PRE BLOGGING ERA...Post 3

Of sweet nothings & nice somethings...

Dated: July 11, 2006

Those of you who have known me for long would know that the subject to this mail was my online name in msn messenger once upon a time...
anyways this one is a bit philosophical but has been on my mind for quite a while now, so jus penning it down...its all about what we call the "feel good factor" and is based on my recent experiences...

Say a li'l prayer...
What I mean by a prayer is not necessarily sitting in the Pooja for long n "slogging it out" with God...a prayer, in more simple words, would just mean wishing someone or even yourself good...we are all so held up with our day to day lives that we often forget to thank God and thank everyone around us for making us the persons we are today...but even today, there are a few who genuinely mean good not just to people they know, but to the world as a whole...
One such man lives in the same street as me. Every morning he is either seen going on a walk or exercising in his balcony by the roadside. And he cannot do this silently. To every one of us passersby, this uncle HAS to shout out "Good Morning! God bless you! Have a nice day!" in the most enthusiastic fashion possible! The world has come to such a stage that a sweet gesture like this is looked upon with doubt by ppl, I have seen a few who look at him suspiciously n hurry away, but most others, including me, have always found this a very pleasant way to start the day as we are hurrying to our workplaces / schools etc.

Spread the smile, spread the happiness...
It was Monday morning. I am not one of those who experiences Monday morning blues, but I must admit the day didnt start off too well. I had managed to get this bus after waiting for a good half hour in the stop and thanks to the long wait, the whole stop decided to get into the bus along with me...for probably the first time I literally was on the footboard with no other choice n just the thought that this journey was to last a good 1 hour made me real grumpy, was showin my grumpiness to the harmless fellow passengers making all kindsa irritated gestures when they accidentally stepped on me or fell on me...then suddenly this small girl Khushi (I actually don't know her name. This is an assumed fictitious name but it suits her jus fine!) from behind me reaches out with her hand and takes my heavy cumbersome bag and puts it on the gear box. It took a moment for me to realize what had happened, but instantaneously my frown was replaced by a smile! The rest of the journey was grt and I found myself humming along with Radio Mirchi's early morning superhit numbers and smiling at all the co passengers! Ever since, i have made it a point to offer to keep people's bags when they are standing and I have the luxury of sitting and ever since have seen the number of smiles increasing!! We seriously need more Khushis around us everyday...

"Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu"
A few days ago, when I was in a Food Bazaar setting up a display with the merchandiser, there was this elderly man who began to interrogate me as to who I was and what I had studied, blah blah...in conversation he jus asked me "So is your family here with you?" and I jus told him "No Sir, they r in Chennai"...he goes on "You must be missing them"
"Oh yes, I really do, and so do they, I am just hoping and praying I get my final posting in Chennai..." The man looked at me very empathetically and said "I understand, my daughter is working in Mysore and I miss her a lot too. Don't worry, you will definitely get to stay with your family soon. I will pray for you..." Whether he meant those words or not, they sure lit my face up for a long long while :)...
I was thinking of this later n realized that this person was nice to me as he saw his daughter in me. The world becomes a much nicer place the minute you start seeing everyone as someone close to you, be it family, friends, colleagues or otherwise. This also goes on to explain why it felt SO nice to help an old couple choose a pastry at the Sweet Chariot Cafe. Jus a minute b4, I was wondering what I shuld take myself, but just as I saw the indecisive couple, I saw my grandparents in them and instantaneously became the pastry expert telling them "Take the cherry one, I've tried it b4, its really good". Like my mom n grandma often say "I love doing things for children your age, hoping that someone else will do something nice to you in the place you are."
Trust me, it really works... :)