Can you look into the eyes of the person when he/she points out your shortcoming? Can you hear the other person patiently when he/she talks about your weakness? And after listening to that, can you smile and hug that person as if nothing happened at all? Can you just stay quiet without getting back to that person? And if you say yes, then I think you are very courageous. You are courageous 'coz you are bold and patient enough to listen to those words spoken intentionally or unintentionally. In a way, patience and tolerance are also various forms of courage. And believe me, not all of them have this courage. Most of them would never believe that they have any shortcoming and even if they know about it, they would never accept it in front of anyone. I would say that they might be scared of looking at themselves bare. Or maybe they are scared to think of themselves as imperfect people.

Have you come across people who are very, very negative about everything? And no matter what happens, they only feel sad and bad about it. Yes, I have come across such people. I try sending some positive vibrations to them. But they are so much full of negativity that they refuse to see anything else. When I watch their lives as a spectator, I feel they are lucky to have so many good things in their lives. But the irony is that they are not able to see anything good. They feel that they are the most unluckiest lot. They kvetch about everything and everyone. They are in such a deplorable state 'coz they miss out all the fun in life.

Whenever I meet such a person, I try my best to show them the beauty of life. Not that it works out every time. Still I keep trying with the hope that I might convert atleast a handful of them into optimists.:-)

If I make the lashes dark
And the eyes more bright
And the lips more scarlet,
Or ask if all be right
From mirror after mirror,
No vanity's displayed:
I'm looking for the face I had
Before the world was made.
~W.B. Yeats

Dreamers, yes we are

So how are we "dreamers" different from the rest of the world?

*We believe in our dreams.
*Even though we dream, we stay firmly rooted in the ground.
*Many a times we know that some dreams are very, very imaginative and not realistic. But still we dream that those dreams might come true sometimes.;-)
*We never get bored anywhere 'coz our dreams are our constant companions.
*We never try to interpret our dreams- NEVER.
*We don't get disheartened if our dreams don't come true. We remain dreamers.;-)
*Oh yes, we persevere to make our dreams to come true 'coz we know that only dreams are not enough.
*We really don't care when people laugh at our dreams.
* Finally, we DREAM.:-)

There is nothing more refreshing than getting into water. Yep, though I am struggling with my swimming lessons yet, I just enjoy being in water. I just forget everything when I see any water body. No wonder that I nurture a dream of a house somewhere on a beach.;-)

One of my friends told me, " It is good to know that you remember your school and your school friends so well. Many people tend to forget the old memories and they replace them with new ones."

My reply, " Well, all our hard disks' capacities are the same. It is just that I retain only good memories. So there is more space in my disk." ;-))

Miss you, St.Ann's

Of late, I have been thinking about my school in Mangalore- St. Ann's. I have many beautiful memories of that place.

When I left Bangalore to Mangalore, I was very scared about the new school that I would join. My school in Bangalore was a very good one. But the school did not have a playground and there was no encouragement for the all round development of students. We were expected to study and study only. So I was a very studious student and was expecting the same atmosphere in Mangalore.

St. Ann's was not a bit of what I had anticipated. Studies, of course was the main stream. But the school ensured that all the students did something else other than studies too. There were regular sports and cultural competitions held inside and outside the school. The teachers also participated with enthusiasm. Initially I was completely lost in this environment. But gradually I started enjoying it. I fell in love with dance , music and plays. This place showed me my potential in music. I started enjoying cultural activities and became an integral part of them. In fact, this school helped me to come out of my shell. It was so much fun being a part of that school. This school taught me that study was not everything. This school taught me to love all kinds of music. On the whole, this school taught me how to enjoy life.

I am glad that I was lucky enough to find such a school. Some day I wanna go back there and thank all the people out there for changing my life in a BIG way.:-))))

Read this in a mail today:


You gotta dance like nobody's watching.

Dream like you will live forever.

Love like it is never going to hurt.

Live like you will die tomorrow.

Leave her alone!

Ok, so Sania Mirza is not supposed to wear short skirts! So what will happen if Sania starts wearing long skirts? Will hunger, poverty disappear? Will all the wars stop? Will the world become a bettter place? What did you say? No????? Ok, atleast will she win Wimbeldon? No??????????????? Damn....then what difference does it make if Sania wears short or long skirts? And anways, isn't Sania supposed to decide on that? Don't we have important issues to debate on rather than poor Sania's wardrobe? Let her play her game. Let us not lose such a good player over these trivial, not at all important issues.

I was moved when I saw our manager in tears the other day. We were at this place which offers shelter to kids of prisoners. Our manager thought that it was very touching to meet all those kids and talk to them. I never thought that a person at such a position could be a humanist too. Well, be it any nationality, any religion, any caste, any language- the basic human feelings are the same everywhere. The humane feeling and love connects all of us. As long we are aware of this fact, peace will prevail, no matter what.:-)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

We have shifted our work place. I must say that I like this change. This new place is much brighter and cheerful. The best thing is that I am closer to the window and I do get to see some greenery outside. Well, life gets better and better day by day, doesn't it?:-)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Some lazy notes

I usually don't like lazy days. But sometimes I do enjoy doing nothing on a holiday. No time restrictions, no schedules, no work, no commitments - these define my idea of a lazy holiday. Just stretch your legs, listen to some good music, sip a cup of tea and read a good book. But then I would not want to do this every day. I would like to work hard other days and earn this lazy holiday.:-)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Relaxation always does not have to be doing nothing. Involving yourself in some activity that you love can also mean relaxation.

