The Day I decided to NEVER, EVER give up.

No Matter What's Happening In Your Life Right Now, You Must Read This Short Story

ONE DAY I DECIDED TO QUIT

I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality… I wanted to quit my life.

I went to the woods to have one last talk with god

“God”, I asked,

“Can you give me one good reason not to quit?”.

His answer surprised me…

“Look around”, He said. “Do you see the fern and the bamboo ?

“Yes”, I replied.

“When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them.

I gave them light .I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth.

Its brilliant green covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo.In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful.

And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. He said.

“In year three there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.

In year four, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. I would not quit.” He said.

“Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth. Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant…But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.

It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive.I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle.”

He asked me. “Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots”.

“I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you.”

“Don’t compare yourself to others.” He said.”The bamboo had a different Purpose than the fern.

Yet they both make the forest beautiful.”"Your time will come”, God said to me.

“You will rise high”.

“How high should I rise?” I asked.

“How high will the bamboo rise?” He asked in return.

“As high as it can?” I questioned.”Yes.” He said, “Give Me glory by rising as high as you can.”

I left the forest and brought back this story.I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on

you. Never, Never, Never, Give up.

Don’t tell the Lord how big the problem is, tell the problem how Great the Lord is!

The Lord here is the Supernatural , the creator of the Universe.

I returned, humbled.
Decided to work on my approach, rethink my options.
The problem resolved over time, I finally understood that Life has ups and downs.
Life is for LIVING.

Our Atlanta trip.

Of course, we just had to agree when our son sent us the tickets to spend a week with his family,
It included a 3 day long weekend and we could work around the time away, also spend the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi and sons birthday with the family.
Being a direct flight, it took just 4 hours from the time we left home to the time we reached home in Atlanta. The heat was tempered with a lot of breeze so it was refreshing.
After the family got together by early evening, ate the sweets and spicy delicacies I had made, we went for a walk in the woods behind the complex.

Sun dappled Nature walk ..The woods are lovely, dark and deep

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
And I have pounds I have to lose..
So we set off walking, following the path around the Lake.
Full of twists, turns, sharp rocks jutting, tree roots the size of limbs strewn about, The pine cones were abundant and I stopped to wonder at their beauty and symmetry.

The breeze was cooling as the heat bounced off our steaming bodies. The land here is a series of steep climbs, so the up and down terrain and 90+ temperature had me huffing and taking deep breaths.
I lamented the lack of perfumed flowers and smell of rich water drenched Earth. The lake water was still and shallow.



The area was marked every quarter mile to show runners the progress. and the pokeman symbol just added to the discussion of distracted driving.

Chattahoochee River in all its glory, reflecting the sky in its deep waters.


The sounds of rumbling trucks sounded magnified  as it clamored above on I-75.

A dog swam in the water and soon some kids drifted into view on inflated yellow rafts, lazing in the sunlight.
The peaceful sight was a balm to my swirling mind.



Maybe, just maybe my wishes and hopes will come through after all.
One can only dream on..

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : Random acts of care

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : Random acts of care

Random acts of care

"A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees"

~ Amelia Earhart

She inhaled the camphor from the small scentsy vial that he had given her the day he came to stay.

It calmed her when she got upset or worried, which was most of the Time.
She worried so much about just how he would strike out on his own. Life was tough enough , he was an exchange student from a developing country who would eat only vegan food.
He understood her anxiety.
She was lonely, a widow who rented out a room that was her late husbands office room that she had converted into a boarding so she could have some company to keep away the loneliness that overwhelmed her.

THE POEM THAT HEALED
There lies a valley deep within
The tangled jungles of the universe
The center of the four corners of the Star system
Where faeries live and songs do tell

Of a crystal sun and painted clouds
Mermaid fins and dolphin waves
Wales singing in the deepest of blue
Songs of old and songs of new

This valley and this sacred beach
Do speak to many
To many she shall teach
The ways of old the respect of Gaia

Reminding us children of her magnificent self
Giving always nurturing with her touch
Her smell and her sound
Her heartbeat forever radiating from the soft ground

I love you Mother 
I hear you in your Valley
In the wind and in the trees
In the glowing rainbow breeze.

In the sunsets and dewy dawn
In the bird song and windswept lawn
In the silence of the long summer nights
In the twitter of early morn

I am here for you- O Mother of mine
Bloodlines are not needed
To entwine, love and understanding 
Wins every time.

She found this poem addressed to her and felt the peace she was craving for all along.
Her husband smiled as she now had a living soul to mother and nurture again.

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : The homecoming

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : The homecoming

The sound of silence

Responsibility often arrives shrouded in uncertainty.

