Miss you, my story tellers!...

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It seems like it's been ages since I lost my grand parents.But it just feels like yesterday that I used to run to them and they would give me a good old warm hug, that made all the blues steam away into thin air.

Ah! The times when I heard stories,that often went haywire, but were carefully knitted together by the love of the old story teller. Though there were no flaws that I found in them and till date, they ring in my ears as a soft breath of air.

Oh! how I loved basking in the sun with nana busy reading the newspaper and nani oiling her beautiful long hair. That lovely sun kissed morning, still resides in my minds eye.

Though I'll miss them forever and a little more... but they'd always reside within me, as my values, my morals and peace galore.

As time passes by..........

At one point of time, at a certain age in our life we have everything, everything that would make us feel complete. We have satisfaction, we have a life of our own and the best and the most valued according to me, we have all our friends and family around us.

As a new bride, when you enter a new home, there s a lot that seems to be put at stake,
you leave your parents, your home , your siblings and the things that till date gave you a sense of belonging. Though some might say that we don't leave them forever, God forbid that ever happens.....though in some households I don't know why there's a stress on the girl not frequenting her home too often.......but there's this bond, the everyday sharing of experiences, the fragrance that you found lingering in your house when you entered it after a day at work or college....all this seems very different when you enter a new home...except for a single person who gives you a sense of belonging...your husband.....but all these inhibitions too last, as we adjust ourselves according to the new surroundings....as someone once said, girls have this miraculous power of being uprooted and then to bloom afresh in an alien land.

But wherever we are the relations in our life keep sending in a fresh breath of air every time.

There comes a time when people close to us turn into sand, the more we hold onto them , the more they slip away, hence making us face the reality of life one day..."alone we came and alone we'd go back," but that's what life is all about .... arrival, wait, and departure ...

All this makes a human being very strong and we get to learn that throughout life, it's very important to trust oneself and to hold on to the values passed by those who saw more of life at their stage then we did.

Life is short, there are many people who would show us the right way and many more that would make it very difficult for us to survive (though they might be the best for others),
but all through our journey what helps us is our faith in God and in ourselves.

Cherish the company of those who are there for you today, as these are the very memories which would provide a healing touch like the kiss of the sun in cold winter mornings, till the day we take the same course as others before us did.

Repetitions I love

Old people repeat things, sometimes the incidents that have been narrated a while ago, are narrated again. Some people find it very irritating,"why are you repeating the same thing grandpa" or " You have told this before baba", these are the comments that our generation often has for the beautiful stories shared by our grandparents. What if they are repeated...even if repetition happens, it's narrated with so much of love and with the spark of happiness of old days that it sounds new if heard carefully.
We are moving so fast in life that we don't have time for repetitions, we don't even have time for the day we are spending, it's like sitting in a train with things just passing by....I'm sure, and I regret the fact that let alone repetition we won't even have stories for our grandchildren, as we have forgotten to enjoy life, to relish great mornings...we're just spending life to fulfill our needs.
Have we ever enjoyed the sparkling drops of the morning sun...our grandparents have, they can tell us all the stories about early mornings, the fresh aroma of breakfast...our breakfast is in such a hurry that it forgets to leave its aroma.

Have we ever stopped and enjoyed moonlit nights, maybe sometimes when we have drowsy days or a bad morning, then too our mind is bursting with thoughts that sure know how to bring us down.

Try sitting with your grandparents and listening to their stories, or just giving them company with an addition of a few sparks of laughter , One would learn how to enjoy life and take it as it comes and our company in turn would give their life a whole new meaning.

Life is all about living and Loving , don't just spend it .... relish each moment that you come across and fight those that let you down. Treasure the people who love you and pray for your happiness, they are your greatest treasure, as love and happiness doesn't come cheap in this world of costly traumas.

The fragrance that lingers.........

lakdi ki kathi, kathi pe ghoda.....daur daura dum uthake daura....
Certain melodies take you to the days which were indeed the best part of our life.....lakdi ki kathi,I guess was the first song I started singing as a little girl. My grandmother who loved to hear me sing, used to say..."child, sing once more, you have a very nice voice".....today I know that it wasn't my voice that was nice, it was her heart that loved all that her little grandchild did.
Memories have such permanent colours, that every place that they took place in and every fragrance that came from them lingers in our heart forever.
I still remember the "ponds talcum powder" that Nani used to use, at that time it came in a tall tin container, I can say for sure that it has never smelt the same again.........but sometimes when I sit in the quiet of the daylight, I can smell the fragrance coming from my memories, which puts my heart and soul at complete peace and contentment.
It's the peace and love of the old memories that applies a soft balm to the never ending struggles of life.
The quiet winter mornings, the soft smell of the coconut oil that grandma placed in the courtyard, for it to melt in the winter sun, the soft sprinkle of the clothes that were hung , and the cool sensation of the dupattas when they were dried in the courtyard, and I loved to stand below them so that I could enjoy the light sprinkle of water coming on me as the dupatta was stretched and dried, by my amma and nani, holding it from either sides.
The little paper boats still stir the memories attached to the rainy days.....and the little surprises kept in the dining room by my grandma just made my day.
Years have passed but my memories have enriched their colours many folds........
It is true that the time spent in loving people and taking in the joyous essence of life, is the time that stays with us forever.

