of these becomes a precious treasure.

What a win-win situation !!

I am 52% happy :) (Day 10)

I came across this and found it really interesting. OK just for fun. Though it was fun, yet all the points were quite thought provoking.

You Are 52% Happy

You're definitely a happy person, even though you have your down moments. You tend to get the most out of life, though there's always some more happiness to be squeezed.

Go give it a try....
How Happy Are You?

Are we friends? (Day 9)

We all raise this ques once in a while.  We are always unsure of how to behave with colleagues –

• Shall we be very friendly?
• Shall we be nice but keep distance?
• Shall we just be very professional and talk only about work (ok apart from weather here in NL – which apparently is the elevator talk topic and is considered perfect in any situation)?
• Shall we be very open and friendly after all we spend more time with colleagues than with family?
• Shall we be friendly but only while we are at work – outside that we are strangers?

Loads of such questions pop up in mind when you come across some different personalities one has to deal with at workplace. And if its in a foreign country that makes it even more confusing. In that case you have to be careful about  topics of small talk. – you never know what can become culturally-unacceptable and what can become intrusion-of-privacy !  Even after being here for over 5 years,  I am still unsure if people talk openly. They indeed are straight forward and open but in limited areas. I still have to be careful about what I am saying lest it becomes bossy or any kind of intrusion. I still have to think carefully whether I should discuss my heart-out (Ok sometimes its needed – right? Sometimes you need someone to listen to you without reaching to conclusions. Sometimes you should have the right to say whatever comes out and not filter and analyse) There is a thin line between interruption and suggestion.  We need to observe the surroundings in detail to decide and act. People have different personalities and they can react differently – many times not what we expect. Again there is thin line between acceptance, Approval and appreciation. From the face of it – they all look the same but they make all the difference based on what the receiving side is expecting.

There are these questions – Is calling people by name being rude? Is refraining from criticizing others being nice and kind? Is going out of your way to praise people being very friendly?

There are lots of factors which can help us decide these – the culture, the relationship ( whether the colleague is your manager, or subordinate or just team member or just colleague from totally different department),  your position ( general human behavior says people are more accepting when you are in slightly more powerful position  - power - ahmm) , the situation, the topic, the timing of day ( that’s helps a lot in certain cases – you cannot start talking like 5 minutes before its time to go home…no one would ever accept the idea of getting late for home – the work-home balance is so good here – time of one  is absolutely non negotiable at the cost of other )

Meeting outside work sometimes – best if you can manage to meet along with your partners – is very useful in building those healthy relationships at workplace. A quick lunch together or just 2 minutes chat at the coffee corner all help keep a neutral and healthy relation. Refrain from sharing strong opinions about other colleagues unless you are 100% sure about it.

Everyone at workplace is friendly (add open, nice, kind straight forward and closeness to it) with someone or the other.  If your ideas are not clicking or there is this unexplained distant feeling in-between – try to ignore and keep your conversations limited to until totally unavoidable situation.

Usually workplace friendships die a slow death when you move to another company. It’s the memories which last forever. So whatever it is – try to collect nice ones and take along. It’s a long road with lot more. Take along those who matter!

“Work is work, we’re hired to do a job, and as long as that takes priority, friendships can emerge naturally, be very constructive and [be] quite enjoyable,” says Janie Fritz, associate professor of communication and rhetorical studies at Duquesne University.

Que Sera Sera (Day 8)

Que Sera Sera

When I was just a little girl

I asked my mother, what will I be

Will I be pretty, will I be rich

Here's what she said to me.

Que Sera, Sera,

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours, to see

Que Sera, Sera

What will be, will be.

When I was young, I fell in love

I asked my sweetheart what lies ahead

Will we have rainbows, day after day

Here's what my sweetheart said.

Que Sera, Sera,

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours, to see

Que Sera, Sera

What will be, will be.

Now I have children of my own

They ask their mother, what will I be

Will I be handsome, will I be rich

I tell them tenderly.

Que Sera, Sera,

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours, to see

Que Sera, Sera

What will be, will be.

If you have not heard this song - go and listen

How all our life we worry about what's going to happen next. We worry about just everything in and around us. We worry about our things, we worry about people, we worry about futurof everything. And the worry gives birth to never ending what-ifs.

Wikipedia says - "Worry is thoughts and images of a negative nature in which mental attempts are made to avoid anticipated potential threats"

My personal opinion is that little bit of worrying is necessary to move on in life and to get into ac tion to shape our future. But just worrying and not doing anything about it is what is total useless and mere wastage of lifetime. I believe that whatever happens , happens for good ! Sharing worries gets solutions and actions. Too much constant worrying can lead to permanent health disorders. We have this most awesome gift of life. Let's worry just enough to make this journey a smooth and satisfying experience and not waste this opportunity.

