I 'STOP'd while you 'SNOOZE'd.... and it made all the difference!

       Mornings are beautiful... I recently realised i've been missing on so much beauty and peace by hitting the snooze button a million times. There is nothing that can beat the view at my window as i see the sun rise. It's heavenly... it's beautiful. Picture perfect... Well, that puts me into a quandary! Cos i lovvv the late nights too. Gazing out of the window into the valley with its flickering lights, in competition with the star-studded sky, accompanied by the moon some times. That's a treat too... But a late night doesn't really gel well with an early morning if not accompanied by a lazy afternoon!

  

       Sigh! Have been nocturnal for quite a while now, so i decided to be an early bird for a change. The splendiferous moonlight has been compromised for a resplendent sunrise. Early rising has its own perks. The only hurdle to be conquered is having the alarm to STOP instead of SNOOZE! Sounds easy (does it? ) but it takes every little ounce of your will power to convince yourself to get out of the bed. It somewhat goes like this for almost every other person i know -

1. You hit the sack early at night, all set to wake up early in the morning.
2. You set the alarm and zzzzzz.............
3. You sleep like a dead person with some sweet dreams if you're lucky.
4. Just when you reach the best part, your alarm goes nuts!
5. You are mad at it for spoiling your dream, and also cos you dont wanna get up.
6. You hit the snooze button.
7. Five minutes later, your alarm goes bonkers!
8. You hit snooze again, but this time you're not really able to sleep, but you still close your eyes for that 'five' more minutes of your beauty sleep.
9. Another five minutes, and Trrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..........
10. You finally hit the stop button, but you're still debating in your head whether to wake up or go back to sleep.
11. More debating, and finally (hopefully) say, the good part of you wins, there's another five minutes where you put into action, every little volition you have in you to take that big move of coming out of the blanket.
12. You're still not ready to open your eyes though, and you do the 'horsie' on the bed for a while.
13. More will power, and finally you take that one big brave step out of the bed.
14. You give one half-opened-eye look to your bed, which is, oh, so inviting you to get inside the covers again. The blankets lie with their arms wide open reminding you of the coziness it can provide you.
15. You use the one last rush of will power and walk to the washroom.
16. You brush your teeth, with your eyes still closed.
17. Then comes the most effective sleep-breaker! SPLASH! Right on your face.
18. And you are Wide-Awake! Finally....! 8)

 
        And then, it's a Good morning.....! There is no looking back. I pull the curtains aside and open my netted window and look as far as i can. The street lights from the far end mark a beautiful trail. But they do not stand a chance against the rising glorious sun, which is to soon take over. I hurry and change into comfy clothes and shoes, and out i go... into the dark frosty morning, jog, jog, jog.... till i hear my heart beating in my ear. Every beat i hear, and every trickle of sweat that i feel on my skin, is a happy thought of losing those extra kilos. ;-) The break of the day keeps me going.

       I like to imagine the morning sky as God's palette. He has blue water splashed all over his canvas. He eases a drop of orange into it.. and waits till it gradually spreads... and then adds a drop of red followed by some yellow. The end product being one of the best paintings ever! And he makes one every single morning. All same, yet different, still beautiful...! In a way, it signifies the days of our lives. Same routine, different outcomes!?! It's like God teaches us that however the day passes, there is always that element which when added, has the potential to unearth beauty out of a mess! These are the times which replenish my belief that Miracles Happen.

       As i tread ahead, i see the darkness gradually make way for the light. I look up and welcome the warm rays of the sun onto my face. For i know it marks the beginning of yet another new day, with more hopes, more promises and more challenges. The whole experience is exhilarating at times. I trot on, lowering my pace slowly, finally ending it with a brisk walk. I ramble about for some more time, trying to take in as much as the sunup has to offer me before it turns harsh on my skin.

       A morning started early and fresh, always comes with a promise of an energetic, up-and-coming day! It brings out the cheerful side of you, which otherwise is lost under the cozy blankets. If anybody happens to ask me what i did differently from them, the secret behind my new found joy, beauty and confidence.., my reply would be - "I 'STOP'd while you 'SNOOZE'd.... and it made all the difference!"

