Human
Hi Dear friend,
Lets thinkss......
God created the donkey
and said to him.
"You will be a donkey. You will work un-tiringly from sunrise to sunset
carrying burdens on your back. You will eat grass,
you will have no intelligence and you will live 50 years."
The donkey answered:
"I will be a donkey, but to live 50 years is much. Give me only 20 years"
God granted his wish.
.............................................................................................
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
God created the dog
and said to him:
"You will guard the house of man. You will be his best Friend.
You will eat the scraps that he gives you and you will live 30 years.
You will be a dog. "
The dog answered:
"Sir, to live 30 years is too much,give me only 15 years.
" God granted his wish.
.............................................................................................
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
God created the monkey
and said to him:
"You will be a monkey. You will swing from branch to branch doing tricks.
You will be amusing and you will live
20 years. "
The monkey answered:
"To live 20 years is too much, give me only 10 years."
God granted his wish.
.............................................................................................
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Finally God created man ...
and said to him:
"You will be man, the only rational creature on the face of the earth.
You will use your intelligence to become master over all the animals..
You will dominate the world and you will live 20 years."
Man responded:
"Sir, I will be a man but to live only
20 years is very little,
give me the 30 years that the donkey refused,
the 15 years that the dog did not want and
the 10 years the monkey refused.
" God granted man's wish
............................................................................................
And since then, man lives
20 years as a man ,
marries and spends
30 years like a donkey,
working and carrying all the burdens on his back.
Then when his children are grown,
he lives 15 years like a dog taking care of the house
and eating whatever is given to him,
so that when he is old,
he can retire and live 10 years like a monkey,
going from house to house and from one son or
daughter to another doing tricks to amuse his grandchildren.
That's Life.
Is'nt it ???????
Monday, October 20, 2008
Friday, October 17, 2008
how is ur answer
You are driving along in your car on a wild, stormy night, it's
raining heavily, when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you see
three people waiting for a bus:
1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die!
2. An old friend who once saved your life!
3. The perfect partner you have been dreaming about!
Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing very well that
there could only be one passenger in your car?
Think before you continue reading...
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This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of
a job application.
* You could pick up the old lady, because she is going to die, and
thus you should save her first;
* or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life,
and this would be the perfect chance to ! pay him back.
* However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.
The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble
coming up with his answer. Guess what was his answer?
.........
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He simply answered:
"I would give the car keys to my Old friend and let him take the lady
to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the
partner of my dreams."
Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our stubborn thought
limitations. Never forget to "Think Outside of the Box."
raining heavily, when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you see
three people waiting for a bus:
1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die!
2. An old friend who once saved your life!
3. The perfect partner you have been dreaming about!
Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing very well that
there could only be one passenger in your car?
Think before you continue reading...
.........
........
...........
....
.....
.........
........
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....
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This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of
a job application.
* You could pick up the old lady, because she is going to die, and
thus you should save her first;
* or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life,
and this would be the perfect chance to ! pay him back.
* However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.
The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble
coming up with his answer. Guess what was his answer?
.........
........
...........
....
.....
He simply answered:
"I would give the car keys to my Old friend and let him take the lady
to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the
partner of my dreams."
Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our stubborn thought
limitations. Never forget to "Think Outside of the Box."
story
An amazing story... there are some men who r really wonderful
Ours was an arranged marriage. It was done the traditional way. Our parents
took care of everything. My only condition was that she should be ready to
work. Our horoscopes and photos were exchanged. Everything Matched. I spoke
to her over the phone. We talked about things two strangers would talk. She
was a lecturer in Bangalore who felt Chemistry was more important than
Hindi movies. There was no engagement. The date for marriage was fixed in 2
weeks as I could not get a vacation after that. Even the vacation time I
got was just 10 days.
Everything was fixed. It was supposed to be very hectic for me. We got
married and 2 days later we had to leave the country. She cried like there
was no tomorrow when we left. She would not talk to me on the plane. I
thought that was usual for an Indian girl. I thought she would get over it.
Once home she would not talk to me. She sat in a corner staring at the TV.
For the first couple of days I had to catch up on some work and did not
take her mood seriously.
A week later I sat beside her and asked her, "What is wrong?"
"Why did you bring me here?"
"What do you mean? What happened?"
"I want to go home"
"This is your home"
"No. I want to go home. Please buy me a ticket"
"Look, everybody feels homesick. I did when I came here the first time. It
is normal. You will get over it. Sorry I have been busy with work. We can
go out this weekend. You will meet my friends and other people who will be
very friendly. Come on be a good girl"
"I hate this place. I miss my family, my friends and my college. All the
people I know are not here. I want to go home"
"Think for a minute. Try to reason it out yourself. What is your plan by
the way? So you want to go back and never come back?"
"Yes"
"Are you crazy?"
"If you think this is crazy then I am."
"It is ok if you do not answer this question. Is there someone else?"
"No. I want to go home. I will call 911 if you do not send me"
"First cool down. Think about it. Think about our parents. It is less than
a month that we got married and now you want to return home. You very well
knew that you had to come here. What were you thinking? Even if you are
returning home what happens to our marriage?"
"I am not blaming you. I take the blame. It is my mistake. I can't stay so
far away from my family. If you are so interested come to India"
"I am family too! What you are asking is ridiculous."
The next day she would not change her mind. I called my folks. They said
that it was my decision and they would stand by me. I booked her ticket and
put it in her hand the next evening. She was to leave in 2 days. Nothing
would convince her to change her mind. She was crying like a kid. Then she
left.
She had done nothing for me to miss but something inside me was telling me
that I was at fault. I tried to shake it off but as time grew I started
feeling more guilty. I called her. She made it clear that she did not find
me despicable but she would not leave her city. Her parents apologized
profusely but they were helpless too.
I have had crushes. None of them were serious. There was this girl in my
high school tuition whose phone no I managed to find out. Then the
prettiest girl in college whom everybody loved, who talked to me once. Then
the girl from my city who was at my university in USA who made me feel at
home when I visited her place. I had ignored them once! I crossed their
paths. But Anjali was my wife. I could not ignore her.
