Whether or not the weather is good

Every time heavy rainfall descends in Delhi, I have seen people in two different camps; one camp says ‘wow it’s raining’ and the other will say ‘oh shit traffic will go for a six.’ So is the good weather in Delhi welcomed with open arms or not? I have also heard people say ‘it’s too hot today’ when the heat is on and when it rains they still have complaints to cater to. Human beings I tell you.

Yes when it rains it’s a big relief for the people of the city. The rains bring in cool wind, cheerful faces, scenes of children playing with puddle, not worried about anything, holding their hands out of the window to feel the rain and so on. On the other hand the traffic comes to a stand still, roads are choc-o-block, people start honking incessantly, trying to reach home early. In all of these the general feeling is that they all welcome the rain but they don’t want the by-products that come with it. It’s like desiring for a vacation and not willing to take the pains of travelling. Hello people it’s ok if there is a jam, at least you don’t have to run the air conditioning in your car. It’s ok if you are stuck, you can listen to FM and enjoy the moment. Call your family and tell them that you are stuck in a jam, they will understand. After all how mant times such downpour happens anyway?

The rains cool the city and our minds. We are all smiles, in good mood, ready to take on anything. Rain is also considered blessing. Out of 365 days if we get rains for 20-25 days in total, we should embrace it with no complaints. Whether it rains or not we have to be prepared to smile. Who knows what’s in store tomorrow? So get set, get wet!

August August!

We had a fairly pleasant August this year in Delhi. People dread Delhi’s summers as the temperature soars upto 45° in may/june but August this year has been pleasant. We have had more rain and pleasant weather most of the days. 

Driving around Lutyen’s Delhi you can see large lush green parks, beautiful huge houses with massive lawns, open wide roads with trees standing like soldiers on duty. The rain washed pavements, fresh looking leaves, climbers hugging trees, flowers, cool gentle breeze; all these makes Delhi beautiful. It’s a treat to your senses. It’s not fair only to talk about humidity, pollution, bad traffic and inconsiderate people. Delhi is beautiful. It has history as well as modernity woven together. 

With a pleasant August Delhi actually has 8 pleasant months, from August to March. Hoping for an even more pleasant September 2017. 

Value your Freedom

People travel the world to find comfort, luxury and peace. Some do all sorts of things right or wrong for luxury, power, fame and wealth. The rapist godman got 20 years in prison now. His freedom is gone. 

Freedom is always more important than comfort and luxury. Freedom gives you peace of mind, friends, family, things you like to do, places you like to go. Without freedom life is meaningless. You may be living in a palace with all the comfort, security and luxury at your disposal but what if you cannot even call your friend when you want. The convicted godman will have a comfortable cell but won’t have his freedom and that’s killing. 

In the epic movie Titanic, Rose wanted freedom more than anything else. She was tired of putting up an act in front of others, trying to ‘maintain’ her royalty. Her actions were constantly monitored. On the other hand Jack was a free man. He could sit with the common people as well as with ‘royalty’ with equal ease. He didn’t have any hang-ups whatsoever. If he wanted to dance he could do so freely. He didn’t have the fear of losing his identity because he valued that all humans are equal.

When I see people on the street living lowly lives, I feel they are more free than most of us. They seem to have fun with each other. They don’t have position, designation or power or even if they have they don’t care. People in the upper strata of the society are quite stuck up. They don’t freely laugh, love or play. 

Freedom is the ultimate possession one should seek because therein lies the secret of good life – not in money, power or fame. Rose of Titanic knew it and all those who have lost freedom know it. 

Reason to Smile

Everyday we go through different kinds of pressure; at work, at home, on the road and so on. At times the people you work with give you tough time. All these take a toll on your health and happiness. There may be many reasons that make you forget to smile, but you must find reasons to smile every now and then. And you will find them if you look for them. 

Look at the children in playing in the park they are all running, smiling and are happy and healthy. In the same park you will see parents sitting on the bench looking serious, all due to stress and pressures of life. It is important to find reasons to smile as it relieves you from stress and anxiety, keeps you healthy, lowers blood pressure and relaxes your body. Just a smile works wonders.

Smile has so many benefits. Look at the sky at dusk. God still holds the whole world in His hands. Every sunset will make you smile. Find thousand reasons to smile if the world gives you hundreds of troubles everyday. Smile your way to good health and making friends. 

Mind your body!

​The right mindset sets you right in the path of well being and good life. The body is like a temple and it has to be well kept. If your mind is clogged with negative thoughts (remember 80-90% of our thoughts are negative according to study), your body will react. You have to mind your body.

Children today are mostly engaged in digital life. They eat junk food all the time. They have very little interest in sports or physical activity, except that they have PT period in school. They are up late in the night using gadgets and their body becomes restless. The result of all these is that the body gives up and falls sick. Adults wake up and start thinking negative (most of us). We do not exercise, go out or play. We are busy working for others, making ends meet. We forget that we have only one body and that needs attention. Thank God if you can sleep in the night coz some people can’t even do that. When we fall sick our body needs ample rest. It won’t ‘restart’ until it gets proper rest and rejuvenation. 

