Life Inspires

I have spent my entire life waiting for that one moment of inspiration when words would burst out, unbridled. I thought that it would happen in moments of intense pain, or may be when I feel a deep, passionate love for somebody. I waited for it to happen at times like these when someone’s advice refused to let me sleep. “Maybe it is not always advisable to say it out,” said a very dear friend, someone who has my best interests in mind, someone who I can trust with my eyes closed. This was a surprising piece of advice, simply because I never realized how and when I transformed from someone who needs to speak out, to someone who needs to be more restrained. If I need to choose one word people have used about me in the past, I would pick “nice”. People liked me for this one trait. My presence didn’t make anyone uncomfortable, people “didn’t mind” having me around. I was the dhania powder in curry, the sada-bahar in the garden. But there is a price one needs to pay for being dhania...

Put down that magnifying glass because it will reveal a lot of flaws in her. That one white hair, the scars on her body, the limp in her walk, the stutter when she talks, the smudged make-up, the crow's feet around her eyes, the laugh lines around her mouth,  and the patch on her dress.   But if you look at her without the magnifying glass, you will see that she may not be perfect but is no worse than everyone else around you. You may notice that her eye light up when she sees you and you may find out how proud she is of you. You will understand why she is the way she is. And once you have done that then you may realize how much she loves you and how much joy she brings to your life. So put down your magnifying glass and look at her without it. Because she kept her magnifying glass down a long time back...

I laugh I cry I accept I lie I am a funny heart That suffers wrongs That keeps peace That breaks into songs I love I hate I envy I care But deep within Where solitude stays I feel no fear I weep for days... Beyond , a photo by Vibha Malhotra on Flickr.

(Photo clicked by my friend, Sachin Jain) I am not afraid of Tigers and Lions. I love watching them hunt on National Geographic or Discovery and am not repulsed by the way they devour their hapless victims. I do not jump out of my skin when I see their pictures. They are the animals that I find most interesting when I visit the zoo. And while on a Safari, I keep my fingers crossed for a sighting. I am not intimidated by them provided they maintain their distance.  People claim to have recurring dreams or nightmares. I do too. I dream a lot about Lions and Tigers. They do not attack. That could be quick and clean. Instead they stalk. The general pattern of these dreams is that there is a village or a town where these tigers or lions or sometimes both, are roaming around. I am trying to get somewhere while avoiding these predators who, by the way, seem to sense that I am trying to do just that. On my way, I take shelter in various houses and many times narrowly escape being spotted...

"I have done so much for her and see what I get in return." Sometime or the other, all of us are prone to feeling this way. It becomes worse when this feeling creeps in between two people everytime they have the slightest of the arguments. The next stage is more often than not 'regret'. Feeling cheated in this way does not make you a bad person. It only makes you human. But if you hold these thoughts somewhere within you, they are sure to surface some time in form of words or actions. And this can deeply hurt your friend/spouse/parents/children/siblings... I started thinking about this when someone told me that it is difficult to avoid this frame of mind. I agree to a certain extent. In extreme cases, it is often important for you to know for yourself that you have done the best for something. For example, in case of a cheating spouse, if you know that you haven't left any stones unturned to make the marriage work, you are more confident of your choices and...