I decided to quit my job. I went home. No one back home knew I was
returning. I wanted to surprise her. I dropped off my bags at my place and
went to the college she was teaching. The gate keeper would not let me in.
So I had to wait outside for the classes to get over.
She walked out alone, struggling to carry her bag, tired, with slow steps.
She was walking towards the bus stop. I silently followed her and went
behind her and whispered, "Do you mind if I carry your bag?"
She was startled and turned to face me. Her eyes lit up. I was not sure if
I could hug her. I was smiling and she had 100 questions written all over
her face. "I want to spend a week with you in this city. Show me the things
that you could not miss"
That one week went in a jiffy. She was treated a kid at home with all the
comforts. That explained her behavior. Coffee was brought to her in the
morning. Even her dress was laid out for her. She would have breakfast and
leave. The bus journey was an hour. She would sit near the window with a
book. Then once in the college she would teach her classes and come out
tired in the evening. She would stand in the crowded bus carrying her bag
which would look heavy. Then she would alight, go home, have a snack and
would head out to a friend's place.
Some times she'd stay home watching TV or listening to music. When her dad
returned she would join him and they'd have dinner. Then her mom would tuck
her in bed. Weekends were not much different. She would sleep late, wake up
for breakfast and lie down talking on the phone. Then she would visit the
temple in the evening and would have her singing lessons. Then she would
eat out and would head home late. That was her life. It was something every
human being wanted - simple, content and happy. Of course to her I was a
villain. I told her that I understood her. I wanted to know if it was ok if
she stayed in the same city but away from her parents. Her only condition
was that I should not stay at my parent's place to which I agreed.
So we moved into a small apartment. She knew nothing. She had to be taught
everything. She learnt. It was hard to make her understand that she had
duties and she had a husband. Coffee had to be brought to her in the
morning. She made the rules and broke them. She did not care for me.
Sometimes she would not return home but go to her parents' place without
informing me. I would have had to go bring her back.
Slowly she started realizing about married life. She would wake up before
me, try to cook, agree for a movie, visit my friend's place, invite me to
her college, let me dress her up, dance in front of me, teach me Chemistry,
talk about her crushes, play cricket with me, make me cry for a change. She
was growing mature day by day. One day she apologized for the whole thing.
I brushed it aside. Finally I had her the way I wanted.
Today I am happy and content with my life. She is still there crying to get
her things done. I keep reminding her how she had threatened to call the
police. She laughs it away. Some times I wonder how life would have been if
I had not returned. Then again some things are left as they are.
That's how life is...
There are two ways of meeting difficulties:
You alter the difficulties, or you alter yourself to meet them"
Ours was an arranged marriage. It was done the traditional way. Our parents
took care of everything. My only condition was that she should be ready to
work. Our horoscopes and photos were exchanged. Everything Matched. I spoke
to her over the phone. We talked about things two strangers would talk. She
was a lecturer in Bangalore who felt Chemistry was more important than
Hindi movies. There was no engagement. The date for marriage was fixed in 2
weeks as I could not get a vacation after that. Even the vacation time I
got was just 10 days.
Everything was fixed. It was supposed to be very hectic for me. We got
married and 2 days later we had to leave the country. She cried like there
was no tomorrow when we left. She would not talk to me on the plane. I
thought that was usual for an Indian girl. I thought she would get over it.
Once home she would not talk to me. She sat in a corner staring at the TV.
For the first couple of days I had to catch up on some work and did not
take her mood seriously.
A week later I sat beside her and asked her, "What is wrong?"
"Why did you bring me here?"
"What do you mean? What happened?"
"I want to go home"
"This is your home"
"No. I want to go home. Please buy me a ticket"
"Look, everybody feels homesick. I did when I came here the first time. It
is normal. You will get over it. Sorry I have been busy with work. We can
go out this weekend. You will meet my friends and other people who will be
very friendly. Come on be a good girl"
"I hate this place. I miss my family, my friends and my college. All the
people I know are not here. I want to go home"
"Think for a minute. Try to reason it out yourself. What is your plan by
the way? So you want to go back and never come back?"
"Yes"
"Are you crazy?"
"If you think this is crazy then I am."
"It is ok if you do not answer this question. Is there someone else?"
"No. I want to go home. I will call 911 if you do not send me"
"First cool down. Think about it. Think about our parents. It is less than
a month that we got married and now you want to return home. You very well
knew that you had to come here. What were you thinking? Even if you are
returning home what happens to our marriage?"
"I am not blaming you. I take the blame. It is my mistake. I can't stay so
far away from my family. If you are so interested come to India"
"I am family too! What you are asking is ridiculous."
The next day she would not change her mind. I called my folks. They said
that it was my decision and they would stand by me. I booked her ticket and
put it in her hand the next evening. She was to leave in 2 days. Nothing
would convince her to change her mind. She was crying like a kid. Then she
left.
She had done nothing for me to miss but something inside me was telling me
that I was at fault. I tried to shake it off but as time grew I started
feeling more guilty. I called her. She made it clear that she did not find
me despicable but she would not leave her city. Her parents apologized
profusely but they were helpless too.
I have had crushes. None of them were serious. There was this girl in my
high school tuition whose phone no I managed to find out. Then the
prettiest girl in college whom everybody loved, who talked to me once. Then
the girl from my city who was at my university in USA who made me feel at
home when I visited her place. I had ignored them once! I crossed their
paths. But Anjali was my wife. I could not ignore her.
I decided to quit my job. I went home. No one back home knew I was
returning. I wanted to surprise her. I dropped off my bags at my place and
went to the college she was teaching. The gate keeper would not let me in.
So I had to wait outside for the classes to get over.
She walked out alone, struggling to carry her bag, tired, with slow steps.
She was walking towards the bus stop. I silently followed her and went
behind her and whispered, "Do you mind if I carry your bag?"
She was startled and turned to face me. Her eyes lit up. I was not sure if
I could hug her. I was smiling and she had 100 questions written all over
her face. "I want to spend a week with you in this city. Show me the things
that you could not miss"
That one week went in a jiffy. She was treated a kid at home with all the
comforts. That explained her behavior. Coffee was brought to her in the
morning. Even her dress was laid out for her. She would have breakfast and
leave. The bus journey was an hour. She would sit near the window with a
book. Then once in the college she would teach her classes and come out
tired in the evening. She would stand in the crowded bus carrying her bag
which would look heavy. Then she would alight, go home, have a snack and
would head out to a friend's place.
