Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Keeping you forever in my heart

Keeping you forever in my heart dad, for your memories bring me great joy and strength.

Knowing you are there somewhere looking after us comforts me and keeps me going.

Kindness was your way of life. You were content, never expecting anything from anyone but showering your love unconditionally.

Kids were your pride and joy. We were blessed and privileged to have had you. My kids have grown up to be kind, loving and caring adults because of you.

You left us so suddenly, unexpectedly. I miss you and think of you everyday.

If only you were here with me.



Written for:
Write Tribe's 100 Words on Saturday - If only you were here
The letter  K at ABC Wednesday


Warm Regards
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100 Words on Saturday - Write Tribe




Sunday, September 22, 2013

A Life Changing Moment

And before I knew it I had hit "send".

Sometimes life takes you on a journey you had never expected or even imagined.

About 10 years ago I worked for an organisation that prided itself that its staff were its biggest asset and often sponsored courses that were more life oriented rather than work oriented.

So I joined in one of these courses. I can't quite remember the name but it's objective was to align our lives to a path that would bring us the greatest joy.

Day 1: We all came into the class not knowing what to expect. JB stood in front of us and we had a nice easy first half hour introducing ourselves, not with the usual what's your name etc, but to share 1 unique thing that none of us knew about the other. That set the scene for a very unique and interesting course.

Crayons and paper were passed around that amused us greatly. It was like being back at kindergarten. Then JB asked us to draw a picture of the life we would like to have in 20 years time. Much like a free write, this was to be done without conscious thought, drawing from the heart. I was surprised at what I drew.

It wasn't a life of luxury or travelling or relaxing at a beach-front home, it was making a difference in the lives of people, bringing them joy and giving them an opportunity to live a great life. I was taken aback. My job was certainly not aligned to that and still isn't but I do believe that somehow I am on the path to get there.

Day 2: JB asked us to write one thing that we so wanted to do but for some reason never got around to doing. We had about 15 seconds to write that down - no time to think - it had to be spontaneous.

"Sponsor a child" were the words I wrote. I've been wanting to do this for many years but somehow that battle between mind and heart took place constantly and eventually the mind triumphed. But obviously the heart does not let go.

We were then asked to write the reasons why we hadn't done that 1 thing. So I wrote down my list and ended it with "What if circumstances change and I can't sponsor any more. Wouldn't that be detrimental to the child?".

JB smiled at me and asked me a profound question. "Can you help now?".

That one question has changed the course of my life. Being in the now - letting go of the past - going with the flow and with my heart, having faith and moving forward without fear, is now my blueprint for living.

Back at my desk I opened up the World Vision page for sponsoring a child. I typed up all the information. My heart was beating fast but I felt ecstatic, and strangely at peace, as if this was what I was meant to do all along.

And before I knew it, I had hit "send".

some of my sponsored kids


Have you got a moment that changed the course of your life? Please share.

Warn Regards
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This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda



check out some other WOW posts here



Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Joy

This week I am privileged to host the prompt at the Write Tribe. My prompt is to do a free write. It's quite weird that each time the prompt for a free write turns up, I'm on the letter J of the alphabet!

I had to think a bit about what I should write for the letter J. So many things popped into my head - a song, a quote and then the word Joy screamed out at me.

So Joy it is for the letter J at ABC Wednesday.

I truly believe that our natural state of living is in joy, but sometimes we are overwhelmed by the burdens that we have placed on ourselves and hence have forgotten to be joyful.

So what brings me joy?

Writing of course. It allows me to unleash my creativity and put my dreams and thoughts down on "paper".

Music. Whenever I feel low or things are not going well, music is the one thing that gladdens my heart. Instrumental and devotional music in particular always bring me back to a place of calm and peace.

My children are my strength and joy. I cannot imagine what my life would've been like without them. There's not a day that goes by when I don't thank God for giving me these wonderful gifts.

My job. I actually enjoy what I do immensely. I also enjoy the interactions at work. Don't get me wrong, it's hard work and there's not a moment's respite, my day is full but when you enjoy what you do, it no longer becomes a burden or a chore. Working also brings me joy.

Meditation - about 15 years ago I began my spiritual journey in earnest and I started meditating. It's one of the best things I have ever done. Meditation takes me to a place so wonderful that it's hard to explain in words. If ever my mind is in turmoil, meditation for even a couple of minutes brings me clarity and peace. I highly recommend it.

Walking - not power walking or even brisk walking - that is not walking for exercise, but just to be in communion with nature. To be mindful when I walk and notice everything in my path. So energising.

