~~Life is Good~~

I wish I had something exciting to share but I've got nothing. Just run of the mill life stuff like spending most of my energy on work and coping with the seasonal health issues as best I can. Last couple of weeks haven't been very picturesque, let me tell you...

...few not so exciting things...

:: I know people including me out here in Delhi have been feeling summer-grilled lately. I think we should now stop claiming that we are a country of seasons but long humid summers, irregular humid rains, and short but bone-chilling winters. I think they're just not subtle anymore. As of now, I'm enjoying the cool evenings, even if the soothing weather is slow to catch up. I've been managing to survive the brutal heat of day-time with loads of lassi, chhaach, juices, water, and lot more of water (not cold water as it doesn't suit me). Yeah! You got that right. It should not be cold, no matter how scorching hot the Sun is! I've also started avoiding AC, as my body has started showing up the signs of cervical. I find it bothering me more when in AC. Phew!  Adding onto the problem...are these seating jobs...As I always say...Such jobs are the biggest enemies of health! I'm normally loathe to give up summer, but this year's heat wave literally killed me, and now I'm grasping at any hint of chill in the air even if it would mean to go through a strange kind of depression that I usually face in winters only. 

:: Okay, just like past few weeks, I've been able to spend only a little time home this week, apart from the sick leave.  Most of our time is consumed by the never-ending shopping spree. Seriously, it feels like it would never end! Wow...a never ending shopping spree...just love it every time!! The only thing that bothers us is...our Sun-tanned skin. You see, we get no time to pamper ourselves, which is equally important to be done. I’m always seeking out some free time, be it in office, or at home, free time to do nothing; not even pampering myself...but just nothing! 

:: Moreover, I've been constantly hogging fast food and sweets and all kinds of fatty food....Fried chicken momozzzz (yummmmm...), pizza (drooool....), cheese bread (heaven’s delight.....), kebabs, tikkaazz, chips (countless packets), cookies, wafers, chocolates, cup-cakes, sweets........... Just name it! All thanks to the pre-marriage rituals involving sweets at every step! Our refrigerator is full of sweets these days.  Also, when you have all these yummy things in front of you, you have to respect them!! Won’t you?? I don't even mind doing it, as long as I don't put on weight. But when it comes to healthy food in lunch, my hunger dies within a fraction of seconds. That’s not good!! 

:: It seems like I've started basing my eating habits against the approaching weather. Don’t remember how and when I developed this strange habit of savoring ice-cubes, ice-crumbs, and every other form of ice. I know it’s not good for my health, especially in this changing weather; still I’m drawn to the refrigerator like a moth is drawn to a flame; and that’s the reason behind my daily dose of scolding from mommy (which is always received graciously by me, it’s so full of love!). Despite that, I manage to get my hands on ice occasionally. Love that taste...mmmm...bliss!! 

:: Office, as usual, is beating the hell out of my mental peace. Haahahahaaa... not really ... just kidding...!! These days are few peaceful ones from a teeny-weeny annual lot of happy days. I can say this as I've completed my first year working for this Government organization. Rare are these happy and peaceful days! But next two weeks are going to be fully packed with work. This is the story of the first two weeks of every month. Anyway! To have a peaceful life, we should leave the office stuff at office only. You leave office for the day; you leave all its tensions at its gate only. That’s the key to a happy life on the personal front.  I do the same. At least, I try. Do you?? If not, give it a try tomorrow..........You’ll feel great!!

**************************

~~~Leaving you beautiful people with a quote as beautiful~~~:

~~~It's often life's smallest pleasures and gentlest joys that make the biggest and most lasting difference.~~~  

~ Unknown

**************************

. . .What My Heart Says. . .

I wanted this particular dawn to be a pleasing one...Just wasn't aware that it would be.

At times...it's just one simple step around the corner that marks the beginning of a change!

PC: Google Images

Listen to what my heart says...

Change is good..!!

But, I would never, never ever want to get so engaged, so occupied, that I fail to hear the hush; the quiet; the beautiful tranquility of a brand new day.

I am grateful to the expression- ~ SLOW ~!! 

The word, that often reminds me to slow down in the race of life. 
To slow down, both with intention, and purpose; and sometimes, just for the sake of clearly seeing the journey through life.

Hmm...How I ponder on it time and again.

We all feel the same way about it, I think..!! 

But don't know if you also have a hard time practicing it. Do you?? 

How amazing life would have been..

if only we could just slow down, and simply rejoice in the serenity of life..!!  

At least, more often than we may already do. 

May you have a beautiful day..!!

Hearts on the shore... ♡ ♡

❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ 

The skies are singing blue, soon they would rain,

amid the music of ocean, to kiss the shore again.

