The Wedlock

God alone knows how long it has been since I have posted something in this blog. Lots of things happened. 2010 was full of hullabaloo as we were to tie the nuptial knot in early 2011. Shopping never sounded nightmarish to me till the time the wedding bells were heard. From a simple sandalwood powder to 6 yards of wedding apparel , from a tissue to the groom’s tuxedo – it was a frightening yet fascinating ride.

To keep your cool and smile while your rear is on fire is something we learnt during this phase. From booking of the marriage banquet to the dinner menu to the guest list to the train, bus and finally honeymoon reservations, we arranged all with supervision and wisdom passed down by our families of course .. doesn’t that sound crazy? Well  essentially it was crazier than it sounds.  Living nearly 1300 miles away from home, it is practically impossible to get things organized as per your wish with everyone’s approval.  The thought of the D-day keeps haunting you till it is all over.

Before long we were already celebrating New Year and there the day was, less than a month away smiling and waving at us, we could see it in a brief distance though still could not believe it. With all the racket at our feet, leave approvals and denials at work, packing and re packing and last minute changes and adjustments (not to forget the confirmation & vouchers of our week long gateway & money conversion as we were to head for our honeymoon right after the rituals got over ) we were on the train for home, to get married !!

Once we reached our respective homes, things were out of bounds, out of control. We had left it to God at the end because of one chaotic situation leading to another.  I still remember the brief chats we had during those days, all we both wanted was everything to get over easily so that we could slip into our honeymoon slippers and spend a relaxed week at one of the secluded Mauritian beaches! It looked distant then but as time loves to, it moved on at its own pace.

Suddenly there we were, eating our last bachelor meals, our families inviting river Ganges to bless our auspicious ceremony, making offerings to our  forefathers, getting drenched in turmeric, breaking our respective bachelorhood and declaring the same aloud to all present,  fasting, getting all decked up,  chanting hymns and finally on the 26^th day of January 2011 at 11:50 pm, we signed the legal doom.

Today after all these months when I look back, it gives me immense joy and pride as I understand that all the chaos lead to a successful ceremony, all the confusion on the destination lead to a magnificent honeymoon and every bit of panic, fury, sweat, the fits of laughter, the aching tears over so many years lead to us being together, always, till death do us apart.

A feeling of emptiness also surrounds my spirit when I look back at the past year, somehow today I feel, it got over too soon. Today I wish, if we could have got some more time to do our last minute arrangements, some more time to make it more faultless, some more time to make it the best, perfect perhaps. It hurts to appreciate the biggest occasion of our lives just got over, with the wink of an eye.

A SMILE can bring you near to me ..

“Smile is a curve that sets everything straight”, “Smile is the best thing you can do with your lips”, “Keep Smiling always”, “Smile is the 'Art of Happiness'” and so on.. are we not hearing these quotes since our closest friends were our beloved slam books!! Without a doubt a smile can make miracles come about, smile at a colleague you had a disagreement with and watch her expression, first she will wear a puzzled look for a few seconds and then as she realizes that you are watching, it will transform into a pleasant warm grin, isn’t that wonderful? Of course it is. Even better, try smiling at someone you see at work every day but never say a ‘hi’ to, that person will instantaneously smile back or may even say a nice “good morning”!! Isn’t that amazing?

A smile lights up your face and they are contagious too!!

There is a very easy set of rules which leads to a smile in fact;

• Keep your teeth clean so practice good hygiene. ;) lolz!
• Think happy thoughts.

• Get comfortable with smiling - this one is for those who get nervous while smiling..

• Smile with your eyes-to a warm and genuine smile, eyes are more essential than mouth ;-)

• And always remember, You don't need perfect teeth to have a perfect smile..so be confident!! ;-)

Smile is indeed the path to happiness and “Happiness” is a term which is very difficult to delineate and put into a few words, but it is in essence that state of mind where we are at peace with ourselves.

I know you might say this article came to an abrupt end! But it is Saturday night and I am too sleepy..

So I call it a night here friends!! ..

Call it grin, call it smirk, call it beam or call it smile .. JUST DO IT!

So keep smiling everyone and be happy always ;-)

Life begets a new life…

It’s been a truly memorable date. Welcome aboard the fresh new life out of the warmth and tenderness of his Mother’s womb. Today, 26^th February 2010, at 15:54:55 hours at the City of Joy, a tiny soul was born, soft as the petals of a blossom, fresh as the morning dew, it has maw like that of a pink rhododendron, it has gaze like that of an angel, innocent and humble, his twisted hair reminds his Granny of his Father’s babyhood, his skin is mostly creamy with a tinge of red still coated with its 9 month hideout’s affection. He is wrapped in a towel, his twinkling eyes mostly shut due to a long practice and the stinging brightness of the outer planet. He is lying there in a baby cot bounded by other angels of his size, being taken care of all the time, getting all doctors and nurses on their toes 24 hours, assembling everyone’s blessings for lifetime. He weighs 2 kg’s and 650 grams and is the apple of everyone’s eye. The moment you see him, you forget the whole world around you and get mislaid in his faultless appearance, he says in his mind, “Don’t worry dear, I will grow up to be a superior prankster than you”!

Today, for all, he is the focal point of debate, his eyes, his hair, his skin, his weight, his lips, his fingers, his toes and what not. One of his paternal Grannies played the conch shell today following the news of his arrival; after all he is the forerunner of the ancestry.

Let’s welcome him and give him all the love for the beginning and wish him a truly happy journey in the alleyway of life. Welcome aboard ISHAN..

Love,

PIPI & PIPAI.

Dated: The day you were born. 26.02.2010. 21:15:22 hours.

It’s all in our hands !!

The power to forgive is the most prevalent power one can ever posses. If we can do without recalling all that did not go right in our lives and let off all who did wrongs to us, life will be a lot more composed. But, Alas! Who understands that! We continue to hate, detest and dislike things, situations, conversations, jobs and yes “people”. Only if we would have realized that if we learn to smile and talk to the person whom we hate, we will be the ones who will feel proud of ourselves, we will end up liking ourselves even more and respect as well. We know someone is a fool, we don’t have to go and tell them on their face, “Damn, you are such a fool”, rather if the situation is that irksome that you cannot handle it, completely ignore, better still, talk and then think, rethink and laugh in your heart..”What a fool”..Trust me it will be an experience of a lifetime!!

Why spend the most valuable years of our lives in hating someone, when we can put the same amount of endeavor in loving someone else and be delighted with life. Yeah, sometimes something’s in life go so wrong, no matter what you do, you cannot mend it..I will advise, let time pass, things will mend themselves. You should always give one last chance to the most miraculous feeling in this world called “love”, be it love between couples, between parents and children, between siblings, between friends and a lot of other relations or numerous other unidentified relationships. If we give love a chance we might find out, our views, our ideologies, our opinion etc might have been so very wrong about the concerned individual or a thing or a situation.

Life gives us sugary surprises and everlasting delight at times of great despair making us believe that it’s not just about the prickles but about the roses too.

Let’s not let time fritter away and fade into an era of memoirs complete with abhorrence, loathing, and hatred. Rather let’s give it one big cuddle and get pleasure from every ephemeral moment so that we can rejoice these reminiscences in our old days, so that our souls can pass away in harmony and does not have to be reborn just to satiate its unfulfilled desires.