Dancing!

The garba nights have done me good. Dancing has done me good. Dancing, always, does me good.

As I was expecting Raahil, I took upon a choice, a choice to stay at home and mind my home and kids while I let my dollar-earning capacity take a step back. Not that I was minting a truckload, but decent enough to get out shopping with no guilt. To be honest, going shopping with hubby-money is not making me feel guilty either...lol. And as I stayed home, went about the child-rearing duties, the mundane household chores, the wifey responsibilities, my mind always went bonkers. It still does. Simply because it has a lot of time to think. While folding clothes, to cooking, to changing diapers, there are all kind of electrical charges running through 'em. Positive, negative, a lot negative, a bit positive, but never neutral. And neutral is one seeks. Coz neutral is happiness, neutral is peace. And this is when I resort to dancing. Dancing brings me this neutral state of mind. Dancing makes me feel at ease.

I turn on my Ipod any time of the day and I let myself loose. Fantastic exercise. One would probably think I am mad, but mad I wish to be. Even if it is temporary, but I do forget my negativity, my sadness, my turmoil in my heart and mind, as I just feel at peace. (Have you noticed that I am trying too much poetry here, I wonder why?) But besides the mental benefits, let me draw your attention to the physical advantages too. Just for motivation that is. Dancing is said to give you a 'high' higher than marijuana. That must be something right? Moreover, the women of the world, it has anti-aging effects and reduces wrinkles. Hallelujahhh!!!! No more expensive creams and moisturizers, lollll. It also brings a glow to your skin a la naturale. And if it happens to be a song you love, you are going to smile a heck lot than you usually do. So it automatically is going to make you happy. And boss, while the spiritual pros are temporary, the physical ones can be more permanent. ;)

So my friends, dance your heart out. If you are in USA, its the garba weekends, so get your traditional outfits out and get out. And if you are anywhere else in the world, don't wait for a chance to dance, tickle your dance bone and move that body the way it wants to. Happy dancing!!!

Fear

What is fear? Wiki says its 'an emotional response to potential danger.' And there is this variety of phobias with fancy names which I never seem to remember like phobia of heights, water, etc. Anushka has a phobia too. A phobia of loud noises. On googling, I find that its called 'Ligyrophobia.' See, I told you these fancy names are so hard to remember. Anyways, she is petrified of fireworks, loud announcements, thunder obviously, and the likes. Each time we think she'll outgrow it but things haven't changed much since the past 5 years. I guess I'll just talk to her doctor at her annual checkup coming up just to make sure that she doesn't need any extra help.

Coming to think of it, everyone has its own fears,rite? I, for one, am eternally scared of all insects and all bugs. So, basically, anything that crawls...or flies at our level. Yes, you can picture me jumping on the sofa on seeing a big bug on the floor. But I have learnt to control the yelling and screaming as I mature .....or more, as I am a mom now and I have to comfort the kids before I comfort my own self....lol. And yes, I am scared of the dogs and cats too. That makes me think, what is one common thing that everyone, or a lot of us are scared of......across the world. Or at least India. And the one thing I can come up is fear of ..........happiness. Yes, happiness. And now what's that?

I remember the time when I was little, or actually even now, when I laugh out loud, literally, there definitely will be someone to tell me, "Sheetal, don't you laugh so crazy, you'll cry soon." So we can't even laugh our hearts out in fear of sabotaging our happiness. Why do we always think about jinxing it? Why can't we live even one emotion to its fullest? Why do we pollute it by over-thinking? I heard this beautiful line in the movie 'Paheli.' It says "aaj ki aad mein kal ko ojal hi rehne do." Doesn't this make sense? Why can't we all just live in the present without worrying about the future? Or is it more prudent to think ahead so that the plans we make are not foiled. Or rather, we don't get hurt. Yes, its only natural to save us from being hurt. But in order not to get hurt, we don't savor the moment that makes us truly happy. And that I should say is 'fear of happiness.' I am sure its more complicated than this but I leave that for later.

I don't really know how to overcome any of the fears. And the only thing that comes to my mind are these lines from the movie 'Invictus.' They are actually written by Winston Churchill but Nelson Mandela gave it as an inspirational gift to the thereby Rugby captain of South Africa.

"We are still the masters of our fate,

We are still the captains of our soul."

West Virginia!

Mountains and mountains of tree-covered slopes, miles and miles of rivers cutting through 'em, gorge-ful of canyons abundant in lush-ness, tons of trails to walk your heart out, and steepiest cliffs to rapel on. That, my friend, is West Virginia. Wild and wonderful. Breathtaking and beautiful.

When you make your way through the shooting class IV and class V rapids, you can't help but yell and shout and scream as you paddle your raft away from the ginormous rocks. Full-on excitement and fun. And between the rapids, as the guide lets you jump off the raft and lets you float along the relatively milder currents, it is tranquility redefined. The river becomes the coziest bed you have ever slept on as you float tummy-up. The life jacket gives you a pillow-like cushion at your neck, and you look up at the clear, lovely blue blue sky with a few wisps of clouds, and you can't help but feel.......just peace. Just calm. Just happy. Floating in a pool is something, but floating in the natural river is just an extremely serene experience that you never want it to end.

