Reminder

Read this somewhere today and really liked it....

"Sometimes the road you travel doesn't lead to the destination you had hoped for. But if you can look back on the trip and still smile...then it was worth it."

Most of the time I forget this and keep looking at what I don't have. So this is to remind me :)

Musy Me

Though I am getting little mushy today.....one trait I got from my mom… But on this day, when I am happy and everyone is enjoying this happy me.  Somehow I am missing Mom and Dad who made all my days so happy. I can see that my life is truly blessed because they made it that way.... they took all that trouble to make me smile always... so many sacrifies some known to me and many more which I don't even know. 

I want to thank them for being part of my life. Our days are so much richer because of your presence. Love you MomDad!

Can’t write more, tears have blurred my vision.

Meaningless Goals

Everyday while going home, I see this one dog who sits near the roadside waiting for a car to come around. As and when any car comes in speed he runs down the road, barking and trying to overtake it. I know this was not unusual even I have seen many such dogs earlier and this one is no different.
After watching this one regularly over a period of time...I got irritated... One I questioned myself, "Is this dog ever going to catch a car?" Obviously 'NO'. Still he is trying.
But that is not what bothers me. What bothers me is that, what he would do if he ever caught one. Is he in anyway aware about the reason behind his action.
Many people in life behave like this dog, pursuing meaningless goals. And once they achive it they don't have any idea about where to go next. They see a roadblock in front of them. 

Story 10: Be the Lake

The old Master instructed the unhappy young man to put a handful of salt in a glass of water and then to drink it. "How does it taste?" the Master asked."Awful," spat the apprentice.The Master chuckled and then asked the young man to take another handful of salt and put it in the lake.

 

The two walked in silence to the nearby lake and when the apprentice swirled his handful of salt into the lake, the old man said, "Now drink from the lake."As the water dripped down the young man's chin, the Master asked, "How does it taste?" "Good!" remarked the apprentice. "Do you taste the salt?" asked the Master. "No," said the young man.

 

The Master sat beside this troubled young man, took his hands, and said,"The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains the same, exactly the same. But the amount we taste the 'pain' depends on the container we put it into.So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things ..... Stop being a glass. Become a lake!"

When somebody criticizes you don't worry, Stones are generally thrown only at tree full of fruits !!!

 

 

Story 9: The Eagle story

Once upon a time, there was a large mountainside, where an eagle's nest rested. The eagle's nest contained four large eagle eggs. One day an earthquake rocked the mountain causing one of the eggs to roll down the mountain, to a chicken farm, located in the valley below.

The chickens knew that they must protect and care for the eagle's egg, so an old hen volunteered to nurture and raise the large egg. One day, the egg hatched and a beautiful eagle was born. However, this little eagle was conditioned to behave like a hen. Hence, it became a hen with eagle face... as it was raised to be a chicken.

Soon, the eagle believed he was nothing more than a chicken. The eagle loved his home and family, but his spirit cried out for more. While playing a game on the farm one day, the eagle looked to the skies above and noticed a group of mighty eagles soaring in the skies.

 "Oh," the eagle cried, "I wish I could soar like those birds." The chickens roared with laughter, "You cannot soar with those birds. You are a chicken and chickens do not soar." The eagle continued staring, at his real family up above, dreaming that he could be with them.

Each time the eagle would let his dreams be known, he was told it couldn't be done. That is what the eagle learned to believe. The eagle, after time, stopped dreaming and continued to live his life like a chicken. Finally, after a long life as a chicken, the eagle passed away.

The moral of the story: You become what you believe you are; so if you ever dream to become an eagle follow your dreams, not the words of a chicken. Because you are what you believe you are.

Story 8: The butterfly story

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.
One day a small opening appeared.
He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours
as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole.
Then it stopped, as if it couldn't go further.So the man decided to help the butterfly.
He took a pair of scissors and
snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon.
The butterfly emerged easily but
it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch it,
expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge
and expand enough to support the body,
Neither happened!
In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life
crawling around.
It was never able to fly.


What the man in his kindness
and haste did not understand;
The restricting cocoon and the struggle
required by the butterfly to get through the opening
was a way of forcing the fluid from the body
into the wings so that it would be ready
for flight once that was achieved.


Sometimes struggles are exactly
what we need in our lives.
Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us.
We will not be as strong as we could have been
and we would never fly.

So, don't be afraid of struggle
it's the part of life and it shows that we are alive.
Because only a struggle can provide you your wings!
And will help you to become a beautiful butterfly with those colourful wings!