I have a feeling yesterday when she prayed, i was in it...

       Traveling is nice. I like it. On a move always better than getting stagnant most times. Traveling alone... an altogether different experience. It's like a small get away from the people you know by being amidst people you don't know! Something constant ? People... U cant escape people, can you!? Very difficult. You can escape from the knowing set of eyes for a while, only to have another set of unknown judging eyes all over you. Where there are people, there is judgement. Fun when played like a game, but totally pissing off otherwise.

       When you are out dawdling with friends, there's always this game you like to play, where you try and figure out the people around. Their profession, their age, their marital status, their financial status, their thoughts right now, mind-reading, soul-searching(not your own) etc etc. It's fun! But sometimes funny turns nosy. That's when it's pissing.

        Last evening as i traveled on a bus, i sat alone on a two seater at the window side, glad to have the wind hitting my face as the sun set, casting its beauty rays on my face. I always love watching the sun rays on people early in the morning, and late in the evening. It makes people look out of the world, and nice, for a change! ;-) As i was beaming looking at myself with my mind eye, under the impression that i must be glowing like an angel, an old lady, came to sit next to me.

       She was so thin, petite and weak, I was alarmed by the fact that I still felt i was the only one sitting on the seat. Her presence was hardly felt. She was that little. Her face didn't have a trace of kumkum, head almost bald, with just a few white hair scattered around, making it look like a spider-woven web! I asked her if she wanted to sit by the window. She just smiled and looked away. Either she couldn't hear me, or she did not understand the language, or she did not want to switch seats...! With nothing more i could do, i resumed with my looking-out-of-the-window, still thinking about the woman next to me.

       I wondered how she must have looked back then, when she was young. Whether she has had a happy life, if she has lived her dreams, whether she married the love of her life, if she had ever come over the death of her husband, whether she had kids, if they were good enough to make her wishes come true. And then i imagined my life, long years from now. When i am old.... and i couldn't resist a chuckle. Cos it reminded me of a comment i came across on FB some days back. It said the present Generation youth would make a strange set of Grandparents who would call each other 'Dude'! Lol...

       Snapping me outta my thought-train was the next stop, and the lady next to me was getting off her seat. Ok, i thought, this is where she's going. She was going to the Temple. I watched her get down helped by the conductor.. Good man... And just before the bus left, she looked up at my window and smiled. And then i just knew it in my heart, the reason of her smile earlier. It was the kindness that mattered to her. Not the seat, nor the language, nor her ear. Just the tone of my voice made her smile. I ll never know how her life has been, what she's going through, or how long she's gonna live. But i did have a feeling, that yesterday when she stood in front of God, she included me in her prayers. And i prayed God that her prayers come true. Tathastu.

Your inner voice is calling, calling you!

Make God your guru,
Let him tell you what to do,
Listen! He is calling, calling you!
Take time to listen, have courage to obey,
The inner voice is calling, calling you.
There are voices all around us,
That of enemies and of friends,
Do this, don't do that, the chorus never ends.
But I shall always listen, to that quiet inner voice,
It is still and definite, and I've made my choice.
Make God your guru,
Let him tell you what to do,
Listen! He is calling, calling you!
Take time to listen, have courage to obey,
The inner voice is calling, calling you.

      It just came to me today, the prayer from my class one which i uttered everyday till class three, not really knowing what it meant.(Ok..There's a huuuuge list of what i did, not really knowing what it meant, someday it ll make sense?!) I ve recalled it a few more times ever since, understanding it a little more each time. But today i think i can finally say I KNOW what it means, word to word! I think there's a reason why this prayer always stuck in my head. I think there's a reason why this is the only prayer i remember by HEART without ever making conscious efforts. I think there's a reason why i remembered it right now. I just know it...

