Pinch of Salt

Our cook, by now had made a record of blunders. Everyday a new one! Coming late, half cooked meals, not cooking dal or sabji, uninformed leaves, disaster combination of mixed veggies (She once cooked a preparation of spring onion, zucchini and gherkins. God! It was so hard to gulp it down, just by the look of it. ), etc.

And when questioned, she had a handsome excuse every time. I often told her, “Why don’t you utilize this creative brains of yours in cooking meals rather than creating excuses for not cooking one !”.

This had become a daily routine now. But still, I was very upset with her the other day. She had tested my patience. After an invariably long day at office, I reached home late. All tired, exhausted and very hungry.Good food at dinner table can really smooth out a rough day and that’s exactly what I was really looking forward to. After an early morning start from Mumbai and a long day at office I felt so hungry that I thought I could even gulp an elephant for dinner. The first thing I did after reaching home, even before changing, was I rushed to the kitchen to check what was made for dinner.

Mmmmm ! Yummy !!! It was paneer burjee and dal !! I immediately had wash, said my prayers and set for dinner. But to my disappointment, there was no salt in burjee . I tasted the dal. It had double salt. Gosh!!!! Yet another time, our cook had messed up. I was fuming !! Is this what I get to eat after a hard day’s work and after paying a fat price? This is it !!! Tomorrow’s going to be her last day .

I somehow managed my dinner. It was edible since the combination didn’t taste salty. I was though, very determined to talk to her the next morning and tell her sternly that, she should start taking her job seriously and if things continued this way, i will have to look for better options.

But this time, after saying sorry for a couple times, she said something which made me forget the issue at hand and rather think.

"Madam , Ayusha hi asach asta ki ho! ".(Madam! Isn't life also the same? ).

Yes indeed ! She was right ! It had deep meaning ! Life is also full of moments some salty and some blanch ! But when we look back, it all seems like a one big feast. Whether or not life will even out on ‘D’ day (read Death Day ), time will only tell. But I am hopeful it will ! :)

My friends, keep a watch on your words,

For words are amazing things;

They are sweet like the bees' fresh nectar,

But like the bees they have terrible stings;

They can bless like the warm, glad sunshine,

And brighten a lonely life;

They can wound, in the strife of anger,

Like an open, double-edged sword.

Dark Clouds have silver lining !

God has not promised skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;

God has not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

But God has promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labor, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing sympathy and undying love.

Dear Sis

I first saw you, in the hospital cradle, all tied into a silk cocoon, fair as a fairy, soft as a wool, curly hair, dark eyes. WOW! My real Barbie to play with! You were too irresistible, for a 5 year old me. But even after multiple requests, Mom would not allow me to have you in my laps. So, when no one was around, I quietly took you out of the cradle in my arms. That was the first time I got scolded coz of you and the trend continues to this date!
You were always the little one and me the grownup. Ahhh!! But, not any longer. Now it’s my turn to be the kiddo of the family and I am making the most of it.
Now that you are away,
Mom's all kisses are for me,
Dads all hugs are for me,
I don’t have to eat your favourite veggies any more,
And there is no one to shoo out of the room, when I have to change. Ha ha ha!
And my slumber is not disturbed when mom wakes u up.
No one to mess my bed,
And you really won’t know when I leave my lappy on your’s :P
WOW! Finally the whole wardrobe is mine. Ah! Forget the wardrobe...the whole room is mine :)
No more fights, simple peaceful life :)
No one to spy, when I complain to mom, about you.
Finally! Finally! It’s all the way, I have always wanted it to be.

But, you know what? Reality seems to have dawned to me a little too early. Like every other Thursday, I had weekly off. And gosh! It got real boring! I had no company to watch movie! Not that I can’t watch movies all alone, but am so used to sharing my space with you, that now there seems to be a void. You won’t believe, I haven’t watched a single sitcom after you have left! Forget that, not even switched on the desktop.
Damn U! There is no one to fight with, in the evenings. I miss that sadist pleasure in irritating you to the hilt and the high I got, when you banged the door and locked yourself in the room. The room really looks sad without you. I miss those pillow fights and deliberately kicking u in the sleep.
Poor me! I have to take all of the Mom’s scolding, all alone.
I remember how u covered up, when I got late from a Saturday night party and how u packed lunch for me, when I got late for college.
What the heck! I hate to say this but, finally I admit, I miss u sweetheart! ( Enough! Don’t be too happy about it :P ).
So this one’s for you,
I served the cake, you poured the tea, we built a house under the tree.
In grown up clothes we played all parts, secrets told, we crossed our hearts.
Through all the years, the smiles and tears, first true loves and cricket cheers.
I've never found a friend so true, I'll love you Sis my whole life through.
Miss me, Take care and keep rocking! Muahhhh!