Story 7: The Golden Touch

We all know the story of the greedy king named Midas. He had a lot of gold and the more he had the more he wanted. He stored all the gold in his vaults and used to spend time every day counting it.

One day while he was counting a stranger came from nowhere and said he would grant him a wish. The king was delighted and said, "I would like everything I touch to turn to gold." The stranger asked the king, Are you sure?" The king replied, "Yes." So the stranger said, "Starting tomorrow morning with the sun rays you will get the golden touch." The king thought he must be dreaming, this couldn't be true. But the next day when he woke up, he touched the bed, his clothes, and everything turned to gold. He looked out of the window and saw his daughter playing in the garden. He decided to give her a surprise and thought she would be happy. But before he went to the garden he decided to read a book. The moment he touched it, it turned into gold and he couldn't read it. Then he sat to have breakfast and the moment he touched the fruit and the glass of water, they turned to gold. He was getting hungry and he said to himself, "I can't eat and drink gold." Just about that time his daughter came running and he hugged her and she turned into a gold statue. There were no more smiles left.

The king bowed his head and started crying. The stranger who gave the wish came again and asked the king if he was happy with his golden touch. The king said he was the most miserable man. The stranger asked, "What would you rather have, your food and loving daughter or lumps of gold and her golden statue?" The king cried and asked for forgiveness. He said, "I will give up all my gold. Please give me my daughter back because without her I have lost everything worth having." The stranger said to the king, "You have become wiser than before" and he reversed the spell. He got his daughter back in his arms and the king learned a lesson that he never forget for the rest of his life.

What is the moral of the story?

1. Distorted values lead to tragedy.

2. Sometimes getting what you want may be a bigger tragedy than not getting what you want.

3. Unlike the game of cricket or soccer for that matter where players can be substituted, the game of life allows no substitutions or replays. We may not get a second chance to reverse our tragedies, as the king did.

4. Choose what you want wisely otherwise any one can end up in Midas' shoes.

Story 6: After you are gone

About a hundred years ago, a man looked at the morning newspaper and to his surprise and horror, read his name in the obituary column. The news papers had reported the death of the wrong person by mistake. His first response was shock. Am I here or there? When he regained his composure, his second thought was to find out what people had said about him. The obituary read, "Dynamite King Dies." And also "He was the merchant of death." This man was the inventor of dynamite and when he read the words "merchant of death," he asked himself a question, "Is this how I am going to be remembered?" He got in touch with his feelings and decided that this was not the way he wanted to be remembered. From that day on, he started working toward peace. His name was Alfred Nobel and he is remembered today by the great Nobel Prize.

Just as Alfred Nobel got in touch with his feelings and redefined his values, we should step back and do the same.

What is your legacy?
How would you like to be remembered?
Will you be spoken well of?
Will you be remembered with love and respect after you are gone?
Will you be missed?

Story 5: Even the small thing counts!

There was a man taking a morning wa lk at or the beach. He saw that along with the morning tide came hundreds of starfish and when the tide receded, they were left behind and with the morning sun rays, they would die. The tide was fresh and the starfish were alive. The man took a few steps, picked one and threw it into the water. He did that repeatedly. Right behind him there was another person who couldn't understand what this man was doing. He caught up with him and asked, "What are you doing? There are hundreds of starfish. How many can you help? What difference does it make?" This man did not reply, took two more steps, picked up another one, threw it into the water, and said, "It makes a difference to this one."



What difference are we making? Big or small, it does not matter. If everyone made a small difference, we'd end up with a big difference, wouldn't we?

Story 4: Same 500 note with new learning

Several years later, it was another day, another time.
And another motivational guru.

As I watched him pull out a five hundred rupee note and hold it up forall to see, I thought I knew what he was going to do next. But he justasked a simple question. "How much is this worth?"

"Five Hundred rupees!" the crowd yelled in unison.

"Right," said the speaker. He then took the note and crumpledit into a ball and asked "How much is it worth now?"
"Five Hundred rupees!" screamed the audience.
He then threw the note on the ground, stamped all over it and picked upthe note and asked one more time: "And how much is it worth now?"
"Five Hundred rupees!" was the response.
"I want you to remember this," said the speaker.

"Just because someone crumples it, or stamps on it, the value of thenote does not diminish.
We should all be like the five hundred rupee note.
In our lives, there will be times when we feel crushed, stamped over, beaten.But never let your self-worth diminish. Just because someone chooses tocrush you -- that doesn't change your worth one bit!