      The message behind it is so simple. Always do what your inner voice tells you to. No one can deny there's a voice inside us which keeps telling us the right thing to do.But we somehow let our friends, our enemies, the society influence our decisions! Sometimes the influence is good too.. but in those times your inner voice will tell you its a good influence! It never lies, always loves.

      We do not listen to it cos we are scared to admit to ourselves that we are not on the right path. Gradually the voice fades away. It doesn't die, but it loses it's voice. Do not let your inner voice die. 'Take time to listen and have courage to obey'. Doing what our inner voice tells us to is the most difficult thing in today's world. Inspite of that, if we show courage and obey it, I am sure the rewards will be sweet. Why do something for the people who don't really care? Instead do something for the people who love you, whom you love and for US!

      Mayb some time in future, i'll find another hidden meaning to it which i fail to see now. Nevertheless, I hereby declare this prayer as my favorite prayer. I wish it continues unravelling its beauty and its secrets always, bestowing its blessings on me till the end, making me wiser and stronger. I pray God that he give me enough wisdom that i travel this journey of life in such a way that on my last day on earth, i can happily say, "I know everything this prayer had in store for me". Amen!

Where does YOUR ladder take you to?

       I just like writing blogs... I donno y... So am up and here again... its cloudy outside... and winding... i hav songs by Norah Jones playing on the computer... and it all just feels great!!! :-) This is the perfect atmosphere inducing pure bliss into me... I feel this setting is God's way of giving me the time and the mood to get philosophical and think about the finer aspects of life...Moments like this makes me forget evry lil bad detail of my life n makes me wanna enjoy life for what good it has given me...I feel good for have lived at all...For hav gotten the chance to be a part of this cosmic energy.

       Times like these i feel- the life in reality, what we call practicality, is nothing but a fake world...The so called REAL world is not really real at all...That's the world we have created for ourselves as a result of the competition to succeed, to make a name, trying to be one step ahead all the time, stamping and suppressing the weaker folks on their way up the ladder...But my question is once you are up this ladder of the practical corporate world...to d very last step... then,what's next??? There's no more to go... and then its FREE FALL... back down to where it all began! And that's when you'll wonder what was the use of climbing this ladder at all... You would have achieved a great name, great fame... But once ur down, how many of them remember this... It's all temporary, not permanent!

       Permanent happiness lies in climbing the ladder of life that people ignore till its very late...But sooner or later everyone starts climbing this... Very few people reach the topmost step.. and those who reach here, unlike the other ladder, do not fall down where they started, but climb higher straight to God's abode. They attain enlightenment... for which no physical steps are needed...They understand there is no significance for name and fame... All that matters is the peace in your mind.
       Today our minds are so much in conflict...It yearns for some internal silence... for internal peace...! Trying to forget our problems by concentrating on the finer aspects of life is what helps you gain stability in this chaotic world...! Everything always has the tendancy to be chaotic... It's upto us to bring our mind, heart and soul together! I am of the opinion that the so-called REAL world has been created by US for ourselves, not GOD...The world God has created for us is not the one we see today. I believe God's world is not free from problems, but in His realm, we know how to deal with them and make them seem insignificant!
        It's true we wouldn't know happiness till we've suffered sadness, wouldn't have known right if we knew no wrong and so on... One doesn't exist without the other, but yes there exists an understanding where we experience both.. but at the same time not lose our peace of mind by accepting everything gracefully.. We need to learn to live with no breakdowns...! That's the key to true happiness is what im feeling just now... i donno how true this is... this is what i felt just now!
       Everyday new ideas come up and every one seems right...I have not yet reached the step where i can decide once and for all the right thing... But i don't think that can ever be decided...Even God has neva set a rule book of right or wrong. It is all relative to the components contributing to the situation!
      Nevertheless, as i hav said earlier, this is just one of my thought-processes at the moment. And there's no harm in sharing something which doesn't harm!!! Is there? ;-) Just wanna end this up by saying.... Just do the right thing, and expect nothing in return from others, for at the end of this journey, it's between God and you! It never is between You and other people! It never was! So i leave it here, wishing we atleast start climbing this ladder of life!!!
      Toodles!