RHYTHM

This is a word that sets the tune of your life.Your ECG(  Electro Cardiogram)that makes your heart function in peaks and troughs, sets the rhythm for a healthy life.If it gets stressed then the troubles start and you feel the discomfort.You need a rhythm at every step of your life.I walk with my wife every morning on the track and we walk in a rhythm that unconsciously you tend to experience and its such a good beat that you feel the synergy.Its like two strokes are better than one.Firing on twin cylinders.Apply that to automobiles and you will realise what i mean.It misfires if out of tune and you have to rush to the mechanic who then sets it back.Who then is the mechanic of your life?YOU!!!

When you have to live life with your partner, you need to fine tune the rhythm.First check your pace, then your partners pace, see the tune and align accordingly.If that is set at all levels then you find the perfect match and music of life.Sound of Music Do-re-me.If not the orchestra of life does not perform a la Beethoven, but goes out of synch and creates a terrible sound.Such is the ruckus that not only you but the neighbourhood around you gets disturbed . That happens at work with your colleagues as well,and the harmony is lost.Keeping pace is one part , but having a rhythm is another.You set the tone, set the decibels and you will find work gets done at a very good pace.You Cruise in short.You talk to some one in a nice warm tone and pitch , you will find a similar response coming from the other side and work gets done quick.Some times you raise the pitch and the other person too then you have a blast.It rocks the peace, and quiet across and ends up resulting into nothing or a one sided decision that is thrust upon the others and may not be good for the times to come.

Rhythm at play and you find so many times Cricketers  in good form and smashing sixers out of the park or home runs and scoring goals in football.Suddenly they seem to be falling like nine pins and the people wonder , whats wrong.Ask the expert and he will say"Ah! he will get back into his form( rhythm)".So is the case in a dance as well.Synchronisation and agility, along with the music and speed ,delivers an awesome outcome.Upbringing of your family too, frequent changes may spoil the harmony at home but if we quickly change and align our footsteps we are back in the game.

So set your Rhythm, adjust, get in synch with life and enjoy.This is your life, only YOU can live it.

FIRE WITHIN

Juvenile cases in gang rape.The Indian mentality is so warped that we are getting worse by the day.We talk about changing the law and treating the rape cases on a fast track and deliver the punishment , so that it would be a deterrent to one and all and create a fear about engaging in such a heinous activity. But where does all this emerge from?What is the root cause?

Look at the circumstances under which we live here in India.The basic education to millions of kids is no where in sight.Upbringing and culture is so varied and diverse that it swings from conservative to ultra modern within 300km radius.The warped mindset starts there.To add to that certain religion and its hardliners add fuel to fire.The male folks, have every avenue to do what ever they want and with whom ever behind a veil.They can marry a few dozen times or have extra marital affairs, but when they find caste based romance or love they become Taliban's and create terror by honour killings and brutal results follow.The word SEX is a taboo.Talking to a girl may be a big no-no in some cases, and in some cases living in is also accepted.It depends on which layer of society you are basking in.North of India the night life reeks of all you can possibly think of and so is Mumbai and many other metros in varying proportions.In other cities , smaller or classified as B and C grade cities, these things happen on the sly.The television and its bad effects are seen here too.Sex comedy in movies and exposure to the Internet all adds up to the bottled up testosterone waiting to spurt out at the sight of the first victim.The topics seen and discussed and debated on the news is only murder, gang rapes and how cruel it has been.The so called crime scene episodes  further glorify it and make the poor victim and her kin embarrassed to no extent.Why can't we be more sensitive? Why do we not take collective responsibility to clean up this mess and better the mindset?Why start the stupid blame game that leads to nothing but delays and procrastinations at large.

The uneducated, jobless and the urchins who have plenty of time on hand and are exposed to all this filth are scavenging and look at the first victim their hands can fall on.Romantic couples(Youngsters) too, to escape from the clutter of urban life try to search for the silent, secret locations on the outskirts where they think they can get some peace and end up being raped and tortured.Why go to deserted mill compounds without proper escort?Knowing fully well what can happen if you don't take care, one must be equally responsible for ones self and ensure we take a calculated gamble in the worst case.The destiny decides our fate .But we could take extra care and efforts to ensure we do not let the innocent get harmed.Society and film fraternity should stop selling TRP's and counting crores on lousy films which are provocative and encourage this filth.They need to more accountable .What can the police also do?They are a pathetic sight when they have to own up every nonsense done by our politicos, swamis, murders, scams,kidnapping and rapes.Check his own house.He himself cannot fend for himself and his family what could he do for society at large?Why stretch him thin and use him like a rubber band that will crack .

