Immortal

What is it to be immortal. Well, I don't really know, maybe a reminder of your existance at every breath even after you've gone away, away to a world from where you can never come back, leaving behind a bundle of deeds, deeds that resound in someones heart, that carve out a niche in someones soul, that flow in someones tears, that beat in someones heart....deeds that carve out a space, filling it with gratefulness and making one follow the traces left behind, which inspire us to be like the one if not at par.
Our deeds make us immortal, deeds that we silently shower for the betterment of the other, which then seep down reaching their soul and stay there forever. Such is the power of our deeds, that they make us immortal.
Being elder than someone is not a big deal, but when you are at a higher pedestal, you should always remember, that there are people standing below, who have their gaze on you, its your duty to set the right example, and it would be your deeds that would make you live forever.
A department to cater to the people suffering from tuberculosis had opened in Jamia, grandpa was a part of the department. Being a part of something only helps, when one actively participates in it and takes it towards the goal it has intended to achieve. Whoever suffered from TB got a quick ride on grandpas heavy bike, who then took them to the center to be cured. Many shared the seat, and many lives were cured, no one got to know, coz it just seeped in the heart of those who then made him live forever.
He is still alive, alive in the words of the people I meet, Alive in the twinkle of someones eyes as he/she takes his name, Alive as Mr. Abdul Sattar, A name people would never forget, a name that is smeared on every wall of the village called Okhla, in the memories of a University called Jamia, in the hearts of the people who loved him, and in the innumerable deeds concealed in every heart...be it known or unknown.......

The Oath that left an imprint....

Today, when I was posting a poem at musings (the other blog that I have), my eyes filled with tears. Once nana had told me, that ones country is ones home, its our duty to look after it. Let people say what they want to, let them criticise it and leave their duties for others to fulfill, simply by playing the blame game, but you as an Indian don't ever forget, that your country is your duty, always be there for it, go ahead and be the change that you want to see, don't ever let those down who have given you the freedom to express yourself, to live with dignity in your own land, don't let those down who gave you the freedom to decide...who blessed you with the words...for, by and of the people...its in your hands...your land...its your responsibility...take it towards the path of progress, you owe it to your motherland...you owe it to India..your home... your world!
I remember your words nana, I remember how unwell you were on the day of the election and still you went to the booth to cast your vote...I know how important it was for you...
You were a good son, you did realise your duties towards your motherland.
As Independence Day is fast approaching, I can smell the fragrance of my land in the air,
I am delighted at the innocent eyes and the little hands holding on to the flags at the red light,
I can feel the enthusiasm in the march past at the India Gate, all set and energised to celebrate the special day!I can feel the Amar Jawan Jyoti's rising flames, the young blood that did not think for a second before giving their life for their motherland!I am proud to belong to such a country, where the Saffron, White and Green coexist in wonderous harmony
..this is my country...my world..my land!May the fragrance of joy forever mesmerise my motherland :)

A Festive Delight!

Raksha Bandhan, a beautiful Indian festival, when Sisters tie rakhi on their brothers hand . Rakhi is a sacred thread of protection embellished with the love and affection of a sister for her brother. Its beautiful how relationships blossom with time, leaving a fragrance of love and affection for us to trace whereever we may be. Once my teacher told me, that in her days, sisters used to get up early in the morning, had a bath and sat down to make a beautiful rakhi out of colourful threads, at that time people did not prefer buying one from the market, it used to be a sacred affair. I believe its still sacred, whatever might have changed with time, the feelings, the promises, the belief and love is just the same, ever growing with the joy of human bonds:)
I feel the best thing about being an Indian, is the fact that whatever community, religion or region you may belong to, each and every festival celebrated by the people of our nation is relished by one and all. Its like different members of a family, with different habits, customs and beliefs, coming together to celebrate the festive spirit that colours life, with its ever refreshing glory!That's my country and I am in love with it :)
I remember how my siblings and I, used to gather at nanis place to tie rakhis to each other, it was a treat to get a chocolate in return to every rakhi that was tied. Time passed, we grew up and got busy, but today, when I messaged my cousins , to wish them a very happy rakhi, the fragrance of the bygone days smeared my mind....time passes but certain feelings remain intact forever.
Thank you Rush for encouraging me to write a new post today as you always do , you took me to the days that linger on like fresh dew, which works like a healing balm :)
A very happy Rakshi to all my friends out there!May God bless each relationship in your life with an enriching beauty that gets better with time :)

Early Morning:)

