Suhana Safar...

It was last rehearsal of our last play of college gathering (we being final year students) - 

There is one boy calling his friend after years not knowing where that friend is now or what he is doing... Bell rings and call is picked up by friend at other side. The caller friend says 'hello..' as listener friend hears that voice.. and there is a big tearing silence for some time....

The moment that scene was rehearsed, I remember there was another friend watching it and quickly commenting - 'saala aisa ho sakta hai kya apne saath bhi?' .. Not sure how everyone else had reacted to it.. but I remember my own reaction which was - 'Never'... I was confident that - there will be some set of people/friends who will always be part of my life no matter where I am, what I am doing, how many years passed.. and there will be some other set of persons whose journey with me will end somewhere or the other.. 

May be it was too practical thought as it seem to me now.. :|

Because, there is never such a thing as end of journey for two persons- may it be friend, acquaintance, relative or absolutely anyone.. If there was even 0.1% connection you had shared with anybody, they always stay with you forever.... and you never know when those people will suddenly come to your mind refreshing that connection and showing their presence :)

One day I was just opening a box and suddenly recollected - my friends(boys) had gifted me similar box on my birthday and had asked me to guess the gift and me -stupid- guessed it as a dress(from boys!!) and there was big laughter around(Poor me!!).. and then inside - there was 1 maggie packet, 1 toothpaste, 1 hairoil, some more such funny stuff and a diary. :D 

Someday I was searching my phone for something and saw the number saved with one of my cab driver's name.. And then recollected his smiling face telling to other member's in cab(arguing with him on which songs should be played while in journey from office to home) that he is going to play one song that Harshada madam likes.. :) and then I also recollected those cab friends which I am no more in contact now but had shared awesome home-office and office-home journeys..

While going through one of previous blogs which I used to write in office ;) and share in mail only to limited friends, I recollected a girl called 'Divya' a singer, dancer who was colleague of my other friend... but later we had become good friends and  she used to give her feedback without fail on any stuff I used to write. But then I stopped writing, my office location changed and slowly our touch as well lost..

There are soooo manyyyy of such persons either already in contact or just in FB friends list or whatsapp list but not really in personal contact who knock the door of my mind to open only the beautiful times we spent together..

This post is for all of them(who may or may not read this post also :( )... 
to all those times small or big, happy or sad, crazy or mad, we lived....

:) :) :)

Back In Time

Just opened youtube and while surfing, somehow reached to a video - making of 'Tarun aahe ratra ajuni'(a famous marathi Bhavgeet) for new marathi film Anvat. The song is remade and is now sung by Shankar Mahadevan. The video showed the original composer of the song Pt. Hridaynath Mangeshkar guiding Shankar Mahadevan for marathi words and tune etc. I watched the video like any other youtube videos. But it clicked something in my heart(not just mind this time huh :P) and I quickly searched and played many other marathi songs (old bhav geet). And they swiftly opened the door to my closed but unforgotten memories.

Those songs and the calmness around, made me recollect my childhood days(or should I say- days when I was living with my parents) when my every morning used to start with marathi songs without fail. Songs - sometimes devotional, sometimes 'Bhavgeet' by legends like Asha Bhosale, Suman Kalyanpur,  Lata Mangeshkar, Arun Date etc. Don't know if it was the composition of songs or voices but the feeling they created inside took me more deeper into the memories. 

I saw - Morning sun rays entering my blue colored room, fragrance of flowers, aarti and agarbaatti presented to God generating positive energy all over home, a beautiful composition adding to the aura of love, compassion, laugh and ...
a sweet call out from mother to ask me to get up and... me... there.. sleeping ... numb..in dreams ..pretending as if I did not hear anything... and in some time(may be almost an hour??) a worried call out from father urging me to wake up...and me...again.. pretending now that I heard only this time something... :P

How rude of me no?.. But not sure if I was pretending..or rather they were, that they did not understand my tricks?? :D.. yeah.. may be they were!!!  because father told me that it was 9 AM but actually it was 8 AM only.. :( :P

haha....It felt so good to go back and see my life in third person. 

More and more songs I played, more I dived deep into memories. But tell you, I didn't remember any of my days then without refreshing mornings, busy afternoons, energized evenings and peaceful nights.

Actually speaking.. back then,I never realized that such small day-to-day experiences were so unique and I will cherish them whole my life. I never realized that the time I was spending will give me happiness just by its remembrance.

But today, when I live away from my parents, from the place I was brought up I literally miss the years gone. I cannot believe the fact that the time will never be back and I will not able to live that time again. I cannot digest the fact that I am no more a kid dependent on anyone but rather I should be one on whom one can depend on - including parents.

Gone with the wind......

