We Are Together In This Journey

                                      image source : https://archangelsanddevas.files.wordpress.com
In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. ~Albert Schweitzer
 Years back my cousin sister was getting married and I due to my forthcoming exams had to stay back home while all other family member went to attend the marriage. Our domestic helps were well trained to do all chores so that I don’t have any problem and concentrate on studies. I too was enjoying my home alone version. It was that chilled Sunday afternoon, I finished my studies and all of a sudden was missing my family like a hell. It’s seems impossible to stay back, want to run and be there with them. I know they are just a phone call away and one call of mine and they all will rush back. But don’t want to spoil there fun and enjoyment . My Conscience is not permitting me to go selfish on such petty notes. On the other hand I am feeling desperate to be with someone as the loneliness is just making me damn crazy. Thinking to call few friends and ask them to join me for a cup of coffee. Hesitating as it was Sunday few are too serious lot…busy in their last minute exam touch up…will sure raise an eyebrow on such out of the blue fun party at such rear end of Sunday. While the other few fun lot may be already out to enjoy. Sitting with my phone book to decide whom to call. Suddenly our help informed that some one at the door step was looking for me. Went and with all my surprise it was my old high school friend. It was after a year or so that we are seeing each other. I thought I was out from her list. I am overwhelmed. Her mother use to love me a lot so she send a goodies pack of chocolates and homemade banana chips for me. She didn't came as a friend but like an angel to brighten up my gloomy day with love and light.
 Together we spend hours talking and laughing at silly jokes and remembering our days and memories when we are #together. After 3 hours of random nonstop chat we went out for a short drive to a local Chinese restaurant. We didn't sit at the restaurant  to have food as we know, we both crazy will burst out into laughter at any silly talk and people around will gaze us as if we are aliens. So we get back home with all the delicious yummy cuisine. Our house help prepared a cozy dine in our roof top. We indulge in girly gossip, we laughed our heart out and the evening end on a happy note. She left my home at 10 p.m. I am all changed fully energized, happy and stress was miles away.
 I will remember that evening for the rest of my life as it was angelic, some people bring sunshine wherever they go filling and lifting others with their share and care.
Living in different part of the globe rarely meeting in years but we are still #together if not physically but virtually.

 This post is part of  Housing.com#Together.Housing believes in the inimitable power of optimism. We also know that it's difficult to be optimistic all day, every day; and sometimes we need a little nudge to get back on track! This is the time we need to be with the ones we love the most. It could also be the simple act of meeting a long lost friend, having a cup of tea with a parent, or going for a walk with your best friend. Most times, it's the company that matters more than the advice, and that is the power of being #together!
Be Happy. God Bless.

Becoming A Mother

                                                   image source :http://bridalmusings.com/
This story came to my inbox today. I read Mr.Mehera's news letter as they are all soul satisfying. But today's post is an eye opener. Can't resist to share it with all my friends reading my blog as it will help many if followed. In today's competitive race people fail to understand that at the end they have to deal not with the degrees of their kids but they as a human.Please read the full story and think on.

