It's Caterpiller That Becomes Butterfly

Academically, how rich you are? Dropped out or not enough to be excited? If yes, so what! Still you have the potential to be something significant ... something influential like:

Valentina Terescova: Cosmonaut, first woman in space to orbit the earth.

Mary Lyon: Women's education pioneer, founder of Mount Holyoke College (America's first women's college)

Agatha Christie: Best-selling female author of all time; the most translated individual author in the history.

Helen Gurley Brown: Editor-in-chief of the Cosmopolitan magazine, the highest paid copywriter in the 60s.

Florence Nightingale: Modern nursing pioneer, nicknamed as "The Lady with the Lamp."

Marilyn Monroe: Model turned actress-singer, the only woman to have been listed in Forbes’s richest dead celebrity list.

Aretha Franklin: 20 times Grammy winning singer-pianist, the first woman artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Mildred Zaharias: Women's sports pioneer, won six gold medals and broke four world records at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics.

So when people look at your academic qualification and say, "Isn't your education a drawback for your career?" let them know, success isn't limited without formal education; success is limited without vision. What's your vision?

Today Is The Youngest You Ever Could Be

I can't wait all my life
On a street of broken dreams.
~ It Could Have Been You, Journey

We program our mind that life would be better when we'll complete our higher education from a reputed university, have a fat job, and then another. When we reach that reality, we tell ourselves that our life will be complete when we’ll get a spouse, a nicer car, or able to go on a nice vacation.

But the truth is that future is always beginning now. It’s the NOW that turns into WON. If not now, when? Life always grows through the challenges. And it's best to admit this to you and decide to be happy anyway.

Happiness isn’t any reward we get by the standard of our way of living. Happiness is the way of living life. So, treasure every moment that you have. Life lived for tomorrow will always be just a day away from being realized.

So stop telling yourself: “Let’s wait till I finish school … till I lose ten pounds … till my teeth get whiter …. till I get married … till I have kids … till my kids leave the house … till I retire … till IPL ends … till I get a new car or home … till my car or home is paid off … till Monday … till Tuesday … till Wednesday.”

Isn’t it so painful that we are always getting ready to live but never living? Honey, future isn’t a place to place your better days. Because piling up too many tomorrows gives us nothing but a bunch of empty yesterdays.

F●R●I●E●N●D●S

Jab Bhi Tu Milta Hai
Tujhme Naya Sa Kuch Milta Hai Mujhe
Aei Dost Tu Mujhe Meri Tarah Hi Dikhta Hai
Jab Bhi Tu Milta Hai
Har Subah Ke Sath Mere Wo Muskurata Hua Chehra
Yeh Teri Duaka Asar Rang Lata Hai
Jab Bhi Tu Milta Hai
~ Kiran K Singh

Friends, friendship or friendship day—what’s more important?

1. Friends. It means you are more concern about the counter-operation than co-operation. Gita says, love but don’t get addicted either to love or the lover. Here, you’re addicted.

2. Friendship. Here, you enjoy the process because you’re not driven by the outcomes. You value it not because your friend has a Shahrukh-kinda smile, Ritwik-kinda dancing skill or Salman-kinda waxed figure or Abishekh-kinda surname or Ambani-kinda bank balance. Here, you value your friends because you value friendship. It’s your instinct that drives you, not the reasons. You celebrate it because you value the celebration.

3. Friendship day. Why do you need reasons to celebrate? Yes, why limit your celebration only for 24 hours, whereas you can celebrate it anytime you want.

Every second is a moment. And every moment can be celebrated. What’s wrong, if you don’t limit the celebration within a day!

God Didn't Create Fear ...

On my last trip to Kolkata, I met a linguistic historian. As usual like all other historians, he was busy telling what he knew and surprisingly, he succeeded. Because he was telling about folk music and I never minded to be a listener here. Then, he shared this 700 year old folk song and swept me over in a minute. Though, he couldn’t remember the tune but I didn’t forget to remember the opportunity to record the conversation. Here’re the awesome lines:

Synopsis: Maa Yashoda was going to the river and the little Krishna was following. Yashoda said: “No, don’t come! There is haung (a term to frighten children).” Krishna replied: “Mother, I have created all. Tell me, who has created this haung? I’d go with you, show me the haung.”

The Destiny's Child

THEN

Beyonce Knowledge competed as part of girls group, Girls Aloud, on Star Search but lost to her cousin Kelly Rowland.

