What is Important in Life ?

A STORY TO REMIND US OF WHAT IS TRUELY IMPORTANT IN LIFE


The story goes that some time ago a man punished his 5-year-old daughter for wasting a roll of expensive gold wrapping paper.
Money was tight and he became even more upset when the child pasted the gold paper so as to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree.

Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift box to her father the
next morning and said, " This is for you, Daddy."

The father was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger
flared again when he found the box was empty. He spoke to her in a harsh manner, "Don't you know, young lady, when you give someone a present there's supposed to be something inside the package?"

The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said,
Oh,Daddy, it's not empty. I blew kisses into it until it was full."

The father was crushed. He fell on his knees and put his arms around his
little girl, and he begged her to forgive him for his unnecessary anger.

An accident took the life of the child only a short time later and it is
told that the father kept that gold box by his bed
for all the years of his life. And whenever he was discouraged or faced difficult problems he would open the box and take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.

In a very real sense, each of us as human beings have been given a
golden box filled with unconditional love and kisses
from our children, family, friends.They are like angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.
There is no more precious possession anyone could hold.

Island of Love !!

ISLAND OF LOVE - I came across this story long time back, today just came across it once again, it is a thought provoking lovely piece of writing, so just wanted to share it.


Once upon a time there was an island where all the feelings lived;
Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all the others, including Love.

One day it was announced to all of the feelings that the island was going
to sink to the bottom of the ocean. So all the feelings prepared their boats to leave. Love was the only one that stayed.She wanted to preserve the island paradise until the last possible moment.

When the island was almost totally under, love decided it was time to leave. She began looking for someone to ask for help.

Just then Richness was passing by in a grand boat.
Love asked, "Richness, Can I come with you on your boat?"
Richness answered,"I'm sorry, but there is a lot of silver and gold on
my boat and there would be no room for you anywhere."

Then Love decided to ask Vanity for help who was passing in a beautiful vessel.Love cried out, "Vanity, help me please"."I can't help you", Vanity said, "You are all wet and will damage my beautiful boat."

Next, Love saw Sadness passing by. Love said, "Sadness, please let me go with you." Sadness answered, "Love, I'm sorry, but, I just need to be alone now."

Then, Love saw Happiness. Love cried out, " Happiness, please take me with you." But Happiness was so overjoyed that he didn't hear Love calling to him.

Love began to cry. Then, she heard a voice say, "Come Love, I will take
you with me." It was an elder. Love felt so blessed and overjoyed that she
forgot to ask the elder his name.

When they arrived on land the elder went on his way. Love realized how much she owed the elder.
Love then found Knowledge and asked, "Who was that helped me?"
"It was Time", Knowledge answered.
"But why did Time help me when no one else would?", Love asked.

Knowledge smiled and with deep wisdom and sincerity,
answered,

"Because only Time is capable of understanding how great Love is."

The art of Listening

The Art of Listening


Well whenever my husband talks something important with me I always annoy him by interrupting in between , well I am not a good listener he says, so I just tried to be one by analysing all about being a good listener, hey hope it would help you too to become one if you are not.

An emphathetic listener is hard to come across.When anyone is talking we crave to become centre of attention continuously either by poking our views into the conversation, or by reacting internally or by paying no heed and attention to what is being said. So even while listening, listener wants to grab attention.

BUT one must realise always that silence is more potent than speech.The best listener will be most influential as there is no loss of energy in interaction, thus stress is all kicked off. To listen quietly attentively, without being a judge yourself or interpreter or poking your nose every now and then - you show your respect to the speaker and it also marks hospitability.

Mind you , attentive listening also conveys to you the feelings attached and conveyed through the words which are spoken..So instead of parts, you take in the whole of the spoken ideas.

But how to become an emphathetic listener - value other more than yourself - as listening is all about mindfulness, a genuine interest in other person and the esteem respect you give to him/her. It thus leaves you free from all sort of distractions - thereby enabling you to get whole of message in the speech.
Secondly you need to learn to be patient, you need to listen as if you are listening to something you had never listened before - no condemnation , no acceptance. Slow your thinking process, let curiosity crave in and the approach be a simple one. It may I think at some point of time become an outlet to devotion (something spiritual). It , I feel will make you more effective communicator yourself.

There is one more reason to become an emphathetic listener. Self sufficiency and success dominate the idealogy of world today and failure is all nothing but trashed ruthlessly.This listening will heal and help the despair. It would help them to regain their intrinsic worth and their right to exist. Such a person to whom no one listens becomes depressed and desperate, he/she gets broken and develops low self-esteem.There begins suffering and pain which is suffocating and killing.This demoralised, dejected person now starts vomitting his heart to strangers, and -- relatives, nearones are just cause for agony to him.You lose the will and hope to survive and live . So effective listening can provide one with much needed healing touch.

In other words you can grade it as one of the ways to serve the needy and service to God.

O God help me to become an emphathetic listener for my good and for my friends good.

