United India against Corruption- To see the change, be the change.

India is a developing country. This is what I am hearing since a long time. And I am patiently waiting when the time will come when India will be called a developed country. I am proud to be an Indian but what I am doing for my country for it to prosper in what every Indian thinks and is what I think too. But is this the reality.

I am just a simple citizen of India and not a VIP yet. The question that arises to my mind is who is a VIP of India? A VIP (Very Important Person) of a country is he whose decisions benefit and matter for the development and the welfare of the country if I am not wrong. But do all the VIP’s in India deserve to be called VIP’s? Or are they just power savvy? Or do they want to come in power just to fulfil their own material desires? I know there are always exceptions. There are some great people like Dr. Abdul Kalam, Dr. Manmohan Singh in today’s India who truly care for India and have done some great deeds in the past. But even they have to bow down to the majority who may not be as patriotic as them.

So what is the reason why India is not a developed country yet? People are absolutely correct when they say that poverty, illiteracy and unemployment are the reasons why India is not prospering. I too believe that these are few of the reasons why India is not where it should be. But don’t we see that the Indian Government has come up with so many initiatives and different Yojana’s in the past and today? So much of our tax money goes towards these Yojana’s. But is all the money used for the very purpose is the question? So if India is still not prospering then the only reason that comes to my mind after seeing the various scams of today involving VIP’s of India is ‘Corruption’. All those who have spoken or have acted against corruption have been either ignored or have been troubled by the Government. But I believe that not to give up is the key. We all can be the change and play an important part in ‘India against corruption’ movement in some small ways. The time has come when each one of us must join hands and become united citizens of India and refuse to entertain the corrupt officers who take bribes to get our work done. I believe that to see the change you have to be the change.

Jai Hind!!!

What we learn from life is most important.

I would like to share an incident that happened to me which has taught me something that has helped me grow as a human being. I would like to share one incident that happened to me not only has made me a better person but has taught me a very important lesson to keep in mind during this wonderful journey of life.

I travel in all modes of public transport. I travel by BEST bus, ST bus, train and rickshaw on my way to office everyday and I enjoy every bit of it. It makes my life more exciting. Once our ST bus caught and fire in the jungle part of Thane. Everyone in the bus started to panic including the conductor. I was not sitting on the window seat. But when I looked at my partner at the window seat he was nowhere to be seen. He had jumped out of the window fearing for his life. But he had panicked and jumped out of the window without thinking and hurt himself as he just plunged out of the window. I actually laughed later as to how a man who was so huge, jump out of such a small window. I saw the conductors face and realized that something is wrong. I too moved to the window to jump out of the bus. I put my legs out of the window and was about to jump when another man who came from nowhere put his hand over my chest and just would not allow me to jump. Maybe he wanted to go first.

I am glad that I did not panic. I told him that “Only if I get out you will be able to get out right as you can see my half body is already out?” And smiled. He removed his hand and let me jump and then followed me. I am glad that my smile did not make him pull me back in the bus. Something made me wait outside the bus. I was feeling very guilty that I was out of the bus with children and woman in the bus who may need my help. Anyway, you can be of no use in this kind of situations if you too are a part of the problem or maybe I was a coward. The fire from the engine of the bus was distinguished by the driver and all of us were saved. By the way the situation was not as bad as made to be by the panic of the people. And no one needed my help anyway. But just the thought of responsibility made me feel good and thanked God for bringing this thought to my mind. By Gods grace a car stopped next to me and gave me a lift and to a few other people waiting outside the bus. As I said earlier I like to travel as it makes life exciting in this was one of an exciting incident. However, the most important part is what I have learned from this incident.

Firstly I have learned that the captain of the ship always needs to be cool and calm. The only reason I jumped out of the bus was because of the fear I saw on the face of the conductor which made me feel that something was really wrong as I could not see the fire in the engine cabin near the driver as the bus was packed with passengers. Secondly I learned that you need to make quick decisions in such situations without panicking. I was glad that I was not the one sitting next to me who just plunged out of the window and hurt himself or the man who was not allowing me to get out of the window of the bus. I learned that if you panic it makes the situation worse. I also learned an important law of nature/universe that "What goes around comes around." Just a good thought to help someone less fortunate with an unselfish mind or just a prayer is enough to get the blessings of that person. As you can see that I never helped anyone in this incident but a car stopped in front of me and offered me a lift without me asking. This is an exciting incident I had in the recent past that made me a better person to handle such situations in the future God forbid and taught me a new lesson in life. Anyway, now I have the pleasure of boarding the office nodal transport vehicle that picks me up from house and drops me directly at office. Thank you God.

Valentine's Day.

February 14th is coming close, and it will bring the day of love with it. Most of the lovers are already planning for the day. What gift to give, where to meet, what to do to make the day more romantic than any other day? This seems to be the most important day for lovers. They all wait for this day, and can think of nothing but how to please their beloved. It is recorded that business of jewelery takes a big jump during February. So does the business of flowers, candies and cards. Every other gift that can be thought of is bought across most of the countries of the world and is sent to the beloved. Wow! However, I am still not convinced why Valentine’s Day should be given so much importance, especially in India. I may be wrong however I would like to write my heart out. One of the reasons may be, I do not agree with this modern trend of having a girlfriend. I wonder what the significance of marriage is if you already have a girlfriend. And if you have a girlfriend then why don't you marry her.

Some of my friends take pride in showing off their beautiful girlfriend on Valentine’s Day. Going on a date with them and having a good time together. Wow! They must be loving each other so much. I wish their love last forever. However my wish only lasts for a short time, forget forever as I see them with another partner the next Valentine’s Day. I want to know what the value of love is. Should love and true love be differentiated?

I believe love lasts forever if you believe in it. I believe love is a connection between two souls. And souls are immortal. If your love for someone is intense and true, then the universe will conspire to connect the two souls. However in today’s world the connection is more to do with the body. I have no doubt that everyone has a soul. I have come across many instances where the soul has won over the body. One of my friends grandmother opened her eyes for a few seconds after being in the morgue for three days just to take a glimpse of her daughter or maybe to fulfill the wish of her daughter who was crying profusely as she could not get over her guilt of not taking her mothers wish seriously who was requesting her daughter to come home from US to meet her since a long time. Everyone present was a witness to this incident. I know of an instance where a mother who had promised one of her son who did not have a child for fifteen years that she would take birth again as their child. And that is exactly what happened as they got a girl child after a year of her death and the child actually talks just like his mother at a tender age. So far I have not come across two souls meeting again and again in their lives as lovers but I am sure I will see that happening too. Anyway why am I talking about souls when the topic is about love.

I believe if you truly love your partner then you don’t need a special day to express it. In India we have strong religious customs for marriages that bond the two souls. If you really want a special day to celebrate and express your love to your partner then I think it should be your marriage anniversary. Anyway, to all the lovers in the universe “I wish you all enjoy Valentine’s Day cause any day can be made special as it is only how you make it to be. Happy Valentine’s Day!!!”