We have to start by thinking positive thoughts. It will not only keep you healthy but also helps you heal quickly. You will have improved mood, motivation, renewed energy and well being. You will work out, play, walk and keep yourself fit. If the body is fit you can do a lot of stuff you want to do. You can rewire the brain with good thoughts but not your body.  If the body succumbs to ill health life comes to a standstill. It’s better to mind our body and live a better life.

Just a point, and you feel like a winner

The Bible says a happy heart is good medicine and a joyful mind causes healing. Winning makes you happy even if it’s winning a point in badminton. I was watching people play badminton and each time a person won a point he smiled with joy. He was winning. 

The key to happiness is winning. Winning doesn’t have to be big. If you play a sport there is always an opportunity to win, winning a point. If a simple thing like that can give you happiness, it’s worth pursuing. People get into depression when they fail in life. The best way to counter that is to get into playing a sport. You will immediately change your situation. A) physical exertion will make you fit and keep the heart active and healthy. B) you will win points and that will make you smile. These little things will keep you happy. Happy heart is a medicine that will keep you from falling sick. 

Make that little change in life to stay on the course of happiness. If you’re happy you can make others happy too. It’s infectious. Win hearts, win friends, win a goodwill, win an argument, win a point. 

The Gift of Pain

I had read a book by Paul Brand where he talks about how pain ‘warns’ us of bigger danger or disaster. Paul Brand worked with the leprosy patients in south India and he is the pioneer in saving lepers’ toes and fingers by inventing a special shoe for them.

I have had my own experience of the gift of pain. Recently my doctor diagnosed me of having piles. I started taking homeopathy medicine. Initially I had the pain continuously and never forgot to take my medicine on time. But as the healing began I started forgetting to have my medicine on time. The pain was the reminder for me to take care of myself. The lepers lost their fingers and toes because of lack of pain as they didn’t have any sensation. They can put their hand in the fire and not feel the pain but would burn it.  

All the pain and difficulty we have in life is the signs that we are growing and alive. And also to keep us from bigger disaster as we attend to it immediately. Only dead people don’t feel the pain. We feel the pain because our sense organs are active and working, and that’s a healthy sign. 

The Master and his muse(ic)

I have worked on music albums and concerts with Anmol. Together we have composed and played, participated in music competions as participants and as judges. He’s one of the finest musicians I know. Having him in the team is like having Tendulkar on your side.

Recently I was given the task of putting together a team for a musical function. The first name that came to my mind was Anmol. I completely rely on him when it comes to creating something in music. We got together, after a very long time, to produce something musical. We quickly selected three songs and decided to include few others in the team. Although meeting few times before the program was not possible I had the belief that we would still come up with something magical. I knew we wouldn’t look bad on stage. I knew there was ‘Tendulkar’ in our team. The old plain and simple song came out so beautiful, that everyone appreciated. In fact few people have invited us for concerts.

Anmol does everything with so much ease and in a fun manner. If any quick improvisation is needed he does it with poise. It’s like pulling notes from the inexhaustible bank of music that he has. He also takes suggestions graciously and blends them brilliantly. He never acts like an expert but works like one. He works like a master craftsman and what comes out is a masterpiece every time. Anmol what are we doing next?

Don’be a Scarecrow, be a leader!

As we begin our career we get to be in different roles. Many become leaders, managers, VPs, GMs, CEOs and so on. But as you take these roles in your career, never become a scarecrow. 

You can be approachable by all even if you are a CEO. I have come across few people as scarecrows in the workplace. They just want to scare people for no good reason. People run away when they see the scarecrow coming. They are usually abusing their power and not using it. As human beings we should value each worker as a human being first and then identify him/her with roles. Treating all men equal is what we promote in the world when a case of racism comes, but these scarecrows don’t practice it.

Managers are leaders. They are supposed to lead the team and individuals to a better ‘place.’  He has the bigger responsibility to help people grow and not just make them work. He can nurture great work culture where people can work beyond call of duty. B schools should teach leadership to MBAs and not just managerial skills. Humble leaders are always approachable. Scarecrows are totally unapproachable, self-glorifying, opinionated, biased and therefore, unhappy. Don’t be a scarecrow if you want to be happy. 

Life: It happens

The John Lennon song ‘beautiful boy’ has a line that says “life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.” We can all identify with this as many a time this is what happens with us. 

I think life just happens. Today I complete exactly three years teaching music in a formal academic school. Never in my life I thought I would work in a school, let alone teaching. But I am here doing what I never planned. I had “other plans” but something else was there for me. The best way to cope with life is to take the next turn when it comes. Life is not easy, forget about it being fair but life is to be celebrated nevertheless. That’s the key. 

Our plans don’t work all the time but we still need to realign ourselves to the unexpected things that happens to us. Whatever happens we still have to get up, dress up and show up.