If I Knew…

I came across the following poem which was written in memory of all those who perished on 9/11. This one is just giving me a reminder of all the things I ideally should be doing.

There is no guarantee to your life, but there sure are some thing’s that you can guarantee to make it happen while you have lived. Below are some of them that have not only touched my heart but reminded me of things that I probably should be doing more often.

IF I KNEW

If I knew it would be the last time
That I’d see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
And pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time
That I see you walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
And call you back for one more

If I knew it would be the last time
I’d hear your voice lifted up in praise,
I would video tape each action and word,
So I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time
I could spare an extra minute
To stop and say “I love you,”
Instead of assuming you would KNOW I do.

If I knew it would be the last time
I would be there to share your day,
Well I’m sure you’ll have so many more,
So I can let just this one slip away.
For surely there’s always tomorrow
To make up for an oversight,

And we always get a second chance
To make everything just right.
There will always be another day
To say “I love you,”
And certainly there’s another chance
To say our “Anything I can do?”

But just in case I might be wrong,
And today is all I get,
I’d like to say how much I love you
And I hope we never forget.
Tomorrow is not promised to anyone young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
You get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you’re waiting for tomorrow,
Why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
You will surely regret the day,
That you didn’t take that extra time
For a smile, a hug, or a kiss
And you were too busy to grant someone,
What turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today,
And whisper in their ear,
Tell them how much you love them
And that you’ll always hold them dear
Take time to say “I’m sorry,”
“Please forgive me,” “Thank you,” or “It’s okay.”
And if tomorrow never comes,
You’ll have no regrets about today.

Support and Vote for Meera Sanyal – Hope for Change In India

Today I am absolutely sure for a hope for change in terms of our political system. Now we have our own Hope and Obama for Change from South Mumbai. Meera Sanyal – Country Chief for ABN AMRO now Royal Bank of Scotland is contesting as an independent candidate for the Lok Sabha elections.

I have seen her in person and been a part of the numerous interactions that she has always had with her staff. She has entered this arena after losing someone who had introduced her to the banking industry in the recent 26/11 terrorist strikes and it became a very personal thing. The lady is remarkable. Someone who carries herself really well and very well spoken. Someone who is sensible and runs agenda’s in favour of what is always right. Someone who knows and believes that its the TIME to have our CHANGE.

Meera Sanyal’s campaign will focus on improving the conditions of the citizens of Mumbai. She
has a five-point agenda, with a focus on:

1. More investment for the city’s infrastructure
2. A radically improved public transport system
3. Stronger security
4. Citizens’ empowerment at the neighborhood level
5. A directly elected and fully empowered mayor for Mumbai.

This is one candidate that I am so sure of will be the hope of change. It’s the belief. We need people who are so well educated and have a clean past track record to make this place a better place. For once, I feel so strong about a candidate who sure can be our hope of change. Meera’s campaign is self-funded and she has chosen not to join any party and clearly steering away from all the negativity that most of our political parties carries.

I call on to everyone to support Meera Sanyal whoever is voting from the South Mumbai Constituency. Check out more about Meera Sanyal’s background and qualification on http://www.meerahsanyal.in/?page_id=2 on her own personal website: http://www.meerahsanyal.in.

Join in Meera Sanyal for South Mumbai on Facebook as she doesn’t need money but that faith and support that will also ensure that we have the right people in our political system.

Lets come together and spread the word and back a candidate with substance and integrity.

Thankful…

All right! I know I just haven’t got the time to sit and really pen down all that has been happening with me as I just have been buzzing around like a busy bee all over the place. I usually tend to have a lot of thoughts on my mind that I could really blog about, however I then at that moment don’t seem to have anything on me to even just jot it down on a piece of paper and then I forget completely about it.

And trust me, this process has really resulted in a lot of my thoughts getting completely vanished as I just can’t remember what I thought, I would write about.

Anyway, the past week has been extremely busy at work and I have also been partying and going out a lot. I was at Firangi Paani in the middle of the week, celebrating someone’s birthday and again out the very next week – again on a week day at Indus. Now, if I really have to state a review in just one line comparing the two places, I really think Indus was any day better than Firangi Paani which was completely rip-off in terms of its main course which was really horrible. The music at Firangi Paani was just about the oldies classic while Indus really pepped up the atmosphere after 11pm – which of course was good enough to encourage me to hit the dance floor. Firangi Paani was steep, but the drinks and appetizers were not that bad.