Some times she'd stay home watching TV or listening to music. When her dad
returned she would join him and they'd have dinner. Then her mom would tuck
her in bed. Weekends were not much different. She would sleep late, wake up
for breakfast and lie down talking on the phone. Then she would visit the
temple in the evening and would have her singing lessons. Then she would
eat out and would head home late. That was her life. It was something every
human being wanted - simple, content and happy. Of course to her I was a
villain. I told her that I understood her. I wanted to know if it was ok if
she stayed in the same city but away from her parents. Her only condition
was that I should not stay at my parent's place to which I agreed.
So we moved into a small apartment. She knew nothing. She had to be taught
everything. She learnt. It was hard to make her understand that she had
duties and she had a husband. Coffee had to be brought to her in the
morning. She made the rules and broke them. She did not care for me.
Sometimes she would not return home but go to her parents' place without
informing me. I would have had to go bring her back.
Slowly she started realizing about married life. She would wake up before
me, try to cook, agree for a movie, visit my friend's place, invite me to
her college, let me dress her up, dance in front of me, teach me Chemistry,
talk about her crushes, play cricket with me, make me cry for a change. She
was growing mature day by day. One day she apologized for the whole thing.
I brushed it aside. Finally I had her the way I wanted.
Today I am happy and content with my life. She is still there crying to get
her things done. I keep reminding her how she had threatened to call the
police. She laughs it away. Some times I wonder how life would have been if
I had not returned. Then again some things are left as they are.
That's how life is...
There are two ways of meeting difficulties:
You alter the difficulties, or you alter yourself to meet them"
msg
My friends message share with here!!!
One rich man owned 19 horses when he died. In his
last will and teastament he had written that upon his
death, half the horses he owned should go to his only
son; one fourth to the village temple and one fifth to
the faithful servant. The village elders could not
stop scratching their heads. How can they give half of
the 19 horses to the son? You cannot cut up a horse.
They puzzled over this dilemma for more than two weeks
and then decided to send for a wise man who was living
in a neighbouring village.
The wise man came riding on his horse and asked the
villagers if he can be of any help to them. The
village elders told him about the rich man's last will
and testament which stated that half of the (19)
horses must be given to his only son, one fourth must
go to the temple and one fifth to the faithful
servant.
The wise man said he will immediately solve their
problem without any delay whatsoever. He had the 19
horses placed in a row standing next to one another.
Then he added his own horse as the 20th horse. Now he
went about giving half of the 20 horses that is ten
horses to the son. One fourth of 20- that is 5 horses
were given to the temple committee. One fifth of
twenty- that is 4 horses were given to the faithful
servant. 10+5+4 made 19 horses. The remaining 20th
horse was his own which he promptly mounted, spoke a
few inspiring words, and rode back home.
The villagers were simply dumfounded, full of
disbelief and filled with admiration. And the parting
words of the wise man were inscribed in their hearts
and minds which they greatly cherished and passed on
to their succeeding generations till today.
The wise man said: In our daily lives, in our daily
affairs, simply add God's name and then go about
facing the day's happenings. Ever come across problems
in life that are seemingly insurmountable? (Like the
villagers, do we feel that such problems cannot be
solved?).
The wise man continued: Add the God Principle in our
daily lives and the problems will become lighter and
eventually will disappear. In the manner of the ice
which, with the addition of the heat principle will
turn into water, and that will eventually evaporate as
steam and disappear. And how do we add God's name in
our daily lives? Through prayers, filled with true
love and devotion with sincerity of purpose and
dedication that only total faith can bring about.
Meditation is a powerful means of directing the mind
Godward.
But without true love and devotion entering into it,
it remains like a boat without water. It is not
difficult to push a boat that is floating in water,
but extremely hard to drag the same boat on dry land.
In the same way, if our life's boat floats on the
waters of true love and devotion, we can sail easily
in it. The principle of love of God and devotion with
total faith, (like water) makes easy the voyage of our
lives. When the mind is pure and the heart full of
simplicity and holiness, such a devotee becomes an
instrument in the service of the Lord.
One rich man owned 19 horses when he died. In his
last will and teastament he had written that upon his
death, half the horses he owned should go to his only
son; one fourth to the village temple and one fifth to
the faithful servant. The village elders could not
stop scratching their heads. How can they give half of
the 19 horses to the son? You cannot cut up a horse.
They puzzled over this dilemma for more than two weeks
and then decided to send for a wise man who was living
in a neighbouring village.
The wise man came riding on his horse and asked the
villagers if he can be of any help to them. The
village elders told him about the rich man's last will
and testament which stated that half of the (19)
horses must be given to his only son, one fourth must
go to the temple and one fifth to the faithful
servant.
The wise man said he will immediately solve their
problem without any delay whatsoever. He had the 19
horses placed in a row standing next to one another.
Then he added his own horse as the 20th horse. Now he
went about giving half of the 20 horses that is ten
horses to the son. One fourth of 20- that is 5 horses
were given to the temple committee. One fifth of
twenty- that is 4 horses were given to the faithful
servant. 10+5+4 made 19 horses. The remaining 20th
horse was his own which he promptly mounted, spoke a
few inspiring words, and rode back home.
The villagers were simply dumfounded, full of
disbelief and filled with admiration. And the parting
words of the wise man were inscribed in their hearts
and minds which they greatly cherished and passed on
to their succeeding generations till today.
The wise man said: In our daily lives, in our daily
affairs, simply add God's name and then go about
facing the day's happenings. Ever come across problems
in life that are seemingly insurmountable? (Like the
villagers, do we feel that such problems cannot be
solved?).
The wise man continued: Add the God Principle in our
daily lives and the problems will become lighter and
eventually will disappear. In the manner of the ice
which, with the addition of the heat principle will
turn into water, and that will eventually evaporate as
steam and disappear. And how do we add God's name in
our daily lives? Through prayers, filled with true
love and devotion with sincerity of purpose and
dedication that only total faith can bring about.
Meditation is a powerful means of directing the mind
Godward.