gruff

The way people address the domestic helps or any person they consider below their social status, is really a pity.I sometimes wonder just because someone is less fortunate as of this instance and unable to get a better position in the so called pseudo society we live in , one should not treat the other with disrespect.Even if one has a point to make and that too a valid one , there are ways and means to put them across.On one hand we have the so called titles like "ben" and " bhai" which is used in Gujarat very commonly and stands for sister and brother respectively.On the other hand the attitude and the tone in addressing these so called low ranking persons is definitely a no-no.

I have noticed even with employees the behaviour the owners or senior staff has is kind off ," hey I own you and you do what ever i tell you to do!!" .The way it is assumed and the fact that its accepted by the people , one wonders ,"doesn't anyone have a self respect?".Giving bad words, using the foul language to the extent of making it a part of every breath you take, is obnoxious.People get cowed down with the show of these words alone ,imagine if it were to erupt into a physical show of strength.

God made one and all.Why not we speak to the people and give that respect they deserve.It takes patience as they may not have the capacity at present to view certain points the way we would.But, it ends up being a short conversation and doesn't hurt anyone.The work is done without the other person spewing venom in his mind and wishing the worst for us.The materialistic power that one accumulates actually starts this and all it needs is one jolt to bring him or her to the ground realities.One should remain humble always and treat everyone at par and see the outcome.Even a animal on the road deserves respect.Not to be kicked or stoned but guided to take the right path.Imagine yourself in that position and then!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Inspiron

A new word coined to inspire one and all through the facts of life which one must experience in their journey called LIFE.(Love, Inspiration,Fun, Energy).Take the positives only and see the rest as areas of improvement.Every step you take is a measure of your confidence.Just make sure that you don't leap of a cliff without the harness.What i am saying is ,when you walk you have a stride.Some times you casually stroll with short steps,many a times we just walk briskly but with the same small steps and on occasions, we take giant strides to catch up with something super urgent.This is exactly how we must take our decisions.Small one, stroll but take a step ahead.Big ones, start strolling, get a grip, build a pace and then stride or even jog depending on the time lines you have set for your self. Look ahead, look down to ensure no pot holes where you might trip.Even if you miss astride , never mind but synchronise the body and mind and you are back into stride.

The beauty of the heptathlon is we have straight stretches, bends, hurdles, pits, slush  and rough terrains to overcome in or journey.The fun is in getting inspired ,but experiencing those unique moments which each individual has his own.There cannot be any experience which is the same.

There are most of the times the typical questions clogging our minds"is this the right thing?Should i do it ?Is it fine now or later?what if?How?When?where?and we get into the muddle.The more we try to link these together , the more confusing it becomes.There is where we need a good starter.The best thing out of all this is give it a try and make it work.You will realise that most of the cases you can make it work.You need to apply a lot of common sense and have a self belief.In the school and college days every one encourages us to be excellent at academics and to be a great employee in the future by getting a super job.How many get encouraged to start their own businesses.?Are they all college drop outs that make it big in business?The Google, the twitters, the face books and Microsoft or even Ambani group for that matter all multi billion dollar businesses set up by the drop outs.They had the drive, the belief and the  will to hang in there that took them ahead .They employed the best of people who scored fantastic in academics and these same people worked their backsides off and generated these Billion dollar deals.10% people control 90% of the world business and riches.Learn from these people and take your step forward always.If they can do it , so can you.

Touched

How many times in life you feel touched? That sensitive emotional moment that brings tears of joy, happiness, and a bouquet of emotions that takes you down memory lane, creating nostalgia.Its happening in my life of late quite often.History repeats is what they say!I don't like repetitions , but recalling those splendid moments and the people involved, especially when they pop out of no where and appear in front of you on a social media circuit or in person or phone.That moment is something I would value for my life time.That I consider the biggest present of my future.