Photography - this is one of my passions. A camera in my hand is such great joy and looking through old photographs is so much fun and never fails to cheer me up.

So those were some of my joys. Would love to know what brings you joy, so please share yours.

Wish you all a most wonderful and joyful day.

Warm Regards
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Written for 

Write Tribe

Do a free write either as a word purge (just letting your thoughts ramble) or pick a prompt for yourself – a word, phrase, quote, song, book, anything you want to write on and let your fingers fly for 15 minutes.

and the letter J at 



Thursday, September 12, 2013

Inspiration

I is for Inspiration for ABC Wednesday.


Thought I might do something different and instead of quoting some famous inspirational quotes, I would share some of my own. These are words that have either motivated me or helped me through difficult times:


In the larger scheme of things, everything balances out 
When things go wrong this helps to put that into perspective. When the difficult times appear, this helps me get through it knowing that the good times will come. All things must balance.


Go with the flow, be Zen, let it go 
This is one of my favourites and summarises my philosophy of life very nicely. The path that we are meant to be on (good or bad) is the path that we are already walking. Sometimes the "bad" path is there to teach us something. When I go with the flow, eventually the path either becomes enjoyable or new paths suddenly open up that are pleasurable and exciting. Resisting flow not only adds stress but it also prevents the things that you are meant to have from appearing. I also believe that things occur for a reason, best not to fret over it and simply let go. Letting go also makes place for the new.


And most recently a few words that I posted on a comment at Penny McDaniel's blog Spiritunity were converted into a quote by her - thank you Penny. So honoured. So here it is:

When we move with love, we can move mountains
Once I got this concept, my life changed completely. I've also noticed that when I'm in difficult situations and breaking through is proving to be a real test, things become easier and the tension lifts when I move into a place of love. This usually calms me down and allows me to look at the situation from the other's perspective or from a completely different perspective (if it's not a person who is involved). Things just become more pleasant. There are of course moments when I simply cannot break through no matter what and for me that usually means that it's time to let go of the situation, thing or person.




So what inspires you - please share.

Have an interesting and illuminating day.

Warm Regards
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Sunday, September 8, 2013

Going places - Write Tribe Festival Wrap Up

The Write Tribe Festival of Words has concluded. The theme for this festival was 7 and I chose to write about:

 7 dream journeys that I would like to take

I believe that if we dream long and hard enough, then dreams do come true. And "consecrating" my dreams to "paper" has hopefully sent a message to the Universe that these are dreams I truly long for.

A very special thanks to Corinne who blogs at Everyday Gyaan and who masterminded this festival that I think was a huge success. Her enthusiasm and hard work made this possible.

I enjoyed this festival a lot and I had a great time writing about my 7 journeys. I'm also very thankful to all those who dropped by and took the journey with me. You brought my journeys to life with your wonderful comments. Thank you.

And it was great fun to read so many amazing posts - new words, new places, wisdom, getting to know someone, colours, trivia, stories etc.

The camaraderie was lovely and each blogger gave the other support and encouragement. I think this festival was the best one I have participated in to date.

I tried to feature some posts each day and I was surprised that while I enjoyed the writing and reading, featuring posts gave me the greatest joy of all. I do wish I had featured some more posts using the 7 theme, but as always hindsight is a wonderful thing.  I will endeavour to feature posts regularly on all my future posts as this truly brought me great joy.

So here are some more posts I enjoyed across the 7 days

  Shellymona's  Soaring Over Cloud 7 - Dreamers are believers

  Cat's 7 Childhood things - Took me down a delightful memory lane

  Kathy's 7 Lessons - A great list that had me nodding and agreeing with all of them

  Talya's 7 shades of Yoga - A very enjoyable yoga class

  Penny's 7 ways to Nourish the soul - And it truly nourished and gladdened mine

  Aditi's Power of 7  - A heart-warming post on a random act of kindness

  Anu's 7 Childhood crushes  - A fun post


And some great words of wisdom about blogging from

  Corrine's 7 Reasons why you should stop blogging

  Vidya's 7 Deadly sins of blogging


But the post that I thought was simply brilliant was

  Ruchira's 7 Crisis Strategies  - Taking a soul view (great wisdom in this post too)


And finally here are the places I went to and journeys I took virtually

  Journey 1 = Krishna Yatra
  Journey 2 = Ram Yatra
  Journey 3 = Shiva Yatra
  Journey 4 = Himalayan Adventure
  Journey 5 = Kaziranga
  Journey 6 = Royal Rajasthan
  Journey 7 = Ajanta Ellora




Have a day of dreams come true.  I look forward to the next festival

Warm Regards
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Write Tribe



Saturday, September 7, 2013

Going Places - Ajanta Ellora

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival of Words from September 1 - 7. The theme for this festival is "7" and mine is:

Going Places -  7 journeys I would like to take.