But without true love and devotion entering into it,
it remains like a boat without water. It is not
difficult to push a boat that is floating in water,
but extremely hard to drag the same boat on dry land.
In the same way, if our life's boat floats on the
waters of true love and devotion, we can sail easily
in it. The principle of love of God and devotion with
total faith, (like water) makes easy the voyage of our
lives. When the mind is pure and the heart full of
simplicity and holiness, such a devotee becomes an
instrument in the service of the Lord.
if u love
Dating process:
6 weeks : I love U, I love U, I love U.
6 months : Of course I love U.
6 years : GOD, if I didn't love U, then why the hell did I propose?
Back from Work:
6 weeks : Honey, I'm home.
6 months : BACK!!
6 years : What did your mom cook for us today??
Gifts:
6 weeks : Honey, I really hope you liked the ring.
6 months : I bought you a painting; it would fit the motif in the living room.
6 years : Here's the money. Buy yourself something.
Phone Ringing:
6 weeks : Baby, somebody wants you on the phone.
6 months : Here, for you.
6 years : PHONE RINGING.
Cooking:
6 weeks : I never knew food could taste so good!
6 months : What are we having for dinner tonight?
6 years : AGAIN!!!!
Apology:
6 weeks : Honey muffin, don't you worry, Ill never hold this against you.
6 months : Watch out! Don't do it again.
6 years : What's not to understand about what I just said??
New Dress:
6 weeks : Oh my God, you look like an angel in that dress.
6 months : You bought a new dress again???
6 years : How much did THAT cost me?
Planning for Vacations:
6 weeks : How do 2 weeks in Vienna or anywhere you please sound??
6 months : What's so bad about going to Istanbul on a charter plane?
6 years: Travel? What's so bad about staying home???
TV:
6 weeks : Baby, what would you like us to watch tonight?
6 months : I like this movie.
6 years : I'm going to watch ESPN, if you're not in the mood, go to bed, I can stay up by myself
he he he
6 weeks : I love U, I love U, I love U.
6 months : Of course I love U.
6 years : GOD, if I didn't love U, then why the hell did I propose?
Back from Work:
6 weeks : Honey, I'm home.
6 months : BACK!!
6 years : What did your mom cook for us today??
Gifts:
6 weeks : Honey, I really hope you liked the ring.
6 months : I bought you a painting; it would fit the motif in the living room.
6 years : Here's the money. Buy yourself something.
Phone Ringing:
6 weeks : Baby, somebody wants you on the phone.
6 months : Here, for you.
6 years : PHONE RINGING.
Cooking:
6 weeks : I never knew food could taste so good!
6 months : What are we having for dinner tonight?
6 years : AGAIN!!!!
Apology:
6 weeks : Honey muffin, don't you worry, Ill never hold this against you.
6 months : Watch out! Don't do it again.
6 years : What's not to understand about what I just said??
New Dress:
6 weeks : Oh my God, you look like an angel in that dress.
6 months : You bought a new dress again???
6 years : How much did THAT cost me?
Planning for Vacations:
6 weeks : How do 2 weeks in Vienna or anywhere you please sound??
6 months : What's so bad about going to Istanbul on a charter plane?
6 years: Travel? What's so bad about staying home???
TV:
6 weeks : Baby, what would you like us to watch tonight?
6 months : I like this movie.
6 years : I'm going to watch ESPN, if you're not in the mood, go to bed, I can stay up by myself
he he he
love letter
A different Love Letter
A different Love letter and a beautiful reply to it.
A teenage college guy sent a love letter (in Q/A format) to his classmate.
My Dearest Reshma,
Please answer the following questionnaire. For Options
(A) 10 marks,
(b) 5marks and
(c) 3 marks.
**********
1) Whenever you enter the class room, your sight always falls on me because:
(a) of love
(b) you couldn't control seeing me
(c) really ... Am I doing it?
**********
2) Whenever professor cracks joke, you laugh and turn and look at me because:
(a) you always like to see me smiling
(b) you are testing whether I like jokes
(c) you are attracted by my smile
**********
3) When you were singing in the class, I entered and immediately you stopped singing because:
(a) you are so coy to sing before me
(b) my presence influenced you
(c) you feared that whether I'll like your song
**********
4) When you were showing your childhood photo, when I asked for it, you hide it because:
(a) you felt ashamed
(b) you felt uneasy
(c) you don't know
**********
5) During trekking, myself and my friend gave you hand for lifting you and you took only my friend's because:
(a) you enjoyed my disappointment
(b) you won't feel leaving my hand after grabbing
(c) you don't know
**********
6) You were waiting yesterday for bus and didn't get into your bus...
(a) you were waiting for me
(b) you were dreaming about me and didn't notice the bus
(c) that bus was crowded
**********
7) You introduced me to your parents when they came to college because:
(a) I am going to be your groom
(b) you just want to know what your parents think about me
(c) just you felt like introducing me to them
**********
8) I told that I like girls wearing roses. Next day, you came with a rose on your head because:
(a) to fulfill my wish
(b) you like roses
(c) by chance you got a rose
**********
9) On that day, it was my birthday. You too came to temple early at 6:00 A.M because:
(a) you want to pray along with me
(b) you want to meet me before any one could meet on my birthday
(c) you want to wish me at temple because you are spiritual.
**********
If you have scored more than 40, then you are loving me. Don't delay in expressing it.
If you have scored between 30 and 40, love is budding in your heart and it's getting ready to bloom. If you have scored less than 30, you are in confusion whether to love me or not.
Eagerly awaiting your reply..
Love , Aakash
*********************
Reshma's reply letter was also in Q/A format .........
Aakash ,
Please answer the following Yes/No questionnaire.
**********
1) If somebody sits in the first row, normally people entering the class, sees them.
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
2) If a girl laughs and looks anyone, is it love?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
3) While singing, if somebody forgets lines of the songs, will he/she stop singing or not?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
4) I was showing to my friends (who are all girls) my childhood photo.
You poked your nose inside..... Right ?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
5) I avoided to hold your hand during trekking. Couldn't you understand yet?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
6) Should I not wait for my best friend (Anjali ) at the bus stand?