And of course, again this Saturday I was having dinner at Caravan Serai with a bunch of pals – an authentic Indian food along with the atmosphere that matched the traditional Indian theme. Good service, good drinks and food. Sunday was again with some really old pals at a Cafe Ivy with just pastas and salads and wine. So that’s really been a very busy two social weeks and but very fulfilling from the bottom of my heart for which I have just been really grateful as I know a lot of people out there don’t have what I do – fulfilling weekends with a bunch of really nice people. I am grateful and thankful!

Blessings and Faith!

These were really nice, I have never seen Christian Cartoons before.

Chocolate Sings…

One of my best friends sent me this email and wrote a line on top of it saying “I remembered you when I read this…. 🙂 ”

I opened the email even more fervently than I would have after reading that line and this is what it was – absolutely just “ME”. All in all, this is exactly what I would have done, said and behaved as. I can’t believe she came so close in identifying me as the normal perception would have been “Uff – you can be so difficult to comprehend at times”.

I excitedly responded back to her email stating that she should be patting herself on her back after doing such a good job in coming so close in identifying me and now I am 100% confident that when I am this old she will smell me from a distance. Enjoy folks and this is “ME”.

One day I had a date for lunch with friends. Mae, a little old “blue hair” about 80 years old, came along with them—all in all, a pleasant bunch. When the menus were presented, we ordered salads, sandwiches, and soups, except for Mae who said, “Ice Cream, please. Two scoops, chocolate.”

I wasn’t sure my ears heard right, and the others were aghast.

“Along with heated apple pie,” Mae added, completely unabashed.

We tried to act quite nonchalant, as if people did this all the time.

But when our orders were brought out, I didn’t enjoy mine.

I couldn’t take my eyes off Mae as her pie a-la-mode went down.

The other ladies showed dismay. They ate their lunches silently and frowned.

The next time I went out to eat, I called and invited Mae.

I lunched on white meat tuna. She ordered a parfait.

I smiled. She asked if she amused me.

I answered, “Yes, you do, but also you confuse me.

How come you order rich desserts, while I feel I must be sensible?”

She laughed and said, with wanton mirth, “I’m tasting all that is Possible.

I try to eat the food I need, and do the things I should.

But life’s so short, my friend, I hate missing out on something good.

This year I realized how old I was. (She grinned) I haven’t been this old before.”

“So, before I die, I’ve got to try those things that for years I had ignored.

I haven’t smelled all the flowers yet. There are too many books I haven’t read.

There’s more fudge sundaes to wolf down and kites to be flown overhead.

There are many malls I haven’t shopped. I’ve not laughed at all the jokes.

I’ve missed a lot of Broadway hits and potato chips and cokes.

I want to wade again in water and feel ocean spray on my face.

I want to sit in a country church once more and thank God for His grace.

I want peanut butter every day spread on my morning toast.

I want un-timed long distance calls to the folks I love the most.

I haven’t cried at all the movies yet, or walked in the morning rain.

I need to feel wind in my hair. I want to fall in love again.

So, if I choose to have dessert, instead of having dinner, then should I die before night fall, I’d say I died a winner, because I missed out on nothing. I filled my heart’s desire.

I had that final chocolate mousse before my life expired.”

With that, I called the waitress over… “I’ve changed my mind,” I said. “I want what she is having; only add some more whipped cream!”

Be mindful that happiness isn’t based on possessions, power, or prestige, but on relationships with people we love and respect.

Remember that while money talks, CHOCOLATE SINGS!

Financial Crisis Explained In Simple Language

Coming from the financial line…this sure was a stunner and blew my mind into chuckles..

Linda is the proprietor of a bar in Cork. In order to increase sales, she decides to allow her loyal customers – most of whom are unemployed alcoholics – to drink now but pay later. She keeps

track of the drinks consumed on a ledger (thereby granting the customers loans). Word gets around and as a result increasing numbers of customers flood into Linda’s bar. Taking advantage of her customers’ freedom from immediate payment constraints, Linda increases her prices for wine and beer, the most-consumed beverages. Her sales volume increases massively. A young and dynamic customer service consultant at the local bank recognizes these customer debts as valuable future assets and increases Linda’s borrowing limit. He sees no reason for undue concern since he has the debts of the alcoholics as collateral. At the bank’s corporate headquarters, expert bankers transform these customer assets into DRINKBONDS, ALKBONDS and PUKEBONDS. These securities are then traded on markets worldwide.

No one really understands what these abbreviations mean and how the securities are guaranteed. Nevertheless, as their prices continuously climb, the securities become top-selling items.

