The World is Not Going to End...

Last post of this year about something very small but important…!

My pregnancy has been the toughest phase of my life. The physical pain was much more than I had anticipated. I used to wonder whether I would be able to cope up with the upcoming responsibilities or not! But I am thankful and grateful to God for showing me a completely new facet of life during this period.

We witness a number of mishaps around us. Negativity reaches our minds via electronic, print and social media. And in this hullabaloo, we often miss the positive moments life brings to us. I realized this when I actually started looking for it.

During my pregnancy, my Boss and colleagues were very co-operative towards me. Especially my Boss was not only helpful, but also very caring and played the role of a Professional Guardian, a Father Figure! The most positive change happened with my workplace customers who used to complain about almost each and everything. They suddenly became very nice towards me as soon as they came to know about my condition.

But I am not here to talk about the change which happened to my known ones. I wish to share an experience with a stranger, which left a great impression on me.

I remember, it was the third trimester of my pregnancy when I had to go on deputation. The destination was relatively far from my house and I was worried of getting sick on the way. Somehow, the cab driver, whom I had hired, read my mind. During the hour long journey, he maintained a smooth drive and asked a couple of times, “Madamji, aap thik ho na?”

When I reached the office, he offered to walk beside me to the main gate. I denied and he left saying, “Apna dhyaan rakhiyega.”

I know it is not that big an incident, but if you ponder over its positive facet, it is a great gesture of humanity.

We do not fail to share our negative experience. I decided to share a positive one. The world is not going to end. There are good people around us. We need to share as many good experiences as we can. This way, we can motivate people towards good deeds. It is one hundred thousand times better than spreading negativity. It is a very small episode and it might appear insignificant to you. But as they say, “Small things can cause bigger effects.” So is this incident to me…

The light of God always shines upon those people who are nice to others…!

[pic. courtesy : google]

Stupendous Start-Ups : Amit Mishra's Uniting Earth

Gone are the days when career options used to come with limited scope in traditional strata. Nowadays, the Young India loves to explore beyond boundaries and challenge their limits. They welcome the risks of new ventures, work out on the strategies and emerge as winners.

Amit Mishra, with his venture “Uniting Earth”, is the new face in this league. The idea of giving new spectrum to Journalism was the reason behind its conception. He along with his team defines new age Journalism in a very artistic way. Whole functioning of “Uniting Earth” itself displays their zeal towards their goal as the team mates haven’t even met in reality but their operations never face any miscommunications.

Team “Uniting Earth” comprises enthusiastic young bloods who hail from different locations of our country giving true meaning to their venture.

Amit Mishra is the chairman of “Uniting Earth”. He is an alumnus of St. Xavier’s School, Sahibganj. He is also the co-founder & Partner (Operations) of Financial Freedom (A Partnership Firm), which renders services on Financial Matters. With years of studies & experience in overall management at different levels he stepped in at St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata for his Post Graduate Diploma in Mass Communication & Public Relations. While he had completed only half the course, he decided to launch his venture, i.e; Uniting Earth.

Prerna Daga is the co-founder & Chief Editor of Uniting Earth. Education carved out an engineer of her but passion fastened her with the wings to quit mundane hours and pilot her dreams to be an editor. She has volunteered with Feeding India, a social organization working to establish a hunger-free nation. She has a long list of writings which have been published at various platforms. She is alongside pursuing her Post Graduate Diploma in Mass Communication & Public Relations from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata.

Kriti Dhara is the Associate Editor of Uniting Earth. Having graduated from management stream and with a wish to fly higher, she chose the field of Journalism to fulfill her dreams. She has worked in the Public Relations Department of a famous daily Newspaper. She then got admitted in St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata to pursue in Mass Communication & Public Relations. She is also going to change the news reporting pattern that has been followed for years in the world.

Isha Sharma is the Editor & overall in-charge for Hindi section of Uniting Earth. She is a bilingual writer and is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) from Teerthanker Mahaveer University, Moradabad (Uttar Pardesh). She has a passion for writing and her articles are published on various Online & Offline media houses/publications. She has also been editor for different Organisations. In 2015, she was awarded “Aagman Yuva Pratibha Sammaan” by Aagman group in Greater Noida.