Let's all sing once -

Don't worry be happy

In every life we have some trouble

When you worry you make it double

Don't worry, be happy......

 

Listen  here

 

Image Courtesy :http://www.redstaplerchronicles.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/Dont_Worry_Be_Happy.jpg

Being Mom (Day 7)

This is from last month but I had to post it. Such a lovely day it was. Every mom gets a certain special joy this day esp if kids are around.

Yes, i am talking about Mother's Day!

This year's mother's day was made special by my dear husband.

Early morning when i went downstairs - a beautiful yummy cake on the table, breakfast ready, along with steaming mug of coffee. Prishs sitting nicely and in most disciplined way on he high chair holding a gift.

She sweetly said - "Fijne Moederdag!" (Happy Mother's Day!) Along came a gift wrapped in lovely pink paper - Voor Mamma, van Prisha (For mumma from Prisha) I opened it and :) A lovely medal with a beautiful poem on one side and Big Number 1 on other side. She could not control her joy and seeing that mine grew many folds too :)

We had the lovely breakfast, received some more gifts from her daddy. Daddy dear had got gifts for both of us.

It all felt so nice. I could not thank them enough and felt so proud to be a mom. The feeling of being a mother and the joy cannot be expressed. I missed my mom and wished i could share the moments with her.

I Love you Mom! I Love you my dear daughter!

Sunday (Day 6)

Preeti - you said it and i did it :). Thanks for the idea !

Yes, it's Sunday, it's raining and dear husband said he wants to have pakoras.
After a long time..perhaps 7 months i made pakoras today - just potato and onion pakoras and` With a big mug of coffee - it was perfect sunday afternoon.

Beautiful day (Day 5)

Sun shows up, brightly shines and every face shines even brighter. People smile, laugh, talk, play and enjoy. In Netherlands all this fun is dependent on sun so much that i could never imagine so while being in India.

Today was one such awesome day. Yes - bright sun, long drive, a friends' get-together, loads of delicious food and drinks including chilled jaljeera, a game of basketball, cricket round, kids playing happily, water guns in full swing, bicyle rides, some good news' shared - That's as perfect as it can get. It was truly a wonderful day. All possible because of beautifully shining sun.

Tiny 'MIRACULOUS' gestures (Day 4)

How tiny gestures make our day.How small actions make kids so happy.


My 2.5 yrs old daughter comes running to me saying "mumma - aau..it hurts" After asking where, i just give her a kiss at the spot pointed by her and she feels perfectly fine. (In today's case it was on her cheek only :)) Many a times a kiss has worked wonders in some serious situations also. Like when she fell down once and had a bad bruise on her arm - i gave her couple of kisses there and she felt alright - running around again with same zeal and enthusiasm.


Similar way, when i reach back home after work i am welcomed with a shy smile and a tight hug. All my tiredness and day's frustrations vanish in a split second. What amazing wonders such small actions can make - i get amazed every single day!

It's so sad that such tiny gestures become such an obligation as we grow. Saying a hello and passing a smile also become big things as grown ups.


One thing which plesantly surprised me here in Netherlands was people greeting every passer-by. It feels so good when someone passes by you and just says a hello with a broad smile.You feel certain unsaid connection. Streets no longer feel alien.

But in last 5 years(that's how long i have been here) i have seen a drastic change in this aspect of social behavior. People no longer greet as openly as earlier esp in slightly bigger cities. And ofcourse the blame goes to foreigners.


Nevertheless, there are many other small acts of kindness that melt your heart. A bunch of flowers to thank your neighbour for some small help, a cake to share with the colleagues just because its sunny outside, inviting someone over for coffee just like that(when i say coffee it means coffee only - no cakes n cookies or other snacks involved - yes thats how it can be here), a congratulations card in a neighbours letterbox for new born baby or for passing an exam or for getting a driving license - there can be any or no reason. But any action like surely makes your day and gives you reaons to smile for days to come.


Go,show some nice tiny gesture and make someone's day !!

Image courtesy: http://www.raisingafamily.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/thank_you_note.png 

NOW (Day 3)

Now will not stay
So do sit and pray
Now is to cherish
Soon Now will be Garish

Now and then
If not now then when
make up your mind
Now must you unwind

Now if you say
It's not a delay
You will still be in time
To smile and to chime

Now is not forever
Behold that truth
Behold that lover
Soon Now will be over

I was suprised at myself when I just realized that the NaBloPoMo theme for this month is “NOW” and what I have written in last two days is mostly about “THEN”. OK, more like Then and Now !Today my thoughts revolved around "NOW" and some words floated out.

