My Love For Chai

I don’t know what it is about a cup of tea, but tea seems to have a magical effect on me !

It all started from my family I think… Since I have been a child, I have woken up to the aroma of freshly ground ginger and elaichi mixed with tea leaves boiling noisily in the kitchen.  I never had tea till I reached college.

Be it a boring day at work, or a hectic one… going back to my home and cuddling with a cup of chai is so rejuvenating.

I am a person who loves travelling. Every city I visit, I make it a point to taste the local chai there.  This reminds me of my family holidays.  No matter where we travel, tiny tea breaks are a must! They have always been an integral part of our journeys. If tea is not available, we reluctantly settle for a cup of coffee.

Many people seem to be smitten by the Green Tea bug.  But I somehow have always felt nothing comes close to actual Desi Chai. The way our grandparents had it… the way we have always had it.

I think it’s not just my family that loves tea. My relatives and family friends also come under the same category.  My cousin once had a dog, who loved having tea in the morning! Well… quite surprising!

Kolkata has a lovely way of serving chai. It’s served in earthen pots. The flavor of this kind of tea is just awesome. Sitting in the train, with an earthen pot of garam chai, looking out of the window, watching the scenery aimlessly…does sound familiar.

Every city has a way of making their chai. So as a traveler, we should try as many varieties of teas as possible. (If we are part of the tea lover community)

 

 

12k Blog Views :)

Wow! A moment to feel happy. A tiny personal accomplishment. My blog crossed 12k views! I have managed to reach out to at least a few people out there through my writing. And this sure feels great!! :)

Rewinding back a little...

Well it all started one day. A small idea came to me, I jotted it down. It then was transformed into a tiny article. And my blog was born. It was never planned - this blog. It just happened. I am so glad it did.

Every time I feel strongly about something, I jot it down. Some times the idea is humorous, sometimes a little serious. Sometimes its just very random and out of the blue.  Some of my posts are inspired by my own personal experience. And some are just that train of thought which I change into a post.  I also believe that every place, person, experience has a story of its own, waiting to be told..

I hope that I have touched some lives through my writing. And I hope to continue to do so....

Lots of hugs and kisses to Rukmani and other friends (my Travel friend as well) who keep motivating me to write no matter what! You guys are my dearest readers!

And a special thanks to all the beautiful people from all around the world who take time to visit my blog and read my posts :)

Much love!! Muaaahhh!! :* 

‘Dreams’ - Random Musings

As I was having my cup of tea, a thought came to my mind.  What would happen to us if all our dreams came true? What if all of us were given the power to change every single dream into reality?  (Not in the inspirational book kind of way, but in the literal way!) Would we really be happy? Would we be truly content?  Would there be anything to look forward to? Or would we lose the passion that keeps us going, day after day?

If a child dreams of eating two boxes of his favorite ice cream, and the dream comes true; I don’t think he would want to eat ice cream again for a long time.  If a person dreams of a long holiday, and his dream comes true; he sure would be happy, but eventually would want the holiday to end.

Dreams don’t all come true at once.  Sometimes it happens in a way we didn’t expect.  And at other times they don’t come true at all.  Here’s my say on it:

Each day motivates us to achieve something.  A student wakes up each day with the dream of getting a good job in future.  A writer dreams of putting his thoughts on paper and reaching out to many people.  A musician dreams of discovering new tunes.  Everyone has a dream that is yet to be realized.  A life where all dreams came true instantly would be boring.  There would be nothing to work towards; nothing left to anticipate; no more inspiration; nothing to be excited about.  There would be no drive in us to achieve anything anymore. Life wouldn’t be worth living anymore. We would become like robots.

May be this is why God doesn’t give us everything at once.  There is always something to pray for; to work towards; to look forward to.  It’s what keeps us alive; it helps us discover our hidden talents.  And somewhere along the way, we might stumble upon something unexpected and beautiful. Our life might take an unexpected turn for our best. We might learn a lot about ourselves and know what our weaknesses and strengths are. Many of the most successful people are the ones who have met many hurdles along the way.  Their ride hasn’t always been smooth.  Some of their dreams got crushed along the way.  But that didn’t stop them from living and dreaming.  They did what they had to anyway.  The world may have questioned or ridiculed them.  But they moved on.  They worked their way towards their dreams.  Or found a new dream.

So dream away! No matter what happens, don’t let the dreamer in you die.  And the next time you feel that your dream didn’t come true, remember that it’s for a reason. May be the reason is for your best. 

 

 

The Tiny Flower

Bloom! Oh tiny flower. Bloom with all your might.
You were meant to be that beautiful flower; let them not make you think otherwise.
Don't give up the fight;
Be open; Be light.

There will be times when the wind will be too strong;
and you might think you won't make it!
Believe that you can and that you will.
You have color to spread, fragrance to share.

