Hopes & Dreams

I love daydreaming. Its a part of the way I think. A lot of my thoughts at times begin with....."what if?". Its a great feeling to imagine yourself achieving all that you want to. Today im writing about our dreams, aspirations, hopes.  Our ideas of "the perfect life"....about what we would do IF we had all the money or opportunities.

Guess what....we don't.  Its nice to just believe that some things are not meant to be. That they're next to impossible.  Thats the easy part. The difficult part is trying. I say I try.....but maybe not. Then again if something is in your mind. ....if the mere thought of that can rock your world, it's not impossible.  It is in your mind for starters and frankly if everybody had just given up on their passions, we would probably still be living in the stone age.

The ability to dream and to hope are probably what makes us different from every other species.  We hope. We create. We fight. We destroy.  But we ACT.  I'm sure this sounds like another philosophical discourse.  But every other person who achieved something had a mammoth task ahead of him/her. They had a vision, stubborn mind and most importantly HOPE.

No matter what you are doing currently in your life. It is time, to turn to your symbol of hope. The time for that is always right.....and the work done in that direction always true.

Im hoping I do not ever stop believing in my passions...that I ways nurture hope and strengthen it with my toil. That someday I wake up feeling "I did it". :)

(PS. This has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the fact that tomorrow is a monday after the long diwali weekend :p)

Routine

Routine. This is one word that we all associate with boredom, stagnancy. I feel this is true to some extent. Routine may make life more predictable, enable you to plan for your retirement, get an insurance plan, increase your savings account balance....blah! The list is pretty long.

But can routine give you peace of mind? Or a sense of accomplishment? Some of you might answer in the affirmative. Only I beg to disagree. Sure, we cannot live a nomadic life and enjoy the luxuries, comforts of our cities. But I believe that routine could limit your achievements, your potential if you adhere to it blindly. We should be constantly or atleast periodically look at those factors which bottleneck our creative faculties. These could be anything - an uninteresting job, a relationship thats not working, or plain lethargy.

Yes, that would mean taking risks and giving up on comforts but that would also make you feel all the more alive. Someone who takes risks and loses is always wiser/ more satisfied than the one who does not leave his own boundaries. 

Just as still water starts to smell foul, to be successful you have to keep moving. So maybe getting that big boring job or staying in the same situation will not help u achieve your life's purpose. I think the day we accept our problems as bigger than our will or believe that stagnacy is part of our lives - I.e. the day we succumb to routine for good, is the day we die - in the sense of capabilities, new possibilities. Then all we have got are these two words - "what if...".

Success

Just a food for thought.....wat is it that makes some people famous and successful?  Many of them have humble or even worse beginnings. How do they reach the pinnacle of success?

Maybe its because they have nothing to loose. So they give it their everything. Unlike us they dont have a big list of reasons why they can't do wat they're good at - no job to loose, no fear of societal judgement, a necessity to feed their families. They can't be complacent like us - they have to act or give up their dreams of living a normal life.

We have a ton of reasons why we cannot do what we love. Why we cannot live our passions.  Our dreams.  Yes, there have been many stalwarts from the comfortable and well to do families.  But even they have taken great risks and moved out of their comfort zones.

Technically your stature should not influence your passion. But is this really true? Wonder why many of us always have a regret where our profession is concerned. There is always something that we would have loved to do, if conditions were better......if things were different. ...

What are we waiting for? If nothing else, we can atleast feel content in pursuing our dreams. .....whether we achieve them or not. Life would be lot more bearable.

Being a Woman

There are a lot of good wishes doing the rounds today...and everyone's really upbeat about the role of women in their lives and how much we mean to them. Yet im thinking on another tangent. What does it really mean to be a woman?

Is it your first period? or the absolute need to keep your house in order?? or your bonding over "Guys are really wired wrong all the way...."? Is it the moment you hold your child in your arms?? or is it watching over your younger siblings when even the word 'motherhood' doesn't exist in your vocabulary? What is it that sets us apart? That makes us endure pain, sometimes even emotional trauma and still hold ourselves and our families together? What are we made of?? Resilience? Determination? Forgiveness? Love?

I live in a country of paradoxes, where mother goddesses are worshiped and also where women like 'Nirbhaya' exist. I hear a lot about 'male domination' and 'patriarchal mindset'. What are these guys trying to dominate? The absolute sense of 'never giving up', the sheer selflessness, or the striving for the welfare of their loved ones? What? They are only deluding themselves. None of these so-called patriarchs would last a day or even exist if it wasn't for the women standing in the shadow of their glorified male ego and their chauvinism.

I use this day to send out a blessing if you will, to all the women who are exploited, raped and who live in extremely inhuman circumstances. I pray that you don't let that light die within you. You exist because this world could not do without you. Yes, that's true. There is definitely somebody/something that depends on you. On your very existence. And i pray that you find it.

Women have their role in society as much as men do. The fact that women may still need to fight for this basic right is the defeat of democracy, of society and our value systems. Change begins at home. Give your daughters the same opportunities as your sons. Give her the same upbringing and imbibe her, with the same attitude of independent living as in your sons. And then see her blossom into a beautiful individual. That's the least we can all do.

As for the rest of us. Celebrate your womanhood. Rejoice that you are a woman. Celebrate your indomitable spirit.

