Actually I bought this because...

Why are we so apologetic about being able to afford things? Here in Bangalore I suddenly notice that we are uncomfortable with our affordability!

• yenu andrey... my old car was giving me too much problem. So I bought a new one. I did not want to change the old car. But what to do...
• That cell phone was good only. My husband got me this one as a surprise gift. I told him why???
• We always go by train. This time we decided it is OK, we will go by flight. Also time saving you know...

Cut to most parts of Delhi Punjab and etc. The conversation changes rapidly

• What did you buy for Diwali? Guess what! I got my first beamer. They didn't even consult me for the colour yar. (sshh that's because it's used-car)
• I have iphone . How do you manage with this? (she has only borrowed it for the party)
• I wonder how people go by train. It's so dirty!!! (after their first flight)

Perhaps it has a lot to do with how we want others to perceive us? We take to our mantras like we take to air.
Be it
Simple Living High Thinking.
or
Live it up. Make it Large.

We can't do without it!
it's us!
---------------
Enjoy a fabulous Deepavali. Lots of light or lots of boom?

Danielle Steel - Thank you

And suddenly he was gone.
The fact is not reversible.
The truth only hits gradually.
At first I thought I would have a heart attack too. The pain was so intense.
And then I thought I was only shell, the best part of me is missing.
Then I thought I have work to be done, Some god's will yet to be fulfilled.
Then I spent a lot of time hunting for myself, for I have God's will to fulfill.
From an emotionless zombie, I am moving towards emotion again.

Friends, family, my children hold my hand and urge me forward. With a push, a joke, a sermon, and a task. They bring me back to earth.

Yet the one person who has held my hand, with no clue that I am even alive, is Danielle Steel. Her characters resonate with grit and feeling. They are real people with real problems. They are not perfect. They are not mushy and soft. They are not so strong that one is left gaping.
When the head is too muddled to absorb complicated intrigue, caustic bitterness or diabolic scheming
Just try Danielle Steel
She is a balm on a wounded soul.

Danielle Steel - Thank you

You help me deal with my husband's passing.

Making it Big

A teacher, a banker, a psychiatrist and a mom get talking... We slurp up alugedde neeruli huli mixed with rice, crunch into sabudana appalams and lick a pointing finger of lemon pickle. We talk about retirement, about second beginnings and about our children. Like and Spike stories. and Inevitable...
A flash back into my staff room chatter and cell phone conversations ensues. Let me give you a peek into...

At first we thought it was marks. We applauded those in the exalted 90s and agonized over students who got less than 80. 85, 90 percent. What will become of you??? we wailed.
But they proved us wrong. Kids who did well for themselves were not necessarily in the exalted 90s, they had often been in the simmering 70s or the almost 60s.

And then we thought oh, maybe its not only marks after all.  So we though it is perhaps English. They were good at English you know.
But they proved us wrong. Kids who thought oversight was the past tense of oversee, kids whose eyes glazed after the first two lines of a word problem in maths, kids who had crisp textbooks and overused guidebooks, posted their amazing strides into the world of business. And offered JOBs to class toppers...

And then we thought oh its family backing. Papa has a nice business and kiddo takes it forward. Or maybe Papa finances a venture.
But they proved us wrong. Facebook updates show daring entrepreneurs, stomping boldly into fields untried by family, sometimes by anyone, and making great name for themselves.

And then we said Luck, we paused, and shook our heads and said, yes OK, Luck counts, but as they say... Fortune favours the brave. So is the last word then... Being Brave?
Being brave enough to dream
Being brave enough to acknowledge the dream.
Being brave enough to step out of line and follow the dream.
Being brave enough to stop and learn the skills required to move on.
Being brave enough to ask for help.
Being brave enough to express gratitude.
Being brave enough to shine when success is in hand.

Thank you Kids. For Being brave. For proving us wrong.
Psst. A feather in your cap, is always a feather in ours (teachers, moms, counselors,)
Here's to facebook
and to the updates.