Peshawar Mourns it's Innocent

The world came to a stand-still when the most inhuman, dastardly and cruel act was carried out on the Army Public School in Peshawar on Tuesday. 16^th December 2014, will be remembered as a Black Tuesday, for not only a HUNDRED AND FORTY ONE humans were brutally murdered, it was innocent lives that were claimed- those who went to school to learn and teach, to gain and give knowledge and to give wings to their dreams. Little did they know the morning, when they were leaving for school, that it was the last time they would do so. That they would never be able to come home, throw aside their bags and watch TV, never play their favorite games and sports with their friends, never hug their parents again!

Fathers who proudly carried their children on their shoulders, mothers who gave birth to them, and took care of them, families who watched their brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces and grandchildren grow, were seen running barefoot on the streets of Peshawar that day, in constant prayer and hope, that this was all a bad dream, a cruel lie that was being displayed in front of them, that their children were safe and sound, and would return to their beloved homes soon.

What has humanity come to?

Is this all that was left? A cowardly retaliation and that too, on little innocent children whose only fault was that they studied in an Army Public School? That they dared to be just helpless children who could do nothing about what was happening to them at that moment? That they were the apple of their parents’ eyes?

Nations showed their solidarity and to Pakistan in their moment of grief, people sent out messages of support. But will that help return those lost lives? Will it prevent the massacres from continuing to occur? Will it prevent those heartless terrorists from carrying out their vile and dastardly activities?

This is not something that happened in some corner of the world, this can be us tomorrow! It will make us exist, rather than LIVE, in constant fear, to protect our loved ones.

A few parents in Peshawar, who were able to speak out their grief, were proud of their children who were snatched away from them, are a constant inspiration to the rest of us.

“I’m proud that my child became a martyr. He gave his life to save his friends.”

“My elder son was taken away from me today. But I will still keep sending my other children to school.”

“They took his life, they were never able to take his soul.”

All those little souls will forever be a constant reminder to us that the only way out of this, is to fight terrorism and uproot it completely. Else, such acts which are ugly blots on the face of humanity, will continue to prevail and haunt our lives.

May your souls Rest in Peace.

A toilet for Babli

Hi All,

I am Babli- a 6 year old girl from the village of Junapani.

My daily routine consists of waking up at 6 in the morning, going about with nature's call in the field that my Baba owns - Amma tells me that I have to be very careful in finding the perfect spot so no one can see me.After that, I get fresh, and help Amma draw water from the local pond located on the outskirts of the village and then after reaching home, I have the rotis Amma makes for breakfast. After that, Amma sends me to school, even though I really don't enjoy Masterji's lessons. But the best part about going to school is meeting my friends, and playing with them during the breaks and after school.

I have a lot of friends from school- Chunni, Lalu, Dabbu, Rajjo, Chintu, Pinky..

But now, Pinky is no longer with us..

I asked Amma where she went after she was admitted to the hospital. She tells me, Pinky went to God's home. She was my best friend! We used to play many games after school, and walk home together after that, we are neighbors - her family and mine. But now I have to walk to home by myself..

Pinky was not keeping well much before she left for God's home. She used to complain of tummy aches frequently. I asked her what was wrong, but she never knew exactly why she was not well.

Once I heard Amma speaking to Pinky's mother about her. Aunty was crying that the doctors at the big hospital said that since we did not have toilets, and went to answer nature's call in the fields, Pinky had contracted some infection, that they were unable to cure. They said it was important to build toilets and keep our surroundings clean, so that we could avoid getting such infections. He said something about a big term, I couldn't pronounce it properly, but I think it was something like sani-station. I don't know which station this is, as I've been to the only railway station of our village when we go to Nanima's home. That evening, I asked Baba whether I will also go to God's home if I get an infection like Pinky. I don't know why, but Baba was shocked and he did not reply for my question, but a few days after that, he built a closed small room a little away from our field, and inside the room, there is a white pit and two foot-rests on either side of it. When I asked Baba about it, he told me it was called a "Toilet", and we were to answer nature's call only inside that room, and not out in the field, as we did until now. I was so happy when he said- "Now you won't have to go to God's home. Because now, There is a TOILET for Babli"!