Adrija Shrivastav is handling the HR department of Uniting Earth. Although a novice in this area, she has the mental ability and tact in dealing with people intelligently and em-pathetically. Been an active social service volunteer since school days and also interned with IIM-C on a project to help reach out to the unprivileged children by providing free education. She has also interned with an advertising agency for a short period of time. Being a Xaverian for the past 18 years and counting, she takes pride in having a moral sense to discriminate between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, ‘just’ & ‘unjust’ and that’s where the quality of a true HR professional lies.

These beautiful young souls create a perfect harmony in operating their venture. They mostly communicate via phone calls and emails. For the comfort of operations for this Proprietary Firm which is registered under the “Udyog Adhar”, they have divided team in two groups. Isha, Kriti and Prerna are in the First group which supervises the Core Activity including Editing and Publishing. Adrija and Amit manage all other activities. Any disputes or difference of opinion is handled and settled mutually considering the opinion of the person’s expertise in the area.

Amit Mishra, the chairman of “Uniting Earth” agreed to share few words.

     Q - What is it in journalism that attracts you so much?

Amit - According to me, “It’s better to be unique than trying to be perfect”. Journalism gives this option. Unlike all other career development paths, Journalists can convey to the world in their own way, whatever they feel, think & analyse. These days Journalists act as perfect Opinion Leaders for the masses. Being hungry for knowledge, I will also get the privilege to information, people & places easily.

      Q - What in "Uniting Earth" makes it unique?

Amit - We wish we will be able to Unite the people on the Earth into one family, i.e; Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (वसुधैवकुटुम्बकम), as in Maha Upanishad. Uniting earth is a start up with young blood, college going students, who will write & report based on facts and at this age anyone gives the most in their workplace. These days, print & electronic media are being replaced by social/new media and we wish to work totally on them. We are virtually connected & from the very beginning we are getting writers from international locations. We wish to keep the writing open for everyone, from every location and on variant of topics starting from World Updates, National Updates, Political articles, Government (State & Central) Plans & Programmes, Business, Science & Technology, Social Affairs, Environment, Spirituality, Lifestyle, Health & Education, Food & Recipes and anything to everything you can imagine of. The writer’s content will be published only when the editorial team deems it to be fit.

      Q- Do you think it is easy to convert your hobby into job especially in India?

Amit -  Answering on personal level, I love any work in which I become responsible and I get an opportunity to act as a leader. So, my work is generally my hobby.

Answering on a mass level, yes if one wishes and gives his/her best during the college & initial days of job, hobby can be converted to job in India too. Love what you do, and it becomes easy going.

      Q- What challenges you are facing in your venture?

Amit - To be very honest, since we are open from anything to everything and still very new, major challenges are yet to come. However, the number of people in the team will increase, and that has to be managed efficiently, and hope it to be easy as the communication channel (via internet) has become so smooth these days. The biggest challenge, which we are considering is trying to reach our article to maximum number of readers.

     Q- Your message to our readers.

Amit - Uniting Earth – In Search of Truth, as the name suggest, we will always provide true & fair information. We also wish the world attains our Objective, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, i.e. the attributes of an individual who has attained the highest level of spiritual progress. We make the option available to the readers, to join our Family of Writers by getting in touch with the HR Manager (hr@unitingearth.com). We wish to keep our contents crisp, true & related to the headline of the article. Also wish, you remain tuned to our website, i.e. www.unitingearth.com.

Good Luck to Amit and his team for their venture!

Book Review : "7 Days" by Stanish Gill

Horror is the least explored genre in Indian fiction. As far as I recall, I haven’t come across a horror book by any Indian author in last few years. In spite of having versatility in themes such as gore, slasher, pure ghost horror, demon, Indian folklore version of vampires and werewolves [Narkitaas and Bhakol respectively], Indian authors seem less interested in creating spine chilling tales of this genre. Indian Film Industry have already come up with a number of blockbuster horror movies. Now, Indian popular fiction sets to explore the dark fantasy world.