NOW

Forget about her influence on being the sailor of the best-selling girls group of all time, or winning 5 Grammy in a single night for her debut solo-album, Beyonce is the first and only female artist to have a number-one album and a number one single in the US and UK simultaneously.

Isn’t Tough?

Would you hold my hand

If I saw you in heaven

Would you help me stand

If I saw you in heaven.

~ Tears In Heaven, Eric Clapton

When Bhishma was on the verge of dying, lying on the shafts of Arjuna's arrows, looking to his great great grandfather, Arjun couldn’t stop crying,. Then lord Krishna told him: “Hey nath, come on, you are a jyani. Jyani doesn’t cry because a jyani knows the truth of death and life. A jyani knows that death is inevitable to everyone. Stop crying. Accept the truth”

Now the question is, doesn’t knowing the truth and then swallowing the truth take time?

Isn’t tough when someone who always has the unconditional cares n prayers for you, left you without giving you an opportunity to say thank you?

Isn’t tough when you find that you have lost a part of your childhood memory?

Isn’t tough when someone’s absent erase a part of your existence?

Isn’t tough when one of sweetest reasons to smile stop kissing you smile?

Isn’t tough when you lose a place where you can crawl back to hide, anytime you want?

Isn’t tough?

I miss you dida, I couldn’t fulfill your last wish you have asked to me. I’m sorry!

LOVE—Easy To Begin, Hard To End

People say, "Love is like war; easy to begin but hard to end."

I say it in this way: "Love is a journey; starting at forever, and ending at never."

That's why the people who are in love walked TOGETHER down the path that leads they know not where. It matters not, for them, TOGETHER, will abide whatever fate has planned for them ... forever! Because he who has never experienced hurt, cannot experience true love. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk everything, you risk even more.

Though sometimes love is denied, sometimes lost, sometimes unrecognized, but in the end, always found with no regrets, forever valued and kept treasured. Because to love and win is the best thing but to love and lose is the next best. True love is giving all you have to someone you know you're going to lose.

When God made you

He thought about grace

He thought about beauty

He thought about a smiling face

But he didn’t think about me

He didn’t think about me

Yeah, not about me.

So it’s ok, you think I’m not mr. right

It’s ok, you are someone else’s pride

It’s ok, for me you feel cold inside

When God made you

He thought about generosity

He thought about careness

He thought about simplicity

But he didn’t think about me

He didn’t think about me

Yeah, not about me

Now baby, go with your pious pride

Don’t accept just what comes to your way

Don’t compromise with the happiness (don’t compromise)

B’coz when God made you

He didn’t think about me

He didn’t think about me

Yeah, not about me

When God made you

He didn’t think about me

He didn’t think about me

Yeah, not about me

(When God made you)

Copyright © 2008 Roy ~ All Rights Reserved.

Don't Stop Till Get Enough ...

Hey, can you say, what do the following superstars have in common?

Marilyn Monroe

Sophia Loren

Whoopi Goldberg

Meryl Streep

Julia Roberts

Mallika Sherawat

They all began their film careers at the bottom as extras.

When LOVE Is DEVOTION.

I have seen people to whom "love" is just a simple relationship which grows and dies so fast that sun even can't change its direction. But I have also seen people to whom "love" is just not a relationship; to them it's DEVOTION.

And I'm so privileged that in my life, I have a friend to whom love is a journey; starting at forever and ending at never ... to her love is DEVOTION. Though her MAN saddled her into a painful memory, still her love is devoted only to HIM ... only to HIM.

She was such kinda friend to whom I never need to wear someone else's mask to be proud for ... I never need to think what should I'm gonna speak before I open my mouth and when I use to finish my non-sense talking I never need to worry, "Oh my God, what I have said to her!"

So, it was my share of responsibilty to let her know, "If losing is right, it happens. Nothing good gets away.  And giving up doesn't always mean you are weak; sometimes it means that you are strong enough to let go."

Just recently, we succeed to make her agreed to get married. So after the engagement and spending some quality time with her fiancé, one day, she wrote me:

Roy, you are right – relationships are like glasses, sometimes it’s better to leave our heart broken than to hurt putting it back together. Really, we waste time looking for the perfect lover instead creating the perfect love. Thank you!

A Friend Is A Lover

True love is friendship caught on fire.
~ French Proverb

A friend is a lover. Yes!

The Latin origin of the word friend is “amīcus” and “amīcus” came from “amō.” In Latin it stands for "I love.” Even “philos,” the Greek meaning of the word friend, is extracted from the word “phileō.” And again it stands for "I love."