Toilet For Babli

I felt proud the next day at school, when Masterji told everyone in class that our family had got a toilet, and how everyone else also should use one, like us. I just wish all the families in our village get a toilet soon! You can also help us by clicking the link below!

This post is written for the "Toilet For Babli" IndiBlogger Happy Hours contest.
 
You can bring about the change in the lives of millions of kids, thereby showing your support for the Domex Initiative. All you need to do is “click” on the “Contribute Tab” on http://www.domex.in/ and Domex will contribute Rs.5 on your behalf to eradicate open defecation, thereby helping kids like Babli live a dignified life.

Healthy is Happy

"Mom.. Mom.. Where are you?!! See what I got from school today, Mom!!"
Roared my little brother - Kishan, and thundered past me in his eager search for mom, as I saw a blur of brown rush by, and a glint of gold in his hands as I moved past, to give way to the whirlwind that just swept past me.
Finally when our mother appeared out of the kitchen after she had made evening tea for the family and milk for us- she believes growing children need milk to gain strength (although she won't hear a word when I say my growing up years have long by gone and I now have a job in an MNC after graduating as an engineer), did the hullaballoo in the house die down. In his hands was a golden trophy (the size of an average mug) but for him it was "This huge trophy" (he's in the fourth grade) that he had won in the inter-house competition at his school. Apart from the joy that erupted from our grandparents who were so proud to have such a champ of a grandson, and dad who would come back home after work and say how his little boy was following his footsteps, mom was more observant of the brown mud stains covering his white uniform, which would be a botheration to her later. On further inquiry, he sheepishly agreed to have imitated his favorite foot ball star who does the knee-skate on the ground after scoring a goal, but in his case, he ended up skating on freshly wet earth as a result of the drizzle during the race. (Hero-worshiping does effect mothers in a very troublesome sort of way, I agree!) He flopped down on the sofa to elaborately explain his moments of victory- how close he came to nearly slipping down on the wet ground, how close his competitor-cum-best friend- Sahil nearly beat him to the finishing line, but had started sneezing towards the end of the race because of the rain, and thus he lost speed and how he- my brother, put on his full effort and ran and finally how he gained sweet victory. At the end, he dedicated his "amazing" victory to mom and added - "Thanks mom, it's because of you that I won. It's good you make me eat Dabur Chyawanprash everyday, and because of that, I did not sneeze during the race, or I would not have won!

Thus, a big Thank You DABUR CHYAWANPRASH from our whole family, for giving us such moments of joy to cherish in the victory of our loved little ones! :)

This post is written for the "A healthy child makes a happy Home" IndiBlogger Happy Hours contest. For more information, check https://www.liveveda.com/daburchyawanprash/ .

Love- a life worth living for

They walked together, on the wet street, lit with the street lights that were glowing as the sun sank low. It was a beautiful evening, the sky was painted with streaks of orange and red, across a growing dark blue, which would slowly turn into black, with the little shimmers of silver spread across the blanket of night. A slight drizzle started and she pulled out her umbrella- a blue with floral pattern across it. He immediately took it from her and held it so as to cover them from the oncoming pellets of water- he did his best to cover her properly and both of them walked beneath the sole umbrella. A slight breeze swept by them and she felt a shiver- her hands were visibly covered with goose bumps. A slight pause- he put an arm around her and brought her closer to him to try and make her feel warm. He looked at her face, a smile covering it was the only response he got- which meant the world to him, and they started walking again, she with her hand slipping into his, slowly as they passed various stores with their multicolored, beautiful clothes on display.