              STORY OF A MOTHER'S CURSE - By Vijay Mehera
 Recently, I have visited a friend's father in an old age home. There I met a lady, around 74 years old, who reminded me of my mother. I introduced myself. & we talked for few minutes. Then, without any provocation, she started cursing her son & daughter. "Uday, you have come to see your friend's father but my children, those %@#%$, never cared for me. They ditched me here like an ugly decayed old dog..."she was cursing & shouting so loud. And the beauty of the words she used would create envy in even among parliamentarians in India. I have never ever heard such gutter adjectives that she used to address her son & daughter - horrible! I could imagine her pain, anger, hatred & alienation. I understood that her son is an engineer and daughter is a medical doctor. They have never come to see her. And she is living on her pension.
"Please don’t curse your children, mother..." I said."Both of them are living in huge bungalows with children & servants. They spent lot of money on poojas & rituals too....But they can't spend a minute or a paisa for me “she continued cursing them...
Apparently, she is disillusioned, depressed, frustrated & carrying lot of negative emotions. A tragic situation indeed. Barring the emotional outburst, we fail to see some basic factors that point to bitter truth in life."May I ask you a few questions, mother?"
"Yes..."
"You have given birth to your children with part of your own body. You have nurtured them well. You have provided them with nutritious food & nourished them..."
"Yes...yes...most of the times, I was starving to feed them...Since my husband was not earning well, we were living on my petty salary then..."
"You took care of their body so now they have a good and healthy body..."
"Yes - but my curse will finish off their health, their body will decay..." she scolded.
"Now, my question is, you took care of the body, but what about their mind? What did you do for their mind? Did you teach them any value based knowledge? Did you teach them your traditions, customs, rituals, culture and its significance? Did you read them our puranas (spiritual Indian literature)& itihas (history)?"
 "Who had time for that? I was busy to make both ends meet...I was starving, but I wanted to see them as an engineer or doctor...I wanted to see the society respects my children."
"So, your wishes are fulfilled and then what are you complaining about?" She looked at me with a blank face.
"You taught your daughter MBBS - she became doctor. You send your son to study BTech & he became an engineer. Those are very good positions in your society...You should be happy. You taught them to be competitive & selfish...Fair enough.
But how will they learn what you didn't teach them? Did you teach them any values in life?
Where will they learn from that they should take care of parents?"
 "But...they should...right? I have sacrificed my life...I starved..."
"Mother, you made two mistakes - one, you were irresponsible to your own body & mind.
When you starve, trillions of living beings inside your body will starve, have you ever thought about it? It is a self-violence. What about the curse of your own body cells?
 Second: you were sub-consciously deriving pleasure from this concept: "even if I starve, I fed my kids". So you already got your contentment &happiness.
Your wish was to make them professionals & earn respect in the society - it was also fulfilled..." She didn't have answer.
"Have you sought your kids’ permission before bringing them into this world? Did they request you to take them to this world? If you give them good body, it was your dharma to give them good mind too?" How Rajmata Jijabai did brought her son Shivaji up? Jijabai told him the tales of Ram, Krishna, Hanuman, Yudhistira, Bheem, Sibi etc - fighting the injustice, being truthful, humane and freeing of people from tyranny. These stories made Shivaji the great. He respected women and his mother. On the contrary, how did his arch-enemy Aurangzeb was brought up by his mother? She made a demon out of a man. He imprisoned his own father Shah Jahan & assaulted women & auctioned them. He was trading Indian women as slaves.
"But...I was ignorant about such things..." she said.
Ignorance of karmic laws is NOT an excuse; each & every karma will have its cause and effects. Abdul Kalam was brought up by his mother in poverty - he became India's most-respected president. On the contrary, Adolf Hitler was also brought up in poverty by his mother. See the difference!
"Mother, I am sorry to say, but you got what you deserve. You are responsible for your karma and hence the result" "But the struggle I underwent for them? The miseries & hardship I suffered for bringing them up?"
"Mother, everybody feeds their children. But you should have provided them something else too. Have you shown them or let them experience poverty, miseries & hardship?
You wanted to experience it for yourself in the name of love to children... Then how do you expect them to know your troubles?
You spent lot of money to make them professionals. Did you spend a single penny to make them a good human being?
You have taught them that life is all about tuition or scoring highest marks in the exams and competition items like dance and songs. Did you ever take them to a cancer ward in the hospital? Did you ever take them to an orphanage? Did you make them understand sufferings of old-age people? Where do you expect them to learn such things, mother? From reality shows? Commercials? Television series? If they think that life is about self-centered enjoyment, who is responsible for that life style?"
"But don't they know the meaning of "Mathrudevo bhava" & " she murmured something "Mother, Mathrudevo bhava means, get yourself elevated to the position of the God, not that your demand your children to respect you as God...” I said. She didn't utter a single word.
Tears rolled out of her eyes. I felt I was exceeding the limit. But somebody should tell it to her. It is for her own good. She should stop producing more negativity & hatred. She should take up the responsibility of what had happened to her. That will make her think. And I am sure that she will find solace.
There was nothing else I could do in such situation. "I am really sorry mother...Please forgive me if I have said something that hurt you..." "No my son, you have opened my eyes...I think I am realising your points..." "And please stop calling your son, 'son of a bitch' - in fact you are scolding yourself here. Let me assure you, your son & daughter are not going to escape from the results of their bad karma. They will get it back from their children. Then, they may repent. That point of time, they may understand the sacrifice of their parents.... So, just pray for them, instead of cursing them..." I said.
Be Happy. God Bless.

Still I Rise

Still I Rise- Maya Angelou
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.

Does my sassiness upset you? 
Why are you beset with gloom? 
'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells
Pumping in my living room.

Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I'll rise.

Did you want to see me broken? 
Bowed head and lowered eyes? 
Shoulders falling down like teardrops.
Weakened by my soulful cries.

Does my haughtiness offend you? 
Don't you take it awful hard
'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines
Diggin' in my own back yard.

You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.

Does my sexiness upset you? 
Does it come as a surprise
That I dance like I've got diamonds
At the meeting of my thighs? 

Out of the huts of history's shame
I rise
Up from a past that's rooted in pain
I rise
I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

 

Be Happy. God Bless.

Good Karma - Life Mantra

This is a nice reading, but short. Enjoy! This is what The Dalai Lama has to say for 2007. All it takes is a few seconds to read and think over. Do not keep this message. The mantra must leave your hands within 96 hours. You will get a very pleasant surprise. This is true for all - even if you are not superstitious.... or of whatever religious belief....Faith....
Instructions for life Mantra
 1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three R's of good karma:
Respect for self
 Respect for others and
Responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
 5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
 6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great relationship.
7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honourable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
 12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
 Image courtesy : http://www.thespiritualseducer.com/

Be Happy. God Bless.

Happy New Year 2015

My Happy New Year wish for you
Is for your best year yet,
A year where life is peaceful,
And what you want, you get.

A year in which you cherish
The past year’s memories,
And live your life each new day,
Full of bright expectancies.

