Going to the Past

Many feel that social media like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp , etc., are a waste of time. But I feel its a boon... a blessing in disguise. I'll tell you why.....

My father was in a transferable job and so we never stayed in one single place for more than three years. And also I belong to the generation where back then, we didn't have regular phones in every house hold. That means that I was not able to keep in touch with a lot of my school friends regularly. Ya we used to write letters to each other for a while..... but you know as we grew up we got busy in our lives and we kind of drifted apart. We lost contact.

When in college, the era of  cell phones started and so we kind of remained in contact. But I always missed my High school buddies. Then came the era of Facebook and slowly many friends reconnected. But after such a long time one doesn't know what to speak to and we kind of remained just "friends" on Facebook. And life went on.....

Then suddenly one of our class mate got the idea of forming a group on WhatsApp and started collecting phone numbers. I was a bit apprehensive about it in the beginning. Anyway I gave it and then when he added me to the group, I felt soo out of place in the group as I was one of the very few who had left the place after high school and the rest of them had continued their studies in the same city. And so I couldn't recognize many of my old friends.

 I just said hi in the group and kept silent. It was irritating me that I didn't remember half of my friends and was not comfortable there either. But after a couple of days, as the group started growing, I realized many were in the same position as me. Like me, a few of my friends too didn't remember each and everyone. So we all started talking and slowly we all warmed up and unknowingly we chatted the whole day. Some of us finally called each other and spoke too.

We started sharing old stories, incidents and all the hidden memories came flooding back!! It was such a memorable day just talking about school days.....the fun, the punishments, the homeworks, the competitiveness and the crushes ( ;-) ) and what not!! All the memories made us young again and took us seventeen years back. All the nick names, the mischief done in class, the pranks played on teachers!!!! Oh !! So many sweet memories!! And suddenly we were not strangers anymore. I don't feel like a stranger in my group anymore.... in fact they have all become my best buddies...

 It was my memorable day in the recent past!!! It felt so good to reconnect with my past. Are you people still in contact with your school buddies? If not just do that!! It feels sooo good and fresh!!!

Start A New Life

I am amazed when I see people who know what they want to do in their life, about their goals and aims in their life. When I finished my 10th standard, all I wanted to study was science. I loved Biology and Physics equally in 11th standard. But when I was in 12th, I realized that Medical was not my cup of tea and I had no interest in Engineering.There were not many options and I didn't have any knowledge as such about these things and not many good guides who would talk about our interests or give us knowledge. So like everybody else who didn't pursue Engineering or Medical, I took Computer Science in College. But somewhere I realized that Computer Science was a lifeless subject and programming was not what I wanted to do. But anyway I continued like everybody else.

After graduating I still didn't know what I wanted to do. So I brought applications for M.S., and M.C.A. But suddenly my life took a big turn and I got married and I became a home maker. Then I became a mother and life went on. But somewhere the desire to do something was constantly was on my mind. I used to draw and scribble a lot when in college and hadn't left that one thing even after I got married. Slowly and steadily, this hobby started becoming my passion and finally after a lot of detours, I finally realized my goal and took up painting seriously. Now after all these years, I am an art graduate too and pursuing masters in the subject which is close to my heart.

After a lot of struggle and lot of practice and more patience and a lot many rejections, finally I feel that I am on MY WAY. This is the path I wanted to be in and I am finally happy. And in April 2015, i.e., next month, I am going to be participating in my first Group show in Calicut/ Kozikode. 

Not in my wildest of dreams, had I ever dreamed of becoming an artist.... let alone participating in an exhibition!!! This is a new chapter of my life!! I have traveled a long way from Science to Arts. I am nervous and excited and happy! So wish me luck guys!! Its never too late to start fresh. You have a dream, just go for it.

Go and fulfill your dream now!!! However small or big that dream is, it doesn't matter.

Flying....

Flying..... Flying like a bird....... I want to be free like a bird... fly away...... fly till my heart's content..... to be free..... independent.....carefree....

That freedom, that feeling of being independent from all responsibilities, duties, etc., is often compared with flying. But have you ever thought that birds are not free.... They do not fly because they are free.... On the contrary the fly because they have to fend for themselves and their kids and to survive. They have to fly in search of food, shelter, and to protect themselves from predators. They fly because that is what makes them birds. They fly because that is the only way they can survive......

That means that birds that fly in the open air high above are not free?!?! Does that mean that they are not independent? So where does this place those birds in cages? Those birds that do not get the freedom to fly at all. They do not get to use their wings which is the main feature of that species by which we say that it is a bird and not an animal.The birds in captivity do not have to fend for themselves... they are fed and looked after properly, but are not allowed to fly.They are protected from predators, well fed, given shelter in captivity and yet not allowed to fly. So is this captivity or independence ?

Isn't all this confusing. When we see a bird flying freely in the air our heart feels and aches to fly like them and when we see a bird kept in a cage , our heart aches for them too..... But does our heart really ache or feel? When someone says my heart is aching for you or my heart broke what do they mean? Didn't we all learn that the heart is an organ which cleanses and pumps blood? How can it ache or break or think or feel? I would like to take a break before my thoughts become more absurd !!!!

Ramayana - The Game of Life- Shattered Dreams Book Review

For may years Ramananda Sagar's Ramayana was the original Ramyana and Arun Govil  Lord Rama for me. Though I had got the opportunity to listen to many Ramayana stories form my Mom and an uncle , the television series had a great influence on me. Later on I got to read Ramayana from Amar Chitra Katha and some other books too. A few years ago my friend introduced me to Ashok K Banker's Ramayana series. Though I was reluctant at first, I simply fell in love with his vision and narration style and I started to  read and love these epics again. 