Early mornings :) When we are little kids, its a torture to get up early in the morning!The alarm would ring, consciously unheard, waiting for the louder alarm to ring again and hoping that the latter fails to do so!The louder alarm...well mom who else..She'd come early in the morning totally aware of the ungreatful cheapness that we have to show towards the alarm clock;) and then follows the line of the day!"Oh!Already, I just slept a while back:("..and quickly a reply is shot back.."your while back has already completed ten hours!! Better be up"..how cruel is that! Whatever said and done, those were blissful days, when all the worries were definately not our baggage, but were taken care of by others..lol..blissfully carefree.
But as time passed mornings took a new role in my life, ones that brought out the positive from within..
Today as I sat in the lawn, the morning had yet another blissful flavour to it, smeared with fresh dew drops, under the clear blue sky, accompanied by the soft rays of the sun, which brought down the temperature in a jiffy. The cool breeze made sure, that our mind opens up to embrace all thats good in the world.The birds went about doing their work, building nests on the ever welcoming arms of the friendly trees, the butterflies danced around, enjoying the fragrance of the flowers which were happily dancing with the wind. The moving clouds seemed like a light blanket covering the sky step by step, while the rain waited for its chance to shower the earth with its gentle downpour and I amongst all this, could just say a few words, "Thank you God for a beautiful morning!"
Time indeed reveals the real taste of life :)

The Not So Idiot Box!

Memories have a huge storage capacity, they can preserve loads of incidences that in turn become an important lesson in life.In this fast changing world of cable and dish t.v., people are forgetting the presence of doordarshan, well that was one channel and a few others that used to enhance the t.v. set which then wasn't much of an idiot box, since there were many shows that left a great impact on our mind. I was in fourth standard when my uncle got a cable connection at my grandma's place. Since then it became a ritual for the whole clan, to go over to nani's place and watch "Antakshiri" , hosted by Annu Kapoor, followed by a huge family dinner :)
Before that, movies were not a regular feature and tapes could be hired to watch a movie. So whenever the senior members of the family planned to watch a movie, it used to be a festive delight for me and my cousins, since we got our share of fruity and chips! More than the movie, it was the treat that we looked forward to.
It so happened that once I was watching t.v. at home, though it was black and white, but I filled it with the colours of my imagination.I still remember that they had special programmes for kids during the summer vacations, " aaaa eeee ho gayi chutti" played the title track. Once they had this story about a kind little girl, who shared everything with others, even if it was a small little sweet,she used to share it with her parents, by dividing into half. So one day an angel visited the girl's place disguised as a poor woman. The little girl was having her food, the only two rotis which she had, as her parents were away for some work. When the angle asked her for food, the girl gave her whatever she had. Happy with the girl's generosity, the angel blessed her and told her, that she would never fall short of anything in life, happiness would be her jewel for the rest of her life!
After the story ended, I headed straight to the kitchen and hugged my mom, though she got a bit confused, she hugged me back and planted a kiss on my forehead. Then I went back to my room and took out all my toys and gave a nice new one to my maid's daughter, who was more or less the same age! I was happy that day and still am:)
Grandpa used to say, when you give a present to someone, give them what appeals to you the most, don't give them something you do not like, that indeed would be a real gift. He used to keep the best things for others while using the old ones, this habit irritated everyone in the family but I know how happy he felt :)
Everything in the world teaches us a lesson..........even the so called idiot box can be pretty useful! Isn't it ;)

The Natural Balm

There is a cord that is struck when you find yourself at certain places. Those places make you realise, how deep and mesmerising the reality actually is. I remember the early mornings at my grandparents place, where you didn't need an alarm clock to wake you up, nature did the needful.
As I was asleep a beautiful sound entered my ears and resounded in my mind, it was a tiny dove playing distant music with its tone, going on repeating the words "Ya Dosto"as thats what I believed they were. In our faith, "Ya Dosto" is another name for God. As my grandmother used to tell me lovingly,"all the birds remember the Lord and keep taking his name, thats how they beautify the world, with their peaceful chant!"
Indeed. Today when I think of it, I know for sure that nature has its own healing powers, be it the soothing winds or the gracious chant of the birds, everything adds to the beauty of life.When people stuff their ears with head phones and jog in the parks, they don't realise what they are missing the most. Music does take one to another world, soothing each tussle that comes our way, but the music of nature is greater than what any living being can ever make. It works like a balm on the strained nerves and calms each breath that we take.
God has given us a beautiful world which protects us from everything that goes wrong in our life, nature indeed is our natural defence mechanism, its for us to hear its call and sing along with the blissful music that has the power to heal everything that it touches upon.

A little birdie perched high up in a tree,
Singing along with the winds to nature's melody,
A balm was the song to soothed every strain,
joy it brought to the rough terrains.
As I sat on the window sill,
the melody entered with a joyous jilt,
and then came in a new breathe of life,
it touched my day with a new found delight,
and as I got ready to face the world,
beloved nature resounded in my ears.

Everyones life got some plan........

I was just thinking, why does life give one a feeling of having everything but being empty.
Is it a loss of patience or loss of desires, or just an empty mind which is on fire?
But when we tend to combine all that goes on , in the stream of life which just flows by,
its then, that one gets to know, that its just but our nature...to think about life and the uncanny future ..........

It makes me think, and yet not understand,
that everyones life got some plan,
carving a niche or finding a cure,
life does take us through something for sure,
and when this something results in success,
thats when we cry out,"Oh!Everything happens, for the best!"