I wish for you a holiday
With happiness galore;
And when it’s done, I wish you
Happy New Year, and many more.

By Joanna Fuchs

Be Happy. God Bless.

Allow Yourself

Allow Yourself -by Catherine Pulsifer

Allow yourself to dream,
And when you do dream big

Allow yourself to learn
And when you do learn all you can

Allow yourself to laugh
And when you do share your laughter

Allow yourself to set goals
And when you do reward yourself as you move forward

Allow yourself to be determined
And when you do you will find you will succeed

Allow yourself to believe in yourself
And when you do you will find self confidence

Allow yourself to lend a helping hand
And when you do a hand will help you.

Allow yourself relaxation
And when you do you will find new ideas.

Allow yourself love
And when you do you will find love in return

Allow yourself to be happy
And when you do you will influence others around you.

Allow yourself to be positive
And when you do life will get easier. 

Be Happy. God Bless.

TOUCH SOMEONE’S LIFE

ONE STORMY NIGHT MANY YEARS AGO, AN ELDERLY MAN AND HIS WIFE ENTERED THE LOBBY OF A SMALL HOTEL IN PHILADELPHIA, USA.

TRYING TO GET OUT OF THE RAIN, THE COUPLE APPROACHED THE FRONT DESK HOPING TO GET SOME SHELTER FOR THE NIGHT.

“COULD YOU POSSIBLY GIVE US A ROOM HERE?” – THE HUSBAND ASKED.

THE CLERK, A FRIENDLY MAN WITH A WINNING SMILE, LOOKED AT THE COUPLE AND EXPLAINED THAT THERE WERE THREE CONVENTIONS IN TOWN. 

“ALL OF OUR ROOMS ARE TAKEN,” THE CLERK SAID. “BUT I CAN’T SEND A NICE COUPLE LIKE YOU OUT INTO THE RAIN AT ONE O’CLOCK IN THE MORNING. 

WOULD YOU PERHAPS BE WILLING TO SLEEP IN MY ROOM? IT’S NOT EXACTLY A SUITE, BUT IT WILL BE GOOD ENOUGH TO MAKE YOU FOLKS COMFORTABLE FOR THE NIGHT.”

WHEN THE COUPLE DECLINED, THE YOUNG MAN PRESSED ON. “DON’T WORRY ABOUT ME, I’LL MAKE OUT JUST FINE,” THE CLERK TOLD THEM.

SO THE COUPLE AGREED.

AS HE PAID HIS BILL THE NEXT MORNING, THE ELDERLY MAN SAID TO THE CLERK, “YOU ARE THE KIND OF MANAGER WHO SHOULD BE THE BOSS OF THE BEST HOTEL. 

MAYBE SOMEDAY I’LL BUILD ONE FOR YOU.”

THE CLERK LOOKED AT THEM AND SMILED. THE THREE OF THEM HAD A GOOD LAUGH. 

AS THEY DROVE AWAY, THE ELDERLY COUPLE AGREED THAT THE HELPFUL CLERK WAS INDEED EXCEPTIONAL, AS FINDING PEOPLE WHO ARE BOTH FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL ISN’T EASY.

TWO YEARS PASSED. THE CLERK HAD ALMOST FORGOTTEN THE INCIDENT WHEN HE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THE OLD MAN. 

IT RECALLED THAT STORMY NIGHT AND ENCLOSED A ROUND-TRIP TICKET TO NEW YORK, ASKING THE YOUNG MAN TO PAY THEM A VISIT.

THE OLD MAN MET HIM IN NEW YORK, AND LED HIM TO THE CORNER OF FIFTH AVENUE AND 34TH STREET. 

HE THEN POINTED TO A GREAT NEW BUILDING THERE, A PALE REDDISH STONE, WITH TURRETS AND WATCHTOWERS THRUSTING UP TO THE SKY.

“THAT,” SAID THE OLDER MAN, “IS THE HOTEL I HAVE JUST BUILT FOR YOU TO MANAGE.”

“YOU MUST BE JOKING.” – THE YOUNG MAN SAID.

“I CAN ASSURE YOU I AM NOT.” – SAID THE OLDER MAN, A SLY SMILE PLAYING AROUND HIS MOUTH.

THE OLDER MAN’S NAME WAS WILLIAM WALDORF-ASTER, AND THAT MAGNIFICENT STRUCTURE WAS THE ORIGINAL WALDORF-ASTORIA HOTEL. 

THE YOUNG CLERK WHO BECAME ITS FIRST MANAGER WAS GEORGE C. BOLDT. THIS YOUNG CLERK NEVER FORESAW THE TURN OF EVENTS THAT WOULD LEAD HIM TO BECOME THE MANAGER OF ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST GLAMOROUS HOTELS.

DON’T BE AFRAID TO REACH AND TOUCH SOMEONE’S LIFE, YOU NEVER KNOW WHO’S HEART YOU MAY BE TOUCHING.

                                             WALDORF-ASTORIA HOTEL ORLANDO

Be Happy. God Bless.