What is maturity all about!

Where does maturity come from? Does being mature means that one is growing in years ?? Can maturity be counted by numbers.
Yes, maturity does come from experiences, but sometimes it is just a fruit of a stable mind. A mind that knows it's pace, watches its steps and views life from a calm and composed angle.
A mature person can be young or old and immaturity can strike at old and young age alike.At a young age maturity is good when it gives a stable view to life , not such an unstable one that nothing can stand before it.
Sometimes maturity comes with a strong view on independence and separation..we are old enough..we can understand life and we can manage it alone. I would say, that's not an outcome of a mature mind, but of the one that is trying to break free in the facade of maturity.Observe an old person who is quite, composed and contented with life...this is because they are at peace with themselves. Some would say , that's because they have lived life and find no reason to challenge it...that's not true! Life becomes a challenge for them with new developing aches and pains each day!
It's true that at a young age we do have new challenges and an opportunity to charter new horizons, but that can be done with a little hold on ourselves , a little maturity that would comfortably reap the fruits of success, without the extra load of stress that keeps increasing each day!
Strive for the best but stop for a while and relish life as well, reap the qualities of a mature mind and honour those that have grown in years and in life's experiences, they have a lot to learn from....
Nourish a mind that is able to make peace with itself!

A New Chord

All that old people need is our love and attention. I've learnt this from the many angels whose company I have enjoyed since the day I learnt what love is all about.
When we're young , love doesn't mean boyfriends or girlfriends, at that time , love means our parents, our grandparents, our brothers and sisters and our friends.
Today I don't have any of my grandparents with me, but with time I also learnt that genuine feelings get transferred from one to another, without letting go of any. As I entered the marital chord, I did not know that it would bring with it many other relationships....the most amazing one being that of a grandmother.
I've always had this instant affection for old people, since they remind me of my beloved grandparents ...the other day amma, my grandmother-in -law, was telling me about her varied trips to the different parts of the world, as her husband served in the Indian foreign services, she told me about an incident when an Indian relative came to meet her abroad, I don't remember the country she mentioned, but I do remember the incident ..He came to visit her with a bag full of Indian grapes. When he passed one of the streets, he saw several carts full of grapes. As he was watching the explicit sight, to his surprise , one of the cart owners, picked up a bunch of grapes and gave them to the donkey tied to the cart.....When he reached home to told amma,"I feel like a fool to get grapes for you, all the way from India, In this country even the donkeys feed on grapes!!"(yahan to gadhe bhi angur khate hain) .
Amma, my grandmother-in -law, narrates several such stories when I sit with her......As a youth she enjoyed life to the fullest, married at a Young age , her husband was her constant companion and a real gentleman for sure. He was friends with nana, but at that time none of them knew that their families would be tied with a beautiful bond through their grandchildren....As I mentioned earlier....life goes in circles, it's who we are and the imprints we leave is what makes us a wonderful human.Those people who have grandparents, I would say treat them like the most precious gift that you have, they're indeed a blessing, now and forever....my grandparents gave way to a bond that I would cherish forever!

Building new memories with the crisp new year!

A friend once said, "we women have the power to get uprooted and bloom a new." She was right, We get uprooted from the flower bed of our parental garden and are planted on an alien land, a land with a new terrain, with winds that feel different, with love that's different in nature.
Each day the search for familiarity begins and ends on happiness though, but that too is mixed with the longing for the warmth that had sown the seed of our life.
Perhaps that's what life is all about, before we realise it turns the pages to a new chapter, and all those chapters come together to form a book on the year that has passed.
Today another book of our life would come to an end, and a new day would give us a fresh new start ....though the memories of the year that passed would be well preserved in our mind, the days ahead would enrich our present even more.
I remember what Nana (grandpa) had once said, the freshness in each day of our life is reflected by the freshness in our thoughts and outlook towards life....May our thoughts and outlook towards life be as fresh as the crisp new year ahead!
A Very Happy New Year to All!! :))