One longing so long, to gently clasp wind's hands,

is screaming and yearning, to drench the golden sands.

As is the rain of love, so is the breeze of life all new,

long ago a moment in time , had tied my being with you.

No words could voice our love, so zealous and deep,

love that floats, in the fragrant fumes of our dreams.

Hand in hand, we will walk along the mighty shores,

with the tender winds fondling, our rain-drenched souls.

Soon our footprints, will embrace the silky beach,

where the sparkling playful waves, will tickle our feet.

Sweet is the wish, to see an ocean shining in your eyes,

that draws my heart to rain over, like a cloud full of light.

Over the boundless ocean, soon that cloud would pour,

but till then, we will sit, and draw hearts on the shore. . . . .

PC: Google Images

                                                         ✽✽✽ © Vandana  Verma

❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋ ❀ ❋

Is it always sad when someone you know becomes someone you knew??

"It's sad when someone you know becomes someone you knew."

                                                                         -Henry Rollins

I used to believe it too. 

No offense guys! But...is it so ?? I mean...is it always true??
............Naaahh............not always.....!!

*******************************************************************

Life is a beautiful journey which is always willing to bestow us with some of the most beautiful companions out there...Some people without whom our journey will never be completed. We would never be able to have a beautiful life without their company, their unconditional support and love.

Those integral parts of our life are, our family- our life's *~angels~* who are the prime building blocks of our existence, and a handful of friends who once were total strangers, who came along to become our soul family at later point of time. 

It would have been impossible to keep walking on this long road of life without them all. What is life without family and friends? .....NOTHING!!.....

When I talk about "Unconditional Support and Love"....I know that it's quite easy to talk about it, but extremely rare to experience and hard to deliver. Only, and only those mentioned above can practice it in real life. Those are the people who will always love you, encourage you, guide you, and correct you for your betterment, towards a better life. 

Somebody said.......```There are somethings that money can't buy```... and ...```There are some people who can never be replaced in life!!``` These words are true to the core!!

If these "few people" are "blessings" in your life, then you would also come across "many", who would turn out to be the "blight" in your life. 

Blight, that has to be combated and cured without giving a second thought...just like a mistake that needs to be corrected at the earliest as to protect our happiness from going into ruins. Mistakes are made only to learn from; to teach us the difference between right and wrong, to tell us who deserves to be cherished and who must be thrown out of our lives.

That's why broken trusts and betrayed friendships must be scraped away from our lives as they would always pull you back in their drama. Those pretended friends perch on you just to satisfy their selfish needs. They would never miss an opportunity to display their hidden talent of drilling holes under your boat. 

So better is to burn some bridges than to allow those peace-suckers to crawl into your life as masked well-wishers.

~~~ "When you deal with the genuine, you don't deal with the fakes anymore."~~~  

                                                                             I like this quote by Nima Davani a lot....

I know it would hurt a little, or may be a lot in the beginning, but in the later phase of life, you are definitely going to feel proud of your decision...~~the life-changing decision!!

I can vouch for that, because I am one of those who at some or the other point of life, have met such two-faced losers who call themselves your best buds for don't know what reasons, and then, they make sure to show their true colors behind your back by bitching about you with random people. All they want is to mold you their way, talk the way they want, think as they do. If you don't, they go crazy inside.

...."Nobody wants to know how you feel, yet, they want you to do what they feel."....   

                                                        - Reality quoted by Mr. Michael Bassey Johnson

PC: Google Images

So what I did to bring peace back in my life was the best thing that I could do at that point of time. Yes, earlier it was difficult but once I decided to do it, I just went ahead and did it!! I threw them out of my life. Not like kicking them off in air  ...I started maintaining a decent level of distance from them and slowly my life came back on track!! Now I'm happy and I think they are too....Blah!! Who cares anyway..!! 

~~~~~~Knowing the fact, I could not get happier....when someone I had known for a long-time became someone I knew.~~~~~~

My life turned prettier after they left along with their not so-cool drama!! I started finding my happiness in life's simple pleasures. I've stopped following the path of dependence in search of joy, my happiness now belongs only to me and my angels- my family and my true friends!! Not to everybody around me....

********************************************************************

When the "Bully" is not around..!!

Do you know which day of the week is the most delightful? Sunday..because that's a holiday.

Or the day, when the "Bully" is not around...wow!! 

Such news that he is not going to come for next couple of days is like the sweetest music that my ears could ever hear. What a joy this news brings! News fully soaked in perfect blend of unimaginable exhilaration and fulfillment...Yaaaayy....Sheer bliss!! 