Image courtesy  : http://techdev.cc.depaul.edu/wordpress/?p=259

Letters (Day 2)

How letters used to  be such an amazing form of communication – I would say they were the BEST.

Both Writing a letter, receiving a letter gave equal pleasure. I  have always been very fond of writing so I used to write small letters to my friends. (But they were hardly posted as I hand delivered most of them. They were mostly for my freinds and I would see my friends everyday in school or in playgroud) I used to love the idea of writing and giving letter to my friend. It gave me different level of  bonding with my friends.  Even when school got over, I kept writing letters to few friends (and yes – this time posting them) Every single day I would hope for receiving one in my own mail box. I even used to write letters  to my aunts and cousins. For the same reason I was fond of sending cards too – most of them hand-made.
Even after I went to college in a different city and stayed in hostel – I regularly wrote letters home and to friends. Slowly the number of letters being written became lesser and lesser. The only letters I was receiving were from my parents and brother-sister And very rarely a letter from a childhood friend. I would read that one letter again and again. I would start replying to that the same day – hoping to get a quick reply back. Slowly I started giving up too…writing became lesser. No more card making. Just few ready made cards to close ones.

Letters and cards gave such a  special feeling. Every word felt personal. It meant that you were the only one in thoughts when those words were being written.  Right from finding a beautiful writing paper  and a  nice pen to some beautifully decorated envelope till it got dropped in the letter box. It was whole process in itself. All the straight-from-heart- feelings and thoughts scribbled on a sheet of paper and sealed in an envelope on their way to another heart.

A thought of the moment
Which lasted a moment

The moment passed
Got captured in words

Which last forever

Ages later
Words deciphered
The thoughts relived
By another life
Another soul

In those words you see
a story
and you live a life !

I wish there was some marathon for writing one letter everyday to someone.

Blogathon - I am up for it :)

I was just reading around about bloggers participating in June month Marathon of blog posting.


Something in me triggered me to go for it and give it a try and i whole-heartedly said "Yes Yes Yes..i will do it Now Now Now"

I will appreciate your leaving comments to encourage me to keep going.

My first post for the day is already there. Read On!

Circle of friendships (Day 1)

Today I just felt like remembering some of my cherished friends with whom I have almost lost contact or have a rare contact now. I somehow have a quick bonding with peeople with names starting with "R". In all phases of my life till now - school, college, job - I have found one close to heart friend and each one of them has her name starting with "R". Another common thing in my friends is their zodiac sign - I have an almost immediate friendship with people with sign - Saggitarius. Again most of my friends fall in this category. Then their is one month - September - in which fall birthdays of maximum friends of mine including my best friend and my sister. And the last category is of people having their names starting with "S" - this is another major common factor.

Ofcourse I have friends with names starting with other letters too. And I have a different level of bonding with each one. Just that how that bond slowly vanishes in the hustle and bustle of our daily life - we dont even realise.

When we were in school how we got diaries made with each one's likes dislikes and other interests.We shared stuff, we shared stories, we did our first girly talk - blushing at every word coming out of our mouth. We tried to decorate those diaries so well so as to treasure the friendship and secrets till eternity. Then we moved on to college. And before we knew we had left behind half of that treasure. That treasure took back seat in life and we found new bondings. We shared future plans, we shared love life secrets, we shared emotions, we shared fears. We guarded each others' secrets. Especially being in hostel changed the total outlook and personality.

Came next phase - college over, we moved on and stepped in corporate world. Some went for further studies. Others moved on to cities and countries where they found jobs of their interest (atleast it seemed so)
New aquaintances, new colleagues and new friends. Different level of sharing... outings, get-aways - the fun was there though different from earlier times.

Some changed jobs, some remained. Friendships continued for a while. Letters were already bit old style by that time. So emails and phones became the medium of being in touch. And not everyone was so internet-savvy. So freindships again vanished somewhere because of distances and unavailability of mediums. Some still kept trying to keep the contact going no matter what. No hinderance mattered to them. Am thankful to them from the core of my heart. They keep me going!!

Today i sit back and remember all those long-lost friends. I still wish i can get back in touch somehow. (Though i have found many on social networking sites available these days yet few close to heart ones are still missing) I miss some of them a lot.

There have been different reasons everytime for friends to move apart - distances, work schedules, marriages( yes, that affects friendships too as that new relation demands lot of attention and time and by the time you realise its too late) - there can be many reasons.

I dedicate this post to all my dear friends and if they ever read this - i want them to know- i miss you all and i still cherish each and every moment spent together and each and every work spoken to each other in that unsaid blind trust.