New Year poem-2013

Warm seasonal wishes from our home to you
For a splendid and amazing New Year too
May the New Year bring all the things right and bright
With joy and cheer ,happy days that add all the delight


Let each day start with warm sunshine and good cheer
 May the magic last all twelve months of next year
Welcome the new year with matchless spirit
Find the true meaning of each day and what is in it


You are all special to us in all different ways
We think of you this season ,in our hearts you stay
We wish you all a great New Year ahead
2013 will bring tons of joy ,some to keep and to spread !

A child's prayer

This Christmas there is nothing I need

No cars,trucks or dolls under my tree

All I want is a world filled with peace

God oh God won’t you help me please!!



This Christmas ,I want my friends to come back

All those who were taken away by the bad man’s attack

All I want is a world filled with peace

God Oh God won’t you help me please!!



This Christmas I want everything to be as it was

Fun spirit ,love and wait for Santa Clause

All I want is a world filled with peace

God Oh God won’t you help me please !!



I hope the new year will bring good spirit ahead

I will share my love and laughter,I have plenty to spread

All I want is a world filled with peace

God Oh God won’t you help me please !!



I hope there is a better tomorrow for me

With no guns,bad men or horror to see

All I want is a world filled with peace

God Oh God won’t you help me please !!

Our Mister Superhero

A poem to tell you about my son

I don’t know of anybody more fun

He was born in the month of October

Player four to bring our family together



Year one was a lot of sleepless nights

But he was mom’s soldier and brave knight

All he did was try to learn

Something new every step or turn



Year two was all about trucks or cars

Bumps and boo boos,bandaids and scars

Shoes with lights were his favorites

A patch over his eye,pretending to be pirate



Year three he took giant steps ahead

Learning his numbers and alphabet he read

Playing Diego and rescue were his mission

Helping animals endangered were his ambition





Year four started more colorful as it did

He was into art ,did pretty good for a kid

He had a lot of friends wherever he went

Running and playing ,that is how time was spent



Year five was a big year indeed

He moved to Texas, life was like a stampede

He did pretty well and had his big birthday

Transformer cake,Lego and friends to play



Year six has been splendid so far

Kindergarten has made him smarter ,he is a superstar

Miss Wolfe has made learning so much fun

Something new to learn as everyday begun



Soon it will be Year seven and he will move on

But life in Stanley is indeed super fun

New adventures will come as a new year unfolds

For now he is enjoying his ride,lo and behold

Bottomless cup of love

This is a special season for warmth and love

Got a cup of hugs, filled all the way above

Thought I would share the cup with you

But that is not all, there is more coming through



I love you the same everyday and night

A warm wish I send, so you can sleep tight

Some days start with hugs, and some days not

Some days I said “Love you” and some days I forgot



I care for you like you were my heart

I keep you there, as every new day starts

Remember we love you for what you are not what you do

You make us proud, with everything old and new



Share love, be grateful and spread a lot cheer

Be good, be tough and you have nothing to fear

Show you care and listen to your heart

These are virtues that will set you apart



Let the New Year start with new goals and dreams

We get on a new ride now and test new extremes

But it will be worth the ride, trust me my dears

Mom and Dad will always stick around, to catch all your tears



So keep moving and play a new set of games

Life is worth it, only if you set new aims

We will stick by you because we love you a lot

Don’t be afraid to use the lessons this year taught.

Little Miss Sunshine

A poem to tell you all about my daughter

I do not know of any one more sweeter

She was born in the month of July

Sent us to cloud nine in the sky.



She was shy, polite and loved to learn

Did something new every step and turn

Before we realized ,she was all big and strong

The journey to turn one didn’t take very long.



