Express The Love #SoCS #FridayReflections

The family I was born into was forward thinking and open minded. But expressing love for each other was rarely done with words.

And actually words were unnecessary because the love we had for each other we showed in our respect for each other, politeness, tolerance, in the times we spent together, in the joy on our faces when we were in each other's company and the laughter that rang through our home. .

I miss those times and those who have crossed over . But most of all I miss my dad.

I was very close to my dad, and he was one of the most beautiful souls I have ever known.

In the last 15 years of his life, he lost 98% of his hearing,  and though we communicated with words he probably heard very little. Yet his love showed through in the breakfast he made for me, the cup of tea in the afternoon, the food he would heat up for me knowing I was tired, in the letters he happily mailed for me, the cake that he bought for my birthday, or in the smile I was greeted with after a hard day at work.

Just sitting quietly by his side gave me comfort and strength.

In the last hours of his life in the hospital there were no words exchanged  yet I watched his soul struggle between a better world and the love he had for us. And I know my hand on his forehead and my head next to his told him how much I loved him.

I miss my dad.

No need for words to express love.


Please read my poem "Ode To My Dad" that I wrote a few years ago.

This post is written for:
#FridayReflections - Write about someone you miss dearly,
#SoCS - Stream of Consciousness - just writing no editing - prompt  = a word that begins or ends with "press"



Warm Regards


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#MondayMusings #IMC Halloween Or A Drink At The BAR

Do you celebrate Halloween?

I must confess that it's not a festival I have an affinity for. We never celebrated in India where I grew up though I had heard of it.

Here in New Zealand it doesn't seem to be that popular either at least where I live. Earlier there were many American and Canadian families in my street and while they were around there was a lot of Halloween activity. But the last few years it's been quiet and I don't see many kids going door to door. Nevertheless I keep a bag of lollies handy just in case.

Going door to door with bag in hand is not my scene and my kids weren't that keen on it either. But one year when my son was little, all the shops in a nearby mall held a Halloween evening for the kids. My daughter took him there and he enjoyed that.

On quite a different subject. The Blog-A-Rhythm group started by Shailaja Vishwanath who blogs at The Moving Quill, turned 1 on October 25th. So here's a cheers to the BAR. Through this group I have made many online friends and discovered new blogs. If ever I need someone, there is always someone who will reach out and show some love. And my blogs receive a lot of love too.  Thank you to all members.

picture source: Blog-A-Rhythm

So happy first birthday to Blog-A-Rhythm and Happy Halloween to those who celebrate.

Written for:
#IMC - Halloween
Blog-A-Rhythm's 1st Birthday

Linking to:
#OpenSlather
#MondayMusings
#MicroblogMonday


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Cherished Blog Fest - Memories

The Cherished Blog Fest

is Hosted by:
Damyanti – Daily (w)rite  /  Dan Antion – No Facilities  /  Paul Ruddock – Echoes of the Pen
Peter Nena – Demogorgon’s Fiction  /  Sharukh Bamboat – India Destinations

Their directive:

Often, objects lead us to memories.

The objects we hold most dear, harbor the most cherished memories.

For the CHERISHED Blogfest, we invite you to talk to us about one of your cherished objects.
Tell us what it is, post a picture of it if you like, and tell us why you cherish it.

Keep your post to below 500 words.

Join us on the 24th to 26th of July 2015 in sharing memories, emotions, information.
We’ll read and comment on each others’ posts, get to know each other better,
and hopefully, make or renew some friendships.

I try not to lay too much importance on objects as these come and go. My prized possessions are my photographs for they are moments I have captured in time and each tell a story, trigger a memory and take me back to a moment in time.

I couldn't possibly post all my pictures here so instead I'll pick one that always brings back happy memories. Christmas is always such a joyful time of year and these pictures each have a story behind it.

Each year I buy an ornament each for my children - their little special something. The ornaments shown here were the Christmas 2013 ornaments.

The climbing Santa was a gift to my dad from his grandchildren in the US. It was special to him and now it's special to us too.

The Angel on the tree is my special angel. She always gives me a feeling of peace and protection.

And each year my mom cooks an awesome Christmas meal for all of us and the whole family gets together to enjoy the meal. It's always a happy time.