If you knock the door of Middle English, you have to travel a thousand years back to see the verb related to "friend." The old English word “frēond” was the source for today’s "friend." Interestingly, it was simply the present participle of the verb frēon, "to love."

The Light, The Divorce Has Introduced Me

This post is written by the guest author Sneha Sanyal.

When you decide

That your life is a prize

Renew and revive

It’s allright honey

It’s allright.

~ Hummer, Smashing Pumpkin

Being through the process of getting divorce isn’t easy. Practically, a divorce is like an amputation: we survive it, but there is less of us. It’s tough to believe … tough to accept and tough to act on.

And that is time when we all need support. But I came to know that the best support we get from the end of our own hands.

The inevitable sadness of a divorce lingers with the thoughts in mind:

* I wish I could get over the pain of this divorce.

* He is so happy, why can’t I be.

* I’m stuck here with no hope of ever finding another good person to be with.

* He cheated on me.

* The pain is so bad, no one can understand my pain, I can never be happy again, I will carry this pain with me forever.

* Why did he do this to me?

But there was another side of the story—I was thriving to revive—thinking, wasn’t there anything that can catapult me towards a new life? Then a new year has given me these hope:

* I am so thankful for my children.
* Although my friends don’t know exactly what I am going though, I am so lucky that they are here for me.
* Look at my pet, I am so lucky to have a buddy!
* How lucky can one be to have control over their life and the freedom to may decisions…I am so thankful for that!

How did I know these? Well, I really don’t. This is MY experience. I have seen the change I have gone though in adopting it for myself. However, it’s not easy to adopt after my divorce.

Do I miss him? No! But I miss who I thought he was. Most important, it’s much better to be sad for his absence than his presence.

Find yourself being thankful for the people in your life and the future ahead of you. REMEMBER, WHEN YOU FINALLY REALIZE YOUR LIFE IS A PRIZE…YOU WONT HIDE, YOU’ILL THRIVE!

Sneha Sanyal is a media professional who in the first 45+ years of her life, never been alone. Being with her two young children, she believes that the only way of becoming wise is being happy.

Yes I’m Dumped … So What!

I used to cry,
Now I hold my head up high
And you see me, somebody new.
I’m not that chained up little person
Still in love with you.
~ I Will Survive, Gloria Gaynor

1931, when I was 26, I romantically came closer to one of the biggest actors. We came so closer to being married. But the studio boss gave him the ultimatum—either chose your career or your girlfriend. And it was me in the losing side—I was dumped!

SO WHAT!

Maybe that’s why, I was successful to portrait the character of hardworking young women who find romance and financial success in "rags-to-riches" stories. Within 10 years of my break up, I even won the Best Actress Academy Award. And when I retired from acting, I set my foot to the corporate, being the President of the Pepsi-Cola company. Who am I? The one of the "100 Sexiest Women of the 20th century," Joan Crawford.

Do You Remember The Time

This is your life, you seem to have it all

You reached your peak, they wanted you to fall

It's very sad, this world can be so bad

But through all the heartaches, when they put you down

You know you were the victor, and you earned the crown

It's like walking through fire, determined to win

You were beating life's battles, again and again

~ Elizabeth I Love You, MJ

Do you remember when the musical ABC stamped the screaming presence of a kid in the music world?

Do you remember how he taught that love is not possession but needs expression?

Do you remember his scary-ghostly dance steps that thrilled us?

Do you remember the moonwalk that added the glitz to the Motown 25th anniversary?

Do you remember his appeal to heal the world and make it better place?”

Do you remember, though he dubbed himself “I’m bad,’ still music found itself in the danger without his music?

Do you remember his preach: “If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, and then make a change?”

Do you remember how some people scammed him as “Dangerous,” but still fans around the globe screamed just to get a glimpse of him?

Do you remember the time he claimed: “If you’re thinking of being my brother; it doesn’t matter if you’re black or white?”

Do you remember how every day he created the history and every path he took left his legacy, even through his death?

Do you rememeber …..
Do you
In moonwalk
Do you
Do you
In his Eee-Hee
Do you

Outside Of A Small Circle Of Friends

One study concluded that on average, if more than 4 people witness an event (killing, rape …..); nobody will do anything. Each person will say to themselves "I don't have to get involved since there are other people here who can help." Read it for a real example:

Kitty Genovese, a 28 year old New York City woman, in the early morning of March 13, 1964, arrived home at about 3:15 a.m. and parked about 30 meters from her apartment's door. But before she could make the route, she was suddenly stabbed to death by a stalker.