She loved puzzles and to read books

But she was a fussy eater no matter what was cooked

She had a great voice and loved to sing

She sounded like a gentle breeze in spring



Year two was just as much fun

Just as curious to get new things done

She loved the playscape and the swings

Went high up in the air like she had wings



She had a lot of friends, some of them best

She stuck with a few but always friends with the rest

She was growing up and was ready for the next big day

Pretty soon it was time for another birthday



Year three was all about games and fun

Skipping and hopping, playing in the sun

She was big sister, baby brother came along

Not a happy camper, until he could follow her around



She loved to read with mom every night

Without a book there was no sleeping tight

Favorites were far too many

Most favorites had stories of Piglet and Winnie



Year four marked the first year of school

She enjoyed it every bit, she liked to play it cool

Teacher’s pet, and always stuck to the rules

Learnt some ballet and swimming in the pool



She still loves to swim, it is her favorite sport

One day she will be in the Olympics, you watch out

Her favorite teachers were all of them around

They were all super cool, and never let her frown



Year five, was a great year with a good start

Kindergarten made her doubly smart

Miss Amy was the sweetest soul

She won a gold medal in the opinion poll



Audrey and Daksha were two peas in a pod

You asked one and the other would nod

They were best friends forever and still are

But since we moved, they live too far



Year six, was all about being in first grade

She was in good hands, not one bit scared

Did her homework but didn’t finish lunch

Mom was upset and worried a whole bunch



Year seven, was exciting in a new school

A J Whittenberg was way too cool

An Engineering school, a class apart

Lego robotics, news show and art



She loved to research and write her own script

The team worked together and were always equipped

Miss Dye was her most favorite person in the world

With her a whole new journey unfurled



Year eight moved her to Texas

Left behind friends who were going to miss us

But she made new friends in Stanley who were fun

A new world opened and a new chapter begun



There was lots to learn, lot of new rules

Things didn’t go great, but she kept her cool

In a few months, life was back on track

Off to school she went everyday with her red rocket backpack



Here were are already at year nine ,so fast it all went by

She is in fourth grade already ,my oh my

Mrs Schmitt and Mrs Hoelzel , you make learning fun

I know she is dreaming sometimes, but it is just her you will learn



Fourth grade has been super fun to ride

At the end of the year, she will be your joy and pride

She will be ready for the next year in the next grade soon

Phew !! Thankfully that is not until next June …

Discount life

It all started on a warm summer day a couple of months ago when I got my daughter’s clothes for her birthday from her most recent favorite store “Justice”. I didn’t realize what the big deal was until I walked into the store for the first time. It is all glitter, pink, purples and pure” fashionista” stuff as they say. So now I know what the uproar is about. Of course its heaven for a 9 year old to walk into this magical world of feel good . Well after the purchase, they handed me a $25 fun card for the purchase that she could use later.



She waited until the past weekend when we finally had time to go to the store. She was super thrilled of course. First thing she did when she came into the store was to walk up to the store clerk and ask how to use the card. Well as always there was fine print . I had failed to see it and apparently we had to spend $50 and they would use the fun card to discount $25 . We didn’t want to crush her fun ,but she wanted to make sure it was ok .We had to be ok.

She was thrilled to walk around and pick out small things for her big pleasure. We made some practical purchase to compensate for the rest of the $25 so she could have the thrill of using her card.



Life is quite simple. All we need to know is that most situations have a similar discount. There is a certain amount of negativity in everything or everyone we come across. We make a clean discount on what is unnecessary and look at the positive side and play our fun card. Life is all about the choices we make . if we choose to ignore the negative in a situation , every day seems like spring and every night passing by is glorious. Happiness is home made ,so play your discounts well and life could never be better. As the Dalai Lama says “Happiness is not ready made. It comes from your own actions “ . So make life fun for yourself and find fun in everything you do .

Mind, Manage and find Meaning in your Madness

Alright !! If anybody says ,you are not in a state of chaos ,then there is something fundamentally wrong with how your life is going  . Being a working mom with two kids, dogs, fishes, PTA ,piano tennis, homework etc my life is in a perpetual chaos is an understatement. But I believe I am normal. I love that I am in this phase of life or I am telling myself I have to. The kids will grow out of this phase pretty quickly and I will have nothing to do. Nobody to chauffer around,no battles to choose and no wars to win against the traffic. Life as I know it may become boring .
Even though I complain about the chaos in my life ,I am not sure I will know how to deal with not having it. But its so easy with infinite options to create busyness in today’s world. If I had to quit my job ,what would I do? That’s 8+ hours of my day .But I am sure I will be able to fill it up with busyness within no time. Life will still be filled with chaos and madness. Life as I know it will still be the same.
I think the challenge to manage everything possible in a 24 hour schedule , becomes so important. Let us admit, busyness makes you feel important. But no matter how important your job is ,it is highly unlikely you can create something world class working beyond a normal workday .It is a normal cliché’ to work smarter and not harder. Yet ,sometimes it becomes important to have work drive our lives in the corporate madness. Nobody pays us enough not to have a life. Anything beyond a normal day of work, only creates the illusion of busyness not business.
There are few moments in life that add meaning , they should not be replaced for anything that can wait for the next day for our attention. So kill the busyness in your life by setting priorities, listening to yourself, disconnecting ,track your actions, being idle ,motivating yourself and enjoying what you have.