And as you continue to be that beautiful flower you were destined to become,
other tiny flowers will be inspired by you.
They will grow up to be colorful;
They will cheer sad hearts up.

And through your life's journey, you might come across a butterfly,
who will become your friend;
who will share with you his story of flying;
of going to distant lands;
and you will narrate to him your story of blooming through days dark and bright.

And thus shall start the story of the Tiny Flower and Butterfly..

The Dog Speaks

Hi Human Beings. I’m Spark. A German shepherd. I’m black, gray and brown in color. And I have white paws. I know..that is a little uncommon. But yes, that’s me. Spark. Hi again!

I stay at Bow Bow Colony, along with my master Joe.

My life is nice and quite peaceful. Actually these days its great! A new family has shifted to the house opposite to mine. ‘Sunshine’ is a part of this family.  She is a white Pomeranian, with silky fur. She would be apt for the ‘Ruf Ruf Bow Wow’ Shampoo ad. She moved in to the opposite apartment last month.  A musical bark, a graceful tail wag.  Everything about her is beautiful! She isn’t like the others.  There is something different and unique about her.  Ok…I admit it. I’m in love.  I love Sunshine.  I wish to start a family with her some day.  She is tiny compared to me. Yes I know that.  But how does that matter when it comes to matters of the heart. 

Oh so now you are laughing.?! You find my recent confession very amusing I guess.  You must be thinking..a dog is speaking about love! Like.. Seriously?! But you know what? Never mind! Why try to explain something that doesn't have any explanation according to you.

So how does a typical day in my life start? Well, the birds on the tree outside my house chirp, sing, shout; whatever it is you human beings say they do to communicate with the world. This does get quite loud and it does the job of my alarm clock.   I then shout out a 'Good morning' to let the world (and especially Joe) know that I am awake.  The 'Good Morning' is conveyed in my language; not in yours. OK so now you must be thinking what does 'Good Morning' sound in my language.  Well.. It's not that complicated. It's just 'Bow Bow' (repeat as many times as you can, and your message shall be conveyed successfully.)  If you want to add a musical touch, then add 'Oooooooo', and the 'Good Morning' becomes musical! After hearing a lot of my 'Good Morning' wishes, Joe takes me out for my morning walk.  This walk is especially important for me. I don't need to go into detail. Am sure you can understand. 

Once  I'm home after the walk,  it's time for breakfast.  Pedigree. Ya lots of it; and milk.  If I had an option,  I would have preferred the good old home made food.  Rice, chicken, soup. But Joe, like most of the other members of your species, is busy. So may be I’ll just have to adjust with Pedigree for the time being.

Its usually during my breakfast time that my sweetheart wakes up and greets the world. My Sunshine. I can then consider that my day has started.  Sunshine likes to wake up late.  You ask me how I know? Oh.. I know a lot about her. She hasn't told me. But I've observed. Ya that’s what happens when you are in love. I am not sure if she has ever noticed me.  I guess she has.  I atleast hope she has. 

Sunshine doesn’t bark much. She is the dreamy kind.  She looks out of her balcony, staring at the milk shop on the road near by.  I don’t know what is so amusing about the shop.  If we ever bark (speak), I will surely ask her this.

Most of my day goes off with me dozing off.  I take a lot of small naps.  Well, what other option do I have?  I do get up to have my mid day snacks.  And oh yes! the annoying loud neighbour below my house wakes me up many times.  The TV is always kept switched on in that house.  It’s like free entertainment for me. But I wish I had less entertainment. I wonder what human beings find so interesting about sitting in front of a box for such a long time, when there is such a beautiful world around for them to see.  May be my dogy brain won’t understand the underlying theory. Let me not attempt to also. 

Ok.  So a little about my dreams.  Hey! There you go...you are laughing again! So you think I don’t have dreams? Well, we all do. Dreams are what keep life going.  Now, you must be thinking about what my dreams are. Some of them..well...I won’t tell you. But yes, there are a few I don’t mind sharing. So here is the list. The Bhow Dream Dairy:

1)    To get a job in the Dog Squad of the Army or the Police. Wow! Now that would be so cool! I wouldn't have a boring life then.  Sunshine would be impressed :)

2)    To visit the best doggy spa in the city.  Don’t think Joe would agree to this one.

3)    To buy the latest branded doggy tee shirt.  The black one looks awesome!

4)    To tell Sunshine how I feel; and hopefully be able to spend the rest of my life with her!  To watch 101 Dalmatians with her; to travel the world with her! to try out new varieties of doggy food with her; to bark with her; to hear her bark; to watch her fall asleep.

So now that i’ve told you about my dreams, I do hope you have stopped laughing at me! 