“7 Days” by Mr. Stanish Gill marks the beginning of this trend. This psychological horror has much more to offer than just the chilling effect of its cover blurb.

About the Author

Mr. Stanish Gill is a young writer associated with Film Writer Association as an Associate Writer. Apart from writing fictional novels, he also writes Hindi songs. Some of his works have been published in newspapers and on the Film Writer Association portal. He is an Educationist by profession and lives along with his wife and two sons in Mumbai.

Storyline and Plot-Structure

The storyline of “7 Days” is not that intricate. The story opens with a romantic essence and gradually moves towards the haunting elements. After few lovey – dovey meetings, Apurva and Suman decide to marry. They choose the jungles of Nainital for their honeymoon and there strikes the horror. How they cope up with it and how they overcome, is the story the readers would love to explore. The beauty of the story lies in its alliance with psychology.  The author makes his intention quite clear when the impact is laid more on the psychological element than the horror one. With this twist, “7 Days” becomes more of a psychological exploration than a plain horror. That is the beauty if you may call it.

Plot structure is very fine. It is simple with evenly divided chapters. The scene breaks make the book more enjoyable.  One particular mentionable thing is the scene-shifts have been highlighted. It is not indispensable but it certainly makes the story more graspable leaving no room for plot confusion. The technical aspect of plot structure is quite evident in the book.

Narration and Dialogues

“Dracula” by Abraham Stoker is my all time favourite horror. Deep within, the story is not intricate. There is a blood-thirsty vampire against whom few humans stand challenging him and his allies. Quite simple! But it is the intriguing narration and nail-biting thrill in every page which keeps the readers hooked till end. Narration is a very important element in every thriller-horror book. Thankfully, “7 Days” stands up to this requirement. The narration of Mr. Gill is lucid and vivid. The striking feature of his narration is keeping up the readers’ interest without any unnecessary description. Not even a single scene seems dragged. Everything is just. Mr. Gill has kept the script tight perhaps keeping in mind the racy contemporary readers. Today, people don’t like reading a book of 300+ pages. It becomes difficult for dedicated writers to wind everything up in rather lesser pages especially when the story demands wide spectrum. But Mr. Gill manages everything quite well. Narration has not been bombarded with the technical horror elements. That is actually a ‘cool’ feature of the book.

Dialogues are abundant in this book. I firmly believe that abundance of dialogues gives any book a cinematic feel of reading as if everything is happening just in front. “7 Days” stood true to this belief of mine. To be true, the nature of dialogues actually gave me a screenplay type of feeling. Given the author’s profile, the screenplay effect of the dialogues and narration seems so apt. It gives more of a movie feeling than a book.

Characterization

Mr. Gill hasn’t dwelt too deep in characterization in this book which itself has very few characters. Both the protagonists are simple human beings who have different approach towards life. Both approaches are very common in our society. Apurva, who is quite serious about life, represents a majority of men. And Suman, who is very lively, can mingle easily with middle class Indian women. Parents of both individuals represent the typical affluent class. Apurva’s friend Arijit is a gem of a person who stands with his friend in most terrible times. Though, Apurva and Suman have got the credits of being the protagonist in this book, I believe that Dr. Vincent becomes the actual heart-stealer. Again, his character is not that much intricate. But he manages to leave a mark behind, with his philosophies and beliefs. Dr. Vincent represents those people who learn the lessons of life very hard way. And then, there is this mysterious woman Sapna whose seemingly innocuous womanly dreams never cease to torment her soul.

As I said earlier, Mr. Gill has kept the characterization quite simple. But simplicity is the best beauty and “7 Days” stands true to it.

Treatment of Love and Romance

“What do women want?”