I got a connect from my college mate of the 80's who actually i haven't been in touch for over 3 decades .They were the 3 queens of my engineering days and today I got the connect of the 4th queen of hearts through a common link, who happens to be my wife's friend and staying miles away from where my college mate stays today.This connection came through a blog post i wrote yesterday and reading that her mother somehow managed to correlate it to this person about whom I wrote the post.The interesting part is this person is the sister of my college friend who again though we are on face book but haven't met for 3 decades!!Such an amazing world, what a moment.I also got a connect from one of my other colleagues who worked me in the gulf, and now settled in the USA with his family .Excellent human being,a Lebanese by origin and it was no nice of him to recall all those wonderful days and refresh them.Why these moments start of back to back is the question/.What relevance do they have in our lives?Why now?I have experienced things pretty similar occurring every decade of my life.As the posts get read across countries with no borders, including morocco, Israel, Poland, Venezuela,Turkey,Greece,and fiji I know the power of blogging and its consequences.I would utilize this space as best as I can.

The most stunning part comes now.It may be trivial for some, but for me this is priceless.I got a call from my close friend whose son graduated as an engineer and happened to be facing a series of interviews and group discussions for a well known MNC.To prepare for the same , my friend suggested that his son go through my blogs and catch hold of any thoughts, ideas, strategy he may feel that would be useful and approach the interviews.As i understand from him , he read all my blog posts and was certainly inspired and actually qualified for their recruitment .He was selected and will join this MNC .I don't wish to deprive the young lad of his efforts and engineering brilliance, but what touched me was his father's call( my close friend) who specifically called me to mention this to my wife and me was very touching.I am humbled.If these posts make even a small difference to any body's life and adds value , i would have contributed a little bit for making this world a better place.Such moments I would cherish for life.I was so moved yesterday , and the picture moves in front of my eyes as a slide show of life.

I like to express in words, the way I see life and wish to one day turn it into a book of sorts with simple steps that may help the young and old.

Ultimate sacrifice

Came across a  lady working in a bank and is about to retire in the next 6 months.Husband , expired  when he was just 22 years of age.Children well set , one in the armed forces and one an IT professional settled in the USA.Both married and settled.The lady of the house however is taking care of her in laws aged 90 years plus, one hard of hearing and the other restricted movements due to ageing.A care taker maid 365x24x7 at their service.A small tenement in a small city,and now will be having huge time on hand.

The lady has to restrict her diet and cook only bland , soft food that the in laws can digest.The moment she gets a chance to help her self with the food the colleagues bring she is all set to even take it home if need be just so that she has a change in her routine.

So technically , she has everything and yet restricts her self and her life every day she lives .Devoting all that for her in laws for over so many years and now when she stops working , she will face a huge question mark?That being , so much free time and yet unable to move anywhere due to the 90 plus dependents that pose the  restriction.

What does one do in such a case?One life you have to live.The present generation , though well set are not wanting to share the responsibility or see that their mother gets some space or a breath of fresh air.The in laws having lived 90 years plus still want to continue living in the same place/House for their friends and social connect etc etc.So you live, and don't allow the younger ones to live their life is it?Isn't this a catch 22 situation.?Are you born in this world just to suffer, silently or otherwise?Is it fair for this lady?What should the children do?Can they not lend a helping hand, find a better option and make her life a bit better.If one were to look back she could be a small % of mother Teresa with no Nobel prize.

People live long, its a part of destiny ,and not much can be done about it.But ,by being stubborn and blocking the way of living of their family members is not fair , i guess.You must not deprive the lady of the possibility of spending the next few years of her life post retirement in a way she would love to,and relax and enjoy , even if her in laws decide to complete a century and enter the books of world records, where this lady would never find a mention.The lady still manages to put a smile, tries to mingle with everyone and puts up a brave face.Hats off!!!

Spontaneous

Life is full of fun, ups and downs, it depends upon how one views it as well.I also, like many of you have been through the roller coaster,and got those thrilling and exciting moments.Edge of the seat moments and sheer goosebumps sliding down the rollers ,coasting away down sharply at good speeds.Yet , one realises that you are up and away on the next bend and curve, battling the G forces and wanting more thrills.

I get these kind of spontaneous moments so often and I have always  been a guy who has taken these decisions in life , literally spontaneously.Call its God's guidance, gut feel, leap of faith, walking into a Black hole,calculated risk taking and much more.To tell you the truth , I have been always lucky to have them all work in my favour.My Guru , gave me that confidence years ago.I posed a question in front of him when I was going to take a major leap in my career, going from a high end brand to an unknown entity, from a plush premises to a small dingy setup, from organised chaos to utter disaster that prevailed, from a metro to a small town where the big MNC had set up or intended to set up its operations.I had never ever carried out this work. I had no clue how I was to do all that.The expectations were high.My mother too was apprehensive and was not quite happy about me leaving a super premium Luxury car brand and stepping into the unknown trying to make a brand of it.But , that was the step I took and it turned out to be the best years of my life, professionally.Simply classic.It came with tons of efforts and hardships no doubt but gave me so much of confidence and I found that man can do what ever he wishes to do and has enormous capability given to him by almighty.He only has to believe in himself and he or she can do wonders.