Wanted to write this one since long... but could not find time.. :( Although this explanation is routinely affair..I must say this time, 'not finding time' is a good thing happened for this post.. Reason being.. I am getting to wish you a veryyyyyyy happpppyyy , healthy and prosperous new year... :):) 

and apparently, this post completes 1 year of my blogging... :) :) whoaaaaaaa................... :D

Thankssssssssss a lottt  for all your support and encouragement shown through words or deeds or even gifts ;) because of which a lazy person like me continued to write ..yup.. I know sometimes with long gaps though.. :P :) :)

wait wait... don't relax.. This thanksgiving doesn't mean I am ending up here.. no I am not...neither for this post ..nor series........... :P

Soooooooo...

Looking back, I find myself a year older in new country, 'then' newer experiences.. But guess what.. I still have not finished some of my firsts... My first India trip (feels little weird to say this huh.. seriously.. but can't still believe it still was..:P), first Christmas and New Year in office and off course, first year completion feeling for all those things which I shared with you through my posts... :D hehe... 

Few of the things I mentioned were complete in themselves like my 'delightful encounters', Sun phenomenon, etc..but few things are still on a way of their realizations..like I wrote about "Build it bigger" documentary about Mumbai airport. But in my trip back to India I saw that dream coming true and genuinely, the airport looked stunning.. My cooking skills development is still ongoing..(slower in a rate though :( )...And my experiences of being in new place are also getting matured with a lining of memories on them.. :) 

So what I am trying to say is... again.....I am not ending up here.. neither for this post ..nor series........... because picture abhi baaki hai mere dost!!!! :D

Being One...

Got up early today... getting up early on weekends is actually a rare phenomenon.. but miracles do happen sometimes.. ;)

So.. got up and after answering all natural calls :P, while having a cup of tea,  started surfing on Facebook... Surfing through Facebook, actually my hand and mind  is so used to.. that this act neither requires efforts nor does it make any realizations most times... 

but then today.. something happened.....

In a quite room, with a cup of tea in front and cold breeze of air around, 
I felt as though, suddenly I entered in a crowd...where many were talking, many were laughing, some teasing, and some giving philosophical insights.... And I was listening to all... absolutely everyone and everything... and so.. my mind was getting occupied with every scroll I was doing on my phone... But I kept on doing it....and a place came where everything below was already participated in last evening.. So I stopped.... got a sip of my tea..and put my phone locked... 

And again...

There was a quite room... a shivering cold.....dark outside.. noise of air hitting the doors....little, warm tea...and there was me!

My mind was loaded at that moment.. but the very time I realized my presence, I thought as if I did something which I should not have... and immediately I emptied my mind... and came out of that crowd ....

Felt relaxed.....

When now.. I look back to that experience, I feel, how much sometimes unknowingly I keep on burdening myself in some thoughts, some virtual worlds of social networking,  sometimes even thinking of past and future... Its a natural process then and its not hazardous either... but only when some moments like today happen, I feel there is a strong and explicit  need of change... to purposefully relax and cleaning up of thoughts in mind to make a way for better and more...

Do you also feel it at times?

A Key to...

Everyone has some or the other thing in their life which takes them back to some old golden days...With that particular thing, one cant resist getting lost in what we call 'memories'. For me that thing is 'Rains'.. :) :)

I remember,

I came from school exhausted and as usual went to terrace to relax..and in some time a flow of a wind carrying an heavenly smell of soil energized me in a moment. I looked at the wide sky above and suddenly saw the black heavy skies full of water approaching nearer..I yelled and ran to my Mom with all the excitement.

I remember,

It was a cloudy day and we(a group of 8-10 friends) were having full 'masti'(fun) in the most sacred place of our college campus, "the workshop parking". And suddenly(almost madly) we thought of going for a small trek nearby to our city. We started on our bikes and just before reaching the destination, it started raining cats and dogs. But we didn't stop, and kept driving without caring to what we must be looking like, how it will affect us etc.. We didn't go till the mountain, we went to one of the restaurants and ate lotssss of kanda bhajiya(a must eat in rains) making that restaurant chairs full of mud, water.. :P

I remember,

I had an doctor appointment. I had been there with one of friends. Post all check-up, we were going to back to home and... yes, it started raining although a little. Luckily we had to stop for red signal. I asked my friend to take something out of her bag to cover her head(as I had my helmet). She opened her bag and within same moment,heavy rain started and signal also turned green. Next moment, I could not see anything in front with my helmet cover, her comb fell down while taking out dupatta and a rickshaw came from behind covering her comb. I wanted to remove my helmet, she wanted to take her comb but Rikshaw wanted to pass the signal.. and ........so......... we had to move. :( :) :P