It is the common question which almost every man whines about. The irony is they never accept the answer that easily. Leave aside few ambitious ones, then what could women want more than care, love, respect, and a bit of romance in their life? But instead of trying to accept it, men chose to blame the women stating ‘they are never happy’. It is because men have a broader universe which includes their family, career, friends, hobbies and ambitions. Once everything is concluded, a little room is left for their life-partners. Sometimes, they go so low in their priority list that their quality ‘times’ never match. On the contrary, women’s lives revolve around their men. They plan their career, friends, outings and even interaction with their own parents as according to their ‘men’. It is about time, men need to understand that the woman; who left the people who brought her in this world, educated her, taught the meanings of life, the people she grew up and played with; and happily made an unknown person and his dreams and wishes the topmost priority of her life actually deserves abundance of love and care. Since the day, she tied knot with this unknown man, her previous relations got twisted and she may never look upon them as before. She cannot confide in them as earlier. And if in return, she wants his attention and his pampering, is it too much she asking for?

“7 Days” explores this desire of women. I find this treatment of love very unique in this book. Perhaps, the vast experience of Mr. Gill shaped his emotions and views and he poured them in the love sequences. It is one of the strongest reasons I would recommend this book to book-lovers.

If anybody asks for my opinion on what kind of book this is, I would simply say that “7 Days” is an exploration of Love through a woman’s soul…

Book Review: 'Turning Back Time' by Shravya Gunipudi

I guess the purpose of writing is to be read. In whatever genre the write-up [including novels] is, the sole purpose of writing is to be read. But when it comes to publishers, the purpose of publication becomes profit which is as genuine as it could ever be. When a businessman invests money in his products his expectation of profit is quite obvious. That is the reason the sale potential of a book decides its fate of publication. Worldwide, romance books sell more than any other genre [except fantasy fiction] and that is why they are the eye-candy of publishers.

Gargi Publishers is an exception. It is not the first time that I read a lot of books from the same publisher/author. But, the diversity I found is quite an experience. Such a gem from their publishing house “Turning Back Time” by Shravya Gunipudi is a unique kind of book. I haven’t read any such book till date. Writing such kind of book requires exceptional prowess. But publishing such type of book requires quintessential confidence and courage. Such hard-hitting books seldom appeal to people who do not wish to face reality. Investment in such book by a new age publishing house itself speaks of the caliber of the book. I congratulate the publisher for daring to change the course.

“Turning Back Time” marks the new era of books which complete both the aspects of writing – to be read and to be remembered.

About the Author

Shravya Gunipudi is a 23 years old and she has been writing since she was nine. She has won numerous prizes for her articles, short stories and poetry which include ‘Best Writer of the Year, 2013’ by yourstoryclub.com

A CA and CS by profession, Ms. Gunipudi wishes to explore her passion both in Finance and Writing. It is her dream to merge her creative side with her analytical one. Writing, she believes, is the best form of expression that calms the mind and frees the soul. Her favourite quote is ‘Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing about’.

Storyline and Plot Structure

The storyline of “Turning Back Time” is hard-hitting and close to reality. It is really wonderful that a 23 years old girl decides to write about the ignored facet of life. It is the story of Alia who struggles hard to make her ends meet. She juggles herself in two different jobs at a childcare centre and old age home in the mornings and evenings respectively. Financial trouble makes her bitter and hostile. Ms. Gunipudi beautifully implements her philosophy in Alia’s life via several incidents at her work places. In the old age home, Alia acquaints four seniors who share their life-story with her which changes her approach towards life. She learns to live life without regrets.

There is a parallel plot structure in the book. One of the sub-plots is the record of present while the other travels via reveries. These reveries come as diary, notes or normal conversation time to time. The second sub-plot is divided in four stories which belong to the four seniors respectively. So, we can say that there are four stories comprised in this book. I appreciate the way Ms. Gunipudi has configured the plot. She has overcome the biggest challenge of reality social fiction of keeping the readers engrossed in the story. The articulation inculcates the curiosity and keeps up the interest.

Narration and Dialogues

Dialogues are abundant in this book. I personally believe that dialogues keep the story alive. Psychologically, dialogues give the readers an impression of a cinematic view. The book does exactly the same.

Narration of ‘Turning Back Time’ is lucid and fluent. The sub-plots, prologue and epilogue have been written with a flowing rhythm. However, I felt that it could have been better. The writing prowess of Ms. Gunipudi doesn’t match her narration skills. She can do better. At several points in the book, the scenes shift rapidly leaving the readers in confusion. I suggest her to consider scene-breaks in the chapters. Her best is yet to come in narration.