My greatest joy at Christmas is the giving and appreciating the receiving.



Warm Regards


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International Women's Day - Inspiring Change

Written for:
the Write Tribe Festival of Words #3 Day 7 - IWD Inspiring Change
 USC’s Women Inspire Campaign

                             

"At the stroke of the midnight hour when the world slept, India awoke to life and freedom" (Adapted from the speech by Jawaharlal Nehru on the eve of India's Independence)

15th August 1947, the Indian flag flew for the first time and the people of India rejoiced.

The great leaders of the time, Gandhiji, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sarojini Naidu, Rabindranath Tagore, Jinnah, Maulana Azad are the names that will forever be etched in history.

But what of the ones who worked quietly behind the scenes, the silent and forgotten heroes, the forgotten freedom fighters? Without them India would not have awoken to life and freedom.

My grandmother was one of them. Read her biography here and here for more details.

But I will share the aspects of her life that inspired changes because she dared to dream, because she dared to fight, because she dared to be unafraid, because she had the utmost faith in God and because she had a great generosity of spirit and love for mankind.

At 5 feet tall, gentle and demure, respectful and soft spoken, graceful and loving, kind, compassionate and humble, pious and dharmic (one who follows the path of right action, speech and thought), she looked like a little wisp of a lady who lived a simple life according to the precepts of the Gita (holy book of the Hindus), but she was a formidable power, with a great strength of character and mind, a leader and the ultimate diplomat. She commanded respect wherever she went.

During the Quit India Movement, she took part in freedom marches and spoke at the several rallies held in Bombay. One of the marches that she took part in was the famous Salt Satyagraha Dandi march. In fact she led one of the marches from Bombay to Dandi.

Post Independence she was dragged into politics and became a member of the first Lok Sabha (House of Commons) of India. While in Parliament, she introduced the following bills:

• Women's right to divorce
• Anti Dowry bill
• Indian Adoption of Children Bill
• Suppression of immoral trafficking of Women 

And she strongly opposed the bill to punish unfaithful wives with her famous speech in Parliament "In a society where we have such evil customs as child marriages permitting a girl of ten or twelve to be married to a man of forty or fifty, old enough to be her grandfather, how can we expect her to be loyal? In a society where girls are at times sold as slaves by her own parents, how can they be expected to be faithful to their husbands?"  The bill was withdrawn.

After her term in Parliament was over, she did not contest again and instead dedicated her life to humanitarian services, to the upliftment of the poor and oppressed particularly women and children. For her, service to humanity was service to God. 

She was a founder member of the Bhagini Samaj an organisation dedicated to the welfare of women and children and started the Adivasi Welfare Centre in Udvada, Gujarat for women and children providing education and training. She introduced the adoption of villages a UNICEF approved programme and she was the first recipient of the prestigious Jamnalal Bajaj Award for her outstanding services to humanity. She donated her entire award to the the Adivasi Centre.

She was also a Justice of Peace.

But to me she was Dadima (Paternal grandmother), an inspirational, exceptional and beautiful human being who left her family a legacy rich in culture and heritage. Who taught us all, through her life, the meaning of love.

My late father and I were at her side when she breathed her last on the 28th of August 1985. Graceful and respectful even in death, she joined her hands together in Namaste to my dad and me, looked heavenward, and with the words "Hey Ram" (Oh God) she passed over peacefully and quietly to the other side. Be at peace Dadima.

I hope someday my destiny will also lead me in service to humanity.

Jayashri Raiji 26 October 1895 - 28 August 1985

                  

pic 1: receiving her award from the then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, 1980
pic 2: Dadima and me circa 1962


Be inspired, stay inspired, inspire change, be the change!


My posts so far: Day 1   Day 2    Day 3    Day 4    Day 5   Day 6


“I’m celebrating Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day by blogging for the #WomenInspire Campaign sponsored by USC’s masters degree in social work program. Join the blog carnival to honor a woman who has inspired you!”


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Warm Regards

My Earliest Memory

Some days ago some of us Write Tribers, a group of very talented and fun loving bloggers, shared some pictures of our young days and that gave us the idea of writing about our earliest memories.