I bought cars, property, and many materialistic things in my life on the spur of the moment.Every instance, I thanked god and asked him for his blessings at all times.Never did I fail to deliver.It took time in many cases but it happened.Be it switching jobs, getting admissions for my daughters even in mid term, having switched states and universities( mid term and delayed) and knowing fully well what it means to get such admissions in good schools and colleges.Never once did I have to pay donations.I came across instances where, having seen situations completely negative in front of me , i got the strength to still face up to it and turned it around.This was , probably a miracle,but it happened on more than 5-6 occasions and that cannot be a miracle only.This now i firmly know.I get a flash at any odd hour and i then make a note of it and start working towards it.I have shifted 10 jobs in 30 years, with 7 locations , one of them abroad as well , with no relatives etc to support.By god's grace , I am proud to say I am a self made man.What ever, i have earned is from real efforts and and not through  the easy money which people go for now a days.This money doesn't last.I have instances where my mother inspired me to do certain things, or my kids or wife mentioned something and I got it done, or I noticed something while walking on the street or even at midnight I have woken up and changed a decision( a major one) getting out of deep slumber.I treat these occasions like directions from almighty and go headlong into it ,without fearing the consequences.My family initially used to get worried , they faced their own situations because of my decisions, but they never cribbed.They supported me whole wholeheartedly.Its very important to have that support.specially from your wife and children.

What ever we are today is due to this spontaneity and I would suggest everyone, trust your guts, make a quick back of the envelope calculation, and go for it.Don't procrastinate.Just do it.Once in , take it to its logical conclusion.Don't make a U-turn.Never go back to the same place where you once leave.Keep walking.Live and enjoy that spontaneous moment and you will cherish it for life.This post too was spontaneous :)

Community love

As you age, you realise what you have missed all these years , especially struggling and making money and adding all the stress burdens to your body and overburdening it,there comes a time when better wisdom prevails on you.

I too went through that phase,had my stints with pleasure, leisure, hard work and stress build ups, health scares,and my share of wealth , both material as well as personal.Recently,I had an opportunity to spend time, real quality time with my brother , his family after many years.He is a doctor by profession and  way different in nature from me.We have our own strengths and areas of improvement and as years passed and we added salt and pepper to our intellectual territory, the head we really wizened up.This time around , I realized that we hit it of so well and could appreciate the finer aspects of life which we missed, all along .His affection and attention for details, his concern and care for my daughters who are grown up and cruising, his concern for the life after he retires from his profession next year and transits to a new ,quite place with his son,my nephew Akshay and his family.He never forgot to cater to my wishes, especially getting me the dollops of Chicken Biryani, inspite of he following a strict vegetarian meal  rituals for the holy month of  Shravan.It touched me a lot.It was one of my best visits to my hometown and I carried back memories,emotions, and got a whole lot of work done with the backing of my wife and kids.We had a moment where my daughters 2 wheeler stalled on the way back at midnight when we all were returning from a great party.It was an uphill task , literally as we had to drag the scooty up the hill with no help in sight.I had my car as well and ,without a second thought, my brother Rajan jumped out of the car and volunteered to push the vehicle up the slope.Inspite of my insistence that he drive the car , he refused and with all the stamina he has conserved even at 63,he trudged his way up the slope and I drove his family with hazard lights on ,closely.So many thoughts flashed my mind and I was uncomfortable.My health situations do restrict me pushing heavy loads, but here was a situation where , if i was alone, or had no other choice , what would I have done?You need family and your true well wishers to be around at times when you really need them.

I just stretched that imagination and wondered, how wonderful it would be if we could all stay as a small community together, in a small home of ours , where we could share thoughts, ideas, love, emotions, and moments that would probably never come again.Its the need of the hour.One can assist each other in times of need, emergencies, or just go on a holiday, share our concerns and give huge moral support.I plan to make that come true and hope my brother agrees to that.It would be great fun.One life and that's all that god has given us to experience these riches.If we squander these chances, they would never come again.We need to realize the enormous joy and delight it may give to one and all.Even staying in the same apartment, adjoining blocks, maybe even in the same house and make it a great HOME.