Characterization

Ms. Gunipudi has taken real life characters. There are a lot of girls in our country like Alia who bear the responsibilities of the family and struggle to make the ends meet. The hardships of life make her bitter which is also just and true in several cases. The seniors Hema, Sita, Girish and Raman are like Banyan trees – aged with a number of branches falling around and every branch telling the story of an unseen facet of life and unraveling the chosen-to-be-ignored strata of society.

Among such characters, Mayank is like a soft breeze of fantasy flowing in this otherwise desert of reality. He is romantic, consistent and responsible. Just like a romantic hero. Well, a minute observation depicts Ms. Gunipudi’s explanation on the equation of life. As all of us know that life is a balanced equation, dearth is equated with abundance at certain points of life. Mayank and Alia denote that. The dearth of comfort in Alia’s life is equated by Mayank and Mayank finds true love in Alia.

There aren’t many characters in this book which makes the book more composed with its perspective. All other minor characters play their role significantly in their respective short frames.

Treatment of Love and Romance

In the main sub-plot, love is the prevalent theme. The love-story of Alia and Mayank proliferates with the flow of story. They discover each other’s feelings and views on social concerns. However, in the parallel sub-plot, love has been treated more brutally. The sub-plots take the readers to those times and strata of society where love is unknown and only carnal relations and lust prevail. Ms. Gunipudi has been brutally honest on this aspect. Well, it takes guts to be so honest with the emotion which sells the most in today’s scenario. I congratulate Ms. Gunipudi for that.

“Turning Back Time” is a reality fiction coming from a girl who chose to pen it down when other writers of her age decide to document their failed relationships. It is a reply to such critics who mourn over the lack of depth in new age writers. Such understanding, such articulation, such depth at such a tender age! I wonder what next is coming from her brain!

Few thoughts on "The God Factor" by Nitin Shrivastava

“The God Factor” is a non-fiction penned by Nitin Srivastava. Nitin is an Asstt. Professor in an Engineering College. His continuous interaction with his students and a lot of other people provided him enough insight of an unhappy and discontented mind which encouraged him to write this book. The book is actually a detailed analysis of different perceptions and their impact on our life.

Author Nitin has taken reference of ‘Maya’ from Hindu mythology and efficiently explained our wishes and desires and sometimes, our ‘greed’ on its basis.

Why we are never happy or contented no matter how much we get? Can’t we learn to live the moment and leave the rest of the life in the hands of ‘God’? Why do we dwell in past and let it ruin our present as well as future? Why we rely more on destiny than ‘karma’?

These are the few questions which find focused answers in this book by Nitin Srivastava. According to the author, there is a permanent melancholy cord in us. Happiness is a choice and even a childless couple can have it if they wish to. Happiness leads to success in life. Nitin Srivastava has chosen some folk stories and anecdotes to elaborate his point and he certainly seems to be successful about it.

“The God Factor” could prove to be useful for such people who prefer pessimism to optimism. The book is short and simple yet powerfully speaks for itself. Proper editing of the book could have made it more appealing. However, Author Nitin Srivastava succeeds in a thoughtful interpretation of one of the most important aspects of life.

Author Nitin Srivastava could be contacted at http://www.nitinsrivastava.net/

Getting a bit cynical with PINK

Once in a while, the social concern of Bollywood overpowers its commercial hunger and we are provided with a hard-hitting movie with some burning issues. The latest in this line is Shoojit Sircar’s PINK.

First of all, I wish to make it clear that ever since Shoojit Sircar’s changed the spelling letters of his name given his astrological [read superstitious] beliefs, I have always been apprehensive about him. Not that I doubt his artistic prowess rather I doubt his honesty.