Learn to Mind ,Manage and find meaning in your daily madness. You can’t escape it but it definitely makes it easy to live with it with no illusion of busyness.

Be ONline

A recent conversation inspired me to write down these thoughts. Quite often, especially in today’s world we don’t have time to listen .I do not mean listen at work or off work with people with whom you are having a purposeful conversation. That would mean that there is something for you to gain in it big or small. I mean being a true listener . Listening to someone who just needs somebody to talk to. Quite often empathy is misunderstood to be a sign of weakness. When you are truly listening to a person, you are not just listening to the words but also feeling what is being conveyed, to the whole of it and not a part of it.

Act of compassion arises with full attention. When you are listening to a person completely you are seeing them .When you completely see a person empathy arises. If you are tuned with the other person, you see what he sees. When you are listening to anyone, be Online. Empathy takes time. Efficiency probably doesn’t but efficiency is for machines and tools and we are people. Empathy is the one of the most radical emotions and we as humans are blessed with it.

Learning to empathize with one another ,adds value not only to another person’s life but truly to yours. You have provided a sense of relief and psychological air to another person who needed it and in time. The contentment that you receive within yourself when you have provided selfless help to another, makes us realize that we want less and enhance our happiness with what is around us.

Learning a different perspective in situations makes you understand life isn’t all about achieving goals of being successful, rich, thin, safe, entertained, young or famous. It is all about making difference to someone in need and to yourself every moment of your life. It is all in our attitude how we want to empower our lives. Make a wise choice and try to do the best every opportunity you get to give back ,big or small.

Be online with yourself and with people around you. They are then ones who make your world ,so do the right thing and make the world better around you.

Make room for nonsense

I realized that we probably started learning philosophy quite so early in our childhood. No I am not referring to Amar Chitra Katha,with tales of Ramayana or Mahabharata. I am talking about Dr.Seuss.Yes the guy who wrote Green Eggs and Ham. I realized he taught such small and simple lessons for a big and cheerful life. Wonder why we forget as we grow?



Reading Dr.Seuss with my son made me realize that we need to make room for some nonsense in life. As kids we are filled with it ,but as we grow up we are required to be more pragmatic. We leave no space for nonsense. I like nonsense. Life is all about a little of nonsense here and there to make it more fun. Don’t you agree ? It wakes up the otherwise dull mind ,caught in mundane, monotonous work. Nonsense relieves us from feeling like a machine .A little bit of fantasy isn’t bad for you. Every child is an artist ,with a colorful and vivid imagination of nonsense but the challenge is remaining one. We want to stay closer to the reality. But looking at life from the wrong end of the telescope ,makes you realize the small and big funnies in realities.

There is always something to laugh about everyday. As the popular quote , don’t take life too seriously ,nobody gets out of alive .So why bother worrying when there is an opportunity to look at the problem from the other end of the telescope. Perspectives change the attitude towards life. If you haven’t tried adding a little bit of nonsense in your life ,you should start now. You will never know how it changes you unless you do .



Every day is a mountain

Be willing to climb

Every day is an ocean

Go ahead and take a dive

Every day has open skies

Feel the wind and soar away

When things get down and low

Get back up there is another day !



Make room for some nonsense in your life. Quite often our perspective manages everything happening to us . If things get low , look at it from the other end of the telescope,laugh it off and move on. There is nothing we cannot fix,if we have the right perspective .

Ubook

Let me start with the cliché " Live like today is your last day ". Ultimately, life is uncertain so live like there is no tomorrow. Tomorrow will certainly come and go but there is no guarantee you are here . If we look at life as a book, we all write our own chapters.
What happens today influences what comes tomorrow so there is more than one reason to make every day special. We often make the mistake of placing our happiness with others .It is important to have more than one character in your book else there is no fun . Nobody is interested in going through life as a monologue. So make beautiful friendships and cherish the relationships that add value to your life . Try to make a difference every day for you never know who you inadvertently end up inspiring that day. Cherish and enjoy who is riding with you but don't put your happiness in them ,for there is no bigger disaster. Enjoy every chapter you are inscribing in your book for some day there will be a last line and then you want to make sure your life is well lived and blessed.

So enjoy every moment of your life as a new chapter begins every morning.

Inspired by my little cousin who I lost to cancer at 19 .