Today is the last day of the festival so this is the 7th and last of the journeys in this series.

My journey 7 is to see the beautiful Ajanta and Ellora caves near Aurangabad in the state of Maharashtra.

Ever since I was a child I have been fascinated by the Ajanta Ellora caves. And this was purely because my brother and friends went on a school camp and just raved about it. But I was never allowed to go. Then the internet came along and I would often look them up and read up on them and each time they seemed to draw me in.

The Ajanta Caves are about 300 Buddhist cave monuments that include paintings and sulptures. The caves are a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Ellora caves houses the Kailash Temple in one of its 34 monasteries and temples. It is designed to emulate Mount Kailash the abode of Lord Shiva.

So here is a glimpse of the Ajanta and Ellora caves - best described in pictures.

google maps


Ajanta

image source wikipedia


image source wikipedia


image source wikipedia



Ellora 

Kailash Temple
image source wikipedia

Kailash Pillar
image source wikipedia


image source wikipedia


My journeys so far:
Journey 1 = Krishna Yatra
Journey 2 = Ram Yatra
Journey 3 = Shiva Yatra
Journey 4 = Himalayan Adventure
Journey 5 = Kaziranga
Journey 6 = Royal Rajasthan

(my 7 journeys series can be viewed here )

Day 6 posts that I enjoyed
Vidya's Guru Devo Bhava - a lovely tribute to her teachers particularly her mom
Jyothi's 7 Steps to Hell - her very insightful view on friendships
Bhagyashree's Missing 7 - a real life story of ... the missing 7
Privy's I Promise - Promises she made to herself


Have an adventurous day and check out the day 7 posts

Warm Regards
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Write Tribe

Friday, September 6, 2013

Going Places - Royal Rajasthan

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival of Words from September 1 - 7. The theme for this festival is "7" and mine is:

Going Places -  7 journeys I would like to take.

I always think of Rajasthan as the place of kings. So in my mind Rajasthan needs to be roamed royally like in a Palace on Wheels. The perfect tour - Jaipur - Ranthambore - Chittorgarh - Udaipur - Jaisalmer - Jodhpur - Bharatpur - Agra.

The Palace on Wheels starts and finishes in New Delhi so I guess that would be part of the tour too. Of course I have been to New Delhi and Agra several times but the last visit there was about 35 years ago!

But back to the Palace on Wheels which is a train journey doubling up as a mobile hotel fitted to look like a Maharaja's state carriage. The itinerary is a bit rushed but the charm of this holiday is the ability to live like royalty for a few days.

Jaipur is the largest city in and capital of Rajasthan and is known as the pink city. Last year my school classmates had a reunion in Jaipur which unfortunately I couldn't attend but they had the most amazing time there. On another leisurely visit, I would visit my classmate who now lives there. Jaipur has some interesting architecture.

Ranthambore is one of the largest national parks in northern India and is one of the Project Tiger reserves.

Chittorgarh was built in approx 7AD and first invaded by Allaudin Khilji. Won't bore you with historical details, but as I read up on its history, Allaudin Khilji took me zooming back to my school days. I can't remember the facts behind events but it's quite amazing how one remembers names!

Udaipur is known as the city of lakes and palaces. Someday I hope I will have the chance to stay at the Lake Palace in Udaipur - ultimate in luxury and unfortunately very pricey of course but an experience of a lifetime.

Jaisalmer is called the golden city as it stands on a ridge of yellow sandstone

Jodhpur is the second largest city in Rajasthan and is known as the Sun City as it enjoys sunny weather all year round. It is also called the Blue City because of the vivid blue painted houses.

Bharatpur home of the Keoladeo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the duck hunting reserve of the Maharajas. The name Keoladeo is derived from an ancient Shiva temple situated in the sanctuary.

Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. No more words needed here.

