image: google
December 18, 2009
Grass Is Certainly Greener On The Other Side
And I am hopping on to the other side for sure, for a visit, eh! Blogging might be sporadic but will be straight from the greener pastures for next few weeks. Yipeeeeeeeee!
image: google
image: google
December 09, 2009
Wishlist
Jewelery, handbags or clothes?
For a girl in India, a wish list could look like this:
- Getting to see her side of the family when she wants. Asking for permission to see parents defies all logic.
- Getting to wear what she feels like.
- Not considered a possession, of her father, brothers and husband but a person.
- See her friends, or actually have some friends.
- Not be the last one to eat. Really, why females, in many so called educated and modern families, are expected to eat only after the male members of the family?
- Have equal say in financial decisions.Whether she earns or not, she is a contributor to the family.
- Doing what she wants for her parents.
- A home that is her own, not her mayka (mom's) or sasural (inlaws)
- People around her realize that she is an individual who has hopes, wishes, desires, interests, hobbies and cooking is not necessarily one of them.
- Future generation girls need not wish for any of these, hopefully they would simply have these.
image: google.
December 03, 2009
Ajab Scooter Ki Ghazab Kahani
Apologies to my readers who can not read Hindi. This post could not have met justice in a language other than my mother tongue. If you can talk in Hindi and fully understand it , then grab a friend who can read this to you. Please do not use the google translator , it will just kill the spirit!
घर के बहार खड़ा बेचारा ग्रे स्कूटर गर्मी की लू में
परेशान प्यास से तिलमिला रहा था लेकिन टंकी
भरने की उम्मीद भी अब तो मर ही गयी थी.
पेट्रोल कब नसीब होगा यह तो अब ऊपर वाला ही
जानता है. "मिस्टर तो चले गए हैं दक्षिण भारत
अपनी कोई ट्रेनिंग अटेंड करने और मिस्सेस के
चेहरे से तो जैसे मुस्कान ऐसे गायब हो गयी जैसे
की पंचर टायर में से हवा. अब क्या बताऊँ आपको
, बड़े ही प्यारे हैं हमारे मिस्टर और मिस्सेस. याद
आते हैं मुझे वो दिन जब मिस्टर मुझे बड़ी स्टाइल
से स्टार्ट करते थे और मिस्सेस शर्माते हुए पीछे की
सीट पैर बैठती और फिर मीठी सी मुस्कान देते
हुए अपना एक हाथ मिस्टर के कंधे पर रख देती,
मिस्टर की ख़ुशी का तो ठिकाना ही न रहता और
वो पूछते "चलूँ क्या" . और फिर मैं हिचकोले खाता
, हवा से बातें करता हुआ चलता जाता, क्या दिन
थे वो !! कसम से दो हफ्ते हो गए किसी ने धुल
तक साफ़ नहीं की मेरी ...हाय ! विरह की घड़ियाँ तो
मिस्सेस गिन रही हैं लेकिन धुप में खड़ा खड़ा जल
मैं रहा हूँ . वैसे तो जब मिस्टर अकेले ही मुझ पर
सवारी करते हैं तो मुझ गरीब पर कुछ ख़ास ध्यान
नहीं देते , वो तो बस जिस दिन मिस्सेस से मिलन
होने वाला हो , वो जिसे कहते हैं न डेट, जब डेट हो
तब उनकी किस्मत के साथ साथ मेरी भी चांदी हो
जाती थी . मुझे खूब चमकाते हैं , डिक्की की साफ़
सफाई भी हो जाती है लेकिन मिस्सेस से मिलने
की उत्सुकता में पेट्रोल भरवाना भूल जाते हैं , पर
मिस्सेस बहुत ही पर्टिकुलर हैं भाई , वो तो बैठने से
पहले ही पूछती हैं "पेट्रोल भरवाया" और फिर दोनों
अपना कोई भी काम करने से पहले मेरा पेट पूजन
करवा देते हैं. मिस्सेस तो मेरा बहुत ही ख्याल
रखती हैं , जब भी कहीं पार्किंग करनी हो तो उनके
कहे अनुसार मुझे हमेशा पेड़ की छाया में पार्क
कीया जाता है जिससे की मेरा रंग न हल्का पड़
जाये. कभी भी दावा दारू की ज़रुरत हो तो मिस्सेस
पहले मुझे मकैनिक के पास ले जाने को कहती हैं
और उसके बाद ही अपनी डेट की सोचती हैं .