More than the colors they saw around them, her heart was filled with possibly every color from the rainbow one could make up. She wanted the world to know how lucky she felt, right there, right then, walking beside the man she truly loved and who cared for her so much. Never in her life had she even remotely thought of anything like this happening to her, but happen it did, and she was really thankful to God for him being a part of her life. It was through mutual friends that they met, slowly started up a conversation- she was shy, he was funny- a slight comment about something she didn’t even remember now, and he made her feel at ease at once, and that was the beginning, which later turned into many conversations, and before they knew it, they were in love!

The road is forever

They crossed a family- a little girl hardly a year old in the arms of her mother, cheerfully making her first attempts at coherent speech, looking at her father who was holding out balloons of various colors, in front of her. She looked at them and a nostalgia sunk in- how her life had flashed by- the wedding, settling into the new family, arguments- yes, they had had their fair share of arguments, but neither held it for long, quickly getting over it with a hug and that settled matters for them. The greater part of their lives had gone by in parenting! She remembered how they had been- a nervous couple of first timers- who didn’t know what to expect- it was hard for her to digest the fact that they were about to have a baby! She still felt like a child herself- pampered by her loving hubby. Before long, he was walking nervously up and down the length of the hospital wing, with both their families waiting outside, when the nurse had come out and congratulated him. He immediately rushed in the room, and kissed her on her forehead, for gifting him a lovely baby boy and from then on, life had passed by so quickly, she didn’t even realize the time fly by- it was sleepless nights, cerelac bowls, his first faltering steps, playschool, graduation, and one fine day, it was time for THEM to be grandparents!

There had always been ups and downs on the way, it was not a bed of roses always, but he was always there with her, holding her hand in every aspect of life, always there to support her. He was her everything and the best gift that life had given her. She looked up at him and smiled, silently thanking him for just being there. He looked back at her and reciprocated, and they slowly moved on, towards their destination, hand in hand, walking down the street, both of them cherishing the moment they were living in.

Bro-5!

It was a random day, I can’t remember the date nor time when we met for the first time, but it just happened. We met through a common friend and the first impressions weren't exactly what you would term as “great” from both the sides. It turned into a casual hi-bye each time we met next- be it walking past in the college corridors or going to each other’s class to meet somebody else. Only God knows when exactly it was that we actually sat down and had a proper conversation! Maybe it was that particular day when a teacher was absent, and we were given the opportunity to relish one of those heavenly moments of one complete hour of freedom! It turned out to be that both of us were bored and had nothing else to do except chat with each other, even though we were surrounded by at least 30- 40 other people in that loud and noisy classroom. It so happens, that his girl friend is a very good friend of mine, so the talk started with her being the common topic. ;)

From there it led to common talk about likes, dislikes, etc. Being normal college students who watch TV series, both of us also shared a common interest of watching a particular show called “How I Met Your Mother”, and that is how it all started! It is what I would like to term it as we “clicked” and a new relationship born right then, right there- the most sacred, the most pure, and to describe it aptly, it was a pair of Bros made in heaven! :D (Thanks to you Barney- brother of all Bros, we owe it to you, big time!! Dude, you are AWESOME! ;) ) .

AWESOME!!

From that day started the Bro-Dom that we shared, the bond of the honest wing-man  (not so honest here, as he loves to get a laugh at my expense! :P ) be it walking in the corridors or on the road, and you could hear him tell me, 6 o’clock, 6 o’clock, quick!! And I would turn my head that way to find some guy walking by (no offense, but let’s just put it in as “not my type”! :P )

There goes 1! ;)

And since he already has a girl friend, I was saved the trouble of finding him a girl not because I would not have liked to find him one (Oh yes I would have loved to, given the chance! ;) :D ), but because his girl would kill me if I were to even suggest that, and of course, I would definitely like to spend more time on earth! He made it his mission in life to be my “Break-up” bro (I have to keep reminding him that for a break-up, I should first get hooked up with somebody! :P ) just for being unique, and not like all the rest of the bros. (Can you believe my luck! ) But jokes apart, he has been that friend, guide and philosopher (Yes, AGAIN- My luck! :P ) and both of them have been there through and through whenever I was feeling low or unhappy, always those special friends there to bring a smile on my face and remind me that they were always there.