So I have the privilege and honour of starting off some memories that the Write Tribers are going to share on their blogs today.

http://writetribe.com/

I have some great memories of my childhood but the earliest was hard to determine. Of course there are many stories that parents and siblings can tell, but I wanted to write about the memory I have.

I've already shared one of my earliest memories with my dad so today I'll share one of my paternal grandparents.

They both were soulmates. They loved each other with all their heart and soul. During the Quit India movement when my grandmother (who was later classified as a freedom fighter) was imprisoned by the British, my grandfather offered to go to prison instead of her as my aunt was only a few months old. That's the kind of love they shared. In the end the British showed their compassionate side and let them both go. 

But back to the memory. My Dadima (grandmother) always sat at the head of the table. I always sat to her left and my Dadaji (grandfather)  sat to her right opposite me. Each mealtime he would tap with his spoon and we both would sing loudly together "Jessie tho Devi, Devanti Devi" (Jessie is a Goddess. A Goddess of Goddesses). And Dadima would laugh and say "Shu Papa?" (What Papa?)

This memory always makes me smile. He sang with so much love and joy. It was a fun moment for me too. My Dadaji died when I was 8 years old. This ritual started a long time before he died so I was quite little probably 4 or 5 years old. 

Btw my Dadima's father nicknamed all his children with English names. So my Dadima was Jessie and my Dadaji always called her by that name. And Dadima always called Dadaji Papa.

Here are pictures of them:

   

    

And now it's Psych Babler's turn to share her earliest memory. She blogs at  Over Cups of Coffee. Do drop by and check her post too.

Happy Memories

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UBC Day 25 - Best Compliment

Day 25 - Ultimate Blogging Challenge.

Written For:
Write Tribe National Compliment's Day - Best Compliment  and
The Letter B at ABC Wednesday 


January 24 was National Compliment's Day and I didn't know that until Kajal (Rainbow Hues) posted on her blog and paid me a truly lovely compliment.

But it really does not matter what day it is, it's always nice to give and receive a compliment.

When you give a compliment sincerely it gives the giver great joy. That it gives the receiver joy is a given.

Receive and acknowledge a compliment gracefully and gladly because in not doing that you rob the giver of the joy of giving. Not only that, I am a firm believer in the law of attraction and when you decline a compliment, you send a message to the Universe that you are either not worthy of a compliment or that you don't want to receive any. And the Universe always obliges! (Something to ponder over).

And of course when the opportunity arises to sincerely return the compliment then do that too (for it is in giving that we receive).

So what are the best compliments I have received ....

Kajal's would have to be one of the most beautiful compliments I have ever received.

Thank you Kajal. You made my day.

Some years ago while we were visiting San Francisco, my kids bought me this little zipper thingy that says #1 Mom. It is one of the most priceless gifts I have ever got. Whenever my jacket is zipped up, the little zipper thingy stays close to my heart! Thank you my children. You are my strength and joy.

When my son was 3 years old, he asked me how old I was. So I asked him to guess. He looked at me for a few minutes and then very seriously he said "you are forty thousand years old". At that moment my eyes widened, my jaw dropped and the unspoken words that formed in my mind were "you cheeky brat".

But the look was so innocent so loving and serious and as he was only 3, forty thousand was a real big number that I'm sure he wouldn't have known and that was puzzling. So over the years I thought about that off and on and as my spiritual journey progressed the meaning of forty thousand took shape.

I am sure my little 3 year old was looking at me through the eyes of his soul and connecting with my soul. . And when we look at it from a soul perspective then that is truly an amazing compliment. How much more beautiful than that can you get.  Thank you my son for being the beautiful soul you are.

image source: google images

So what's the best compliment you've got?  Write your post and then link up at The Write Tribe and if you can weave a B into it, link it up at ABC Wednesday too.

Have a beautiful day and enjoy your weekend.


Check out these awesome bloggers who are also taking part in the UBC challenge:
  Shilpa  Kajal  Richa  Jairam  Sheethal  Kathy  Swati  Michelle  Nabanita

My previous UBC Jan 2014 posts here


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My Personal Journey with People

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival Of Words 8th - 14th December 2013

Today's personal journey is with People

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.

When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that person.

~ Author Unknown

Ever wondered why you were born into the family you did?  I wonder about it all the time. I don't know the answer to this question, but I can analyse the important people in my life. So here goes...