Don't allow your self-worth to diminish because someone says somethingnasty -- or does something dirty -- to you."

'Never let your self-worth diminish'

Story 3: A Lesson from 500 rupees note

It happened some years ago but I can recall the evening like it happened just last week.
I was in an audience listening to a motivational guru.

The speaker whipped out his wallet and pulled out a five hundred-rupees note.

Holding it up, he asked, "Who wants this five hundred rupee note?"

Lots of hands went up. Including mine.

A slow chorus began to build as people began to shout "Me!" "Me!"

I began to wonder who the lucky one would be who the speaker would choose. And I also secretly wondered -- and I am sure others did too -- why he would simply give away five hundred rupees.

Even as the shouts of "I want it" grew louder, I noticed a young woman running down the aisle.

She ran up onto the stage, went up to the speaker, and grabbed the five hundred-rupees note from his hand. "Well done, young lady," saidthe speaker into the microphone.

"Most of us just wait for good things to happen. That's of no use.You've got to make things happen."
The speaker's words have stayed with me ever since.

'Simply thinking about doing something is of no use'

Our lives are like that. We all see opportunities around us. We all wantthe good things.

But the problem is we don't take action.

We all want the five hundred rupees notes on offer. But we don't make the move. We look at it longingly.... Get up, and do something about it. Don't worry about what other people might think. Take action.... That's what matter at the end!

Story 2: Building Your House

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but over time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, “This is your house… my gift to you.”

The carpenter was shocked!

What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.

So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time,often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock,we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do itover, we would do it much differently.

But, you can not go back. You are the carpenter, and everyday you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said,“Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the “house” you will live in tomorrow. Therefore, Build wisely!

Story 1: The Seasons of Life

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn to not judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.

The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall.

When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.

The second son said no – it was covered with green buds and full of promise.

The third son disagreed, he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.

The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfilment.

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but one season in the tree’s life.

He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are – and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life – can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.

If you give up when it’s winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfilment of your fall.

Don’t judge a life by one difficult season. Don’t let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.

Inspiring Short Stories series

Recently I am getting so many inspirational stories and they indeed have the power to make you think for a moment. I would like to share these short but motivational stories with everyone. These stories really touched my soul. So from now on for 10 days I will be sharing these short stories.

Read and Enjoy. Share if you have such stories and motivate people around you. This will surely make difference.

Doe! A Deer

Few months ago we visited Coorg and saw so many pretty little deer’s. It was fun to watch these lovely animals. These are indeed nature's gift. So pretty, so innocent; watching them was so relaxing and fulfilling. Just love it.

Below are some of the clicks I took.

These reminds me of the poem; 'Doe, a deer, a female deer'

My Role Model

Once a colleague of mine asked me; 'Who is your role model?' I was speechless never thought about it. Based on my areas of interest there are few people whom I admire; but role model no. According to me a role model is someone who inspires you throughout your life no matter what you choose to do. So there was none, no role model for me.

But now after so many months I have an answer; I have my role model. In fact I have 2 role models, 'My parents'. Someone whom I have been copying all these years and still do; My Mom and Dad.

My mother is the most hardworking person I know, with the strongest work ethic. Nothing is left undone when she sets her mind to it and this is something that was impressed upon me since childhood. She is very straight forward person and if she doesn't like something she will tell on your face.

My father is very generous with his time and never asks for anything in return. He is someone whom I look upon when it comes to courage, will power, self confidence, value of time, never die spirit, positive attitude. He is the one person whom I have never seen low in energy and negative. He is a the real fighter. He is strong but at the same time very emotional and loving.

Together they are very ‘Positive people with great fighting spirit'. They have always been there for me. I am who I am because of them; and I am trying hard to be like them. They are like a guiding star for me who always show me the correct path and when I triumph they are always there to cherish my achievements. They are my real heroes.

Sugary Dream

These days my dreams are kind of weird. Mostly they are blurred… I remember what it was about but never the dream itself. However, I am good in this way as remembering such bizarre stuff will clutter my already messed up brain.

Couple of day's back I saw one dream which is sweet enough to share. Recently I visited a friend of mine; she gave very yum Bengali sweet (not sure what the name was but it was not rosogulla for sure)… it was truly mouth watering. It was on my mind for few days.

All of a sudden yesterday, I saw myself eating that sweet it was present in various shapes, sizes & colors. And guess what after eating it I was flying on Thames River and finally landed on the bridge. Then more sweets and I was walking on the Indian Ocean and then playing football on the highest mountains covered with snow.....Dancing on the top of the highest tower... And much more but couldn’t recollect it.

