Thank God For Teachers!!

It is no wonder that the world, at one time came up with the concept of having a Guru. I wonder when it all began, but whenever it did, I am so glad it did!!! 

The reason is simple. Now that my little boy has begun learning his ABC's and 123's, I have to make an honest attempt to sit down with him so he learns it. It all began with enthusiasm, like many other first-times. Excitement to buy his first set of crayons, pencils and erasers. Hunting down good books with which I could 'educate' my child. And, I was ever so confident that he would pick up everything in a jiffy. Boy, was I wrong!! No, don't read me wrong here. Not like he has some sort of a learning disability. But each time we sit for our learning sessions, I remember my parents. I really do. How in the blue blazes did they get me this far?

Recognizing the alphabet and numbers came easily and very long ago. In fact, I think most kids learn that pretty soon. But today, when he writes H instead of A and makes 12 look like a duck drowning in water, after a good 6 months or more of him learning to write, it ticks me off! He even has a big red book that he got as a gift from a good friend which has loads of writing, reading and coloring exercises. I sit with him to work on it. I really do, I promise. But, by the 13th minute into us writing B for the 15th time and still drawing a big fat lady instead, it can be really frustrating.

So, well, I am not saying I am worked up about the fact that he is not learning things. He is. Just at his own pace. Just like every other child.  It is not like he is going to face his Bachelor's Degree examinations in two months, right?! Thinking of which - Teachers, professors, mentors, guides, gurus or whatever name you want to call them - are certainly a blessing to this society. I know its nothing new I am saying here. But, when you get to this stage of parenting is really when you realize how much people of this profession mean to this world. Thank god for teachers for otherwise I'd be having my  Blood Pressure skyrocketing every time I saw ABC!

Smile? Oh, please!

If Paramahamsa Yogananda was alive he would probably finally believe that we have entered Kaliyug. For I find all around me people have such a hard time to exchange nothing more than a smile? Well, I am no one to comment on the Guru's thoughts because I know nothing much about him or this preachings. But what I do know is that the world is facing a crisis - Smile Crisis!

I meet a woman almost everyday. I would not want to mention where, but we do cross paths daily. And, it has been about four months now since I do so - sans smiles. I wonder how some people have the ability to look through, almost as if I were some sort of a trasparent wall. Or worse, air!

Seriously, we could all do better than that. I know in the Indian society, we are used to smiling only at people known to us. Our mothers and teachers have warned us about 'strangers' who we should stay away from. Agreed. But, we adults know better, right? That said, here in the United States, it is pretty obvious by the umpteen number of teeth I've seen till date that you need not know a person to simply exhange a smile. What does it cost anyway? It is sad, indeed, how the world has become such an evil place where even if one were to give you a genuine smile, you would doubt it! What if he has a secret plan to steal your wallet and is trying to divert your attention?!!

And there is another aspect of this whole thing. Ever heard the saying "A smile is contagious"? Once you get into the habit, you find that this quote is so true. And no matter how lousy a day you are having, just try smiling at a passer-by and you will find the air lighten around you - and, you would probably be passing on the good vibes to the other person, too! Take time to smile. It takes less than a second! Or have we become so fat-headed that we want a social networking site to provide us with a 'Smile at' button?

A Hymn For Slim

There possibly is'nt one webpage these days that does not sport at least a one line ad about some magical pill or trick that will help you banish your bulge for good. It is hard not to ignore those news-stands with books and magazines with in-your-face claims on how some celebrity lost weight. And it is almost the hardest thing to do - Drop excess flab!

I've been in the league a long time myself. Over a decade since I embraced fitness more as a religion than as a regime. Sadly for me, I am among the unlucky ones who does not look like I even know how to workout, let alone slog, sweat and burn calories. But, yes - I love doing it. Well, someday I hope to get slim....or at least fit. So, every now and then along this journey of blasting fat and counting calories I hit a big wall - which I think is normal. But, just a couple weeks ago I hit something more than just the breaks in weight loss. I saw myself in the mirror and I said "Oh God, just take away all this extra fat"!! And, the very next moment I was laughing at myself. What in God's world was I doing? Praying to the Almighty to make me fit? Hahahah!!