College is over and we have moved our separate ways, he is enjoying in the U.S with his girl (both are supposed to be there for their so-called “Higher education”), but even now, the Bro-code between us remains strictly followed, and he is still on the look-out for trying to break me up in case I've finally got somebody! (Tough luck bro, not yet! :D)

Fragrance Of Nostalgia

The first few faint smells that my baby brain registered were with the light and sweet fragrance of the baby powder that my mom used to apply on my body. And thus grew the slow but steady relationship between me and the various smells the world around me had to offer. It was like a kid being presented with a giant box of magic tricks- all of it to keep for herself, her very own treasure to be safely preserved in her tuck box of memories- each one unique in its own way, more surprising than the previous one- the plethora of fragrances, aromas, perfumes and even a few not so great smells that I would like to remember.

My memories as baby revolve around the very first smells that I was subjected to- ranging from soap to oil- anything that the various baby care products my parents brought for me, had to offer. As I began to crawl around the house, so began my exploration of my home- venturing into the kitchen was an exciting adventure in itself. What attracted me to this particular room were the different colorful objects stored in bottles of many shapes and sizes, all neatly lined up on a shelf- the white salt, the red chilly powder, the yellow turmeric powder, the brown tea powder, the green gram- oh the list was endless! All these objects were mixed up somehow into creating a very tasty meal whose delicious aroma filled the whole place instantly! It was heaven for me, when I was able to recognize the strong but mouth watering aroma of the Pav-Bhaji - which became an instant favorite. This wonderland was my most important discovery- it was not only filled with objects of all shapes, sizes and colors, but also was rich in aromas of all kinds, all of them tempting, with every meal made in there. 

As I grew up a bit more, it was time my grandma decided she would try and enhance my knowledge about the Almighty, and how to be a good girl and pray to God for all that he has provided us with. Thus, I was introduced to the pooja-room of my home. On entering the room, my nostrils were immediately filled with a scintillating fragrance which I was not able to place. I inquired about it and found out that it was the Incense sticks that my grandma lighted during her pooja everyday. The next milestone in my growing up and in my collection of smells was achieved when I was sent to school for the first time. It was the month of June, and my mother was getting me dressed up, when it started raining. My mom was worried about how I would be dropped to school on my dad's scooter, and went to ask him, leaving me to discover something new that day. As I stepped on the lawn, it felt refreshing and cool, more importantly, I immediately fell in love with the refreshing smell that the earth was emanating as the rain fell on it, thick and fast.

Refreshing, delightful

The next unique treasure that I found in my growing world of smells was that when I was introduced to the world of books. I loved opening, closing and again re-opening my brand new books again, just to get a whiff of the fresh paper. It was on another occasion when I was granted the permission to explore the garden outside my home, that I became aware of the sweet fragrance of the lily and the rose. As I was growing up, my parents took me for outings at the park and the beach. This was another new smell added to my growing collection- the one of the salty air at the beach. Another one- which I'm not exactly proud of, was of the burnt curry that I made when my mom thought she could leave me in charge of the kitchen!

Further additions to my collection came along when I decided to take science as my option in higher secondary school. The chemistry lab with all the acids and chemicals. The sour HCl acid, the disgusting smell of rotten eggs from the Hydrogen sulphide, the sweet smelling Carboxylic acids.. It felt like a collector's paradise! On the way back home with friends, I used to go by an auto, and we had to cross a bridge, and just below it was a hotel. Even if we were blindfolded, we could recognize any day, that we were travelling over the bridge. The lovely and delicious aroma of food wafted from the chimneys and was very inviting to our nostrils. Back home, the inviting smell of coffee- so completely refreshing and more than drinking it, I always end up smelling the coffee a lot! Come college, and I am reminded of the mirchi bhajji shop that my friends and used to love on a cold rainy day. You could never pass by the shop without ordering one plate atleast!