Life has come a Full Circle

As a part of class activity, one day, we were asked to close our eyes and think of one thing that we would think of, if those were the last 5 minutes of our life. Some thought of their families, some thought of their mothers, Vedu remembered his GF (not to be named) , Sandy saw himself getting married, Kittu managed a 5 minutes nap, while Madia woke up from his slumber. :D ( vedu, sandy, kittu, hardik are my WESchool buddies).
Me? Well !!!
When I closed my eyes I saw the magnificent dome in Hyderabad DC.
Voila !!!!!!!!! Am I in love with it ?
Mmm.... well ....amm
And then I remembered this mail, quoting NRN saying “Love Your Job But Never Fall In Love With Your Company, Because You Never Know When It Stops Loving You.” I am not sure of the context of this statement and neither its authenticity. But then Sir, why did u make such architectural masterpieces, in first place, which made lovelorn like me fall in love with it?
Infy was certainly not my dream company, neither did I intended to join it, but then I miss being part of it, even more, after I quit on 3rd July 09. Distance makes hearts grow fonder. May be!
Standing right at the centre of the hyd DC , camouflaged by lush green ! To me, the dome epitomises, the first time I ever saw Infy, my first day @ job, my first time away-from-home life. We were so naive then, so much more accepting and easily willing to let each other in our lives. Remember how we hugged each other, when we got homesick. The dome to me reminds me of my struggle to establish myself. At the same time, it also reminds me of the leisure to sit in the cricket ground and stare at the skies; spot a bright star in dark skies and feel like one. On top of the world!!! World seemed like a white canvas, all for me to paint! Infy to me meant freedom to take my own decisions and stand by them. (And yet be responsible to care for others). Freedom to be me. To live life on my own terms.
Last year at this point of time, there was so much that, I had put at stake. Even as you wonderful friends congratulated me, I remained half convinced, half confused about my MBA. All I knew was I had to move from there. Which way? I was still unsure. I knew that it was my last chance to pursue higher education and yet I didn’t know if that was the best option I had. Sometimes you just have to take decisions and stand by them and work towards making them right. I did the same. Recently i have heard a lot of my friends complain about their last days @ Infy. Good / bad, sweet / bitter, whichever way u tag life @ infy , I prefer to call it best and leave the rest.
Now as I look back I feel more confident. Life has come full circle. Saying good bye was never a comfortable thing and that’s why may be I have never been able to. Now, as we all tread different paths, I know at some crossroads we will all come Roobaroo (may be with a different song in our hearts).

PS: Infy pays me for this PR that I do. ;)

The Hand That Rocks The Cradle

This weekend as I was strolling through the malls, fancy decorations caught my eye. I observed cute snaps of moms and babies all over. Oh, so cute!!! I thought. Immediately it reminded me of George Cooper's poem I had learnt in standard II,

Hundreds of stars in the pretty sky,
Hundreds of shells on the shore together,
Hundreds of birds that go singing by,
Hundreds of lambs in the sunny weather.

Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn,
Hundreds of bees in the purple clover,
Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn,
But only one mother the wide world over.

Only one mother who nurtured you in her womb, who fed from her gentle breast, who hushed you in her arms to rest, who ran to help when you fell down and who would tell pretty stories before kissing your crown. A mother is a person who gives up her piece of your favourite pie, promptly announcing she never did care for it. I would go on and on, but words have become cliché now. I know, enough has been written and told on mothers and motherhood and yet it is all too small. I wonder at times, what prompts mothers of such selfless, love. Is it the fact that you are a part of her flesh and blood? Why do they say, motherhood completes womanhood? What makes reproduction so irresistible in spite of the fact that it ends with labour pains? What makes her loose her own identity and feel proud of being your mom? All these feelings are so beyond my comprehension! I guess only a mother can know these answers. With the cutting of the umbilical cord at birth, the physical attachment to our mothers ceases but even then psychological and emotional attachments stays. Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother, says Oprah Winfrey.
Mom, you taught me to soar for the skies, you sowed dreams in my eyes, gave strength in my wings to fly, you taught me to stand up and face the world while you stood firmly behind me. I see you in me. And it confirms the Right Thing in things I do. And yet it confuses me, coz I don’t want to be like you. I want to be me. It is you who has given me this identity.
Luv u mom, the most, muahhhhhh!