It was all my doing that I got here...okay at least a big part of it (considering I am a foodie!), but have you ever thought how we have prayers for just about anything one might want? Especially in the Indian context...When you're in school/college your Mom would give you a Vidya Ganapathi Shloka to recite, so that you get better schores. Cannot find a job - A prayer for that! Then if there is anyone unable to find a suitable soulmate, their parents would take them to astrologers who would 'prescribe' prayers. Not to mention the umpteen number of other prayers.. but never has there been a prayer to make fat vanish...How I wish there was one...Sigh!

Just the very thought of it had me in peels of laughter. Imagine this - You are desperate to loose weight. You workout, you meet docs and dieticians alike. Nothing works. Finally you turn to prayer and meet the famous priest. The one who helped your Aunt's son's sister-in-law's second cousin brother drop dress sizes like there were hot potatoes although he ate hot potatoes at every meal just by reciting a page long prayer three times a day - Ah, I really wish there was...A hymn for slim!

To Chance On A Dream...

I sat on the dentist's examination chair staring at the wall ahead of me as if there were some sort of an imaginary television playing a blockbuster movie...but my ears were listening to the sounds of drills, chisels and other equipment that only a dentist's office could boast of...apart from a carpenter's, perhaps! A lady walked up to me with a large paper bib and clipped it on me as she prepped up both me and the equipment that my dentist would use to perform the procedure that I had been there for. I watched her manicured hands moving effortlessly all over the place as she placed all the tools in appropriate positions. She seemed to me to be in her late thirties. Neatly dressed, short curly hair that stayed perfectly sprayed in place, make-up so neat that you would know she spends time to take care of herself. She looked me in the eye, her soft hazel pupils telling me she had done this ever so many times before, and said, "I will take an X-ray now" as she pushed some weird looking thing into my mouth. In less than a moment she went out of the room and was back again and said in the same matter-of-fact tone she had earlier - "The doctor will see your X-ray and start the procedure" in a heavily accented voice - an accent that I still am unable to place. French, may be, considering her dressing sense and flawless figure. But, her words did seem slurry and incomprehensible in places so I really do not know. I acknowledged with a nod as she walked away.

The dentist walked in and started his work. I lay there staring now, at the roof, for a change, trying to count the number of squares the false ceiling had. The local anaesthesia and all the tools that found their way in and out of my mouth had me drooling without control. Only ...there was no food in sight. So, that moment my dentist said, "Suction"...and that lady who prepped me walked back in. She forced down the suction tube into my mouth and cleared up all the saliva to allow the dentist to work and walked away again. He dabbed and pounded and drilled. Again in a few moments, "Suction" and there she was, Ms. Hazel-eyes. This went on a couple of times and I decided to re-christen her from Ms. Hazel-eyes to Ms. Suction. Or was the earlier name better? I really could not help but think about her role in the doctor's office. Had she once dreamt that one day she would be summoned by the word, 'suction'? I imagined her as a child. A little girl with unruly locks, running green grasslands in her pastel pink frock in the beautiful spring mornings of Italy. Oh, sorry France. Ah, wherever!

But, you get what I am saying? There should have been some moment in her life when she stumbled on something that she would want to crave to doing all her life. And today, from the look of it, she seemed very happy with what she was doing. I portrayed her in a different light, so you and me would see her as doing something so uneventful. But for her, she was an accomplished nurse at a dentist's office, who knew what to do and more importantly when to do it. She would have at some time in her life chanced on this dream that she would be a nurse and she achieved it. And, when I began to see her at every subsequent appointment my respect for her grew more and more.

I believe it is the same with all of us. We come across this one moment in our life when we know what we have to do and we dream about becoming 'someone'. Some of us grab on to those clues life throws at us and go all out to reach our goals ...while some of us get a wee bit unlucky and miss out on them. But there is always a moment in every persons life when you know what you want... the moment you chance on a dream!