He was the oldest in the family of 9 members.
Just 18, having lit his fathers funeral pyre, he walked back home with a heavy heart.
Unable to cry or even feel anymore, he sat along the grassy shores of the flowing stream, gazing into the gentle waters.
Throwing a pebble into it, he watched as the ripples caused by the impact send ever expanding circle of waves patterned across the blue sky and green coconut trees reflected in the clear waters.

Reflecting, his mind flashed back.
   
The family bathed and played here, his parents always led the children to the water everyday to wash and clean themselves. Mother with a lot of sweet smelling jasmine flowers in her black, wavy, oiled, long lustrous hair, her serene face with a hint of smile, a song hovering on her lips.
She chanted vedic mantras or hummed to the classical music that played at the temple festivals. He wondered how she managed the family of 7 children. As an army man, father was home just for three weeks in a year but she always had them all clean, fed, clothed and happy.

The telegram shattered their happy household, his mother's pleading looks prompted the postman to read it as she feared the news even as she saw him alighting from his black bicycle. His troubled face and sad eyes gave away the news as she crumbled. The children screamed as the ladies surrounded her.
He heard the wailing, shrill cries and the hush as they whispered and looked at him.
Wiping away tears, he could hear his father telling him he was now the Man of the house.
The youngest twin boys were barely six months old.

Going from boyhood to adulthood in that moment he recalled his father whisper the Gayatri Mantra  (holy chant) in his ears during his thread ceremony two years ago.
 "You are the oldest male member of the house when I am away, you have to protect everyone''.
Heart throbbing, he decided a career in Medicine as planned was out of question, he had to join the Army to keep the family together. Mother could  not accept the job entitled to the family on sympathetic grounds, the younger children needed her presence in everyday life.
His sister, a year younger, slipped quietly by his side and held his trembling hand that had lit the pyre. "Our father was proud and honest, true and just, we have to cherish his memory and hold our heads high as he died a hero, defending our Nation" she whispered.
They made a pact, she would take charge of their mother and all the little ones, he would accept the  position of entitlement from the Army so he would get paid, they could all go to school and keep the house allotted. The family pension and her income as teacher, with his salary and entitlement of housing would keep them together.
Gently they guided the younger ones home.

Time flew.
He was a commissioned Army Doctor, she a Professor in Mathematics.
The younger children flourished under the stern discipline of their indomitable mother who shouldered the new role of both parents smoothly. The family was close knit, the tiny twins kept them smiling and focused. Everyone did their bit - milking cows, delivering newspapers, threading flowers to be sold at the temple arena, stitching clothes and household garments, taking care of children when parents needed time off...all honest yet paying work. The community helped, always calling on the family for any work that was needed and did not grudge paying as each member did sincere work.

 Twenty five years later, the Major retired from the Army to start practice in his hometown. Together with his friend and fellow serviceman, a veterinarian, the town now had an exclusive care center for patients and animals.
Their loving mother surprised her two oldest by bringing together her son and a recently widowed young lady and also talking her daughter into agreeing to wed the bachelor veterinarian who had waited all along for this day.
The younger siblings were all settled by then, the next generation of children were nurtured by the Major and the Professor.
The still smiling, loving Grandma was always there for them all, every evening the family gathered to pay their obeisance to the Grand Hero (grandfather) who even in death had provided the means for his family to live on..

Respect, responsibility and family bonds weathered many sacrifices to create progress and harmony.

my dad never left me

A Childs poem -

Her hair was up in a pony tail,
Her favorite dress tied with a bow.
Today was Daddy's Day at school,
And she couldn't wait to go.

But her mummy tried to tell her,
That she  should stay home.
Why the kids might not understand,
If she went to school alone.




But she was not afraid;
She knew just what to say.
What to tell her classmates
Of why he wasn't there today.

But still her mother worried,
For her to face this day alone.
And that was why once again,
She tried to keep her daughter home.

But the little girl went to school
Eager to tell them all.
About a dad she never sees
A dad who never calls.

There were daddies along the wall in back,
For everyone to meet.
Children squirming impatiently,
Anxious in their seat.

One by one the teacher called
A student from the class.
To introduce their daddy,
As seconds slowly passed.

At last the teacher called her name,
Every child turned to stare.
Each of them was searching,
A man who wasn't there.

'Where's her daddy at?'
She heard a boy call out.
'She probably doesn't have one,'
Another student dared to shout.

And from somewhere near the back,
She heard a daddy say,
'Looks like another deadbeat dad,
Too busy to waste his day.'

The words did not offend her,
As she smiled up at her Mum.
And looked back at her teacher,
Who told her to go on.

And with hands behind her back,
Slowly she began to speak..
And out from the mouth of a child,
Came words incredibly unique.

'My Daddy couldn't be here,
Because he lives so far away.
But I know he wishes he could be,
Since this is such a special day.

And though you cannot meet him,
I wanted you to know.
All about my daddy,
And how much he loves me so.

He loved to tell me stories
He taught me to ride my bike..
He surprised me with pink roses,
And taught me to fly a kite.