लेकिन उनकी मुस्कान तो मिस्टर की मौजूदगी में
ही दिखाई देती है , इतना ख़याल जो रखते हैं
मिस्टर उनका . मैं तो बस येही सोच सोच तड़प रहा
हूँ की कब यह हसीन जोड़ा मुझ पर सवार हो,
हिचकोले खाता अपनी मुस्कुराहटों का लेन देन
करेगा और कब मेरी पेट्रोल को तरसती टंकी अपनी
प्यास बुझा पायेगी और मैं तेज़ रफ़्तार से दौड़ता
हुआ दोबारा इन सड़कों पर अपने पहिये चलाऊंगा .
यहाँ खड़ा खड़ा धुल मिटटी खा रहा हूँ अब तो
लगता है दमे का मरीज़ ही ना बन जाऊं . अच्छा
दोस्तों तुम तो निकलो अपने अपने सफ़र पर और
कोई दुःख सुख बाटने वाला ना मिले तो मैं तो यहीं
खड़ा हूँ ना जाने कब तक, आ जाना भैया .
अलविदा !"
घर के बहार खड़ा बेचारा ग्रे स्कूटर गर्मी की लू में
परेशान प्यास से तिलमिला रहा था लेकिन टंकी
भरने की उम्मीद भी अब तो मर ही गयी थी.
पेट्रोल कब नसीब होगा यह तो अब ऊपर वाला ही
जानता है. "मिस्टर तो चले गए हैं दक्षिण भारत
अपनी कोई ट्रेनिंग अटेंड करने और मिस्सेस के
चेहरे से तो जैसे मुस्कान ऐसे गायब हो गयी जैसे
की पंचर टायर में से हवा. अब क्या बताऊँ आपको
, बड़े ही प्यारे हैं हमारे मिस्टर और मिस्सेस. याद
आते हैं मुझे वो दिन जब मिस्टर मुझे बड़ी स्टाइल
से स्टार्ट करते थे और मिस्सेस शर्माते हुए पीछे की
सीट पैर बैठती और फिर मीठी सी मुस्कान देते
हुए अपना एक हाथ मिस्टर के कंधे पर रख देती,
मिस्टर की ख़ुशी का तो ठिकाना ही न रहता और
वो पूछते "चलूँ क्या" . और फिर मैं हिचकोले खाता
, हवा से बातें करता हुआ चलता जाता, क्या दिन
थे वो !! कसम से दो हफ्ते हो गए किसी ने धुल
तक साफ़ नहीं की मेरी ...हाय ! विरह की घड़ियाँ तो
मिस्सेस गिन रही हैं लेकिन धुप में खड़ा खड़ा जल
मैं रहा हूँ . वैसे तो जब मिस्टर अकेले ही मुझ पर
सवारी करते हैं तो मुझ गरीब पर कुछ ख़ास ध्यान
नहीं देते , वो तो बस जिस दिन मिस्सेस से मिलन
होने वाला हो , वो जिसे कहते हैं न डेट, जब डेट हो
तब उनकी किस्मत के साथ साथ मेरी भी चांदी हो
जाती थी . मुझे खूब चमकाते हैं , डिक्की की साफ़
सफाई भी हो जाती है लेकिन मिस्सेस से मिलने
की उत्सुकता में पेट्रोल भरवाना भूल जाते हैं , पर
मिस्सेस बहुत ही पर्टिकुलर हैं भाई , वो तो बैठने से
पहले ही पूछती हैं "पेट्रोल भरवाया" और फिर दोनों
अपना कोई भी काम करने से पहले मेरा पेट पूजन
करवा देते हैं. मिस्सेस तो मेरा बहुत ही ख्याल
रखती हैं , जब भी कहीं पार्किंग करनी हो तो उनके
कहे अनुसार मुझे हमेशा पेड़ की छाया में पार्क
कीया जाता है जिससे की मेरा रंग न हल्का पड़
जाये. कभी भी दावा दारू की ज़रुरत हो तो मिस्सेस
पहले मुझे मकैनिक के पास ले जाने को कहती हैं
और उसके बाद ही अपनी डेट की सोचती हैं .
लेकिन उनकी मुस्कान तो मिस्टर की मौजूदगी में
ही दिखाई देती है , इतना ख़याल जो रखते हैं
मिस्टर उनका . मैं तो बस येही सोच सोच तड़प रहा
हूँ की कब यह हसीन जोड़ा मुझ पर सवार हो,
हिचकोले खाता अपनी मुस्कुराहटों का लेन देन
करेगा और कब मेरी पेट्रोल को तरसती टंकी अपनी
प्यास बुझा पायेगी और मैं तेज़ रफ़्तार से दौड़ता
हुआ दोबारा इन सड़कों पर अपने पहिये चलाऊंगा .