Mythology is one of my favorite genre and Mahabharata and Ramayana are always classics. No matter how many times you read it you get to read new stuff. And according to me every author has his own perspective of these classics. Every Author brings his own version of the epic whenever he or she writes the Ramayana or the Mahabharatha. Shubha Vilas's Ramayana, The Game Of Life is a series of 6 books. I am writing the review of the second part of this book called Shattered Dreams. 

In Shattered Dreams, the author narrates the beginning of Rama's exile. The book starts with Dasaratha deciding to hand over the throne to Rama, his eldest son. And then starts the twists and turns that changes the course of the story. This book deals with the emotional aspect of Ramayana rather than the story itself. Shubha narrates the agony of the King, Kausalya, and the other queens, the courtiers and the common people when Rama , Lakshmana and Sita leave for the forest for fourteen years.  

It begins with a happy note of Rama's coronation. Then comes Manthara's scheming and then sthe story moves to Keikeyi who falls for Manthara's evil scheme and brings havoc to Ayodhya. And then one gets to see the human emotions where Rama, Sita and Lakshmana give all the worldly happiness and move to the forest just to fulfill Dasaratha's promise to Keikeyi. 

What I liked most the most about this book is the mention of Urmila, Lakshmana's wife, who has been ignored in many books I have read so far. I have always felt sorry for her character because we never get to read much about her though she has sacrificed as much as the trio has. Also the small small back stories about Ravana, Dasaratha, Indra, the fisherman, etc add so much depth to the book. I won't be writing more because I don't want to be a spoilsport here. Please do read the book to know more. 

If you are the philosophical kind then this book is a must for you because of the various footnotes provided by the author. He has given explanations to almost all of the actions of all the characters and also provided a few back stories here and there. Sometimes you will also get to read  comparisons with Mahabharatha and other stuff.

Overall the book is worth a read if you are into mythology and philosophy.What I didn't like were these little foot notes were more about morality, spirituality and philosophy than about the story itself. That might be because I am not a very spiritual or philosophical person. I felt that the book was a bit lengthy in some places. Otherwise Ramayana is a classic and any day you read it, there is something to learn, something more to read and something extra to know and ponder upon. More over we need a bit of spirituality and philosophy in this age more so because we have become more materialistic. And Ramayana teaches us that Rama is Lord Rama because of his virtues and he sacrificing the worldly pleasures just to fulfill his father's promise.

This is not a sponsored post. All opinions are my own and this review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers for Blogadda . Participate now to get free books!

Let there be light...

More Indian than you think

"This is the best time to be an Indian" this was the quote by an NRI, I heard on a news channel recently regarding Mr. Modi's New York's Madison Square Park. Madison Square Park is one of the World's Most Famous Arena and thousands of people had gathered to hear and see Mr. Modi. Though I am not a big fan nor do I hate him, this event surely kept my interest up. I haven't seen the world or the NRIs being so interested in India or an Indian Prime Minister in a long long time. 

NRIs holding placards, shouting slogans about India like "Bharat Mata ki jai", in a foreign country especially in a country like the USA is a very rare scene. The 18,500 strong audience was gathered at New-York !!!! One of the people gathered there said, "It is amazing to see the kind of euphoria created by Modi's visit and this is probably the best time to be an Indian". 

There was live and extensive coverage on various news channels regarding Modi's visit not just in India but also in the USA. We could see many non-Indians at the event too. This is the proof that the world is finally getting up to look at India with interest now. The fact that the Indian MOM missions' success and the fact that it cost India under Rs.10 per kilometer to reach Mars...... made every Indian proud of our scientists.

The photographs of ISRO scientists celebrating after MOM entered Mars was inspiring. The scientists hugging each other and congratulating each other the sari clad women scientists gave all us such a thrill that those pictures won't fade from our memories for a long time. 

India is surely a very happening phenomenon now. Mr. Kailash Satyarthi winning the prestigious Nobel Peace prize is another proud moment for all Indians. The reaction of Indians to all these changes shows that we are more Indian than we think like this in ad.

This is not a sponsored post ... all opinions are my own. Submitting for the contest in Indiblogger 

Diwali Shopping!!!

Festival = Shopping!!!!!!

Don't you agree?!!??!

Everybody loves festivals, especially Diwali, the festival of lights and gifting :-) Its a great time for get-togethers, parties and celebrations!! So there is a lot of shopping involved and bargaining to be done. 

I was looking to buy some good books for my Daddy and a DSLR for hubby.And I was checking online for those stuff and with good deals too. There was too much of research ;-) involved for the best website with the best discount. It was just maddening .... That's when I found this amazing website which helps you narrow the search down and lists the best deals and offer coupons too.

27coupons , website is a platform related to discount coupons and deals. It displays discount coupons on offer to the buyer from almost all top most E-commerce website. We can easily "search" for products and find coupons quickly and make huge savings on most of our shopping.

The coupons are categorized into apparel, electronics, books, computers, jewelery, restaurants, kitchen appliances, kids Store, fashion, travel, etc.

 Its pretty much easy to search for items and best offers or coupons. Earlier coupons were offered on items only on foreign websites. This is the best Indian coupon site I have come across. This site directed me to Amazon for books which was offering upto 60% discount and Flipcart for DSLR. 

I couldn't resist such a good deal and ended up ordering 11 books for my kiddo too. I ordered Geronimo Stilton, Wimpy kid, Nancy Drew books for her. And a cool looking mobile case for my sister which she received yesterday :D :D. I am expecting my (read hubby's) DSLR in a couple of days.

So go on and try 27coupons for Diwali shopping for yourself and your family. And do tell me too about the good deals that you got :)