Depression - Just kick it out of your Life !

Depression - Just kick it out of your LIFE

What is Depression? Let me analyze---- It is something which happens deep inside me. More precisely you expect some happenings which do not happen OR you expect something or somebody to be the way you want OR you want the world and destiny to be your way but AGAIN it does not happen. More fundamentally you are against that all which is happening. It may be a person, situation or life itself with increased depth as you move from former to latter.

Now --- why is one against anything? Just because it did not go the way you wanted.Why should the world act your way?It means you hold no faith in Almighty - our Creator who created this world or you have no acceptance or both, instead you have a hypersensitive EGO, that is the reason why you get depressed.

Depression is like suicide---it makes you cynic.You will always try to cause damage or hurt yourself. Depressed person uses depression as weapon to chop himself and make others feel miserable - TO GET SYMPATHY - he wants the other person to bleed with him.

What gets hurt in reality when we are depressed ? If body gets hurt, it's all together different,because it has got to do nothing with depression. Mind cannot get hurt - O God it is just the EGO that gets hurt. So if you feel you want to grow, trample your EGO and move ahead and beyond it.

O God - I know, you, your ways boast of negativity in EXISTENCE.This implies any emotion can prove to be a creative force in our life. Negatives can also be looked as Constructive Dimensions e.g A negative and positive wire together lit light, implies negative is equally important as positive and it is not just be supposed to be kicked or get rid of.

Thus if sadness is surrounding you, telling you, you are so, so and so! Good - make use of your sadness to GROW. Irritation will only give birth to anger. Mind you, to think that world is wrong is a fool's thought. It is upto you how you use your sadness - anger or love - compassion.

Sadness---gives birth to---Compassion---which helps in---dissolving energy---dissolve it more & lead your way to well-being.

Tragedy with persons on Earth is that they understand humanity only when they are mauled by life. Sadness makes you more mature. Sadness and Pain - if you had experienced - then only you can know what's happening to you and everybody else around you. Pain should be thanked because of which you could know COMPASSION. It is very important to learn to use our emotion in a creative fashion.

Try to bring balance midst physical, mental and energies you possess, make them vibrate effectively - this will make you all blessed with bliss - And near a BLISSFUL person depression dare not creep and exist.

O God thanks for all your blessings!

Pain, Sorrow, Love, Life, Happiness - A thought

Pain, Sorrow, Love, Life, Happiness - A thought

All the above 4 are deeply well knitted emotions of life.From one emerges the other or the one contains the other.

1). Sorrow is a regretful feeling which we unnecessarily invite in our lives.Useless extreme unnecessary thinking gives birth to sorrow, we analyse, manipulate and visualise happenings unnecessarily which brings sorrow. Further our indiscriminate attitude gives birth to this sorrow. Right attitude is the key to get rid of it.

2). Pain I feel is the best practical teacher, as we know change is the most consistent attribute that has/will survive till centuries and may be forever - this change is signaled by pain we experience in life.Pain tells us to become more expansive, it tells us, it's time to change.One should learn, and detect what life wants to tell when it gives you pain, moment you interpret and act, it is all gone.I had learnt to work effectively and more positively through the learning lessons I got from my this teacher called Pain.At times it positively changes, your whole course of life.

3). Life - Observe a river flowing.Could you personify it a bit?Life is like a flow - till the time you are witness to the flow you will not get affected to anything but the moment you fall trap to this flow, you experience all sorts of sorrow.(Similarly pain urges us to expand our lives.Here life is like ocean - be guided by polestar and not by bow of the ship.Life through pain teaches you lesson, learn to learn it, every pain we come across in life has some deep meaning to convey to us.Life is not shallow - It's meaning rests in it's depthness, it is for us to understand)

4). Love is unity; Love is oneness.It is the most beautiful feeling I have ever experienced.It takes you near to God as you want to thank him again and again for it.Watch a river - If you see 2 banks - it means water (ego) is between the 2 that's why they are seperated, this something in between is the only threat to love.Moment you learn to kick it out, we are one and then you experience the Almighty.Love continuously wants to give, it never demands.In other's happiness lies my happiness, in his smiles lie my smiles.Love teaches you to give, it makes you selfish in unselfish way.It makes you sing dance and smile.It gives you complete contentment.It gives you fulfillment .It makes life worthwhile.Mind you love is not sacrifice it is all giving happily.

5). Happiness - I read once happiness is infinity in true sense.Something which goes and goes forever.And I discovered Yes in wider perspective.Happiness is infinity.We are born, we live, we die - ultimately sorrow is what we leave for others, but our deeds which had brought a smile on a crying face will live forever with a lasting happiness, it will never die, there lies happiness.My acts which will bring happiness to me and the relative person or thing is the real happiness.Perishable contains happiness in shallow form, but non-perishable has happiness woven in it which even time can never kill.Good thoughts, good deeds, good actions which would give happiness to you and your acquaintances living or non living is happiness in real sense.