A Humble Experience

This is a old one, I had written for PE website in Pune. Just thought of sharing it here.

Event Name: Infosys EnR – Rural Reach Program
Event Date : Thursday 29th December 04-12-2007
Location : Paragaon Khandala, Satara District.
Description : “The program was to cover 3 centers comprising of around 3000 students.Tree Plantation: 120 saplings were planted\donated. Distribution of books and food to school children”

How did it all happen?
We all reported at ENR (Education & Research) desk at 8:45 in the morning. Task given to us seemed pretty simple: to impart basic computer knowledge to school children from class 4th to 10th. Despite this and grooming from EnR, first timers like me, Vineet, Paras and Smitha were point blank, jittery but also excited at same time. Believe me!!! you need to prepare more to teach, than to give exams yourself.

On the way to destination:
All dressed alike, with our food boxes in hands (packed by ENR for us), we all set to take our places in buses. Just like school kids. The two hour long journey was fun filled, with loads of songs, games and scenic beauty around. As we all started nearing the village, the anxiety increased, now I could hear murmurs from everyone around, people discussing various points, illustrating on certain topics. Some body was worried of handling a class of 50 students, others of speaking Marathi. Vineet, my PA, being experienced in handling a team of us pranksters, let out a few tips on controlling the class. As we passed the fields (no they weren’t lush green, mostly dry and barren), we could see kids walking towards our centers. They would wave at us, as our bus passed by. We would also return with same gesture. It was like breaking free from the corporate and getting back to school days.
When we landed there:
On reaching the center we immediately got dispersed into various classrooms that were allotted to us. The very little that I had prepared in the bus, was taking into consideration that I would be handling 10 year olds and here I was facing std 10 classroom. To my good luck Smitha and I were in same class. We started with basics, like what is computer, different parts, its uses. Initially the class was shy, but slowly both of us started getting comfortable with each other. It was not just them who had eased out with their new teacher. Slowly even I was gaining confidence in my new Avtar. Smitha, always came up with very innovative ideas and examples, whenever I ran out my wits. Truly, without her the task would have been very difficult for me alone. And guys, I think we did a great job, since the classroom was getting more and more interactive.
As my fears started settling down, I started taking notice of my environs. The school old with roof tops and red brick walls but well built, with bright and airy classrooms, but there was no electricity. There were no decorative charts and craft items. But it had all the basic amenities required in a school: blackboard, a small shelf, chalk box, desks and benches, table and chair for teacher. There was a decent garden opposite classrooms. The class entrance was decorated with colorful rangolis.
I started interacting with students. I learned that most of them had to walk a kilometer from their homes to reach schools. They were learning computers for two years but not all of them had used them. And Laptops!!!!!!! It was like world’s eighth wonder.
In spite of very little or no exposure that they had got their answers were accurate. They all had high ambitions. A girl told me she wanted to be an IT engineer like me and Smitha, we felt all the more burdened realizing that someone as looking up to us. There was curiosity in their minds. We showed them educational movies played games, explored MS office. Time lapsed by. It was time for us to leave.
Felicitation & Humbling Experience:
The day was not yet over. We had tree plantation in store. I also tried my hand with it. We were totally surprised that the school had arranged a felicitation program for us. All of us were felicitated with coconut and rose. (to those who don’t know, giving coconut, is sign of respect in Hindu traditions). It was followed by speeches from village Sarpanch, school Principal, Headmaster, and other teachers. A few students voluntarily walked up on the stage and gave a vote of thanks. (Gosh!!! We always needed pestering to do this all our lives). I realized that they were bold enough to express their views in front of 300 odd people. We were overwhelmed by the gratitude in their speeches.
On our way back:
As the sun set on the horizon we started our journey back with our hearts full satisfaction and minds full of thoughts. In this electronic era, where 2 year olds play video games and school children carry mobile phones, these kids craved for basic computer knowledge. We buy books and never bother to read them and these kids were soaring to get hold of every piece of information they could earn. I will never forget the joy on their faces when we distributed ‘PARLE-G’ packets and bananas to them, the way they enthusiastically answered to earn a prize of two coffee bite chocolates. I will never forget the dreams in their eyes and gratitude on their faces…
It was a humbling experience…