(a)Yes (b) No
**********
7) Shouldn't I introduce you to my parents as a friend?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
8) You have said you also like Lotus, cauliflower, banana's flower. Is it true ?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
9) Oh was that your birthday. That's why I could see you in temple. I come daily to Temple. Do you know ?
(a) Yes (b) No
If you have answered "Yes" to any of the question, then I am not loving you. If you have answered "No", then you don't know the meaning of Love.
Hope everything is clear to you ..
A different Love letter and a beautiful reply to it.
A teenage college guy sent a love letter (in Q/A format) to his classmate.
My Dearest Reshma,
Please answer the following questionnaire. For Options
(A) 10 marks,
(b) 5marks and
(c) 3 marks.
**********
1) Whenever you enter the class room, your sight always falls on me because:
(a) of love
(b) you couldn't control seeing me
(c) really ... Am I doing it?
**********
2) Whenever professor cracks joke, you laugh and turn and look at me because:
(a) you always like to see me smiling
(b) you are testing whether I like jokes
(c) you are attracted by my smile
**********
3) When you were singing in the class, I entered and immediately you stopped singing because:
(a) you are so coy to sing before me
(b) my presence influenced you
(c) you feared that whether I'll like your song
**********
4) When you were showing your childhood photo, when I asked for it, you hide it because:
(a) you felt ashamed
(b) you felt uneasy
(c) you don't know
**********
5) During trekking, myself and my friend gave you hand for lifting you and you took only my friend's because:
(a) you enjoyed my disappointment
(b) you won't feel leaving my hand after grabbing
(c) you don't know
**********
6) You were waiting yesterday for bus and didn't get into your bus...
(a) you were waiting for me
(b) you were dreaming about me and didn't notice the bus
(c) that bus was crowded
**********
7) You introduced me to your parents when they came to college because:
(a) I am going to be your groom
(b) you just want to know what your parents think about me
(c) just you felt like introducing me to them
**********
8) I told that I like girls wearing roses. Next day, you came with a rose on your head because:
(a) to fulfill my wish
(b) you like roses
(c) by chance you got a rose
**********
9) On that day, it was my birthday. You too came to temple early at 6:00 A.M because:
(a) you want to pray along with me
(b) you want to meet me before any one could meet on my birthday
(c) you want to wish me at temple because you are spiritual.
**********
If you have scored more than 40, then you are loving me. Don't delay in expressing it.
If you have scored between 30 and 40, love is budding in your heart and it's getting ready to bloom. If you have scored less than 30, you are in confusion whether to love me or not.
Eagerly awaiting your reply..
Love , Aakash
*********************
Reshma's reply letter was also in Q/A format .........
Aakash ,
Please answer the following Yes/No questionnaire.
**********
1) If somebody sits in the first row, normally people entering the class, sees them.
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
2) If a girl laughs and looks anyone, is it love?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
3) While singing, if somebody forgets lines of the songs, will he/she stop singing or not?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
4) I was showing to my friends (who are all girls) my childhood photo.
You poked your nose inside..... Right ?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
5) I avoided to hold your hand during trekking. Couldn't you understand yet?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
6) Should I not wait for my best friend (Anjali ) at the bus stand?
(a)Yes (b) No
**********
7) Shouldn't I introduce you to my parents as a friend?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
8) You have said you also like Lotus, cauliflower, banana's flower. Is it true ?
(a) Yes (b) No
**********
9) Oh was that your birthday. That's why I could see you in temple. I come daily to Temple. Do you know ?
(a) Yes (b) No
If you have answered "Yes" to any of the question, then I am not loving you. If you have answered "No", then you don't know the meaning of Love.
Hope everything is clear to you ..
love sorry
One of the most touching and purest love story I've read in a while..
From the very beginning, girl's family objected strongly on her dating this guy, saying that it has got to do with family background, & that the girl will have to suffer for the rest of her life if she were to be with him.
Due to family's pressure, the couple quarreled very often. Though the girl loved the guy deeply, she always asked him: "How deep is your love for me?"
As the guy is not good with his words, this often caused the girl to be very upset. With that & the family's pressure, the gal often vents her anger on him. As for him.. he only endured it in silence.
After a couple of years, the guy finally graduated & decided to further his studies overseas. Before leaving, he proposed to the gal: "I'm not very good with words. But all I know is that I love you. If you allow me, I will take care of you for the rest of my life. As for your family, I'll try my best to talk them round. Will you marry me?"
The girl agreed, & with the guy's termination, the family finally gave in & agreed to let them get married. So before he left, they got engaged.
The gal went out to the working society, whereas the guy was overseas, continuing his studies. They sent their love through emails & phone calls. Though it was hard, but both never thought of giving up.
One day, while the gal was on her way to work, she was knocked down by a car that lost control. When she woke up, she saw her parents beside her bed. She realized that she was badly injured. Seeing her mum cry, she wanted to comfort her. But she realized that
all that could come out of her mouth was just a sigh. She had lost her voice....
The doctor says that the impact on her brain has caused her to lose her voice. Listening to her parents' comfort, but with nothing coming out from her, she broke down. During the stay in hospital, besides silent cry. it's still just silent cry that accompanied her. Upon reaching home, everything seems to be the same. Except for the ringing tone of the
phone which pierced into her heart every time it rang. She does not wish to let the guy know & not wanting to be a burden to him, she wrote a letter to him saying that she does not wish to wait any longer.
With that, she sent the ring back to him. In return, the guy sent millions & millions of reply and countless phone calls. all the gal could do besides crying is still crying.... The parents decided to move away, hoping that she could eventually forget everything & be happy.
With a new environment, the gal learnt sign language & started a new life.
Telling herself everyday that she must forget the guy. One day, her friend came & told her that he's back. She asked her friend not to let him know what happened to her. Since then, there wasn't anymore news of him.
A year has passed & her friend came with an envelope, containing an invitation card for the guy's wedding. The gal was shattered. When she opened the letter, she saw her name on it instead. When she was about to ask
her friend what was going on, she saw the guy standing in front of her....
He used sign language to tell her, "I've spent a year to learn sign language. Just to let you know that I've not forgotten our promise. Let me have the chance to be your voice. I Love You." With that, he slipped the ring back into her finger. The gal finally smiled......