I remember,

It was December. I was in office. At around 6:30 pm, an announcement was made giving some information as the area where I used to live, has got some problems and hence one living in or near that area should leave the office as early as possible. I immediately started by taking a rickshaw.  And again.. from nowhere, suddenly it started raining badly..As promised the rickshawala stopped at a place where I had thought I would get down. And stupid me, actually got down at that place without noticing that it was raining heavily, I was not equipped with umbrella and hence should take rickshaw till the house. Anyways since I had left my rickshaw I had to walk for 15 mins till the house. After waiting for 5-10 mins on stop, I finally started. I covered a distance of 5 mins and unexpectedly my sandal broke into 2 pieces..#$(*&* Unbelievable!! Disgusting!! What then...I took both my sandals, put them into bag and ran towards home... alone, bare foot, immersing fully into rains, for another 10 minutes... :P :P

I remember the window of our home from where I used to see the trees getting fully wet with rain. I remember, my friends teasing me on my birthday every year that they could not wear beautiful new dresses as my birthday falls in rainy season. I remember the outings we friends had in rainy times. I remember my father and I calculating "how heavy is the rain" by analyzing how much(little, half, full) wet the biggg trunk of the tree in front of our balcony has become with rain. I recall so many things, places, people, incidents..

Really................

Only rain has this capability to open all the closed doors of past in my mind... 

Sett(l)ing down

Writing something or connecting with you all is actually my necessity! but you see... its not among "food, water or shelter" and hence I sometimes procrastinate to do this necessary thing on right time.. :P

But better late than never, right?

So......................

I remember I learnt about 6 continents(?? Either my memory is weak or with population  n pollution even continent count has changed over the years :P) Anyways.. that's not the topic!So I learnt in some standard that in Antarctica, there is 6 months day and 6 months night....Since then.. I had imagined about this..of being in sunlight for whole 6 months.. and in full blackout for next 6! 

It seemed to be horrible in my imagination!(and why not... I used to imagine sunlight like 12 in noon for whole 6 months and black as 2 in midnight for another! poor imaginations powers!!! :P))

But yesss.... I 'AM' experiencing it now in some sense!

I get up in morning because Sun rays are already spread all over the house even crossing the barrier of curtains...

I go to office.. and Sun is still there somewhere in sky(somewhere because.. I don't easily understand the directions here.. its not as clear as its in India.. we are not near equator na!!!)

I come back from office.. prepare the dinner.. and he is still there..

Then I have my dinner(by closing the curtains just to 'feel' that its dinner!and not lunch) but he is stilllllll there!

I go to bed.. and sleep... and I am afraid to say butttt.. he is still there! :(

Yeah.. I must agree now.. that not all the time he is equally bright(sunny!) but ultimately its a 'day' feeling from start to end of our 'own day'..

And that's his routine for whole 6 months!(exception.. climate changes due to global warming..  :P )

But isn't that interesting and funny at the same time...

Interesting.. as I could only imagine this(as badly as I wrote above) in India..

and Funny... coz.. day never ends!!!! (between the lines it means.. you have so much time, all the time) ;)

hehe... 

There is a huge diversity in how nature treats the various areas of world, right? ;)

Sometimes I question myself.. Am I making a small thing big or its really a big change..

But you know for me.. yes.. it is!

I am still a newcomer here... :):)

Responding Naturally...

I love music from bottom of my heart...it makes me happy when sad.. and has equal power of making me sad when I am happy... I always thought..there can be nothing which can take place of music for me!

But I guess I have a new friend now..."Nature"! :)

I came here in winter...I loved the look of nature then when all trees had drained off their leaves....Even with simple skeleton standing, they looked stunning especially when they were standing between clean roads or beautiful houses with "prism" shaped top or when they were arranged for long ranges on off-white sand which we find only around sea. They looked even better when they wore snow on them...

I actually had fallen in love with them then..That was the time when I never even tried to think as to how would they look when spring will start... But now that spring has started.. I feel I am out of my words!.. I can simply say.. I am blessed...

On every square you go... there are tulips that welcome you by flaunting their colors.. the skeleton of trees now carries tons of colors like pink, yellow, burgundy, purple on them in forms of leaves or flowers.. Gardens with lakes or fountains look amazing when ducks are moving around... And if that's not enough.. sunlight, cold breeze of an air.. and cute, pink foreigner babies adds to this aura...

I now understand what it means by "eternal peace".. or "heavenly"! 

And if that's what is I see just around where I live.. one can imagine.. what would have been my experience for other Europe country visits like Amsterdam, Netherlands.. where land is less and canals are more, windmills and colorful tulip farming pays off everything.. Venice, Italy.. where green water surrounds houses and multi-shaped bridges create a path to travel around the city...Burano where every house is hand painted with one color and like vehicles there are boats outside every house..

mmm.......

One mind of me says.. I am lucky to experience this! and other makes me gloomy as I see that in entire life I won't be able to live this kind of "day to day" life in my own country! Because I know..that...
This form of nature is something we strive for long and then go on vacation by investing time and money to some end of country and come back to cherish it for later few months or years... And same will happen with me!

But...Nonetheless, as I said.. I am extremely happy that have now found this new friend!
And although place will change.. I will always have my memories to get lost into...! :)