Beautiful on the inside!

Last week I had a very interesting discussion with my daughter on our drive to school early morning. The sky was grey, there was chill in the air foreboding the advent of winter season in our sunny California. Anything that takes our sunshine away is nothing less than evil to a true Californian.

She comment how she doesn't like Winter as it brings the grey melancholy sky, depressing rain and worst of all bare trees. "Oh, I just don't like bare trees. They look so sad and ugly."

Her last line caught my attention/ had me raise my eyebrow in concern. While I myself don't like winter that much. I just love trees. I love the different forms and shapes of trees in every seasons. I love the changing colors of tree leaves and flowers they adorn. I just love how stout they stand and brave the inclement weather. Ask my husband and he will shake his head and tell you how I ended up in an accident as I was admiring the beautiful fall color of this magnificent yellow tree while driving!! It is difficult to explain to an Insurance agent how I didn't watch the road as I was watching the tree!! (in my defense it was for a split second but there I was admiring the tree and making a mental note to bring my camera with me next day..)

So I decided to help my daughter try to see the other side of the coin. I asked her, "Do you know why trees shed leaves during fall?" She answered, "Yeah yeah, I know it is to prepare for winter." I probed,"How does it help the tree?" She said, "It closes all the pores so that frost doesn't get in the tree and kill it. I know all that Mamma. Its just I really miss these beautiful green leaves and flowers. It just doesn't look pretty bare."

"Well", I said, "have you thought of the beauty of a tree's survival instinct. The bravery of its soul and tenacity of its character while it sheds all its outer beauty so that it can protect the life form within?" I prodded her to consider the absolute beauty in the strength and bravery. "For a tree to know that it must shed all its lush leaves and flowers so that it can sprout the delicate bud of the spring in the due course of time when the weather is more forgiving/congenial/welcoming! It is to be bare and ugly on the outside now so that the future will bring beauty that it protect inside all winter. Is it not the strength that is the real beauty which is inside? We don't see it with our eyes but the tree has it inside all the time! Think about it!"

Is it not true to our human nature as well, to look and admire the beauty on the outside but overlook the beauty on the inside that is deeper, stronger and forever there compared to the outside beauty that may/will wither?

My Favorite Fall Trees

Fly, my child, fly!

I prayed every moment that went by
for a sweet little child to play in my heart
to take her hands and to fly
to hear a giggle and a squeal
a tiny footprint on my soul
that carries my love from day to dreams..

And the day you were born
we were blessed
eyes mist with tears
heart filled with cheers
soul delirious
happiness all around..

You bring melody to our heart
your laughter fills our lives
and as time goes by
always remember

You are our blessing,
You are our joy,
You are our pride,
and our prayer
You are special
and you are born to fly..

Be the brave one when others fear

be the kind one when other hesitates 

be the gentle one and soar with the wind 

let your courage take you high

Fly, my child fly!

Change your sunglasses!

I misplaced my sunglasses and had to go hunt for new ones. I have gotten tired of changing my prescription regular glasses to prescription sunglasses every time I am in the sun and have resorted to just wearing the wrap around sun glasses that sits over your glasses. They are big and ugly and don't come in many variations. So I did have to hunt for an acceptable one. The one I got is a different color tint than the ones I have used so far.

I walk out the store and put on my new glasses and saw my world view change dramatically. Everything looked new, vibrant and full of energy. It was exhilarating and energizing!! Seriously. Looking through different point of view to gain new perspective suddenly took on a whole new meaning, at the same time validating the old wisdom.

That is all we have to do, is to sometime step back and look at things differently. It is good to once in a while  try to see the world differently. There are so many hue and connotations to the world around us, people around us that relaxing our view point and opening our mind to new experiences can enrich our lives. So go ahead, change your sunglasses, experiment, step out of your comfort zone and you never know you may discover something new, different and something worthwhile. 

Love can hurt also!!

Today on the way back home, after soccer, in the car...

Nandini: Shivali, you have to read books. You know it is very very very bad that you are not reading books. You are so lucky that you can read and have so many books.. When you will grow up, people will ask you - have you read, Harry Potter series...no, have you read Nancy Drew series...no, have you read The Chronicles of Narnia...no. So you know what, from now on if you don't read 2 books a week, I won't talk to you the whole of Sunday.

Shivali: WHAT??!!!

Nandini: Yes. And if I do talk, that would be accidental and so don't you go and take advantage of that. OK. 

Shivali: Why would you do that to me? It is not nice that you won't talk to me for a whole day. Which sister says that to her sister that she will not talk to her? That's not how good sisters behave.

Nandini: Tell me Shivali, am I a mean bratty sister or a kind loving one. Not talking to you for a whole day I agree, it can be both, a mean sister and a loving one. Am I a mean one like Candace (ref: Phineas and Ferb, TV show)? Am I selfish? Do I tattle tale on you? Or am I a loving kind sister who wants the best for you? Who wants you to read books for your own good? Which one do you think I am? Do you want to grow up and then realize that your sister wanted you to read books for your own good and not for her good but your own good? I am only doing this for your own good. In fact it is bad for me. You know it will be hard for me to not talk to you also.

Shivali: But does that mean that I have to read 2 whole books... 8 chapters each??

Nandini: Shivali, I can read that in an hour!!!

Shivali: You are bragging. It’s not nice to brag.