Workplace, usually a busy-place, becomes fun-place in those days. Work-pressure, that crushes our minds in peak hours, seems to have become lighter than a feather. Those low-speed "sarkaari" ceiling fans that are never able to cool us suddenly start soothing our blazed away spirits. That hard chair (more of an antique piece) starts comforting my tired being much like a couch. The extended lunch chit-chats and giggles bring in much needed peace of mind. 

The persistent respite blows the day away in the blink of an eye. I can't put that hale feeling into words. It's never a burdensome day, it never gets that clumsy, when the "Bully" is not around!

Talking about the routine, those unnecessary battles of ideas that we go through everyday are enough to suck out all the energy from a person. But the "Bully" is never tired of them, because his imaginary supreme intelligence says that he's always right!!

Such a golden time arrives only once in a blue moon, when you don't have to worry about anything; be it the unnecessarily created hype towards work, or the meaningless demands for related explanations. You don't have to bother about a bully often spewing venom against co-workers, or termites who gnaw away all your inner peace. That short span of freedom from the master of menace who openly belittles his sub-ordinates every now and then...is priceless!! 

PC: Google Images

Long awaited "blissful times"...

When the "Bully" is not around!

Joyful days...

Leisure...Relieved ears...Relaxed mind...Ease at work...

Simply wonderful!!

That's why they say..."Good things come to those who wait (faithfully  ..)"

Sooner...

Here I am....sharing with you all....one of my initial poetry trials...

Approved as a nice trial by my fiancé and my sister...One that's very close to my heart...

It goes like this...

Hope you have a good time reading it...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sooner...

Like dew drops amid the dry sands, tears twirled in her eyes.

An elated moment splashed them, with contentment and reprise.

Only needed was, another moment of honesty in that midnight.

Under the glistening sky, a new tale was waiting to see the twilight.

Her tears would then sing, in innocence of faith spent,

a melody flowing through her cheek, spirited and eloquent.

The smile that would heal, may pursue this twilight,

from the starlit skies, to meet a soul as chaste and bright.

May the amber of her heart, gleam and glow,

for the sake of love, so serene and pure.

Morning clouds now dance slowly, the rain drops also sing.

Flowers now smile at her, the moon lights up her dreams.

Sooner...

the birds inspire her soar high, the rainbows become her canon.

Now the dawn's orange sky, is next to heaven.

                                                         - © Vandana Verma

PC: Google Images

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~When it rains cats and dogs, remember only warmth of the Sun~~

PC : Google Images

....This entire week has been a hectic one....

With my drooping eyes, I've done a lot of staring out of the door and windows. 

There has been "little or no departure from work-desk" and "a lot of confusion".

Like the blown away puff of a dandelion, my thoughts were all scattered throughout the week. Gone with the wind were they...

.....and so was my reasoning ability.....!!

Last twelve days flew by way too fast. All packed with work, one-third of which was not necessary. 

This week at work, I realized why it takes a few minutes to make mistakes, but it takes a very long time to correct them. Moreover, there arose so many "Questions". Many of them were rolling around in my head, with my mind revolving at the speed of a thousand rpm. 

I was so exhausted !!

Yet, I'm glad that I hung in there and thankfully, I managed to escape the frustration on last working day of the week. Friday proved to be a healer. It reminded me that none of the problems lasts forever. 

I'm feeling so relaxed and free today as it's an off for me. Effortlessly, I'm sitting and enjoying my favorite TV shows. Away from deadlines, doing nothing,  I've spent whole of my day at home....!!

!!............the place where I belong.............!!
.....with my heart grounded there in love.....

I'm feeling great today !!

The Perfect Indian Bride ~~

The country that we live in has been following certain life paths, that are often accompanied with certain social expectations, not from oneself, but from others.  Those expectations are often compared with reality. When the two fail to meet each other, it's always reality that's blamed.

The question raised then is, why cultivate such rigid expectations in our society? Why we cannot celebrate reality but keep imposing the myth of perfection on others? Why we appreciate less and disparage more? Why there persists the urge to suffocate others but never resuscitate?

One such root of expectations is marriage. Marriage, that seems to be fairy-tale at first. Don't know about the other world, but our Indian society has always had this criteria set for a perfect marriage, for a perfect bride, and a perfect groom.

The major criteria for a perfect groom is his education, financial stability, and a house of his own.

But the criteria for a perfect bride is not that narrow to be understood.