Moments come and go, but memories live with you always. I just need to go through my tuck box of the the various smells in my memory, and instantly I am transported back into the world that existed in the past. The nostalgia of all those small, sweet but significant memories come flooding up instantly, and remind me of the various milestones I have covered in my journey of life, and it ends up leaving a smile on my lips.

This post is written for the "Smelly To Smiley" contest on IndiBlogger. For more information, check  https://www.facebook.com/AmbiPurIndia

This REALLY Did Happen To Me!! PART- IV

When they were chatting up with my mom and grandma on their health and I entered with the tea, all eyes fell on me and I found myself ending up as their latest topic of discussion. As all grandmas are- loving and adoring their grandchildren, mine was no different, and immediately started telling with pride on how well I was managing the home (the breakfast was forgotten and the other mess, she was thankfully unaware of!), without anybody’s help. I was getting happy that finally all my hard work and effort would be appreciated and I would be nothing short of a star in front of all.

I turned towards them with a smile waiting to hear them laud praises on me, that’s when one of them spoke up- “How nice, she’s getting trained up for the future. So, how’s the feeling, managing a home like we do? ” That’s when it hit me that what I had done was no big deal and all this was being done by these home-makers sitting in front of me, DAILY! And that too, with perfection, there was no place for making any mistakes by them! That’s when I realized that passing B.tech was nothing compared to what these women- our moms do daily! And imagine the condition of a working mom!  Apart from all the work, they managed to find time for family and children, taking care of everybody’s likes and dislikes, every single moment. These women truly made buildings of bricks and stone to what we call a HOME. That day definitely increased my respect for all the moms and home-makers- who do so much and do it selflessly, with no expectations in return of any rewards or praises. Silently I paid them all a big Roadies salute, well deserved by all of them.

Well, the story doesn’t end here. As they say- “Picture abhi baaki hai mere dost...”, so is this one. There was dinner yet to be made! After the completely tiring day, the best I could come up with at night was making the humble porridge, (well they were sick, after all!) and I made it quite alright. And for my siblings and me, well, a packet of Maggi noodles was for dinner that night. Did not the ads claim that it was a wholesome meal and all that? Well, I completely agreed with them! So that was that!

Finally the day ended with me preparing beds and putting off everybody to sleep, praying fervently to God that whatever happens, make my mom alright! :P

And thankfully God heard my prayer or my mom felt pity on me - I don’t know, she got back her strength, and was back to normal the next day. And THAT was the end of my disastrous day in the kitchen, and a day of realization!

This REALLY did happen to me!! PART-III

So while I was unaware of the on goings happening without my knowledge, I busied myself in starting the washing machine and starting to prepare lunch. I placed the cooker and waited for the rice and dal placed within to get done. Meanwhile, I chopped the veggies and dint care how big or small the pieces ended up, I dint have the time to bother about such mundane things, any longer. I placed a pan on the gas and added the required ingredients and made sure this time I dint forget to add the salt, left the curry to get done, and started hanging  the clothes which got washed in the mean time, outside (A big thanks to whoever invented the washing machine! Phew!).

All that done, I got back inside and went to the kitchen, only to discover a burning smell coming from inside! I was in for a shock to discover that I had left the flame turned FULL ON, and the curry which I had made such a huge effort in preparing, had got burnt! God! Did all cooking disasters have to happen on the same day?!

