Color of LOVE

Blues of past

Violate Pink of heart

Colors of life

Festival of colors, HOLI

A chance to
 shade blues

Sprinkle and brush

Pink all over

In and out

--

Kinley 2014 TVC

Dil Ki Baat

 Telling the truth is easy. If to clean your room is easy, to keep your desk/table clean is easy, to keep your mobile contact list and your computer desktop neat is easy. It is a habit. To do otherwise will make you feel uneasy, feeling of dirty within.

 It was one such feeling I was harbouring since few days. It was a feeling of being dirty within. I knew I need to clean it. Will confession do? I am not a Christian but I can do it in front of my Krishna deity. And I tried it. Oh, I found him laughing at me. “You can fool others; you may even fool yourself, but me? Forget it”

I knew It will have to be true cleaning to get rid of this feeling of dirty within. Telling truth is not just telling it to anybody, anywhere. It is telling one to whom it matters. And in a way that adds to love and not hurt. If it hurts, it is not truth. For truth never hurt. So when I finally let it out, it was with tears freely flowing down from my eyes. It was melting of my ego.

 Why did I not tell him that I was going without him to Mansarovar yatra? I thought he was not fit enough and will not be able to go through rigorous and demanding tour schedule. He may not be able to withstand cold and thin air with less oxygen at height. I thought he may not be able to walk on mountain track. I thought it will take away lots of my time to be with him, taking care of him and being with him, trailing behind others and will miss most of thrill and fun of the tour. But I could not tell him this.

 We had often thought and planned together, to go to Mansarovar yatra. We planned it every year since last many years. But for one reason or other could not make it. Years passed. Time took its toll. My friend developed knee pain and it got worse. He is now not able to walk fast and climb up the track as he used to. Though we walk daily in the garden and share all that two close friends will, I did not have heart to tell him that I will go for Mansarovar yatra without him. I felt it will hurt him. I felt he will think I consider him a liability or he may ask me to postpone it till he gets better.

 Fact is I was too weak to tell him that he was not fit in a way that doesn't hurt him so I avoided telling him altogether. Now having booked myself for the tour I cannot bear thought as to what will my friend feel?

 When I began telling him that booking for Mansarovar yatra has started for this year and I plan to go, he put his hand on mine and asked me that I must book it only for myself and he will not come as he was not fit. With tears rolling down I told him I had already booked one seat for myself. I was coward not to tell him that he was not fit. I am sorry. He hugged me, tears rolling down his cheeks also.

 His words “Truth dil ki baat hai, dimaag ki nahi” will always be guiding me when I am reluctant to say truth that may hurt.



--

How foolish!

It was a bloody day

For all who care for life

For what represents freshness of life more than children?

For children

Life is not past but

Sea of possibilities

And that is what scares some

Who want to live in past

They tried to tarnish canvas

That permits any drawing

Any color

Any shape

Any thought

With color of blood of some children,
But canvas is too vast

As big as sky!

How foolish!

To think that

Few drops of blood in sea

Will change its nature!

Those who dare to swim against current

Are bound to get drawn in sea of time

For no force can stop

An idea whose time has come

Time has come for a new world order

That says your faith is private and individual subject
Your individual link with God is no business of anybody else

And so it is for your neighbors

And fellow citizens and all on this planet

Respect this fact

No force can work here

Only love can

Respect this order

Respect time

--

Written to say thank you to those school children of Peshawar who were brutally murdered in an act of cowardice by extremists in Pakistan. These children will be remembered as ones who helped to change course of this world.

Vacation with children.

I will recommend a natural and spacious place for vacation when with family.

I used to love to take my children to sea beaches and hillsides in my younger days. Art galleries (yes, art galleries! Do not expect them to discuss art, but they do understand it in their own way!) are lovely spots where children often enjoy more than adults! And of course gardens are their favorite.

My most favorite places are sea beaches.

Sand is a medium that children and adults love to play with and create different world out of it! Sand castles and mountains and what not! Writing names and drawing faces and smiley is fun that comes natural to all – children, parents and grandparent! Creativity gets free flow here. 

Collecting seashells and arranging them later in room is an experience even my fourteen month old grandchild remembers and cherish! He often takes out collected seashells, which are now stored in a used plastic box and shows us. If he could speak, he will say – let’s go there! Let’s build sand castles and watch sun setting. I want to listen to birds chirping and breeze whistling! 

 As a grandparent I know that building sand castles with my grand child was more than play and fun. It was as if I wanted to tell him all in short time. All that I did as a child and all that I want him to know – how, when, where, why.....!

Let me produce a picture with few lines inserted in it. It tells what I want to say explicitly. 

A dip in water with grandchild and his parents around is I think as holy as any holy dip in religious places. It is remembered long after vacation. One just needs to be careful if children are too young. An adult must always be there with them.