Treat every relationship as if it's the last one,
then you'll know how to Give.
Treat every moment as if it's the last day, then
you'll know how to Treasure.
Treasure what you have right now, or else you may regret one day...
From the very beginning, girl's family objected strongly on her dating this guy, saying that it has got to do with family background, & that the girl will have to suffer for the rest of her life if she were to be with him.
Due to family's pressure, the couple quarreled very often. Though the girl loved the guy deeply, she always asked him: "How deep is your love for me?"
As the guy is not good with his words, this often caused the girl to be very upset. With that & the family's pressure, the gal often vents her anger on him. As for him.. he only endured it in silence.
After a couple of years, the guy finally graduated & decided to further his studies overseas. Before leaving, he proposed to the gal: "I'm not very good with words. But all I know is that I love you. If you allow me, I will take care of you for the rest of my life. As for your family, I'll try my best to talk them round. Will you marry me?"
The girl agreed, & with the guy's termination, the family finally gave in & agreed to let them get married. So before he left, they got engaged.
The gal went out to the working society, whereas the guy was overseas, continuing his studies. They sent their love through emails & phone calls. Though it was hard, but both never thought of giving up.
One day, while the gal was on her way to work, she was knocked down by a car that lost control. When she woke up, she saw her parents beside her bed. She realized that she was badly injured. Seeing her mum cry, she wanted to comfort her. But she realized that
all that could come out of her mouth was just a sigh. She had lost her voice....
The doctor says that the impact on her brain has caused her to lose her voice. Listening to her parents' comfort, but with nothing coming out from her, she broke down. During the stay in hospital, besides silent cry. it's still just silent cry that accompanied her. Upon reaching home, everything seems to be the same. Except for the ringing tone of the
phone which pierced into her heart every time it rang. She does not wish to let the guy know & not wanting to be a burden to him, she wrote a letter to him saying that she does not wish to wait any longer.
With that, she sent the ring back to him. In return, the guy sent millions & millions of reply and countless phone calls. all the gal could do besides crying is still crying.... The parents decided to move away, hoping that she could eventually forget everything & be happy.
With a new environment, the gal learnt sign language & started a new life.
Telling herself everyday that she must forget the guy. One day, her friend came & told her that he's back. She asked her friend not to let him know what happened to her. Since then, there wasn't anymore news of him.
A year has passed & her friend came with an envelope, containing an invitation card for the guy's wedding. The gal was shattered. When she opened the letter, she saw her name on it instead. When she was about to ask
her friend what was going on, she saw the guy standing in front of her....
He used sign language to tell her, "I've spent a year to learn sign language. Just to let you know that I've not forgotten our promise. Let me have the chance to be your voice. I Love You." With that, he slipped the ring back into her finger. The gal finally smiled......
Treat every relationship as if it's the last one,
then you'll know how to Give.
Treat every moment as if it's the last day, then
you'll know how to Treasure.
Treasure what you have right now, or else you may regret one day...
small love story
It was a lovely December morning in the hottest city in the world. All right, so that was a little unfair. Chennai is not the hottest city in the world. But it certainly is the city with the most uncomfortable weather among the cities that I have lived in. And I've been around. But I digress.
I was in the company bus on my way to work, as usual trying to catch up with my sleep. On this particular day, a girl got on the bus, came to my seat and sat down. "Good Morning," she said. I looked back at her through half closed eyes, replied "Good Night," and then proceeded to return to my half hour nap before the bus reached the office. Unfortunately, I was
woken up by a punch in the arm.
"Wake up, bozo!" She was looking at me with a big smile on her face. "I'm not sitting next to you to listen to you snore."
Half-heartedly, I opened my eyes and turned to her. "What's up?" I asked.
Preeti Mehra was tall, good-looking and slightly tomboyish. She was also my best buddy. "Come on," she said. "Don't look so disappointed. You'd rather sleep than talk to me?"
"I talk to you everyday, Preeti."
"You also sleep everyday."
"It's not enough."
"So you've had enough of talking to me, eh?"
You can't argue with a statement like that, so I had to give up. I grinned and said, "OK, sweetheart. What's on your mind?"
"I wanted to tell you what happened yesterday. Can you guess?"
"Anurag called you last night."
"How did you know?" She was stunned.
"Oh, he asked me for your number yesterday."
"And you gave it to him?"
"What else could I do? And stop complaining. You've been drooling over him for weeks now. He must have thought he had a chance."
Preeti was the kind of girl who would openly ogle at every other guy she saw. And yet, she would not respond to any advances of a romantic nature.
She'd happily join a group of boys to go to a cricket match, but if asked out to a movie, dinner, or even coffee, she'd never say yes. She defined 'Hard-To-Get' .
"You like putting me in these situations, don't you?" she said.
"No. That's not true. I love putting you in these situations!"
That invited another punch in the arm.
I had known Preeti for a year. We'd tell each other about our joys and our sorrows, our victories and our defeats. I'd tell her about all my crushes and she'd scold me for being silly. She'd drag me to classical music concerts and I'd add them to the list of things she 'owed me' for. And though I never let it show, I must say that she punched pretty hard.
~*~
It was 12:00 am and my phone was ringing. "Hello," I said, as I picked it up.
"Happy Birthday!" It was she.
"You're supposed to throw me a surprise party, sweetheart. Not just call to say Happy Birthday."
"Well then open your door, dumbo!"
So I did and found her, cell-phone in hand, at my doorstep -- with what seemed like half the population of my company. My roommates were supposed to be working late that night. Now I knew why. I blew a lot of candles (seemed like much more than 25), cut my cake, got kicked in the behind, and got painted with the cake's icing. If Preeti had had her way, she'd probably have preferred to use a paintbrush and a can of paint. But I bribed her with a copy of the book "Lord of the Rings".
She'd borrowed it from me three times already. I thought it was about time I gave her a copy for herself.
We chatted for an hour after everyone had gone. "I think it's time I left," she said finally, trying to stifle a yawn. I nodded. I dropped her home in my roommate's car. As she was getting out of the car, I stopped her.
"Hey, Preeti."
"What?"
"Thanks."