My paternal grandmother -
She was an amazing lady. Gentle but with great strength. Great achievements in life, yet so down to earth and humble. Dedicating her life in service to humanity for her was service to God, nothing more, nothing less. There was a divinity about her, she was the epitome of love. Somehow I think she was there to plant the seeds of my life's purpose. More about her here and here.

my grandmother

My dad -
Like my grandmother he was a humble, generous kind and gentle person. Achieved a lot in his life yet never bragged about it. He was also down to earth. His "religion" was compassion. He lived life simply but with great joy. He was so grounded and always at peace. He had a great love for all living things. There was an unexplainable goodness about him. I think he was here to show me how to live life here on Earth. More on my dad here.

my dad (at left) signing autographs during his cricketing days

at right is Hemu Adhikari who was a good friend of my dad

My mom -
Whereas dad was here to ground me, to teach me how to live life day to day, my mom I think brings to me the spiritual aspect of my life. Her faith in God is unshakeable and has seen her through many difficult times. A completely different personality from my dad, but I think a very good complement to him.

my mom in her younger days

My children -
They are my strength and joy. The love I feel for them cannot be explained in words. I feel blessed to have them in my life. No pics of them as I am banned from posting them.

Join me tomorrow on my last personal journey in this series with some Dreams

My Personal Journey so far:

Day 1 = Memories

Day 2 = Food

Day 3 = Books

Day 4 = Music

Day 5 = Travels

Check out some Day 6 posts 

Have a day when wonderful connections take place

Warm Regards


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My Personal Journey with Food

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival Of Words 8th - 14th December 2013

So here's my personal journey with "Food"

"If you cook with love and care, then the food will give you back love and care".

My son said these words to me a few days ago when I asked him if the noodles I had cooked for him turned out okay. I must've cooked with love and care as he said they were yummy (Looks heavenward and thanks God).

Each morning I wake up early and prepare lunch for my son. When he was little he said to me one day, "Mom, you make the best sandwiches ever". I told him I could teach him to make the sandwiches the way I did then he could have the best sandwiches all the time. To which he promptly answered, "They wouldn't taste the same because they won't have your love and care" (clever boy - he sure knows how to grease).

And both these incidents made me think that it doesn't really matter how simple or fancy your dish is. It is really the love and care that goes into it that makes it special.

When I cook I always sing or hum a tune. "Why do you always sing?" my son asks. Because that makes me happy and it makes me cook with love and care.

So here I share with you my favourite dish that I make with a lot of love and care and one that never fails to please no matter where I dish it up - my chicken salad.

Easy to make and yummy to eat.

Ingredients:
Boiled shredded chicken, boiled peas, boiled potatoes cubed into small pieces, apples, grapes = all in equal proportion (1 cup each)
Shredded raw cabbage = double the proportion of the others  (2 cups)
Salt and Sugar to taste
Creamy Mayonnaise - to individual taste

You can add some walnuts and raisins for more texture and flavour.
Sometimes I add some cherry tomatoes.
If you're vegetarian, leave out the chicken and add some beetroot.
If you don't like chicken, you can substitute it with tuna.
Mix them all up together, chill and serve.

My chicken salad, made with a lot of love and care and singing.

Join me tomorrow on my next personal journey with Books.

My Personal Journey so far:

Day 1 = Memories

Check out some Day 2 posts 

Last festival the thing I enjoyed most was paying it forward by showcasing some posts I enjoyed. 

So here are some day 1 posts I really enjoyed:

Rekha's Memories - The Mahabharata and Ramayana twists are just too cute.

Gayu's Memories - A lovely poem. Each line triggered a memory for me.

Privy's Memories - Another beautiful poem that touches the soul

Have a scrumptious day.

Warm Regards


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My Personal Journey with Memories

I am taking part in the Write Tribe Festival Of Words 8th - 14th December 2013

My series on 7 journeys for the last festival was a lot of fun to write and having a theme made it a lot easier too. So learning from that experience, I thought I would have a theme again. This time I'll take you on a personal journey.