Even though every year, 960,000 individuals get murdered; hers remains the most tragic because 38 "citizens" awakened by her cries for help watched as she was assaulted not once, but three times over a half hour period. Not only did they fail to come to her aid, they also failed to call the police for help. Vincent Mosely, her assailant, stabbed her several times, then left, only to return a few minutes later to cut her up a little more.

During Mosely's trial, witnesses made several statements, but one stands above the rest as a symbol of this tragic event and is the reason for its world-wide infamy: "We didn't want to get involved." No surprise to Mosely, for as he said: "I knew they wouldn't do anything - they never do."

I'm thinking, what we really are? Because it’s the cowards who don't count in battle; they are there, but not in it. What we really are? Phill Ochs is right:

Oh look outside the window, there's a woman being grabbed

They've dragged her to the bushes and now she's being stabbed

Maybe we should call the cops and try to stop the pain

But Monopoly is so much fun, I'd hate to blow the game

And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody

Outside of a small circle of friends

Oh there's a dirty paper using sex to make a sale

The Supreme Court was so upset; they sent him off to jail.

Maybe we should help the fiend and take away his fine.

But we're busy reading Playboy and the Sunday New York Times

And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody

Outside of a small circle of friends

Smoking marihuana is more fun than drinking beer,

But a friend of ours was captured and they gave him thirty years

Maybe we should raise our voices, ask somebody why

But demonstrations are a drag, besides we're much too high

And I'm sure it wouldn't interest anybody

Outside of a small circle of friends.

Courtesy: Trent A. Fisher

Judge, But First Yourself ...

Everybody's droppin got me knockin on heaven's door.
And all my memories, of seein brothers bleed.
And everybody grieves, but still nobody sees.
Recollect your thoughts don't get caught up in the mix.
Cause the media is full of dirty tricks.
Only God can judge me.
~ Only God Can Judge Me, 2PAC

Recently, one stranger tagged me: “You anadi, ubba-dubba arrogant.” And I couldn’t stop laughing. Why? Because people are nothing but the mirroring of the way they behave others.

If anyone is busy judging, it’s a fair bet; he doesn’t have any time to find the quality in others.

The Bible says, "God doesn't judge people until they die."

Now think, how people judge others so easily; simply looking to the cosmetic pampered face .... God knows!

Sometimes back, someone has sent me some interesting questionnaire. I found it interesting as nobody has even sent me like that just to judge how good I’m.

Height: Getting shorter with age.

Weight: Only on emotional pieces.

Bust: Never been busted.

Waist: Not want not.

Hips: Don't lie.

Ambitions: Work hard at what I love most and try impossibly to make everyone happy at the same time. To live a life less ordinary but simple ... make music that make me happy and that I am proud of, always get better at my craft ..... travel the world ..... try most everything at least once ..... say someone "I Love You" & get slapped on the spot .... and of course to never regret a thing.

Turn-Ons: Fabulous style, the subtle details, touching poetry, innocent smile.

Turn-Offs: Fake people, fake attitude, fake people who own fake attitude & forwarded e-mail.

I'm Hungry For: Good short stories, innovative quotations, amazing music documentary, melodious music, extra-ordinary lyrics, the forgotten places and of course the "Planet M" half-yearly sale.

Fondest Memory: The day I brought my first guitar with my OWN MONEY.

A Great Day Starts With: No waking up alarm.

Words To Live By: Stick like a postage stamp until you reach your destination!!

Now maybe you all are thinking that I'm this; I'm that. But frankly speaking, still I ain't successful to discover who I'm or the real-me. Though I am, indeed, a king because I know how to rule myself.

Marriage Or Single ...

Recently one of my friends phoned me and quizzed, “Hey Roy, do you know I’m going to marry?” I joked, “Come on, how would I know because the guy isn’t me, is it?” Yes, my BEST girl—friend (I said, girl-friend) just got married.

I was thinking what would be the best gift to tease her before marriage and then found this book, Why Women Shouldn't Marry: Being Single by Choice. Written by single widow Cynthia S. Smith and her divorced daughter Hillary, this book showcases how women have long been driven to marriage by fears of their own inadequacies.

This book is an inspiration for any woman on the brink of giving up her independence to seek the security that the marriage promises. The authors interviewed many single, widowed, and divorced ladies to show that women should not sacrifice their lifestyles if a perspective life partner is only thinking of himself.