We used to share fudge sundaes,
And ice cream in a cone.
And though you cannot see him.
I'm not standing here alone.

'Cause my daddy's always with me,
Even though we are apart
I know because he told me,
He'll forever be in my heart'

With that, her little hand reached up,
And lay across her chest.
Feeling her own heartbeat,
Beneath her favorite dress.

And from somewhere here in the crowd of dads,
Her mother stood in tears.
Proudly watching her daughter,
Who was wise beyond her years.

For she stood up for the love
Of a man not in her life.
Doing what was best for her,
Doing what was right.

And when she dropped her hand back down,
Staring straight into the crowd.
She finished with a voice so soft,
But its message clear and loud.

'I love my daddy very much,
he's my shining star.
And if he could, he'd be here,
But heaven's just too far.

You see, he was a soldier
And died, just this, past year
When a roadside bomb hit his convoy
And taught, us all to fear.

But sometimes when I close my eyes,
it's like he never went away.'
And then she closed her eyes,
And saw him there that day.

And to her mothers amazement,
She witnessed with surprise.
A room full of daddies and children,
All starting to close their eyes.

Who knows what they saw before them,
Who knows what they felt inside.
Perhaps for merely a second,
They saw him at her side.

'I know you're with me Daddy,'
To the silence she called out.
And what happened next made believers,
Of those once filled with doubt.

Not one in that room could explain it,
For each of their eyes had been closed.
But there on the desk beside her,
Was a fragrant long-stemmed flower.

And a child was blessed, if only for a moment,
By the love of her shining star.
And given the gift of believing,
That heaven is never too far.

Keep a seashell close to your ear

 Keep a seashell close to your ear.

The sound you hear 
Is it the sea or  the ocean?
Neither is it the sea nor is it the ocean
The sound is your blood surging.

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The next 24 hours were crucial, it was make or break time.
He knew also that the law of averages was in his favor if he held his nerve.

The determination and  desire to excel welled up in him.
Check list -  formal clothes, tie and shoes borrowed from his room mate (he vowed to replace it), briefcase with his documents, passport, driving license, all were in order.
Now he had to see it to the logical end, he echoed silently.

The throng of job hunters seemed endless. Determined to keep his cool, he sent up a prayer and joined the long line of job seekers at the Employment Opportunity Fair he was attending with his close fiend Shankar.
The ear splitting wail of the ambulance had them scattering in all directions.
Some one was seriously injured, intuitively he started running behind the ambulance, totally ignoring the shouts of his well meaning friend, Shankar.
The hospital was just a block away in the crowded market and he saw Mr. Menon being lifted and carried in, blood dripping amidst shouts of 'Make way, move out.'
I have to be there, he decided as he saw the white faces of family members.
 

They needed blood now was the verdict flashed on the Hospital display board.

He volunteered and went inside praying with an intensity he had not summoned even for the interview. The wait seemed endless, watching the family huddled  together, he remembered their kindness when he was orphaned, how they had taken him in and made him partake of all the daily meals.

Almost four hours later Menons' son, Balan walked out with the doctor from the ICU theater. 
Smiles all around. Miraculously the patient had survived and was now stable.

He left as silently as he came without talking to anyone there.
 

The queue was almost over but Shankar stood there looking out for his friend.
"Come on, made it by the skin of your teeth, he whispered. Go on in, here I have filled out the forms, do well".

So saying, Shankar moved aside.

He walked in head held high, his answers were crisp and to the point. 

"You have stated that your focus, determination to see things through, eye for detail and confidence as well as academic performance is your conviction that you are the person for the vacancy we have. Why were you not here when your name was announced?"

Silence filled the room, he remembered his deceased mother's  refrain to never make excuses. 

'My sincere apologies sir' was the quiet reply.

Walking back he met Shankar, they silently made their way back home, each deep into his own thoughts.

The white envelope looked too heavy to be a reject letter, he decided as later in the week he slit open the official intimation.  He had been selected as project assistant at the Informatics Center in the heart of Chennai. Shankar too beamed as he waved his own selection letter and hugged him.
" I knew you would be selected, brother" he whispered.

 But what, how? The signature made little sense to him then as he thanked Fate for his selection.

The CEO was an entrepreneur who studied the everyday happenings in and around the marketplace. He heard discussions of how a young man had saved a life and was the talk of the town. A brief inquiry revealed details.

 The honesty of the lad who had accepted his being late for the appointment that day without showcasing his action as an excuse or achievement touched a nerve in his memory.

His rare honesty made him a worthy addition to the Company.


The young boy went on to become a respected and honored senior member of the Company and an asset to the Nation. 

Gratitude and a sense of self worth helps one succeed in Life.

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : Not a cloud in the sky

Relax | Rewind | Recharge | : Not a cloud in the sky