PINK is his latest creation which showcases the culmination of his artistic approach. Right from the cast and crew, lights and camera to action and direction, script and dialogues, PINK satisfies the hunger of classy audience. Talking about Amitabh Bachchan’s acting skills is like showing light to the sun. Taapsi Punnu proves herself way beyond her rough and tough avatar in ‘Baby’. Piyush Mishra, Angad Bedi, Kirti Kulhari and all other actors do justice to their respective roles. This courtroom drama movie gives an insight into a real legal proceeding of an Indian court. With its tight script and soothing climax and also the efficient work of on-screen and off-screen crew, PINK manages to stir some neurons in the brains of the general Indian Homo Sapiens’ watching the movie.

Beyond that, PINK is NOTHING…

Before anybody blames me, let me ask one question. Please mention the name of one single movie with a social issue which was successful in changing the mindset of our people. A lot of movies have been there lately. We even had a soul wrenching movie like “Matribhoomi” from our Hindi cinema. The movie released and bagged many awards. And simultaneously, the ever increasing rates of female foeticide and female infanticides continued to laugh in the face of those awards.

We can say that the sole purpose of these movies is to spread awareness. But what is the use of this awareness if there is no outcome?

As soon as the movie released, a large group of men and women retaliated to the views expressed in the movie as in; A girl should say NO when a boy pays her bills, drops her at home etc. etc. [Remember Amitabh’s dialogue in the movie?]

It is quite possible that PINK might grab awards as well. We can also expect debates and arguments on electronic and social media.

But after all this humdrum and hullabaloo, at the end of the day, the scenario will remain as it is. But the worst part of this circus is that the entire male community is cursed to suffer for the stinking mentality of few handful beasts who do not even deserve to be called ‘men’. 

That sweet THANKS...!

Supriya was nervously looking at the clock behind the speaker’s head. It was already 9:00pm, still, she didn’t know how much more time it would take her to reach home. She was stuck in this office presentation, and there seemed no scope for an early excuse.

Finally, after almost half an hour, the meeting ended on a successful note. Supriya found herself too exhausted to drive all the way home. Somehow, she dragged herself to the parking and stretched on the driving seat. Another hour's journey to home! She didn’t know why she felt like crying. What a life she was living? Waking up every morning to worry about breakfast and lunch, juggling between her husband’s and her child’s daily needs, rushing to office, working like a maniac and coming back all the way worrying about the dinner and again the next day’s circus… Although she had house-help for all domestic chores, it was the lady who was running the house. And only a working woman could understand that no house-help could substitute the role of running one’s own house. It was Supriya’s personal decision to be a working wife and Mom. She knew that her husband took pride in her decision. Having a regular routine kept her fit and her managerial skills were tested from time to time. She knew that her husband tried to do his very best to comfort her and help her in everything. But that was always very little.

There used to be some days like that, when she hated her life.

It was almost 11:00pm when Supriya reached home. Her husband was home and watching TV. She felt like shouting on him but somehow contained herself and went straight to the bathroom. A warm shower lightened her mood to some extent and when she came out, she found her husband holding her favorite pajama set for her. But, she didn’t say anything.

Her husband, who was perhaps expecting some appreciation from her, went on to say, “Today, I have tried to do something in the kitchen. Hope, you might like it.”

Supriya didn’t reply and went to her baby boy’s room. The child was fast asleep.

“I fed him choco flakes. I didn’t know he liked them so much.” Her husband had sensed her bad mood and he was following her all across the house.

Still, there wasn’t any response from Supriya. She went straight to the kitchen. Traces of turmeric powder which were cleaned hastily were quite visible on the otherwise white kitchen tiles. Many jars had been replaced and that had led to the improper closing of the kitchen box and drawers. Oil was sprinkled on the oven. In nutshell, whole kitchen was a mess. Supriya took few seconds before she opened the lid of kitchen bowl and found freshly made chicken noodles. She picked up the bowl and placed it on the dining table. Her husband followed her with two plates.

Supriya served without a single word.

“I read the recipe somewhere. Hope it is good.” Her husband said.

Supriya didn’t say a word. Salt was too much for her taste but she remained silent.

By the time, the dinner was finished, her husband was done. Supriya could clearly see the sadness on his face. Her husband cleaned the dining table and went straight to bed.