And of course, some very good messages and analysis exists in the many stories. Certainly worth additional re-reads as even a married woman can also learn a few things. 

What’s your take? Reasons for and against? Do you agree with the authors that women lose their identity in marriage?

Gran Torino: Sometimes Winning Is About Losing Too

Just saw Gran Torino. Clint Eastwood, who will be 80 next month, is still formidable with his high-caliber imagery.

Just think, when he challenges a group of young boys: "Ever notice how you come across somebody once in a while you shouldn't have f----d with? That's me."

And I’m not complaining. Not because every film is great — though, damn, most of them are.

How does he do it again and again? Though I don’t want him to stop.

What a shame! Why this film wasn't in the official running for a best-picture Oscar last year is a baffling mystery. It should have happened. Just think, a superstar of film working with young Chinese American actors, elevating them, highlighting them. They’re as good as our own little known actors in Slumdog Millionaire.

What a ending (as like most of his films) where he gave his life willingly; just to let a Hmong neighbor family (who previously tried to steal his Gran Torino) can live safely.

Yes, sometimes winning isn’t about just defeating others; sometimes winning is about losing too.

So tenderly your story is

Nothing more than what you see

Or what you've done or will become

Standing strong do you belong

In your skin; just wondering

~ Clint Eastwood (Written by Jamie Cullum)

LIFE. FEAR. HOPE. DEALTH. ANGELS. LOVE

 

Despair is a great thing, it teaches us to be poised.
Setback is a great thing because it helps us to be more competitive.
Making mistake is also a great thing; it teaches us to be humble.
Fear is a great thing because it makes the way for the hope.
Loneliness is great thing; it helps us to listen our inner voice.
Even death is a great thing because it brings the opportunity to meet the angels.

Love At First Sight: Do You Believe In It?

Love is an accident … waiting to happen

Desire is a stranger … you think you know

Intimacy is a lie … we tell ourself

Truth is a game … we play to win

If you believe in love at first sight

.... You’ll never stop looking.

Have you seen the movie, Closer, starring a pretty woman whose smile looks as like Mona Lisa and an actor for whom even grown-up girls can break any law?

Yes, what you have just read at the top, are from the promo of that movie – starring Julia Roberts and Jude Law.

Now the question is: do you believe in love at first sight? Maybe you don’t believe in it. Chances are that you haven’t experienced it. It’s tough to put in words and tougher to convince someone to believe it. It just happens.

Let’s see what an expert says about it – an expert who has authored the book, Love at First Sight: The Stories and Science Behind Instant Attraction.

To write that book, Earl Naumann has interviewed huge group of people and experienced that 66% of all ages and ethnic groups believe there is something called "love at first sight." Let’s have a look to the other findings:

• 50% of the people who falls in love at fight sight got married to that person, and about 75% of those are still married. Cool!

• When people fall in love at first sight, their bond gets stronger and more passionate as the couple fall in love not with someone’s credential or wealth but the person they saw for the first time.

• Men are more likely to fall in love at first sight since they rarely care about the background. But women miss out this opportunity as they usually tend not to express their feelings. Ouch!

Now, what’s your take on that? Give reasons for and against? Do you believe in love at first sight? If you find, “Hey this is the PERSON,” would you go all out? Let’s discuss …

Crisis: Where Danger Meets With Opportunity

In Chinese, the word crisis stands for weiji, often which has been said to be composed of the characters for “danger” and “opportunity.” That’s why in the popular Chinese culture, a crisis is regarded not merely as a danger but also as an opportunity (some arguments are there).

If you’re looking for an example, I’d suggest to read about C. J. Walker, the woman who was the first born-free member of a slave-family.

At the age of 20, when she was widowed, she started working as a laundress for as little as a dollar and half a day. And most of her earnings were used to educate her daughter. She could save very little for herself—so little that she couldn’t even able to wash her hair daily. As a result, she suffered from severe scalp disease that caused her to go nearly bald.

Rather than making this crisis as a danger, she made it an opportunity. With an innovative idea of hair care products to stop hair loss, she launched her own line of beauty and hair care products.

Within a very short time, her products became so popular that she was flooded with the order and cemented her name in the history being a millionaire.

Yes, C.J. Walker, the first woman self-accomplished millionaire who didn’t cry in crisis rather made it an opportunity.

I got my start by giving myself a start.

C.J. Walker