यहाँ खड़ा खड़ा धुल मिटटी खा रहा हूँ अब तो
लगता है दमे का मरीज़ ही ना बन जाऊं . अच्छा
दोस्तों तुम तो निकलो अपने अपने सफ़र पर और
कोई दुःख सुख बाटने वाला ना मिले तो मैं तो यहीं
खड़ा हूँ ना जाने कब तक, आ जाना भैया .
अलविदा !"
December 01, 2009
My heart lies here
When I was a little girl I would play ghar- ghar (house) with my friends, pretending the whole park to be our house with imaginary lines dividing the living room( the drawing room as its called in India), the dining room and the bedrooms. Was it my dream home, No. Somehow in real life I never thought of the kind of house I would live in. There was simply no plan or an expectation. I guess there was this contentment in me which never made me wish for things.
Yesterday we celebrated our home's 4th anniversary. The day we moved in, it was cold and rainy and the moment I stepped in, as my socks were wet too, I slipped on the kitchen floor with Saumya in my arms. The house was already a stranger to me but now it became a hostile stranger. Husband went away for a business trip within four days of moving. I was alone with a baby, in a house which seemed like someone else's. Looking out the window, the bare street and lawns covered in snow, not knowing who lives next door, everything felt cold and I felt like an alien on earth. But with each passing day, reaching little milestones like Ssaumya's first birthday, her first words, her first step, first party, first movie night, our laughters, our tears and many more such things through which life happens, we made this house our own, our home.
They say home is where the heart is and my heart surely is with our home. A home whose walls might still be bare but they stand proud and strong. Rooms might lack appropriate furniture but we don't find the same comfort anywhere else. It may not be clean all the time but this is the place where we find our reality. Its a place we call our own, a place we fill with our love, laughter, cries, joys, hopes and aspirations. That little girl of yesteryear's is not playing house anymore as we have a home and its real.
image courtesy : google images.
Yesterday we celebrated our home's 4th anniversary. The day we moved in, it was cold and rainy and the moment I stepped in, as my socks were wet too, I slipped on the kitchen floor with Saumya in my arms. The house was already a stranger to me but now it became a hostile stranger. Husband went away for a business trip within four days of moving. I was alone with a baby, in a house which seemed like someone else's. Looking out the window, the bare street and lawns covered in snow, not knowing who lives next door, everything felt cold and I felt like an alien on earth. But with each passing day, reaching little milestones like Ssaumya's first birthday, her first words, her first step, first party, first movie night, our laughters, our tears and many more such things through which life happens, we made this house our own, our home.
They say home is where the heart is and my heart surely is with our home. A home whose walls might still be bare but they stand proud and strong. Rooms might lack appropriate furniture but we don't find the same comfort anywhere else. It may not be clean all the time but this is the place where we find our reality. Its a place we call our own, a place we fill with our love, laughter, cries, joys, hopes and aspirations. That little girl of yesteryear's is not playing house anymore as we have a home and its real.
image courtesy : google images.
November 24, 2009
Giving Thanks
Before I came to America, I did not know anything about Thanksgiving but now this is one festival which is growing its ranking in my list of things which I label with "I like it" This is a day when American families sit down together to share a meal, or two, to give thanks to people who came to this land to make new life and the native Indians shared their harvest with these new pilgrims. It is also called a Turkey Day as that is what is traditionally eaten on thanksgiving. If you are a Turkey, consider hibernating!!
I am starting to develop a fondness for this day because this festival is not associated with any religion, it does not celebrate any mythological superheroes. It honors actual real people who dared to think different and embarked on a long and difficult journey with hopes of fulfilling their dreams and they actually did! This day makes me stop, only if for a moment, to give a thought to all the things that are going right for me. The day does not ask me to follow any rituals that I do not understand, all I need to do is have a good meal, after which most of my clothes would not fit me, with my family and friends and be happy about the positives in life.
Though the focus of the day is on the bounty that you have, all the newspapers and television advts. about day after thanksgiving sales won't let you forget all that you do not have!! I can't say that I am not thankful for all those sales, in fact I am very thankful. Yea, I am gracious like that.