Nandini: NO, I am not. You can read it in a day.

Shivali: But why would you give me such a punishment? I am not happy about this. I won't play with you ever... Does that mean I can't talk with you??

Nandini: No it means that you can go ahead and talk but you won't get a response from me till you read your books. It is not a punishment; in fact I actually dread doing that.

Shivali: What does dread mean?

Nandini: (explains what dread means)

Shivali: I still don't like it. Do you know how bored I will get if I can't talk to you, play with you all day?

Nandini: Shivali, you don't get this. I am trying to help you here. OK, so how about then you have to read just one and half… OK… OK just one book.

And there I was driving back home and paying attention to the road but trying desperately hard to remember the conversation for posterity!!

Isn't this true how often we take the good advice also in a wrong way and not see that the other person means well. And also isn't it often that we give well meaning advice with some condition that actually does more harm than good. 

Making Friends.

Making friends and nurturing them is an art.

I some time excel in it and some time suck at it. I remember how difficult it was for me to make friends in school. I lived in my family's shadow. So where ever I went, I was someone's daughter or sister.

But by the time I reached college, I made a monumental decision about myself.. I was going to start fresh without the past baggage with a new identity and just be myself. The anonymity of college gave me fresh life and I excelled in making friends. I still nurture some deepest connections I made during that phase. The attention I got was because of me, not because of my family. I had learned the art of making friends. All it needed was for me to smile and extend my hand in friendship. It came easy after overcoming the initial shyness. I learned how to make friends and be one... In my naiveness I decided to be a friend to everyone that life brought along.

And then I learned the hard way that you can't be friends with everyone. You cannot have everyone you meet, be your friend and even like you. And I don't have to like everyone I meet! In fact I had to learn to accept the fact that no matter what I do, some may hate me with an intensity that I can not undo. It is their choice. And It is my choice to like who I like and whom I don't. I also learned that I have to stop trying so hard for people to like me, accept me. Because those who like me will like me no matter what and those who don't, will not like me no matter what! I became selective and choosy about my friendship.

So now with all this life time accumulated wisdom about friendship, how does it makes sense that life has still some more lessons to teach you! I thought I had learnt the art of choosing the right friend. But what I didn't know was that friends can change also. And that can take the wind out of your sail.

Sometimes you have to try really hard to nurture a friendship and sometimes you have to accept the fact that it cannot be fixed.

Life is too short to try to fix a toxic one and too short to not try to fix some. And it comes with experiences to know which one to pick and which one to let go. Or am I still being naive??!!

Singer, I am not!

A few years ago my mother asked me, "Why have you stopped singing? You used to sing all the time!" I was surprised, first by her observation and second by my lack of observation. Oh yeah, I had indeed stopped singing... lost were the songs sung at the top of my vocal capacity during my childhood, and the constant humming of my early youth.

Before I go any further, let me tell you that I honestly can't carry a tune to save my life! I have had people sing, outside the bathroom door (discreetly!), the same song to show me how terrible I was!! So yes, I am that bad, but nothing could stop me from singing, even the embarrassment. I used to enjoy singing for the pure joy and with the abundance of optimism that one feels in childhood and youth.

So back to the question, why did I stop singing? I think it was the burden of life that just happened to pass along my way. One thing led to another and in my efforts to toughen up to face the world by myself, I started to lose some parts of me. Sometime a mere survival is all that you can muster up the courage for. Everything else becomes trivial.

Then I became a mother! And I just naturally started singing lullabies to my baby to sooth her. The weight of the world became trivial while I happily floated in the pleasure of motherhood. Just so you know this doesn't mean my singing got any better. One time I am quite sure my daughter (less than a year old!) tried to close my mouth while I was singing to make her sleep. Maybe she was ready to sleep and my songs were keeping her awake!! (Am I an optimist or what!!)

My mother also used to tell us when we were kids that the sweetest voice for a mother is not any world famous melody queen, its the voice of her child! Being a mother myself, now I understand what she meant and also why she noticed my lack of singing. My daughter luckily didn't get my singing genes, she can actually sing well and in tune. She told me very gently one day, "Maa, I don't want to be rude but you can't sing. You can draw very well but a singer, you are not!!

So imagine my surprise when one day she had a nightmare, she called out to me and said, "Maa, can you please sing that song for me. It will help me calm down and comfort me!"

I think I achieved my singing nirvana that day!

Rainbow after Rain!

Today I dropped my daughter off at school and almost reached the car when it started raining. I ran back towards her knowing that her hair was still wet from morning shower and wanted her to cover up her head while she was lining up to get in the class. Half way to her class the rain stopped. I turned back to go to the car, as I was getting  late for work and really needed to be on my way. That's when I saw the most beautiful rainbow that stopped me in my track.

I debated shall I go back and share the rainbow with her or shall I continue to my daily morning rush hour drive. It didn't take me long to realize that while I will continue to endure the morning rush hour for many many years, sharing that moment of pure bliss watching her beautiful face lit up with utmost joy will be the highlight of my day and possibly one of many memorable moments that I'll sit and reflect later on with a smile on my face. So I did. I turned back, walked up to her, got down to her eye level and showed her the rainbow. I wish I had a camera to capture her expression, the way her eyes widened and the smile covered her entire little frame.

What a beautiful start to an otherwise cold rainy day!!