Lastly, a quote -


'So kyun manda akhiye, jit jamme rajaan?' (So why call her bad? From her, kings are born.)
                                                                                                              - Guru Nanak

Introspection..

My pride as an indian has been fiercely shaken. Internationally, we are shamed. We feel ashamed in our hearts that we are a part of this "Democracy", where such unimaginable crimes happen.

I don't feel that we should celebrate our republic day, because we are NOT free. The British have been replaced with social evil and a patriarchal attitude. Our government is apathetic and slow in action, event after 65 years of independence. Aaj Bharat Mahan hai - aisa nahi lag raha. Our erstwhile leaders & freedom fighters would be repulsed, if they knew that this was the 'bright future' of the nation that they actually fought and laid down their lives for.

But like any other Indian, i don't intend on giving up. And neither should we. Lets pay homage to the brave girl by ensuring that we do our bit. That we start with changing the mindsets in our family, among our friends. And that we do not stop voicing the stark injustice that we all face, till effective laws come in place to ensure a safe environment for the women of this country. We do not rest till India is safe for every individual. Not only during our lifetime but also for those who will follow.

May her soul rest in pace. She has shown us the naked picture of our society and the evils which reside in it. The least we can do is to never let any woman/man/child go through a similar ordeal ever again. She has not died in vain. INDIA, lets ensure that we live up to her expectations

Nature's elixir..

No episode of Satyamev Jayate, has really created as much of an outrage in my mind, as today's did. As a mumbaikar, ive only heard of people having problems related to water scarcity, empathized and then forgotten about it. I had read about how water pollution was rampant and how we need stricter reforms...etc.

But the mere photos of rivers like Ganga and Yamuna being used as sewage and Garbage dumps, horrified me to the core of my being. To realize that, we in mumbai receive water from villages as far as 100 Km's because were not able to harness the monsoon water, is disconcerting. No more long showers for me definitely.

The framers of our constitution and laws, got everything right, except the overseeing of implementation. We have a law to fallback upon, to prevent such kind of blatant pollution and destruction of water, natural ecosystems...but we do not implement them. How do companies which dump the garbage in our rivers even exist today?? Why havent they been shut down? Because they bribed a govt. auditor?? or because we just dont care enough.

No wonder, little rain and were flooded. There is not outlet for the water - naturally (Duh!!). Were turning ourselves into a concrete jungle...killing our every interaction with mother nature. WEN DO WE STOP? Sure the govt officials are corrupted - so they should be replaced by others - who continue the same cycle. It never ends. Considering the rate at which we are expanding, clean water is a very precious resource...and were polluting watever little is left.

I believed that things weren't so bad. But i was wrong. We all need a reality check. Things are really bad and they're getting worse - every single day that we sit around and JUST talk. The govt needs to be prodded into action - whether its water pollution,  garbage disposal or rain water harvesting.We need to be able to remove time from our hectic lives for these problems - because the year end appraisal, or ur brand new car wont make a difference, if nature is dying around you. If the only sources of water around you are unsafe, or if you cant even walk outside w/o covering your nose from the stench of overflowing waste bins.

Our ancestors have always lived in tandem with nature - sure they died earlier, but healthier...We need to reverse our cycle back. If every individual can spend a few minutes on thinking wat he/she can do, we will arrive at a solution. Its a community effort and we all need to stand united for once.

Life's little things....

Were all so caught up in our daily routines, petty frustrations, the need to get more than what we've already got. No time to pause..after all looking back is like losing. Our lives are so hectic and full of deadlines, plans & whatnot. There's no time to stop and assess.No time to look back and see how far you've really come. To find out whether you're really on the right track in life. No, all we care about, is the next bonus, salary date, the list of weddings you're supposed to attend (especially this time of the year), all the stuff you need to buy; and maybe now and then whine about 'Why o why, dont i already have '----'? Its an endless stream. Life goes on...days pass buy. Before you know it, its the end of the year.

The point of my talking about the above, is - why dont we just take out some time, when we could just be ourselves....feel carefree....really feel alive. We always live our lives for others/other things. There's no time or place for the little, beautiful things in life. So much goodness around. Miracles every day. And we just pass them by.

I normally go gymming every day. I usually smile and wave at the watchman, while passing at the gate. Only today he walked towards me...asked me how i was and then proudly said 'Madam, mere doosre bete ki navy main naukri lag gayi'. There was a big smile....yet humbleness accompanying it, and definitely well earned pride. I congratulated him and walked along..but it got me thinking. He probably never went to school, never dreamed of big jobs or money. Did a small job, but very courteously, greeting me with a smile everyday. All of a sudden i felt small, in all my misgivings, my complaints sometimes about how screwed my life is...His was worse, yet he was thankful every day for his job. He probably wont ever read this blog...wouldnt know he is the subject of my post. His constant dedication to his work and his nature.., probably his pride for his son's accomplishment, demands more respect than a lot of accomplished people i know.

'Accomplishment' holds different meanings to different people. Its not always money, or beauty or fame. Sometimes it's the little thing. It's hearing about your son's new job, which you couldn't even dream of. It's the smile when you know that someone special loves you too. It's the feeling you helped somebody. It's present in the love you feel for your family. It's your passion.

So, time to stop. To take a turn and look back. To live the little things in life.