Happiness - brings you closer to contentment and fulfilment and thus closer to our master in the sky.Moment we learn to be happy - we start living our lives of purpose.I thank you God for making me realise so and I pray you to be my polestar while I swim in this life of mine called ocean.I had felt you through my love Pareekh but now I also want you to feel through happiness,Always be my friend, philospher and guide.

God is always fair !

God is always fair !

This is one of the most inspiring conversations I had with my husband, when he comes to explain you things, god's ways, you just want him to keep explaining things in his own mesmerising ways.Very rarely he is into such thoughts but when he is into this ,it is great to hear him.My husband is an engineer from IITD and an MBA from IIMB, so guys no wonder if he sounds so impressive.Below is one thought of his which I had tried to pen down in words, hope it soothes you too as it did to me.


"So much of our time is preparation, so much is routine, and so much retrospect, that the path of each man's genius contracts itself to a very few hours."

Life is all planned by almighty and we just keep trying to find the key to those plans, at times by getting prepared in advance, at times by following a routine and at times by retrospecting our ways, our actions and happenings. Everyone knows this truth but then there lies the wisdom of mankind, he knows somewhere at the back of his mind, he needs to do his duties and so he keeps moving. He does not sit idle leaving things on destiny instead he leaves the unexpected results on destiny, saying all such happenings were predestined.

God had given a very powerful tool called 'destiny' to mankind, which gives answers to all that is beyond logic and explanation. Man can use this word in both negative and positive ways. He can blame all wrongs to destiny , he can blame all failures to destiny, he can blame every wrong doing on destiny but on the other hand he can always feel strong because of this word, he can never die in depression, he can make this word his strength and keep on moving forward in life.

Each one of us, at some point in our life, find ourselves standing on the way from where different roads lead to different destinations. We do not know which road to take as we are not aware of our destination. There, no way is right or wrong. We can choose any road. However, finally if our path is wrong we will come to know that this was the false path and then once again we start our journey on the new way.This process goes on until we get the path destined for us. Here the word called 'luck' comes into play.The person who is lucky will get the right way in the very first move or in his second move whereas the unlucky one will get it after trying all the ways. But mind you God has a purpose for every move we make. The one who gets his way on the very first move will never know what the other ways are leading to, whereas the man who had tried all ways knows about them all. So in life if you want to gather more knowledge, you will be the one who had searched more, you will be the one to benefit more later. The one who was lucky in beginning ,if he wants to cover up more distance now, will again have to go for trials. Again if he is lucky he will find the next path in first move but if he is not he has to go for trying other roads.Question arises then what's wrong if he goes for trials now, hey my point is if he, in his second journey, is not on right path, he will have to put in more efforts.Why? Simply because we are all mortal, so now the age is also in play.The energy in a 28 year old guy cannot be compared with a 35 year old man. So God is fair with everybody,he is unfair with those who want to sit idle and reap the rewards of destiny. If he is making life tough for you, then may be he wants you to be more strong, as you have to go far in life.

Well so no more regrets from past. Only lessons and learnings must be treasured as they were outcomes of your own moves.

Someone said the center of word life has ' if ' so life is all about if's, well I do agree with it but at the same time I feel life is jumbled integrated form of words ' i elf ' - which means I am a small fairy who is blessed with magical powers from God, to do anything. I am elf because in front of the Great God I am a trivial small being. I am mischievious as I can use my brain, move my hands and know how to laugh and cry - in all I am full of emotions and senses.We just need to know that what are we, what we can do and ultimately whatever is happening and will happen is always for a justified cause which we are not aware of right now.

Exceptions are everywhere, even we in our day to day life love someone the most and someone rates least in our list of priorities, same is with God.There are few who are blessed by him so much so that they get rewards in abundance and few others are given least rewards.Why do you hold someone more dear than another, there is something about that person which you like to extreme, it can be anything.Why do you hold someone least important in your life when it comes to set your priorities, may be there is something which you do not appreciate about him/her. Same is the case with God , he may like few people because their intentions or ways are in ways with God as compared to others. Here comes again a new word into play that is 'your approach in life'.This is very important as it makes you god's favorite to some extent if it is right. That is why elders always say, efforts and luck without proper approach goes in vain.

Well there is more to analyse. Nothing is perfect so is the case with my analysis. I just tried to become an optimist by following this theory as I had followed quite a number of paths which were not destined for me and I still do not know whether this time the career move I had made is right or not, whatever be the case I know one thing my God loves me lot. With time he is providing me support spontaneously so that I do not get hopeless and settle down for something less than what I am destined to get in life. He sends angels in some form who fill me with all the zeal required to move ahead in life. God is great, he speaks to you all the time , he is there with you all the time but who damn cares to--- to care for something that is all time available free of cost to you. So ....listen to your heart and with its help try to follow your mind-- because that is God's voice and the directions given by him for our next move.