I've also always wanted to visit the Dilwara temples at Mt Abu. So my royal Rajasthan roaming would either end or start with the beautiful Jain temples. Incidentally Mt Abu is the only hill station in Rajasthan.

map taken from the palace on wheels website



Hawa Mahal, Jaipur
image source wikipedia



Ranthambore National Park
image source wikipedia


Chittorgarh Fort
image source wikipedia


Lake Palace, Udaipur
image source google images


Jaisalmer
image source google images


Jodhpur
image source wikipedia


Dilwara Temple, Mt Abu
image source wikipedia

Mt Abu
image source wikipedia


Join me tomorrow on my 7th and final journey

My journeys so far:
Journey 1 = Krishna Yatra
Journey 2 = Ram Yatra
Journey 3 = Shiva Yatra
Journey 4 = Himalayan Adventure
Journey 5 = Kaziranga

(my 7 journeys series can be viewed here )

Day 5 posts that I enjoyed
Usha Menon's 7 Thought Provoking Gems - and gems they truly are.
Snuffles Jay's Significance of 7 in Hinduism - very interesting and enlightening.
Neha's 55 word mini stories - aspects of love beautifully depicted


Have a luxurious day and check out some day 6 posts.

Warm Regards
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Write Tribe

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Going Places - Kaziranga

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival of Words from September 1 - 7. The theme for this festival is "7" and mine is:

Going Places -  7 journeys I would like to take.


My 5th journey is a little different. Leaving behind the yatras and the mountains, this is a journey into the wild, into nature. This is Kaziranga!

There are many wildlife parks in India but I've always been fascinated by the Kaziranga National Park in Assam.

I think Kaziranga has it all, including tigers, leopards, elephants, deer, monkeys in particular the Hoolock Gibbon, the only ape found in India. 

But the animal that I really want to see is the Great Indian One-horned Rhino that is found (in India) only at Kaziranga.

And then while I'm there I thought I would throw in a tea estate as well. 


google maps: approximate location


One horned rhino at Kaziranga
image source wikipedia


Elephant journey
image source wikipedia


image source google images


Tea Estate, Assam - looks interesting
image source google images


Join me tomorrow on my 6th journey


My journeys so far:
Journey 1 = Krishna Yatra
Journey 2 = Ram Yatra
Journey 3 = Shiva Yatra
Journey 4 = Himalayan Adventure

(my 7 journeys series can be viewed here )

Day 4 posts that I enjoyed
Kajal's A Regal Affair - You'll have to read her post to find out what that regal affair is
Roshni's Favourite Childhood Movies - And some of them are mine too.


Have a terrific day and check out some day 5 posts.

Warm Regards
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Write Tribe

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Going Places - Himalayan Adventure

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival of Words from September 1 - 7. The theme for this festival is "7" and mine is:

Going Places -  7 journeys I would like to take.

Having completed my Spiritual Yatras, it's time for a different adventure and as I'm also posting for the letter H at ABC Wednesday, Journey no 4 is of course, High in the Himalayas.

I was 11 years old when I first saw the mighty Himalayas and it's a sight I will never forget. These are the most majestic and rugged mountains I have ever seen. Standing on the Himalayas, playing in the snow, stepping onto a glacier is an amazing experience.

And I thought that was enough. Then I took some journeys that made me want more. Flying over the Rocky Mountains, The Alps and the Southern Alps (New Zealand) brought a new dimension to viewing mountains and watching them from high up was quite a different and breathtaking experience.

Ever since then I've had this dream of flying over the Himalayas. Hence my journey "High in the Himalayas".

My journey would begin in Ladakh which I hear is incredibly beautiful and a place worth visiting and end in Darjeeling. Flying over the Himalayas I believe is a sight to behold. In Darjeeling the highlights would be watching the sunrise and sunset over the Kanchenjunga and Mt Everest.

Another journey I would love to take is a helicopter ride over Mt Kailash and Lake Mansarover. It is believed that Lord Shiva resides on Mt Kailash with Goddess Parvati and Lake Mansarover is often visited by them.

If I was younger I might attempt a trek but one must be mindful of one's limitations and a gruelling trek is probably out of question for me. I have yet to find a tour that provides a scenic flight. But perhaps someday this will become a reality.

google maps - all places are approximate


Gompa Phyang, Ladakh
 image source wikipedia


Kanchenjunga from Darjeeling
image source wikipedia


Darjeeling
image source wikipedia


Lake Mansarovar
image source wikipedia

Mt Kailash and Lake Mansarovar
image source:  google images


Join me tomorrow on my fifth journey.

My journeys so far:
Journey 1 = Krishna Yatra
Journey 2 = Ram Yatra
Journey 3 = Shiva Yatra

(my 7 journeys series can be viewed here )

Day 3 posts that I enjoyed
Shilpa's Similarities - very interesting theory on inheriting similar traits
Corinne's Pablo - a very cute post on Pablo the boxer


Have a heavenly day. Check out some day 4 posts and  H posts at ABC Wednesday.

Warm Regards
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Write Tribe


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