Sea beaches usually have notice suggesting where water are dangerous. Avoid such places. In any case, inquire with local people and hotel staff, if it is safe to enter water there. Even swimming pools are great. Please remember to carry your swimming costumes and that of children as well.  Children love water. If they are too young and do not know swimming, please give them some time to get used to water. Please do not expect them to get going from the very first moment you put them in water. If they do, it is fine. If they do not, they will; after some time. Once they get going, you will find it difficult to make them come out. They will want to go on and on and on....

Please be careful about food that you eat at sea beaches. I will recommend coconut water and packed chips. Please avoid Chats like Bhel and Panipuri. I know it is tempting, but it is not worth enough to spoil your vacation. You may try Bhutta (corn cob) freshly roasted in front of you.

Some pictures under tell all.

Just let go when on vacation. Your children want to see you that way. 
It is a gift they are waiting for!

Just relax and play wherever you are and rest will be taken care by nature!

--

Please click :     http://www.clubmahindra.com/teddytravelogues/.    for most amazing travel stories!

This article is written for IB contest - Happy Hours: Teddy Travelogues

Road Safety in India

Safety does not come in a can

But

I can

You can

We can

Make it safe

I am required to drive about fifty Km. to work and back daily. It is mostly on highway. Resultant stress not just drains my energy, it makes me feel hopeless.
Most accident that I see on the road, I feel, could be avoided with little more respect for life.

One question always arise in my mind – what can I do about this?

One thing is obvious that some care and efforts on part of authorities as well people using road can make life on roads much easier and safer. Many measures do not require much money.

 I decided to create a platform where I and my friends can share problems faced by road users and its solutions. A Face Book page “Safer Highways” is created. Problems faced by highway users are shared on this page. It serves as feed back to authorities.  (My request to all reading this article to visit page “Safer Highways “ on FB and like it. Please use it to share your experience and suggestions)

Some steps that can help make Indian roads safer, easier to use and increase efficiency are:

1)      Driving skill, attitude towards safety and awareness level of drivers are very important. Good roads are of no help if driver is bad.
Drivers should be well trained and tested.  Can we think of one more independent agency testing driver, before issue of the licence? After all it is a question of safety of many.

2)      Very old vehicles on road often create problems due to breakdown. All vehicles after ten years should pass through minimum safety requirements every year.

3)      Overloaded vehicles and vehicles with long items coming out are dangerous for others on the road. Strict action must be taken by RTO.

Two pictures given here are taken while travelling on NH. no. 3. Truck in front was carrying long rolled products coming out  from rear end. It could be seen only when car came closer (picture no. 2). Traffic was moving at the speed of about 70km. per hour.
This is a situation on road that must be avoided at any cost. It is full of potentiality of fetal accident.

4)      Most trucks and three wheeler do not have proper clean rear reflectors and glowing strips.  They are very hazardous. It hardly cost any money. Used CD can also serve as a good reflector.

Can you see a truck in front in the picture given under? Strict action should be taken against such offenders.

5)      Speed limits should be strictly enforced. Normal speed meets every need, doesn’t it? 

6)      Now let us talk about roads.

*Roads should be properly lit.
*Lanes should be marked. Lane discipline needs to be taught and reinforced in driving school and during driving test. 
*Speed breakers should be as per standard size and well marked with glowing paints.
*Beginning and end of road dividers should be having sign with glowing paint or LED lights.

*There should be one particular officer accountable for a specified stretch of road. People should be able to email pictures and suggestions to him for problems faced on that portion of road. Accountability should be fixed.

7)      Points discussed above will serve no purpose if we are not responsible towards safety and convenience of others using road also. Courteous attitude on road reduce level of stress in self and others leading to safer travel.
Let us make our roads safe and pleasant to use. I will end saying that safety is not just insurance, it is a prayer.

Safety like quality

Never an accident,

Result of conscious efforts and

Elevated awareness,

Originating from

Respect for life,

It is a tribute to

The creator of life

---

Above article is written for  Nissan Safety Driving Forum contest. Please visit link given under.

The Nissan Safety Driving Forum.

Fourth dimension

Fourth dimension

Joy of

Passing on

All that is known to me

How, why, when, where......

So that I too am a part

Of the life

You live

(With grandson Siddharth on Juhu beach building a sand castle)

Long after

I am

No more

Oh, it touched within

Oh, it touched within 

It says

It is yours

It is mine

It is ours, for

Whole world is a family

It touched within

Now my mission

To create a world I felt

It is a magic 

More Indian than you think

--

Raas Lila

Silence creates the space

Separating mind from heart

And heart from soul

In deep silence

Soul often reveals

Secret of universe to heart

In a language unknown to mind

Heart can only pass it to

Another heart, also

In silence

Two hearts communicate

Play, dance

Celebrate.....

As long as in silence.

Acrylic colours on white drawing paper (21"x15") by Harshad. 

..... and it happens

...And it happens

When hopes are given up

When possibilities are deemed nil

When attempts are mechanical

Life springs surprises

And a shower on dry earth

Spread aroma filling heart

Life is worth living!

--

Godliness

Wondering what color to give to Radha

For who knows color

of 

Pure love?