Splendid food, cheerful company of close friends and tireless shopping the next day that not only gets you those sexy boots that you were eyeing for a long time but also helps you burn those tonnes of calories that you consumed while being thankful, What's Not To Love? I say its brilliant! But if you are a Turkey, I am sure you have a different take on this whole thanksgiving business. I hear ya!
For all the non Turkeys "Happy Thanksgiving!"
I am starting to develop a fondness for this day because this festival is not associated with any religion, it does not celebrate any mythological superheroes. It honors actual real people who dared to think different and embarked on a long and difficult journey with hopes of fulfilling their dreams and they actually did! This day makes me stop, only if for a moment, to give a thought to all the things that are going right for me. The day does not ask me to follow any rituals that I do not understand, all I need to do is have a good meal, after which most of my clothes would not fit me, with my family and friends and be happy about the positives in life.
Though the focus of the day is on the bounty that you have, all the newspapers and television advts. about day after thanksgiving sales won't let you forget all that you do not have!! I can't say that I am not thankful for all those sales, in fact I am very thankful. Yea, I am gracious like that.
Splendid food, cheerful company of close friends and tireless shopping the next day that not only gets you those sexy boots that you were eyeing for a long time but also helps you burn those tonnes of calories that you consumed while being thankful, What's Not To Love? I say its brilliant! But if you are a Turkey, I am sure you have a different take on this whole thanksgiving business. I hear ya!
For all the non Turkeys "Happy Thanksgiving!"
Tangy Tuesday Turned Sweet
I am so very pleased to tell you that my post My Shishya : My Guru has been picked up by BlogAdda for their Tangy Tuesday Picks. I say that's pretty sweet way to start a day!
You can applaud now 'taking a bow' Thank you very much!!
You can see the entire list of wonderful posts (including mine, :-))
November 13, 2009
My Shishya : My Guru
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My Little girl, the soon to be five year old, is like spicy Indian street food whose spiciness brings tears to your eyes but you don't want to stop eating. Her conversations never end!! In her quest to read more and more, it seems she has forgotten to learn the importance of "period, the full stop". Talking too much has also made her very expressive, she can verbalize every little thought and experience. Running to me in the school foyer, tightly hugging, the little voice said "You are best mamma,everyone wants a mamma like you". Awwww that's so sweet. But what did I do to hear that? Exactly nothing! She was cheering her mamma up because she knows mamma is not in the best of her spirits these days. When do kids learn this? How do they know compliments would perk up everyone. So an otherwise tired and gloomy mother, got a cheer on her face and they both ran to the car, giggling like two mischievous friends who know all the secrets of the world. In past few days I have come to realize that she is not only my little daughter but my friend and my security blanket as well. Her presence keeps me going in good as well as bad times, she has made me realize that there is no "full stop" in life, there are only pauses, no matter how bad or good things are, life must go on.
November 05, 2009
How do you show respect?
When you are growing up whatever elders say is right. Right? No! But you are expected to follow what they say and take it in your stride. What if you don't? Are you just voicing your opinion or you are showing disrespect? Does respecting someone means being meek or being submissive to them?
Also, after getting married, girls are expected to touch feet of all of the in laws, whether you know that person or not, of your brother as well as sister in law, even if they are bride's age. Does it really initiate respect in her heart for them? She might still hate them or maybe more because of this. A man on the other hand isn't allowed by his parents to touch his in laws feet, no matter how old they are to him. What this tells about our society? If touching feet is a way of expressing respect, a girl's parents and siblings are not worthy of respect?
I loved being a new bride and enjoyed touching feet so much that many a times I over did it. But today I do not resonate with the custom, I can show respect in many other ways like by giving weight to your thoughts, by being nice to you, by letting you sit first, by being polite, by helping etc. Why is this public display of one person being submissive shows the glory of others?
What do you say?
Also, after getting married, girls are expected to touch feet of all of the in laws, whether you know that person or not, of your brother as well as sister in law, even if they are bride's age. Does it really initiate respect in her heart for them? She might still hate them or maybe more because of this. A man on the other hand isn't allowed by his parents to touch his in laws feet, no matter how old they are to him. What this tells about our society? If touching feet is a way of expressing respect, a girl's parents and siblings are not worthy of respect?
I loved being a new bride and enjoyed touching feet so much that many a times I over did it. But today I do not resonate with the custom, I can show respect in many other ways like by giving weight to your thoughts, by being nice to you, by letting you sit first, by being polite, by helping etc. Why is this public display of one person being submissive shows the glory of others?
What do you say?
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