So here begins my journey with today's prompt "Memories"

God gave us memories so we can have roses in Winter ~ JM Barrie

image source: google images

One of my favourite memories is of my childhood with my dad. I was six years old and dad brought home a puzzle book for me. Can't remember now what it was called but I absolutely loved it and it started my love affair with puzzles. Something I shared with my dad - he loved puzzles too.

Each night after Dinner, my dad and I would sit together and solve one puzzle. It was my favourite time of day. This was dad and my time together. He was so patient and he made it all sound easy and so much fun. Then I would trot off to bed, a skip in my step and a smile on my face, my little pillow tucked under my arm. This is a memory that always makes me smile.

Thank God for memories and Thank You God for giving me such a wonderful dad, the best ever. The memories of him will live in my heart forever. Be at peace Dad.

Join me tomorrow on my next personal journey with Food

And check out some Day 1 posts.

Have a fun day.

Warm Regards


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Lovely Blog Award and A Little Bit Of Me

I am so honoured to have been awarded the one Lovely Blog award by the lovely Kajal who blogs at Rainbow Hues. Thank you Kajal.

The timing of the award is perfect as I can also post this for the letter L at ABC Wednesday. As they say, timing is everything!

But back to my lovely award.

As a part of this award I am required to mention eight things about me, share five writing quotes and nominate five bloggers for the awards.

So here goes ...

Eight things about me:

1. I love roses - they are my favourite flower. I've also grown to love Camellias as they grow very well in my garden. And Camellias resemble roses.

2. I enjoy reading and my favourite book is The Prophet by Khalil Gibran. I can read this book over and over again and each time I discover a new meaning. 

3. You've Got Mail is my favourite movie. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are my favourite actors so how could I not love this movie. 

4. I cannot imagine life without music. My favourite song is Spanish Eyes. I am convinced I have a spiritual / karmic connection with this song. I also enjoy instrumental music as I find that very soothing.

5. My favourite musical is Andrew Lloyd Weber's The Phantom of the Opera. The musical scores in this are absolutely sensational and the show has everything - Romance, Mystery, Suspense.

6. I love to travel and very grateful and blessed that I have seen so many places in the world. Also grateful that I have lived in 2 very different countries - India and New Zealand and 2 very different cities - Mumbai and Wellington. Mumbai, my hometown, is so vibrant, it never sleeps. And Wellington, my adopted hometown, is a spectacularly beautiful city.

7. I love Indian, Italian and Malaysian food. Biryani, Fetuccini and Bami Goreng are foods I enjoy.  But most of all I love the Indian "fast" food of Dahi puri. Yum.

8. I love poetry and one of my favourite poets is Rumi. Poetry has a way of touching my soul that no other form of writing can. My favourite Rumi poem is The wine of Divine grace.

Five writing quotes

Not quite sure what that means so instead  I'll take the liberty of just posting some quotes that I love:

1. I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul ~ Invictus - read the full poem - it is truly inspirational.

2. I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination ~ Jimmy Dean

3. Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls ~ Joseph Campbell

4. This above all to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man. ~ William Shakespeare (One of my dad's favourite quotes)

5. Respond intelligently to unintelligent treatment ~Lau Tzu

Nominations

My One Lovely Blog Award is sent with love to these lovely blogs that are some of my favourites.

Vidya Sury - Coffee with Mi -

I love how Vidya converses with her late mother through this blog. A heart warming blog with a touch of humour that makes it so endearing.

Martha Orlando - Meditations of my heart

Beautiful and inspirational. Martha can tell a story from any situation. I love the prayers in each post - always perfect. 

Penny McDaniel - Spiritunity

Spiritual and motivating. Penny's blog resonates with my soul.

Vandana Sharma - Eternal Emotions

I love Vandana's poetry. She writes with so much soul and emotion. Her poems are delightful. 

Shilpa Garg - A rose is a rose is a rose

Shilpa is a very versatile writer. Her posts are varied, interesting and easy to read. Shilpa can craft a post to suit any challenge and she does it brilliantly.

And once again, thank you Kajal for nominating my blog for this lovely award.

Have a lovely day.

Warm Regards


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Keeping you forever in my heart

Keeping you forever in my heart dad, for your memories bring me great joy and strength.

Knowing you are there somewhere looking after us comforts me and keeps me going.