A Reason To Celebrate

We're heading into another winter from tomorrow. As I sit writing this post, I see snow slowly falling down in a steady yet random fashion as if the Gods wanted to remind us humans of the uncertainty of nature. Still, we try to conquer it by predicting the weather to as much accuracy as we can...and we do well, no doubt - Thanks to God's humongous investment in human intelligence!


Well, far from what I'm saying right now (all the weather talk, that is) I'm here again writing on my blog because another little thought occured to me. So, as I sit and write this blog watching the snow accumulate over my beach chairs that sit on the woodden patio all year long, I crave hot chocolate, cookies and pie even...Ummm....warm fudge over ice cream perhaps....And the best part is, 'tis the season - for all of this and more!

Christmas is just a week away (and we sure have a white one this time, thanks to the current snow storm!)and I can almost smell all the goodies in the air. Diwali just passed by and I added a couple inches with all the sweets and savory items I made and received from friends and family alike. Oh and there was Eid too... I saw a lot of my friends talk about the best biryani's and roast meats they ate.

But, above all this festivity and food..and beyond the fact that what we all are doing around this time of the year, is it so that mankind just needs a reason to celebrate? What reason, you ask? Well, think about it, most festivals come around the time the weather starts getting cold. And scientifically speaking, it only makes sense if you add on a couple layers of flab to keep you warm. Especially, back in the days of early mankind when warm clothing might (yes, I say might because I'm ignorant about it) have been a thing not many knew about. Was that why mankind started inventing reasons to celebrate?? I'm not saying religion is wrong or invalid, because I'm not an atheist myself, but its just a thought that came to my mind. Why do all the festivals just coincide around fall/winter?? Diwali, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, X'mas, Eid - All these biggies come in the fag end of the year... Now, that's something to think about, eh?!

The Scent of a Place

This happened not too long ago when we had been to New York to visit Tussauds. It was a lovely summer afternoon when we reached the busy downtown area after a quick lunch at a fast food joint. And as always, the city never failed to leave me stunned with all its charisma and charm, although crowded with people from all walks of live. But I guess that's why I love NYC!!

I'm digressing from the topic....NYC always does that to me!

Well, just as we walked out of the wax museum towards the train station to return home, we past by the umpteen number of shops and restaurants alike. And, suddenly there was a whiff of freshly baked bread that my nose captured and sent my head spinning around looking for the place from where it came. Obviously a bakery. But, what was more captivating was the aroma. I could relate to it so much and it took me back in time - to my college days in Bangalore.

It was then that my mind grew nostalgic and I remembered how I used to pass by this bakery everyday and never miss out on taking a deep whiff of the aroma of freshly baked bread every evening. Is it not funny how even the scent of a place can transport you to another place all together?? Umm.. whatever you say, now I'm hungry for some fresh baked bread :)

Bigger Than Time?

Pages have been written by plenty of authors about time and time management. I do salute all their thoughts. But is there something bigger than time that rules us? "Time is Money"... "Do not waste time" etc. are common phrases we hear as we grow up. But is there something that governs how we use (or do not use) time? A little something happened that gave me the answer to this question.

It was just another day - hectic mornings, busy noons and lazy evenings. Somehow, I had finished my chores early and put my baby to bed for his noon nap. I sat around thinking what to do. I had no mood to browse nor to read nor do anything I'd normally do around that time everyday. Then I had this sudden urge to do something creative since I have been on a home revamp mission. And bang on time I remembered the long lost stitching project I had left half done over 2 years ago. Well, I started it off with great enthusiasm but I stopped since I had better things to do. More important things took the place of my needlework project. More responsibilities let to different priorities. And this little stitch kit (which is completed now and looks lovely!) descended gradually down the priority list and settled back in its cover in the farthest end of my closet.

That's when it struck me. It's not just time. Its' not like I did not have any time to do this. But it was about priority. Had I not been revamping and redoing things in the interiors of my home (to whatever best I can with a toddler around)..I'd NEVER have thought about this needlework kit.

On similar lines, when someone asks you why you did not do something. We so easily say, "Oh I did not have the time". Think again. Its not the time.. its the priority of the task at hand. Of course its a simple thing ..and we all know it....yet, we blame time. So the next time you say this, think priority, not time!