Oh its evening now. And I hear Joe’s voice! It’s time for my evening walk. So I think that’s it for now.  I hope we continue to have more conversations in future, that would help your species understand me better! And ya.. please tell your people to stop bursting crackers! Its a humble request from the 'Dogy Federation'. I know it’s a little off topic here, but seriously! Our ears are really sensitive.  We hear sounds at twenty times the intensity that you do! So you can imagine what we go through.

Ok people! It was nice talking to you! Time for the 'Bow Bow Walk'. And please pray that I do see Sunshine during my evening walk! :)

[Photo Courtesy: Google as always :-) ]

A Drop in the Ocean…

Its 9 AM;  time to leave for office.  On my way to office I notice the traffic jam on the road. An endlessly long line of cars and buses, with bikes trying to take up whatever little space remains on the road.  The road is filled with people who are in a hurry to reach their offices, attend client calls, start their daily tasks and meet the deadlines. I too am one of them.

I’m rushing towards the goals set for me, just like everyone else.

I’m running along the road to success as defined by society, just like everyone else.

The run seems never ending, day after day, month after month and year after year.  Everyone is running.  Most of them are unaware of the fact that they are running.  Some are running because everyone around them is.  They are scared that they will be left behind if they stop.  Some don’t know where they are going but since they have been told to follow the crowd so they keep moving.  I am not sure under which category I belong.  Does it really matter? After all I am just a drop in the vast and gigantic ocean of people in the world.  But what if this drop wanted to stop and think about which part of the ocean it belonged to.  What was its purpose here on earth? What if there was a bigger plan for its life? What if the Divine was carefully orchestrating the events in this drop’s life?  Well, that is something too deep.  A drop is not supposed to think so much. Most of the other drops would say…”You are insignificant; you are tiny; what purpose can you have? Just be a drop and move on..Follow the other drops”

But I choose to think differently.  May be each one of us has a purpose on this planet.  Some of us are aware of it, some of us are not.  And most of us are somewhere in the middle.  We know we are put here for a reason, but we are not quite sure why.  Our life is like a puzzle.  We have to get it all together and try to solve it based on the clues given to us.

All of us are busy with the duties we have– at work; at home; in life.  But if we take some time daily to just try and solve the bigger puzzle of our life, then eventually we might get to know the meaning of our life.  We might discover our passion and true dreams and the direction in which we should actually be running.  That tiny voice within us, also known as the voice of our heart or soul can also give us important information about our life.  This voice never lies.  It’s subtle, yet powerful.  If we are not able to hear it, it’s probably because we are too busy trying to achieve goals the society set for us.  Sooner or later the guilt of not following our heart will catch up, and drown us. 

Our true purpose might be to be a counsellor and help those in need, or to be a lawyer and fight for the rights of others.  It could be to make a difference in a child’s life, or to inspire the world through music, drama, art and other things.  The list is endless and varied. May be we should all take some time to reflect and get to know what really makes us feel alive.  It might not be possible for us to leave what we are currently doing, but spending some time doing what we feel is our true calling would greatly benefit us and the world we live in. 

What is that one dream because of which you are here? What is your passion?

The answer might be a scary one but at the same time a beautiful one. ‘Scary’ since it might make you realize that everything you had thought was right for you might not make sense anymore; and 'beautiful' because this answer alone will set you free………….

60 Days more………

A few days back as I was traveling home from office, a random thought came to my mind.  What if we all had 60 days left to do all that we wanted to do…how would we spend this time? How would our perception of life change?  What would matter and what would not?  How would we make a difference to the world?

It’s at times like this, when encountered with such thoughts that we should reflect on what we really want to do.

So I decided to create a 60-day-wish-list, and this is it:

1)      To spend more time with my family, and tell them how much I love them.

2)      To travel as much as I can, and see as many places as I can.  To learn the culture of the place I’m visiting, try out the local cuisine and click lot of photographs.

3)      To realize that it’s ok to not be perfect.  No one is good at everything.  Those who appear to be are just faking it.  None of us were created to be perfect, because being perfect is unreal and boring.  It is our imperfection and being able to accept the fact that we are imperfect that makes us truly unique.

4)      To write about what I feel and touch people’s lives with my words.

5)      To visit Singapore and get lost with my friend Rukmani.

6)      To visit a wine-yard, try out the various kinds of wines and see if I can find any difference among them

7)      To sleep at the beach, watch the stars and the moon. To feel the wind through my hair; and to wake up at sun rise; see the first rays of sunlight and hear the sound of the sea gulls in the morning.

8)      To walk along some colorful unknown street aimlessly.

9)      To take a break from work

10)   To listen to someone who wants to talk, without judging them.

11)   To free a bird from a cage and share its joy of being free.

12)   To get angry without feeling guilty about it.

13)   To learn a new language

14)   To fall in love

May be there are many more things that would be added to my list.  All of us have lists….so if I had to ask you to make a list for yourself, what would be included in it?