Supriya was left all alone introspecting herself. Her bad day was not her husband’s fault. He could have easily remained oblivious to everything with an I-have-nothing-to-do-with-all-this attitude. Instead, he did his best to cheer her up. And she awarded him with a cold response.

Supriya went into the bedroom and found her husband lying with closed eyes, perhaps trying to sleep. She cuddled onto his back and said softly, “Thank you, Rajeev!”

“For what?” Rajeev asked coldly.

“For loving me so much!” Supriya nuzzled onto him lovingly.

A few moments later, Rajeev turned back and kissed her.

[Picture Courtesy: Google]

At times, we are so busy complaining about the negativities of our lives that we forget to be thankful for the beautiful positivities.

I’m not perfect…, and I’m lovin’ it ;)

I do not know why I always take Perfection as a delusive state of mind which is probably the brainchild of some person suffering from megalomaniac sophistication. Maybe, someday somebody would tell me that he/she is perfect and I would indulge myself heart and soul to figure out his follies. Well, well it could be straight envious human touch but I do have a dark heart for people who claim to be perfect. What do you mean by calling yourself perfect? You mean that you are perfect and superior and others who are imperfect are just being graced by your presence?

Well, I smell haughtiness here.

Mine are different! I am perfectly happy being imperfect. Imperfection had given me bliss. I open- heartedly welcome and accept my shortcomings and secretly giggle at my slipshod. I do understand that I am not a Superwoman and I cannot certainly be perfect at whatever I do. I can be good or just okay but certainly not perfect…

As far as I remember, I weren’t a perfect daughter or sister. At times, I used to fight with my Mom and brothers and registered my sharp disagreements with Papa on certain decisions. I didn’t behave like a typical ‘holy cow’ North Indian daughter and as far as I assess, my parents and brothers are still proud of me. It is just like the sheer pleasure of having enchanted ringing bells in your ears when they appreciate my decisions and admit that I have a mind of my own which works beautifully though, of course not so perfectly. I believe perfection is certainly not necessary to be a darling daughter. All you need to do is love your loved-ones unconditionally.

I don’t think I have been a perfect wife or daughter-in-law as well. I do forget where my husband put his favorite jacket or what groceries we needed for the next day. But, I do make it sure that everything happens on time and nobody gets late to work. At times, I do forget and leave the oven switched on but I never miss a chance to narrate my silly anecdotes to my in-laws to make them laugh. I don’t think perfection is that much required for creating and spreading and celebrating happiness. I am certainly not a perfect cook. I am not an expert at Chinese. I don’t know Italian cuisines but I am happy that nobody could raise a finger to my Indian style cooking and whatever experiments I do in my kitchen are saluted by my husband and my in-laws. I do not feel that sophisticated perfection when I fool myself around in my house especially in front of the LED when my husband is really in a great mood to play FIFA Soccer on his X-BOX 1. I love to make silly faces when he begs me to move away and let him play. Well, I am not that perfect at teasing but I do my best and I really love myself for that.

I am certainly not a perfect writer. I make grammatical errors and at times, fail to comprehend what I actually feel. But when my readers say that they love whatever I write, I feel that it is worth it!

I believe that perfection is nothing but a delusive state. The moment people around you get used to your perfection, you no longer remain perfect for them. They simply and unknowingly raise their expectations and thus automatically you are reduced from being perfect to yet-to-be-perfect level and once again the level of perfection gets set beyond your heights[And admit it, your reach!]. You just can’t keep everybody happy. You just can’t meet everybody’s expectations. You just can’t be a robot to nod ‘yes’ to whatever being filled in your ears. Happiness is what counts in the end. People only mind how happy you are and how much happiness you spread and celebrate. You should love what you do and if you don't, be clear, be confident and be happy about it. World is not going to end if you are not perfect at anything. There is no need to put an extra pressure on your mind in the already pressurized surroundings until and unless you and your loved-ones synchronize happiness happily.

So, as the anti-perfectionist syndrome once again giggles inside me, I once again state to all the people reading this blog, are you still trying to be perfect? Just shrug it off! Because believe me, I’m not perfect…, and I’m lovin’ it ;)

[photo credit - google]