"Hey, don't get senti on me now!" she smiled. "Are you trying to worm out of that gift you promised me?"
"You know, it's interesting how I'm getting you a gift on my birthday."
"That's just because you're stupid," she grinned. "And you better get me that book, or I won't return your copy."
"Hey, that copy was a gift to me from my dear friend Preeti Mehra. I can't let you keep that."
She wasn't falling for that. "Your dear friend? And what about me? Am I not dear to you?"
"Very smart. That won't work with me. I'm not one of your Love Crazy suitors. Why do you need the book anyway? You've read it umpteen times already."
"That is besides the point. You are getting me the book. We both know that." She smiled that wide confident smile of hers. "Good night." And she got out of the car.
I sat there for some time, just thinking. Our conversations were always like this - a little joking, a little teasing and a lot of demanding. But somehow, I felt that something had changed since the moment she had turned up at my door that night. I was still in my reverie when a paper ball landed on the windshield. I craned my neck out of the window and looked up. She was standing in her balcony.
"What are you still doing there?" she whispered loudly.
"Waiting for you to start a paper-ball fight," I whispered back.
"We can do that tomorrow. Go home now. It's way past your bedtime!"
"Ok, mommy," I grinned back. "I'm going home now!"
~*~
I'm an extravagant gift-giver, and it is definitely going to be my downfall some day. I made her wait for it, but finally bought her the book. That, and half-a-dozen other omnibus collections of various authors, including a copy each of `The Complete Works of Shakespeare' and `The Complete Short Stories of Charles Dickens'. All I got for it was an "I told you so."
I started spending a lot of time at her place after that. Mostly because I wanted to read all those books, and she wouldn't lend them to me.
"I'm not as stupid as you, ape-man. I'm not falling into the same trap I laid for you. Plus, you dog-ear your books. You're not doing that to these masterpieces. So if you want to read them, you read them here. And if you want to mark your place, use a bookmark."
So that's what I did. She'd even make me wash my hands before I touched the books. It was as if they were sacred.
"Need I remind you that it was me that bought you the books in the first place? For my birthday!"
"So? They're mine now."
"Well, then. I've been meaning to ask you this for a long time. Where exactly is my birthday gift?"
"It was in your tummy at one point of time. It's probably been washed into the sea by now."
"Huh?"
"Remember the cake I baked you on your birthday?"
"You what? You can't bake cakes!" That was a mistake. She looked hurt.
"You baked me a cake?" She didn't say a word. She just shrugged.
I was stunned. "But you never told me."
"You didn't ask." That was typical of her.
"It was fantastic! And you wasted most of the icing on me!"
"The cake was for you, dumbo."
"How long did it take you to make the whole thing?" It had been a two-layered vanilla-chocolate cake with three flavors of very creamy icing. She had done all that!
"Well, the chocolate cake took an hour and fifteen minutes, and so did the vanilla. Then cutting them up and putting them together took another 15 minutes. Each flavor of icing took 20 minutes for preparation, and then putting it on the cake took another half hour. Cleaning up the mess took an hour."
She seldom claimed the credit for anything, but once she started bragging, there was no stopping her. However, I wasn't thinking about that right then.
"You spent over five hours on that cake?"
"A little over four hours preparing it, and an hour cleaning up. Yes."
I was speechless. I didn't know how to react. She hated cooking.
"I forgot to mention," she continued, "the hours I spent the week before that, practicing. Even the birds wouldn't touch the first three cakes!"
I couldn't help but ask. "Why?"
"Because the first one got burnt, the second one was only half cooked, and in the third one, I forgot to add sugar."
It was just like her, to try to divert the conversation. "I mean why did you spend so much time on baking me a cake?"
She looked at me like I'd asked her why the sun rises in the east. "For your birthday, stupid. Of course, I also wanted to beat every gift you've ever got me. Try beating this one." She was grinning like she'd won the world championship.
As far as I was concerned, she had. I'd never spent a week making her anything. I'd never even spent an hour making her anything. Getting her a gift normally involved me taking her to the store, letting her choose and use my credit card. Suddenly, I felt cheap. "Thanks," was the only thing I could say. "Thanks a lot."
"Hey. Are you getting senti on me again?"
I was.
~*~
I was still mulling over my feelings for Preeti the next day at work when my boss asked to speak to me.
I went over to his cabin and he started with the usual greetings, asking how work was going and whether I was comfortable. He then told me that the company wanted to send me to New York for a couple of years. Normally, this wouldn't have made much of a difference to me. I could work anywhere and didn't have too much love for visiting places foreign. But right then, the first thought that came to me was that I'd be away from Preeti for two whole years. Twenty-four hours before, I'd have been disappointed to lose her company. But right then, I was devastated. That was when I knew I was in love with her. I'd had crushes before. Lots of them. But this was different.
"Do you have any problem in going?" my boss asked, since I hadn't responded.
"Not really," I replied. What else could I say? That I was in love, and couldn't bear the separation?
"When do I have to leave?"
I had a month.
~*~
"Wow! New York! Great! I've heard it's a fantastic city! Did you know it snows there in winter?" Preeti was obviously very excited about my going.
She didn't seem to share my disappointment on what I now saw as 'separation' .
I had not decided then if I was going to tell her how I felt. We'd known each other for a little over a year, and we were very close, but beyond some mild flirting, the relationship had never got even close to romantic. That was, of course, until I found out she had spent a week baking me a cake. It's funny how small things seem to make such a big difference.
"What happened?" she asked. "You don't seem very happy."
"Oh," I replied, "it's just that it's so sudden, that's all. And you know I was never all that interested in going to America."
"What an idiot. Go see the place. I've heard the women there are amazingly beautiful." She had a sly smile on her face. I wanted to tell her I didn't care if I laid my eyes on another woman again, if she wasn't with me. But I didn't.
I realized that I only had another month with her. She'd rejected every guy who'd asked her out ever since I'd known her. I didn't want the same to happen to me, and I didn't want to make it awkward between us. I didn't want to risk that month. I wanted it to be the best time I had ever spent with her. After I came back from the US, I might not even get to meet her
again. Two years was a long time.
We ate out almost every night. We visited some of the best restaurants in the city. She also helped me shop for warm clothes, formalwear, shoes, toothpaste and a million things I'd never have thought of on my own.