Yesterday was truly a relaxing day. Went out with friends, did some bowling, had a good lunch and later went out for a movie. And the whole day, I never thought about work or family. In fact, I did not think about anything. That was very refreshing.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I have finally started doing some things that were on my to-do list for a long time. I hope to kick off more activities soon. You feel so happy when you do something that you have always longed to do. I donno how many years of life I have with me. So I wanna try to do as much as possible in this time.:-)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I always look forward to meet my Aunts ( My Mom's sisters). Their ebullience and laughter are very infectious. I also learn so much from them every time I meet them. I feel so comfortable and relaxed in their company. It is wonderful have such simple, loving and caring people in one's life.:-)

So I am in a very philosophical mood. I am seriously thinking about life. I am ranting to my friend about how we should live life on our terms. I am also telling her that we should live for ourselves atleast sometimes. My friend is also adding her valuable inputs to this grave discussion. And then , I happen to listen to a song of a recently released Hindi movie. I find my feet tapping to the rhythm- a very catchy number. So I forget my philosophy and start searching for the song on the Web. My friend tries to continue the discussion. And I tell her- "Come on, man. Just take life as it comes and enjoy. Don't think about it too much." I finally manage to get hold of that song and I am completely lost in another world listening to it, thus leaving my friend in total chaos.

Amazing- what music does to me!!!!!!:-)))
My Dil Goes Mmmmmm....

Complicated minds:-)

P1 smiles at P2.
P2: Why are you smiling? Do I look like a joker?
P1 does not smile at P2 next time.
P2: Hey, you don't even smile at me now a days.
**********************************************
P1: I don't like her at all, man. She is such a big back biter. BTW, do you know that she broke up with her boy friend today?

**********************************************
P1: P2, you never point out my weaknesses. How will I improve if you don't tell them to me?
P2: Hmmm.....ok.....I think you are a bit short tempered.
P1: Hey, how can you speak like this? Just because I treat you as my pal, it doesn't mean that you can speak whatever you want.
*********************************************

Why is that as luxuries increase, our life tends to become more complex? Because we do not have to bother so much about the basic amenities in life, do we start searching for some matter to think or worry? Why do the smallest of all tensions becomes our major headache and drives us to depression? Why do we start analysing every thought? Why do we start interpreting ours or others' actions? Why do we start building walls around ourselves? Why do we start concentrating on the darker side of life? Why do our demands become more and more?

Some situations: ( a destitute and a software engineer, for example)
Destitute: Will I be able to get some food today?
Software Engineer: When will I upgrade my mobile, man?
Destitute: Will I get a shelter today at least?
Software Engineer: Shit! His car is better than mine
Destitute: I need some cloth to cover my body.
Software Engineer: I hate this brand, man. They never come out with torn jeans.

Hmmmm.................................................................

Ganapathi Bappa Moreya

Ganesha, Ganapathi, Gajaanana, Ekadantha, Vinayaka- and so on- there are several names for this most loved Hindu God.

Ganesha is supposed to be the destroyer of all obstacles- hence he is worshipped at the beginning of any new venture one undertakes. I read this on one of the wesites about Ganesha:

"His association with obstacles comes from the great strength of the elephant, the intelligence of the human and the subtelty or ability to penetrate small spaces like a mouse or rat. "

Lokmanya Tilak foresaw the attraction that Lord Ganesha held over people and hence initiated the process of celebrating the mass celebration of Ganesha festival. Even today, you can see various oragnizations coming together to celebrate this festival.

For me, Ganesha Chathurthi is always a special occasion. It is a day of celebration. It is a day on which we cook and savour lots of delicacies.:-) It is a day on which people forget their differences, and come together to pray to Lord Ganesha in unison.

Vakrathunda Mahakaya Kotisurya Samaprabha
Nirvignam Kurume Deva Sarva Karyeshu Saravada

Yakshagaana

Dance+Music+Drama= Yakshagaana

Yaksha= Celestial being
Gaana= Music ( roughly)
On the whole, it is known as the music of the celestial beings.

Yakshagaana- supposed to be known as folk art of Karnataka. I do not know about how they have categorized this into folk art. But I think the reason could be that this art has been passed from generation to generation in person. There have been no books or any written material in this art.

Yakshagaana is always based on Mahabharatha and Ramayana. The costumes are one of the highlights of this art form.

The Yakshagaana artist has to be well versed not only in dance but also in music and dialogue delivery. The performance is kicked off with a prayer to Lord Ganesha. On the stage along with the artists, you can see a Bhaagavatha and instrumentalists. Bhaagavatha is a singer who narrates the story through his songs at regular intervals. The songs are mostly classical-based. The artists dance for the Bhaagavtha's songs and then expatiate the song through their dialogues. The dialogues are not written ones- so most of the times, the artists use their own dialogues. Hence the artist is supposed to have a mastery over the language also.

The Yakshagaana show goes on all through the night. It is a major entertainment for the people in villages mostly concentrated in North and South Kanara districts of Karnataka.

It is sad thing that very few people tend to learn Yakshagaana now mainly because of the financial aspect. Even though the artist puts in so much of hard work, he gets a very meagre payment. Hence most of the times, you will find that the artists hail from agricultural background families.

I do hope that this art will always be nurtured and protected. I do hope that more and more artists will be inspired and encouraged to continue Yakshagaana and keep us enthralled.

Loser, huh? Failure, huh? So what? Let the fight go on. Let the struggle go on. Let the hope rule. Let the ambition burn in your heart. Let the mind find the fortitude amidst all the contempt and ridicule. Who knows- tomorrow the victory might be yours.