One day, although the prices are still climbing, a risk manager (subsequently of course fired due to his negativity) of the bank decides that slowly the time has come to demand payment of the debts incurred by the drinkers at Linda’s bar. However they cannot pay back the debts. Linda cannot fulfil her loan obligations and claims bankruptcy. DRINKBOND and ALKBOND drop in price by 95 %. PUKEBOND performs better, stabilizing in price after dropping by 80 %. The suppliers of Linda’s bar, having granted her generous payment due dates and having invested in the securities are faced with a new situation. Her wine supplier claims bankruptcy, her beer supplier is taken over by a competitor.

The bank is saved by the Government following dramatic round-the-clock consultations by leaders from the governing political parties (and vested interests). The funds required for this purpose are obtained by a tax levied on the non-drinkers.

Finally an explanation I understand.. .

Your Strength In Your Weakness…

This story took my breath away. Thanks to a dear friend Neha Goenka for sending over an inspirational story.

A 10-year-old boy decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident. The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master. The boy was doing well, so he couldn’t understand why, after three months of training the master had taught him only one move.

“Sensei,”(Teacher in Japanese) the boy finally said, “Shouldn’t I be learning more moves?” “This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you’ll ever need to know,” the sensei replied.

Not quite understanding, but believing in his teacher, the boy kept training. Several months later, the sensei took the boy to his first tournament.

Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match. Still amazed by his success, the boy was now in the finals.

This time, his opponent was bigger, stronger, and more experienced. For a while, the boy appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the boy might get hurt, the referee called a time-out.

He was about to stop the match when the sensei intervened.” No,” the sensei insisted, “Let him continue. “Soon after the match resumed, his opponent made a critical mistake: he dropped his guard. Instantly, the boy used his move to pin him. The boy had won the match and the tournament.

He was the champion. On the way home, the boy and sensei reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the boy summoned the courage to ask what was really on his mind. “Sensei, how did I win the tournament with only one move?”

“You won for two reasons,”the sensei answered. “First, you’ve almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. And second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm.”

The boy’s biggest weakness had become his biggest strength. Sometimes we feel that we have certain weaknesses and we blame God, the circumstances or ourselves for it but we never know that our weaknesses can turn around and be our strengths if used wisely. A view and your perspective would define it all.

Will You Make Me Stay…?

This post was inspired and triggered by Tell Me Wonders post – “Friends”. A post that makes me realize and believe that in our earnest excitement to always make that new relationship work, we tend to over step on the old ones not realizing and even remembering the moments that we may have had with the old and how they would have made us feel that time.

New relationships will always happen & new people will always come! Just because you have a significant other, or you are married, or you have just got that other special person in your life recently; it doesn’t give you the right to hurt, ignore those people in your life who were once upon a time around whom all your days, (especially the bad days) or your world revolved around.

And if that happens, then it is a very strong signal about -the real truth, honesty and more importantly the depth and the strength of your friendship- not to forget the narrow minded thinking of your friend.

Friends are meant to be “FOREVER” – Whether that significant other is also meant to be or not. It doesn’t and shouldn’t change the placing of your best friends in your life. Excuses about being busy and not having time are always there to help you to constantly live in denial to not being in touch with your friends – but can the INSIDE of YOU will always know the real truth! Can you live in denial with your conscience? How long will you continue to lie to your own self?

The basic perspective for me would be – if you couldn’t treat your best friends with whom you have been friends for donkeys years the way they should be, how on earth are really going to be able to justify/maintain/understand the value and importance of your relationship with your significant other? Isn’t the meaning of having that special someone also meaning that he/she is your best friend in everything?

If you were not able to treat your friends for what they were actually to you in accordance to the tall claims that you made of your friendship every now and then how are you going to treat your significant other? Some where down the line, the truth will always show!

Isn’t there a saying – what goes around will always come around; Or the saying which means that a person can be clearly identified and recognized for who he is based on how he treats those who serve on his table. That would be a waiter or a complete stranger; this is a “FRIEND”!

The base for any relationship is friendship. If you couldn’t place your deserving friends at an important place in your life {the place that they so rightly deserve} and bring on the new placements by erasing those who probably meant the world to you – then surely you are a person who is being rightly recognized for who you are. Your friends will see it and more than them it will be the inner you who will feel it when those people have been pushed away for good.