It is too normal to come across such situations in our friend-circle these days, as we all are going through that age. The age that's set by our society as "Shadi ki Umar"! My Indian fellows must have heard this song from the movie "Mere Brother Ki Dulhan", that well-describes our culture of expectations. It goes like this, just think and understand:

First Criteria:

Sundar ho (She should be beautiful),

Susheela (well-behaved and docile),

Rang chaandi sa chamkeela (fair and bright as silver),

Degree bhi ho (well qualified, should have a degree),

Fashion bhi jaane (should be fashionable).

The first two lines are the prime requirements to be a perfect bride. This gender biased racist tradition has infected our media as well that's never hesitant of proving that only "fair & lovely" could get a suitable boy for marriage. Education and intelligence come later, as mentioned in the next line. Fashion sense here means orthodox balance between fashion and traditional style of dressing.

Second Criteria:

Ho Sita jaisi naari (should be as virtuous as Goddess Sita herself),

Aur jaane duniya-daari (should be well-versed with laws of society),

Piya ko sab-kuch hi vo maane (Her husband should be everything for her. Her world should revolve around him).

They want a girl like Goddess Sita- the sati. The lady who is known for her sacrifices, who was exploited and disdained by the society for no faults of her own, who was left alone in exile during her pregnancy and was abandoned by her husband in his quest to be a perfect king. Still, she accepted it all uncomplainingly. She left this world in the journey of proving her purity. Why our society is never bored of this orthodox mentality !!

Third Criteria:

Kaam me jo na ho lazy (she should not be lazy),

Ho jisme 3G ki tezi (should be prompt in all household work),

Aur ho shokh si adaa (should be charming),

Relation samjhe jo ladki (should understand the relations),

Rahe na ego me bhadki (should not have a persistent ego),

Jo laaye good luck hi good luck sadaa (should bring good luck always).

This ideology itself is full of sarcasm. The initial two lines of the above mentioned criteria hold true for a domestic help as well, right !  The only add-on for the girl is her nine hour job that also holds no room for compromises. The job that she has earned after years of hard-work of her own, and her parents. So, she should be fast enough to simultaneously manage both without complaining. She should never get annoyed but only emphasize on developing selflessness and compromising with her own necessities. She should always stay happy no matter what, so that only good luck comes in. Wow! Only machines can do that !

Fourth Criteria:

Mohabbat ki vo ho google (should know everything about love like Google),

Jo de de har question ka hal (should have the answer for every question asked),

Jo sabke dil me dua si basse (should live in everybody's heart as prayer).

Model ho world best (should be as international as a world-best model),

Par mitti ho Indian (but must have Indian values).

Well, when you already have Google, why you want her to be another one ! Heights of demands !

In real meaning, it's only love that keeps a marriage going . But the beauty of marriage is not in doing it all alone. It is a partnership for life. It is about finding answers to questions with each other, not for each other. 

The last two lines can hold different meanings for different sets of society. Talking about myself, I just want to know what Indian values are they talking about? I guess, the ones which have already been mentioned out here !

Knowing that "female" gender is also a part of "human" race, the "Perfect Indian Bride" seems to be just an idea !! An idea full of expectations that can deeply damage relations when not full-filled by reality! Why is it difficult for our society to treat a human as a human. Why a daughter-in-law has to carry a baggage full of expectations on her head from the first day and way before that as well?? Why can't the majority of our society treat their daughter-in-laws as their daughters. Why can't they appreciate the positive side.

Why there is lack of acceptance? 
.......Only excess of expectations, expectations, and expectations !!

Once upon a Saturday..

Friday, Friday...

Getting down on Friday...

Everybody's looking forward to the weekend...

Partying, partying..yeah...

Fun fun fun fun... ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ ♭ ♮ ♯

        -"Friday" by Rebecca Black 

No song could better sing out this universal tale that's gushed with the weekend excitement in our hearts !

Although I have only Sundays off, I'm still excited about Saturdays nearing. That's because I meet him every Saturday evening after work. And believe me, I get free from the unnecessary baggage of stress the moment I see him ! Such a magical smile he owns ! It kind of starts my weekend right.

We sit together and share giggles. We never restrain ourselves from being frank about the problems and resolving them together. We discuss our work and plan our future together. The world seems to be next to heaven in that moment ! We often get engaged in tittle-tattle and that's how Saturday evening turns out to be a stress-buster.   

Saturday evening is all about spending time with him. But that day, I stumbled upon a reason to observe the other side of the world as well, and, think !

Recently, we met at a commercial hub. The place as usual was full of food joints and cine-complexes. It was packed with people due to weekend. After having a round of eating and nice chat, we were on our way home. Moving ahead amid the crowd, we stopped to take a selfie as remembrance of the day. 

