Musings that Amuse Me.....

Initially, I tossed aside Gretchen Rubin s ‘ The Happiness Project’ book as another vague self help book that sits beside tons of   ‘ Eight ways to becoming rich’ type self help books.   Then the little footer ‘ Start your own happiness project’ and the little ‘ Why I spent a year trying to sing in the morning…’ note in the cover convinced me to buy it to read. Simply because, like many, I believe Happiness scores over many things – including the egoistic desire to be right- in life The lawyer turned writer Gretchen did set me thinking.   She does not outline a standard ‘ formula of happiness’ with a list of do s and don’t s for everyone. Instead, she describes her own attempts to make her life happier in a structured way, focusing on one aspect of what contributes to her happiness. This makes a crucial difference to the reader. Usually, we feel ‘lectured upon’ when we read self help books. Not with this one. I can assure you that you will find a candid narration of her own expe

The popular saying goes that God could not love us all at the same time so He created mothers.   God was indeed smart – not only did He ensure more love for children, He also ensured less work for Himself. Noone really cares or realizes what a great responsibility being a mother is – until they themselves become a parent.   As a child, I saw my mom manage three of us brothers and my dad – preparing breakfast, preparing and packing our lunches in our respective boxes, making sure we all got our morning coffees, collected jasmine flowers and prepared garlands and got the altar ready for my dad to do his prayers…all by 8 AM. After we all left to our schools and my dad left for work, my mom washed clothes, washed vessels, cleaned up the house and hold your breath – manually drew water from a well that was 100 feet deep –this was water required for a family of 5 – bathing, washing, cleaning – because we did not have taps at home. She then attended to my dad when he came home for lu

To Father, with Love.. I do not advocate speaking for others or generalizing, but this is one statement I can confidently say others who experienced it will agree - No event in anyone s life is as significant as the day he/she becomes a parent. I am not going to give the details on changing diapers or getting up at 2 30 AM and running to feed the baby or any other responsibility as a parent. They all either change or go away after a period of time. The most significant change in my life when I became a Dad about four months ago, is the way I surprised myself at how I could accomodate someone other than me as the central focus in my life. All along the 39 years of my life, i found it hard to accept someone else driving my schedule or decisions.  There was one central focus of all my actions - my happiness.  Suddenly, I found myself trying hard to make my son feel comfortable - even at my own discomfort. Nothing seemed to matter other than providing him the best I can get. I wanted him