When I Bit My Nail…

After I was back from my recent trip to Melghat, my team organized another trip to Karjat – River Touch Resort. To be honest, I quite didn’t like the place or its food so much..but it was the company of a fun group of people that made the entire difference. This was my first team picnic and it was something that everyone was really looking forward to. There are some people in the team who are very famously labeled as complete late-latiffs (a hindi word for people who are always late) when it comes to getting up in the morning. This picnic was being planned nearly everyday once the date was decided. There were discussions on what on what people would carry, what time one would have to leave from home to get to the station, what are the things we are going to do once we get to the resort, food drinks etc. The main discussion involved around people getting to the station on time. And if not getting into the same coach of the train, to ATLEAST get into the same train as the trains to Karjat were at hourly intervals and of course no one wanted to reach Karjat Station and wait for another hour there for people who would get late.

It was nearly going to be a six sigma project as we 10 people were planning to catch the same train in different groups from four different stations. The main aim was to get into the same coach. Our main concern was that the two late latiffs were going to come together and climb from the same station. I was in the first group consisting of four people who were going to catch the train from Dadar Station. I met my other mates at the allotted time. We reached and we informed the other groups that we were on the station especially the two late latiffs and were assured that they were also on their way to their designated station. The two late latiffs were assigned to get Vada Pavs from this very famous place which was right outside the station from where they were supposed to catch the same train  – a risk that we did take to give them that trust and responsibility. After all, they can’t be that bad 🙂

Later when the train came in, the first group called the others and informed them about which coach we were in i.e it was the second one from the beginning of the train. We all this time were getting confirmations from the others, that they had reached their designated spots on the station. As each and every group used to climb in and get into the same coach we used to clap and cheer that yes we are closer to getting to a very big achievement of getting everyone not only in the same train but also in the same coach at that crowded hour. Yes! We were being recognized as a complete bunch of noise making group and the only group existent in that train that made their presence felt. Now, we were getting closer to the station from where our stars were going to climb from. The train just stopped at the signal right before their station. We are constantly with them on the phone and had the confirmation that they were back on the station after buying our delicious hot breakfast of Vada Pavs.

The first news that stopped our heart beat was that Miss A has lost Miss B in the crowd. The worse was that Miss B’s cell phone is with Miss A so she can’t even call to ask her. Miss A was frantic as we were telling her to hang up and find Miss B since the train was going to be approaching her station any minute. After a couple of minutes, we got the confirmation that Miss A and Miss B were finally together..and we heaved a sigh of relief.

Something made one of the members in the train again call Miss A and confirmed with her what platform she was standing in as the train was going to arrive on Platform No 5 on their station..! Miss A frantic again was giving signs that she was not sure which platform she was in..and again just after a few seconds she confirmed after asking someone she was indeed at platform No 5.

Yes a Big PHEW again!

It just couldn’t have ended there, Miss A was now confused as to where the second coach from the beginning of the train would stop and was lost and informed that she was probably standing at the place where the second last of the coach would stop. Now she would need at least 5 minutes in that station crowd to walk from one end of the platform to the other. The train started to move out from the signal. We informed her of the same! Miss A hung up! Everyone’s pulses in the train started climbing a higher note with every passing second. The train slowed down its speed as it was nearing the platform. Our blood pressure increasing with every passing minute thinking – will they? Won’t they? Will they get into the same coach? We were even discussing within ourselves that even incase they don’t get into the same coach, at least they should not miss the train and just get into any coach they can.

Two boys from the group went out to mann both the doors of the train, hanging literally outside to catch a glimpse of both those girls as there was a lot of crowd. The train slowed down and everyone inside completely silent with their eyes out of the windows trying to search those familiar two faces. The train stopped and YESSS THERE THEY WERE! They just made it in time to reach the same position where our coach would stop. When they entered, everyone cheered HIP HIP HURRAY! We did IT! We achieved the impossible!!! They were sweating…! We wanted to scream and shout at them for giving us so much stress, but we were so elated that we all finally made it “IN THE SAME TRAIN, IN THE SAME COACH” after those weeks of never ending discussions and doubts on them.

The resort like I mentioned, was just about all right, food quality – not something I would really prefer. The favorite singer of River Touch Resort seemed to be Himesh Reshammiya, as they kept swooning his songs over the poolside. We had a blast in the pool during the day. Playing games, chatting, singing on top of our voices was our agenda in the night. Yes!! we made sure that by the time we left that place we would surely be remembered for our noise in the hearts of every living soul around our bungalow including the big black lizard which was found in the boys room. 🙂  Overall an adventurous weekend with lots of team bonding and fun!