Simple pleasures restored

Among the scores of things we trimmed last year in a bid to save whatever we could, I was silly enough to cancel my newspaper subscription and turn to the always available, always free, online news.

And what a time to get news online, instantly as they are made around the world. For a news nerd like me, it was so exciting to be able to read the latest breaking news on my phone wherever I was! Then started the pop up ads. So many that reading the news articles became like navigating my way through a labyrinth puzzle 😆. Yes, I’ve heard about ad blockers, but so have the news websites. Had to deactivate them to read my news!

And, Little did I know, every time i read an article, the website cookies was counting them 🤣. Slowly and steadily, I was not able to read most news articles which interested me. I started skipping a day in between my news readings, even alternating between 2 different local news websites 🤣🤣🤣.

What I didn’t realise is that I slowly got so tired of it all that I stopped reading the news for days together. And then, it happened. My local paper guy called me with an offer- I jumped on it !

And today, there it was, my first physical newspaper in almost a year! My joy at getting to enjoy the combo of my morning winter breeze, a steaming hot cup of masala chai, and my newspapaer is incomparable! Me not going back to it earlier is pure stupidity on my part!

How much ever we progress to the Eworld, the simple pleasure of being able to turn a page while trying to juggle your hot tea, is never going to come online!

What’s Your Kick?

We have all probably gone through a phase when we feel lonely , maybe even unwanted and unaccepted at times.
I went through that stage myself, spending time with, and emptying my own baggage of pity on my ‘lonely self’…
Until, that is, I realised that I’m enjoying my own company- that the voices in my head that always debated any event or person, have become my mechanism of analyzing them.
Until staying within myself made me realise how peaceful it seems not to be called for sometime- even if from family.
Until I realised that it was one of the rare times when there is real peace in my heart.
Don’t mistake me for not liking company- I love my family to death and I’m very happy around my friends. It’s just that I’m happiest around my own self! It’s like needing icecream (family) with whipped cream and nuts (friends), but a cherry on top is what makes it fancy the! Like, I’ve been to desert camping trips with close friends, loved sitting with them till 3 am, but after everyone retires, I love sitting alone in the desert for an hour later!
I’ve started listening to music or mantras or relaxing sounds in my empty time, Binge watching Netflix series without having to pause a million times in between, catching up with news, sometimes scrolling mindlessly on fb or Twitter – without registering much of the content.
And sometimes,  just gazing out the window, enjoying the breeze… that is the time when I’m most inspired, motivated and I realise that the world is infact so gracious, and that there is so much abundance to be grateful for ! I can sit like that till my eyes can no longer stay open, and then fall asleep like a baby!
So that- spending time alone, with myself, is my kick!

What’s yours?

“Why do I still Have FAITH?”

So my kids (and some kiddish adults), ask me this question- ” How do I still have Faith?”
Here’s the thing- 2020 has been rough, yes..
Almost everything that we took for granted , came to a standstill. Flights, trains, Roads – borders of countries, even states and cities were closed.
Going out to movies- to parks- even grocery shopping- all was restricted. And who can believe that after hundreds of years of medical research and advancement, we weren’t allowed to even go to hospitals unless in urgent need!
Even getting out on roads has warranted fines and lathis!
The incomes stopped- the visits from friends dried up, Even visiting Family was not allowed!
But , amidst all these restrictions- something still didn’t change-
There was a bright, hopeful sunrise each morning and a stunning, soothing sunset each Evening! As usual, even on shutdown days!
The clouds did come out as expected each winter, and brought along with them the cool breezes… not affected by curfew times!
The parrots still sqwak on the rooftops and the pigeons still nibble at my balcony plants …
The sand is still soft in the desert and the flowers are still colorfully blooming!
And that, is why me, “and I hope we” , still have, and retain the faith.
Faith, in whatever we choose to call it- Bhagwan, Allah or Lord , (or even Universe in today’s trend). Just hold onto it!

#faith #sunset #sunrise #2020 #universe #havefaith #cloudyskies #life

A moonlit night

So we drive to Milky way point in Al Quaa , knowing well that the season to witness the magical milky way view is well over.
We land at a beautiful desert point which is magically washed with serene moonlight! Small scalable dunes all in an eye soothing blue hue- this is definitely not what I had expected! After trying to capture that beauty in my mobile camera, I realised that some scenes are for to be captured by eyes and stored in the soul, not in the phone…
The night also brought along with it a thick blanket of fog and chill as it settled down upon us… and yet, sitting down alone in the soft sand, I realise, once again, how much peace there is in being one with nature – it could be rides through forests, walks in the parks, strolling on beaches, or star gazing in the vast empty desert…
It brings along a little reflection of how much complication we have gathered through the ages- and how much we need to simplify it!

“Beautifully Bare”

How used to we are at dismissing , the incomplete, the not so abundant things in life – as Bare. As not Beautiful. Plant, Animal or Human. Forget about giving it a chance to be something special, mostly, We don’t even give it another glance.

This “Spectacularly Bare” tree still made its mark as the subject of this well taken photo, without a single leaf, in real darkness. Without any filters. Just its “Beautiful bareness” !

Truth is, everything, every being, Abundant or Bare, has it’s own beauty. There’s always a time, a circumstance, a background where it will stand out, Shine, and be remarkable…

Let us all try and cultivate that perspective, that patience, where we can make our weakness our very strength!

Sweet Little Chirps

We’ve taken away their forests, we built boxes not only on their grounds, but also invaded their skies with our skyscrapers… but they are here to stay… they were here before us and they will be here long after we’ve become extinct! I find it so amusing – We humans feel that we are the masters of the universe, the most evolved and that we have language!

Look at us now- locked up in the boxes we have built , with fear gripping our minds and lives! Look at these little wonderful flying beings- still free to fly wherever they want, calling to each other with their ever so sweet chirping and cooing…

We still need our phones, data, power to reach out to our own- these little birdies have the raw power that nature gave them!