Musings

We are grateful for being one of the few people in Mumbai who have a good garden close by. Considering the encroachment of open spaces (both geographically and mentally), I feel really blessed having a nice garden where we go for walks, nevertheless we being the  regularly irregular types! The garden to me seems to be a melting point of all ages, apart from being a meeting point for many culturally different people. It is with keen eyes and inquisitive mind I see young school children (really young) and college girls and guys dating. Sometimes children in school uniforms too and I wonder how the parents would react to this scene. So much of trust (and money) invested in children, going down the drain - rather taking a walk! Some married people walk miles apart and the discord is obvious, whereas someone who is sitting alone on a bench thinks of life "if they had someone".  Some feel lonely being together and some look happy even though alone. The various games our min...

It is rarely that you meet someone who has a 'No gifts policy' as a permanent feature in life. I was fortunate to encounter a person (that too a lady!) recently who has vowed never to take gifts. Amused, as I was was, the more I think about it, the more sensible it seems. Having lived in a society where each one of us is forever curious to know "what we will get" or "what have we got" and most importantly "what the others have got versus what's in my kitty", meeting a lady who unabashedly refuses gifts as a 'vow' seemed quite novel to me.  Coming to think of it, what we give or what we receive is a direct translation of "How much money is someone worth?". Very rarely do we meet someone, who is happy to receive a gift that may be as simple a thing like a flower plucked from a garden! We seem to have a tendency to weigh our worth based on money, rather than the thought behind it. My mother for one may have spent a tent...

It is with great amusement that I recall my many interactions with strangers while traveling within India. No matter what the mode of travel is, people and their mannerisms remain the same. The only difference being the way questions are put across, some grill you bluntly and some in a refined manner. Especially for a single woman like me who hops around alone quite often, the barrage of question marks are the same but I ensure that I leave them with exclamation marks! The last time I was at the airport at the security check, a lady who was traveling in a large troupe looked at me nervously and asked "Who is with you?", unabashedly, I said.."No one, I am alone". The look on her face would have made the most confident person on earth, go underground with fear. I could sense a question data bank being generated in her mind instantly and politely excused myself leaving her to grapple with a 'How-can-a-single-woman-travel-alone?' fantasy. Seeing the number of pe...

A very common sight that always tugs my heart is the side walks around any swimming pool where parents watch over their little ones learning swimming. I guess it takes tremendous patience and more importantly love to be there day after day, supporting, chiding and encouraging their children not to give up. My rough estimate is that over 90% of the parents do not know to swim(especially the mothers), yet the way they encourage the off-spring to learn it is truly astounding :) Which incidentally brings me to the concept of 'support' and how important it is for each one of us, as we try to swim along the tides of life. No matter, what kind of tide we are facing, it is heartening to see someone on the side walks trying to wave out to us and say "Go on, you can do it!" Advices come aplenty (since they are mostly given free of cost!), however I have started really appreciating people spending time and advising, I find great hidden 'support' in the exercise. So here...

It was a rare relaxed Sunday evening when hubby & I were taking a nice walk along a lake near where we stay. What a sight! Lovely weather, families out on their Sunday outing, groups of friends playing pranks and posing for group photos, so many young boys and girls (called couples in our world!) cuddling in the sylvan shelters of the trees along the lake, far from the madding crowds. It seemed like a perfect world. Love, caring and sharing all available at one place. If there is so much love energy why do people still hate, separate, abuse each other? Wondered my mind. Over the years of association with people around us, some of the relationships fade in to infinity, some are safely and conveniently kept away, some tag along as 'devoted followers' (generally most love to have a following that does not question our ability!), some seasonal 'coming and going' types and finally some who are sealed with us for life! So what are the different shapes and shades that ...

Sometimes we tend to just drift away in to the past tense without realizing and I am seem to be in that mode today. Thoughts go back to some wonderful days spent in Henley-on-Thames in United Kingdom. One of the first things that struck me was about the difference in food habits from India. Fish and Chips being the first to catch my attention. What a strange combination of eating fish with chips! But over time I realized it was quite a staple and accepted snack there. Years have rolled by from then and I have hardly seen any Fish & Chips stall in India even now. However, closer home there is a favorite shop of 'Hot Chips' which is frequented by better half to get his regular quota of munchies. I happened to notice a fish seller sitting close to this shop and the smell / aroma /stink (whatever we feel towards fish) often happens to waft the breeze and kind of overpowering the freshly fried chips. Strange, I thought that these two completely different fragrances blended with...

It is all about getting used to your presence, day in and day out. How lost I am now that you have decided to stay out of my life for some time! I have heard may be a thousand times over that we need to be the masters of our lives and not give in to dependency on any one, emotionally or otherwise. But how does one stay away from the 'attachment trap'? Your coming home everyday at the same time is almost taken for granted. I take pride of you when the others cringe about what they have in their lives. I have secretly even thanked my stars and the Lord for getting us together in this life. Your spick and span look, no-nonsense attitude and at the same time the caring outlook has many a times left me asking me for more. I wait with baited breath for you to return home soon. Your deft fingers have worked like a charm for so many years and I am sure no one else can create the magic that you do! In the mean while I must attend to chores at home needing my attention now that you are ...