 But I really dint have time to ruminate on how fair God was, and started the whole task again, with just half an hour to 1 o’clock- the deadline for the lunch to be ready at my home! Damn you rules! :P Finally, managing to make an un-burnt curry this time, I just barely made it in time to serve lunch right in time. This time at least, I made sure to taste what I had prepared, and only served it after I was satisfied, and got genuine appreciation from the family on being able to cook a good meal. I was really happy, for I had put in a lot of effort in it. Now came the time to face the huge pile of utensils to be cleaned. Why did we have to eat off steel plates? Weren't disposables the best alternative, any day?! Did I forget to mention, that in the middle of all this, I had to answer calls from aunts who called up to inquire on the health of my family, and also made sure that they’d drop by in the evening to personally visit them. Gujju aunts! After getting through with the huge mountain of vessels, now came the time for folding and stacking the dried clothes. After finishing that, I realized it was nearly 4:30, and time to serve the evening tea. Meanwhile, my siblings got back home from school, and my bro immediately settled in front of the TV. I decided that the little guy had behaved well enough and had earned himself the right to watch unlimited TV and exemption from his homework (which I wouldn't have to bother an explanation for, as it would conveniently be handled by my mom when she would be back to normal), as long as he dint come in my way for the rest of the evening. Come evening, and come my concerned aunts, whom I was supposed to offer tea and snacks as basic courtesy. I could see this ending up as myself cleaning up a lot of chinaware in the nearest future (Sigh again!).

This REALLY did happen to me‼ PART-II

Getting back, it was nearly 8:30 and I got into the kitchen immediately and started preparing breakfast for the three ailing people. Since it had to be something light, I thought of making the UPPU MAAVU. All thanks to my grandma who made me familiar with the kitchen and taught the basic dishes for survival, right from my school days!

The kitchen- BEFORE

 I decided to mimic my mom who prepares tea also side by side while she prepares the breakfast, and put the milk to heat, while adding the necessary ingredients in the uppu maavu. Luckily I was able to prepare both successfully (I believe very strong tea is good for people with fever, and nobody dare say that I over boiled it! :P ).

 So, with everything ready, I served them the breakfast and tea in their respective rooms, and came back to the kitchen to clear things up (I honestly dint make that much of a mess, but in such hurry, its excusable if certain things get spilled a little, here and there.) I then went to get fresh myself, as I realized I was in for a looooong day ahead! I got out and sat for breakfast myself, waiting to relish the dish I prepared all by myself. I ate a spoonful and realized something was definitely wrong.

The tasting

Was something wrong with my taste buds as I was tired after the hectic morning which I was not used to, or was there something wrong with the dish? I placed a hand on my forehead, just for assuring myself that I was fine, and then coming over to the sad conclusion that I had forgotten the UPPU (salt) in the uppu maavu!!

I felt bad that I had served this to my parents and grandma, and immediately went to check with them, praying fervently that the tastelessness that they felt would be passed off blaming it on the fever. I was surprised to see their plates empty, and decided to shut up for then and not ask them anything (It was later when I checked with my mom that I realized it isn't always how cheesy as how they show in Hindi serials that people eat or drink stuff even though it tastes horribly bad, just so that the maker doesn't feel bad. In my case, after mom had tasted a spoon of it, she threw off the rest of what was in her plate as well as my dad’s and grandma’s and served them biscuits and other snacks without my knowledge, while I was busy freshening up! I had to console myself that at least the not telling anything so that the person doesn't feel bad part was there in my case! :P ).

This REALLY did happen to me‼ PART-1

Call it unfortunate or sheer rotten luck, it so happened in the monsoon of 2013- when I was back home after earning a B.tech degree (and also bickering a lot - showing off about it, hell- a person doesn't graduate every other day!), a rainy June day, that my mom, grandma AND dad, were down with the fever, all at the same time! And grandpa was out of town. So the responsibility of managing the household from the following day fell upon yours truly! :P The best part was my lovely house-help lady had decided to take leave for that particular week itself! I knew I was in deep trouble this time- neck deep, GULP!