Back at the rustic log cabins that we overnighted in, we had a delicious barbeque session where Bis and Santosh smoked the burgers and corn, while Ajay was an expert burger-arranger. The paneer was just awesome awesome awesome (courtesy Deya). And the kids cherrified the campfire with their smores. This was followed by some vigorous Bollywood thumkas, courtesy, not the girls, but the half-drunk guys, who were lost in their liquor (prepared by Ashok). Some were even ready to jump from the top of their cars (wink) while some mimic-ed Devanand. lolll

This was such a fantastic trip. Thanks all you guys and lets just storm the orkut, or facebook or watever ftp's there are with the pictures. And as long as we all are in this land of 'goras', we'll continue to indulge in the 'goron ke chonchle' as they turn to be as mazedaar as they can be (wink).

River tubing

Sit yourself on a tube and let yourself float away down the river. Engage in a wonderful gossip session with a friend (remember to tie the tubes together) or simply take a nap under the sun. (Heat from the sun feels really wonderful when your bum is soaking in the cool water ;)).

Its an ideal stress-reliever. As we all complain how stressed we are, etc, etc, and as it gets kinda hip-per to use the 's' word all the time, napping on a tube would definitely detoxify your system and relax you. Though I have to be completely honest and admit that I have no big stress to deserve such a de-stresser; but come summer, I'll do anything and everything to stay outdoorsy even at the cost of getting a bit bored in the end especially when the river got really really lazy. lol.

But as the river turned, and jumped and slowed, I couldn't help but compare it to our lives. Don't they have an uncanny resemblance to each other - the life and the river....or should I say, Life is a river. We all started out as a raindrop from up above. We trickled our way to the streams and into the larger river. Along the way, we saw some clean and sparkly shores, or some not so bright. We faced the rocks and trees and made our own decisions. Sometimes, we'd just charter a safe course through the obstacles, other times we did get ourself stuck in a big mess; but finally, did make it out clear. Sometimes, we were at the mercy of the currents, and sometimes, we chose our own path. But in the end, we all will and shall end up in the same place we came from - the sea. Final destination is the sea. Its just the journey that will be the interesting part.

Read this already huh? Nothing new rite. But well, I just thought it was time for another blog. lol and finally, my words of wisdom to you would be

Row, row, row your boat,

Gently down the stream;

Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,

Life is but a dream. :)

Rain O Rain!!

Does 'ghana na ghan kaale badra' make you smile or sad?

There is a 'Rainy' season in India. And there was a time when I loved it. Tis was my favorite season afterall. Whether its the torrential downpour or a drizzle, everything suddenly became calm, and fresh. The plants, as well as the mud. The air, as well as the breeze. The mood, as well as the day. Despite the potholes and having to waddle through the flooded areas, jumping in the puddles was a joy. When the seemingly hard splatter of water on the windows brought serenity to our muddled minds. And the so-called 'wind-cheaters' cheated not the wind, but us.....coz they always failed to keep us dry. And we weren't complaining either. Coming home soaked and drenched means having mommy dote on you and make you some garma-garam bhajiyas. And if not at home, the corn on the cob and greasy wada-pavs were always a delight. Afterall, the rain didn't stop our movie lyricists to churn out some romantic 'tip-tip-barsa-paani' melodies, and in turn, making us fall in love.......with ourselves. The smell of the soil helped build the exact aura one needed, to enjoy this beautiful day and all the possible romantic songs that existed in the history of Bollywood.

Here, in US, there is no such season. Coz rain comes in whenever it feels like it. We don't need to call on it. Sometimes, it arrives in a 'good-relief-from-the-heat' time, and sometimes, like uninvited guests. Lets just say, its an annual affair. In winter or summer, in spring or fall alike. In tiny droplets, or in crystallized ice, or sometimes, just plain sleet. Just when you think you can't have a more perfect day, a perfect day for the outdoors, it'll rain. Just when you think the snow's gone, it'll rain. Just when you think the leaves make a perfect pile to jump on, it'll rain. Just when you think the heat'll burn your skin, it'll rain. Coming a long way from loving to get soaked, as a parent, its more of a 'rain-rain-go-away, my-kids-want-to-play' syndrome that's caught on. So each time the heaven showers, we just sigh and sulk and turn on the television for the little ones. Are we growing old or are we just plain loosing sight of what was once beautiful?

As I was driving Anushka to school today, I stopped to let the ducks cross the road. And this happened after a long time. The lake that had been frozen all this time was sparkling and the ice had melted. The ducks and geese were swimming in their perfect V-shaped lines and quacking around in glee. The rain last night was their savior. And thats when I paused for a moment as the memories of the good ole times 'flooded' my little mind. It gushed down my greying cells to bring 'em back to life. Life is what the rain brings with it. Afterall, I know not of a better rejuvenator than the water from up above. I know not of a better de-stresser than the lovely rainbow that sprites up. Let its colors color your smile before it fades away and leaves you at peace for a while.

Stand n stare my friends,

for life offers no respite,

its on to you to find the bliss,

from the little things fine n nice.