Just remember that finally, I woke up with the taste of sweet! It was indeed a sugary dream which reminded me of the taste and fun of life at the same time… hmmm Yummilicious.

We have so many needs in our life, but at the end of the day, all we need is to be needed.

Social media: hype or a trend?

Social networks now days have become one important part of urban lifestyle throughout the world. Many of us think 'what's in our mind' only when we look at facebook or twitter page. We strike a pose many times just to show it to our friends on facebook, google+, twitter etc. Sometimes I think is this a trend for Gen Y or just hype? .........To share......to exchange.....to collaborate.....to participate......to interact.....for making those emotional attachments & social connections.

Whatever it is hype or a trend, but this social media has affected our life to a great extent. Earlier kids used to indulge in hobbies but now most of them are glued to these new social networks. Forget about kids we youngsters are worst....... we have plenty of time to see all pictures, comments, status, trending topics etc and finally end up saying that we don't have time for hobbies or we are too busy to catch up with friends. We accept it or not but Social Media has many Socio-economic consequences....It is creating a mirage of happy life which is effecting our real life.

Every now and then we add friends.... even if in real life we don't talk to those people....No doubt personal & social network increases with social media. But knowingly or unknowingly we interact so much on the virtual world that real world at time takes a back seat and virtual world coincides with the real world. What happens in facebook, twitter etc stays for long in our mind and we end up losing time in real world. This in long run can become a cause of weak relationships.

Social media also acts as a intrinsic motivation for many of us..... Reputation, passion, hobby, fun, idealism, art, making relations, etc... In some cases it has been a source of crime as well, I know many of you will disagree on this but just pick up the paper every now and then we have something on these lines reported in the media. I agree it's still not that big issue, but trust me you can't ignore the signs when more and more people coming and becoming part of these vast networks.

Increasing relevance of Social Media in Politics, Economy, Society, and Business is another talk of the time. Social media takes an active role in shaping politics e.g. boycotts (e-petitions), fund raising, and helping the needy. Anna's anti-corruption campaign for example got more likes, follows on social media sites and thus, became an important source of revolution among youngsters. In nutshell, Society will be more connected when this facebook generation will have maximum say.... because this Social media has given them great platform to raise their voice to millions.

As far as economy is concerned, collective intelligence increases with social media in place.... Innovation potential also increases by crowd sourcing. Social media also became a new business model. Social Media act as a complementary sales and marketing channels. It gave business a new platform for a voluntary identification with a brand advertising which in turn can lead to pull instead of push-strategy. This evaluation platform can contribute to an enterprise’s success or failure. The internet strengthens the user‘sovereignty. With more and more people joining in social media marketing is becoming very popular.

Social Media like every thing comes with its pros & cons and only time can tell where we are heading with it. So, we can only make our own judgment how do we want to manage our real and virtual life. At the end I could say that, Social Media are not hype, but a consequence of technological progress.... which started as a trend and finally became a need for many of us.

It's never easy!

When I was a Kid and couldn't understand elders way of thinking..... I always felt that, time should fly off so that I can also become a grown up far away from studies… full masti, freedom… life will be easy.... I can do what ever I wish to.

At times I used to think that it would have been better if I was born as a Princess in the era of kings & Queen…. Not because I love there comfort or something (though today I like it for that reason) but because during those days girls were not sent to school… they stayed at home…WOW... Only Fun & frolic……

But now I realized that it's great that I am born in 21st century when women have so much independence. And like this small things I learnt so many things with time….. Starting from speaking to what ever I am today….has became reality with time.

Some times when life seems to be easy, and its best time seems to move very fast that you feels that it was so short period. But when things are worst and you want them to pass on quickly it never does…. giving you more and more agony. Sounds strange but that's what life is... never easy.... and why do we expect it to be easy... it never promised to be at the first place. So, its crucial to find your pace and keep evolving in that and rest all will fall in place.

Peace & love!
Jyoti

To the End!

Today morning I woke up and felt as if I was back after watching a long movie. My dreams kept me on the edge entire night. My mind was cooking weird stories about a haunted house... then from there it moved to a murder mystery.... then to an emotional drama and finally I woke up with an unresolved mystery. This unresolved mystery occupied my mind for the entire day today. Most of the time my unconscious mind was in some kind of parallel universe trying to solve the mess. It was weird but at the same time fun. I wish I could find the end of this story today!