Kindness was your way of life. You were content, never expecting anything from anyone but showering your love unconditionally.

Kids were your pride and joy. We were blessed and privileged to have had you. My kids have grown up to be kind, loving and caring adults because of you.

You left us so suddenly, unexpectedly. I miss you and think of you everyday.

If only you were here with me.

Written for:
Write Tribe's 100 Words on Saturday - If only you were here
The letter  K at ABC Wednesday


Warm Regards


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BFF - Thank You

The topic some weeks ago at Blogging For Fun was "Thank You".

But today it came up as the first post on my Facebook news feed with this description:

"Is there a person (dead, alive or fiction) who changed your life in any way (good, bad or ugly) who you would like to thank? Let's hear it"

So the person who popped into my mind was my dear Grandmother. The Universe is trying to get a message through to me as the prompt for the Thursday Challenge this week was also "Mother, Grandmother etc".

For those who also read my Photos are Fun blog: the post there describes in general, her life story. In this post I bring in the personal aspects of my relationship with her and little anecdotes of our life together that I cherish.

So here is my Thank You to my grandmother who was an awesome human being and a light-filled soul.

My fondest memory is of her sitting with all her grandchildren gathered around her at the table, telling us stories of the Mahabharata and Ramayana, the great epic tales of India. stories of Rama, Krishna, and Buddha. (I learned all my Indian scriptures from her). She told us stories of her childhood and of the Quit India movement when India was under British rule. She was an amazing story-teller and she kept us riveted.

She loved playing scrabble and my grandfather and I would spend many hours playing scrabble with her.  She taught me how to play Rummy and Teen-Do-Paanch (a card game played by 3 players) and we often played together.

She always celebrated our Indian birthdays. The Indian calendar is based on the lunar calendar so she calculated our birthdays on the phase of the moon at the time of our birth. (Incidentally every 19 years our Indian and Solar calendar birth dates align).

And Diwali was a grand celebration in our house. As she was the eldest in the family (among her brothers and sisters), everyone congregated at our place to celebrate the festival.  Family was so important to her. She was the glue that kept us all together. She loved her step mother (her mother died when she was in her early teens) with all her heart and her half brothers and sisters were just as dear to her as her real ones. That love was reciprocated by them to her. Even today all of us who are part of her extended family, are just as close.

She loved everyone unconditionally and she taught us the same.  I love India (the country of my birth) but there is one aspect of it that makes me infinitely sad and that is the caste system there. I think we may have been one of the very few households in India where no caste system prevailed. In her eyes all human beings were equal and all were warmly welcomed into our home and respected. She instilled that into all of her family and I am eternally grateful that she was such an evolved soul.

My grandfather was her soulmate. He loved her with all his heart and soul. Looking back, I now re-call, she always sat at the head of the table. He had a great love of life too and they both complemented each other perfectly. I was only 8 years old when he passed away but this I remember vividly. I always sat to her left and he sat to her right opposite me. And at mealtimes he would sing "J is a Goddess. She is a Goddess of Goddesses".  I think he summed it up beautifully.

Her love for all living things translated into her lifework. She dedicated her life to humanitarian work particularly to the upliftment of underprivileged women and children in India. Only in the last 2 months of her life (she died at the age of 90), did she eventually stop working. And in the last 5 years of her life, after 2 major heart attacks, did she stop travelling to villages in Gujarat where the bulk of her work was. She always travelled by train in third class as she felt that this was the heart of India.

And she fought for women's rights in India. The anti-dowry bill, the adoption of children bill,  bills for women's rights to divorce and the suspension of immoral traffic in women are her legacy to the women of India. (She was a member of the Lok Sabha, the house of commons, in the first Indian parliament after Independence and introduced these bills).

I think she sowed the seeds of humanitarian aid work into my soul for that is what I dream to do.

I am so honoured, privileged and thankful to be part of her family and heritage.  I try to live by her example - of kindness, compassion, gentleness, love and humility.

Thank You Dadima (Grandmother in the Indian language) - you are forever in my heart.

my Dadima (Grandmother) and me circa 1962

Thank you all my lovely readers for allowing me to share a little snippet of my life with you and thank you BFF for this prompt.

I wish you all an awesome day.


Warm Regards