It might have been a record probably, that I woke up at 6:30 a.m. sharp (with a lot of “wake up, wake up” calls from my sister which probably dint work, so she ended up splashing water on my face! I plan on taking revenge for that later, but that day, believe it or not, I actually thanked her! :P And by the way, I have 2 siblings- a brother in the 5^th grade, and a sister in the 12^th.)

For those who don’t know me, I am a person who has never witnessed the glory of a dawn before 9 a.m. at the very least, during the holidays (Hey, give me some credit, it WAS a holiday!). I don’t call myself lazy, but I still wonder why my mom loves to call my name out a lot of times and destroy the peace of the house, to get me to do some work, which I have never disagreed to do, I just like doing it at my own time (Moms! *Sigh*).

The Sighing me! ;) :D

So, continuing, the events of the day- where was I? Oh yeah, I woke up early, made lunch for my siblings- luckily mom had kept everything ready the night before, and so I just ended up heating and stirring the veggies, adding some masalas and salt here and there upon my jurisdiction. But I also made the rotis all by myself, proud to say- they were perfectly circular, apart from the slight burns here and there (it was 6’o clock- I was barely awake and I was doing all that without any help!). With the lunch all packed up, the next aim was to get my younger brother up and ready for his school bus in time, it would leave at sharp 8! With the clock ticking and only around 30 minutes at hand, I somehow pulled him out of bed, got him to get fresh and ready, with his uniform shirt neatly tucked in, all within 15 minutes (Let’s keep my methods ranging from bribes of giving him chocolates and his favorite comic, to nasty threats of not giving him the remote control to the TV after he got back home, to ourselves. My mom needn't know the secret to my success)- a rare feat my mom could never achieve, because my li’l bro keeps running here and there, even so early in the morning.

Satisfied at my achievement, I stood back to take a look at him and silently patting my back at being able to make him look so smart in the uniform. It was then, that he told me with a cheeky grin, that I had made a mistake- I had handed him the wrong sky blue shirt and navy blue shorts uniform. It was the day of the white uniform! God! Couldn't he tell it earlier?!

I managed to keep my calm and immediately asked him to get out of the wrong one while I got him the right one. He was ready and set to go with still 5 minutes in hand for his bus to leave. I dropped him off and got back home, when I saw my sister ready and waiting for me to drop her off. Since her bus stop is not so near, I took the scooter out and dropped her at the respective location as well. On the way back home, I was driving past the beach and thinking of how not so bad I was at managing things at home, and enjoying the breeze. As I turned towards the lane that leads to my home, I was violently shaken out of my reverie and faced a near death experience (My inner self sympathetic voice speaking- my dad was more worried whether the scooter had suffered any scratches or not!) as the scooter skidded a bit at the turning due to the slippery road left by a night full of heavy rain. Luckily nothing much happened as I managed to prevent it from falling, and reached home quite safe and sound, only a bit shaken.

Cherish what you have..

Sometimes in life (actually, most of the time :P), you see someone with something- may be a barbie doll, maybe that awesome play-station, or that gorgeous dress that you have always wanted, or even that guy/girl you have secretly admired, and that is when you "wish" you had the same. But it so happens, that you always end up never getting what you wanted.

I Wish...

More often than not, it so happens that in the search of such "wishes", you forget what you have with you at the moment, and you fail to remember that it was once upon a time featuring in your Wishlist! You fail to recognize the value of the thing you have right now or acknowledge the people in your life at the moment. You don't realize that the things you have now are definitely serving their purpose and the people you have, care for you and they are the ones who come to your aid when you need it the most, rather than someone you fantasize about- who may not even be aware of your existence on this planet! :P

Sometimes, when you have what you want, you fail to realize its importance and keep ignoring, till one fine day, you no longer have it with you and then discover that, that is what you valued the most.
So, don't forget to cherish each moment of your life, thank God for the things that you have, and love and care for the people who are already there in your life, rather than hoping and waiting for something or someone new to step into your life and being under the illusion that it will miraculously add more joy to your life.

Remember..