Along the exterior of the place, an elderly man was selling toys. It was not a shop, he was trying to sell them sitting on the floor itself. Unassisted, he was giving demos of his key-toys. The toys were not expensive. One could buy a toy at a price as low as Rs. 30. I found them cute so I bought one. 

The closest from that place were the food joints which were fully occupied with people. Families with kids were all around that area. I don't know why, but I just could not ignore what was happening.  Well-heeled people were coming and going, and many of them passed across that toy-seller. Some with eatables in their hands and some with shopping bags (all branded). Some of the kids were delighted by the sight of those toys. 

So the man started to give the demos frequently in the hope that some of the parents would purchase his toys for their kids. Many of them stopped to check out the toys. They asked the seller to give demo of several toys and he did so. After seeing all of it, they asked the price for few of them. 

Same  scenario was repeated again and again.  And the common iteration  was  
---->  "bhaiya 30 rupay bohot zyada hai, kam lagaao !" After performing futile trials, they all went away without purchasing any of them.

I mean, what were they expecting the price to be ? Rs. 10 ? I can't explain how the person's breaking hopes appeared on his face. 

This is something that I've never been able to understand. Why the affluent individuals demonstrate their art of bargaining in front of the needy (it doesn't include all street-side sellers, it just means "needy").  They are capable to pay all kinds of extra charges including the actual price of things. But when it comes to a toy worth Rs. 30, they say, 

"kam lagaao bhaiya"..

My mommy says..

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Life is busy. People would often forget you easily. Don't feel bad if the best of your friends leave your hand in the hour of need, because people change, and so do their priorities. 

Sometimes, you might feel left out. You may also face a time when you would need to distance yourself from some people. Your surroundings might influence you to make negative choices. That's the moment when you would need to control your impulses and use your wisdom to understand what is right for you. 

Never make decisions in the heat of moment or in the influence of external factors like social or peer pressure. You might need to say "NO", without any fear ! It is always better to let go of the negatives, and inculcate only the positive traits of society in your behavior ! 

In life, you would meet people who would stand by you through thick and thin. You would be surprised by the unexpected gift of compassion from few out of many people around you. Long since lost hopes would pave new paths, to change your life and give it a whole new meaning.

Don't waste your time weaving intricate, fantasy worlds in your mind. Live in reality ! At the same time, enjoy your life to the fullest ! Take your part of social responsibilities seriously. Laugh as hard as you can with your family and friends. Be a reason for others' smile and never be judgmental towards anyone, quickly. 

~~~ Always remember to practice humanity since you are born as one ! You can always hurt someone and make them stronger, but you would never be able to call it "YOUR ACHIEVEMENT."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~ Growing up ~~

            Every year when summer bids good bye and a cool breeze begins to blow, I have this intense urge to take a break from work for a couple of weeks to spend time with family, rejuvenate and prepare myself for the next round of 10 to 5:30 schedule. Oh..! I could dream of those blissful times all day long..!

        And, as Mr Paulo Coelho said, “'when you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you to achieve it’'. Finally I'm heading towards an occasion that would allow me to live the dream I've lingered upon for so long. But what I am unable to understand now is why I've become so indifferent towards it .

                I just cannot pass on the chance to also express that this break would change my life completely. I am going through a phase of mixed emotions as now I can hear my wedding bells ringing.  I often think hard and long on some unanswered questions that I am never able to put into words. A rush of excitement sends light to my eyes on the sight of amazingly vibrant clothes and jewellery. But all that excitement soon fizzles out when I realize that I will have to leave my home on getting married. I start feeling alienated. I mean I have never been away from home. How would I go days without seeing mommy, papa and my sister. I will miss my family beyond words ! 

               This is happening when I'm getting to marry the person I chose for myself with all my heart. Our places are just ten minutes distance apart from each other. He is the best person I have ever met in my life. I have found loads of love and care for myself in his family. He has become my best friend in this course of time and I feel so elated  that we are going to be partners in this next phase of life. 

            What scares me is the fear of being completely on my own as a grown-up. I wonder how I would carry on without sharing each and every detail of life with mommy, papa and my sister. Would I be able to become that strong and decisive, that responsible ! Mommy's care, papa's guidance and sister's love, Mommy's food, watching TV shows together, talking about the whole world for hours, sharing laughter, relaxing together on weekends, and what not ! Mommy has the solution to every problem. I will miss it all as I am "addicted" to all of it. I want it all at every point of time. I have always been a pampered child, I still am and I know, I will always be. But later I will have to think and wait for the right time to share it all with them. Limited time to spend with them at home, and conversations on phone. I feel lost. But I'm trying to prepare myself for the new beginnings, and it would definitely take time.   

 May be, this is what is called.. "growing up".