"You need to buy a nail-cutter. " My roommates and I shared one.
"I've prepared a list of must-have medicines that you should carry."
"Your iron won't work in the US. No point buying one here as you need one that works at a hundred and ten volts and has flat pins. You can buy one at a K-Mart or Wal-Mart as soon as you get there."
"You need at least two pairs of formal shoes and at least ten pairs of dark socks. The East Coast has a formal dress code. And you won't do your laundry more than once a week or two."
"How many ties do you have? And which trousers do your blazers go with?"
"Better get a haircut before you leave from here. Knowing you, you'll postpone the first haircut for too long."
She'd call me up at one in the morning to tell me to add 'one more item' to my list.
And with every passing day, I was falling more deeply in love with her.
The month swept by quickly. The day I was supposed to leave, I asked her to come with me to the airport. "Of course, dumbo. You think I'd let you go just like that, or what?"
After packing my bags for me and checking the lists for the hundredth time, she finally pronounced me "Good to go."
We reached the airport four hours early to beat the rush, because it was an international flight. She got a visitor's pass to sit in the waiting area while I went ahead and checked-in my bags. Preeti had got a spring balance from somewhere and so we knew my bags were well within the weight limit. I finished the formalities and came to sit with her. We had only a few hours before I had to go for my security-check. We decided to get something to eat at the food court. And all the time, the one thing that was going through my head was that, after this, I wouldn't see her for at least another two years.
"Hey, Champ. Why so glum?" She saved 'Champ' for special days. Normally, it was just 'dumbo', 'bozo', 'ape-man', 'matchstick man', 'weirdo', or if she was very irritated with me, 'nutcase'.
"I don't want to go," I said.
"I don't want you to go either."
"No, you don't understand." I couldn't hold it in any longer. "I can't stand the thought of living without you by my side."
She stared at me. There was a strange look in her eyes. I couldn't read it.
"I am madly in love with you, Preeti."
At this, a sound escaped her lips that sounded like a cross between a sob and a laugh. "Well, dumbo, you've picked an absolutely fabulous time to tell me about it!"
A tear escaped her eyes. It was all I could do to stop myself from wiping it off her cheeks.
"How long have you felt this way?" She seemed amused, though she was definitely crying. I didn't know what to make of it.
"From the day I found out you had baked me a cake."
She laughed. "That's all it took? Well, bozo, I guess a way to a man's heart is certainly through his stomach! Hold it. A month? You waited a month? You were the one who kept saying that if you really liked a girl you wouldn't waste a day in telling her!" She was smiling widely now. It looked funny, with her eyes all wet.
"Well, I was confused. How did I know how you'd react? In fact, I still don't understand your reaction. I thought it would change things between us. You've rejected every guy who ever proposed to you!"
"That's because I'm in love with you, you overgrown idiot!"
"What?" Somehow, I'd never expected her to say that. She was in love with me? "How long have you been in love with me?"
"Ever since the day you offered to carry my suitcase for me."
"But that was the first day I met you!"
"I guess I was always a sucker for chivalry."
"All this time you've been in love with me and you never said anything! Then you go and complain that I waited a month!"
"You guys are so bad at reading a girl's mind."
"You women are so good at keeping your thoughts a secret! Even Einstein couldn't figure you out."
"Einstein was a nerd. Casanova, on the other hand, understood us very well."
"I love you."
"I know."
That moment, my dear friends, was magic. I looked into her eyes and took her hands in mine. Physical contact for us had been limited, until then, to a punch in the arm, a slap on the back of the head, or giving each other a 'high five'.
"You realize, don't you," she said, "that this is our first date?" Leave it to her to notice the little things.
"I really don't want to go." I'd always maintained that love is a bucketful of emotions. I wasn't exactly delighted to be proved right.
"Don't worry. I'm coming there in a couple of months."
"How? On a dependent visa?"
She laughed. "For that, I'll have to wait, won't I? I've got a project in New Jersey."
I couldn't believe my ears. "What? When did that happen? You never even told me!"
"Well, I wasn't sure you'd propose before you left. And I couldn't exactly sacrifice you to those New York women, could I? I had to watch out for myself. So I went on a project-hunting spree. There is an opportunity coming up for a project in about two months. Someone is coming back to India, so I'll be taking his place. They want me there for a little less than two years." She was beaming. "I realized I had struck gold!"
"And if I'd not told you how I felt? When were you planning on telling me about it?"
"Around a month before I reached there. I had to make it look natural. Or you'd think I was desperate."
"Well, you are desperate!" This was incredible. All I'd done in the past month had been to mope around, listen to sad songs and write her letters that I never intended her to read. "You've been scheming all this while! How come you didn't lay a trap for me a year ago?"
"I tried giving you hints, dumbo, but you just wouldn't pay attention!"
She was laughing. "You're the only guy I ever spent any time with. Wasn't that a big enough hint?"
That was true. She would happily join a group of boys to go to a cricket match, but I now realized, only if I was one of them.
"What if I had rejected you?" I was extremely flattered that she'd been crazy about me for a year. My ego was swelling.
"You must be kidding!" she was clearly amused. "I get proposed to every few days. You are the one who's been rejected more times in the last year than I can count on two pairs of hands!"
She really knew how to burst my bubble.
"Hey," she said softly, "don't look so dejected. I said 'Yes', didn't I?"
I grinned. "Yes, you did. And you've made me a very happy man. But you know what would make me even happier?"
"What?"
"If you learn to cook as good as you bake cakes."
So she punched me in the arm again.
I was in the company bus on my way to work, as usual trying to catch up with my sleep. On this particular day, a girl got on the bus, came to my seat and sat down. "Good Morning," she said. I looked back at her through half closed eyes, replied "Good Night," and then proceeded to return to my half hour nap before the bus reached the office. Unfortunately, I was
woken up by a punch in the arm.
"Wake up, bozo!" She was looking at me with a big smile on her face. "I'm not sitting next to you to listen to you snore."
Half-heartedly, I opened my eyes and turned to her. "What's up?" I asked.
Preeti Mehra was tall, good-looking and slightly tomboyish. She was also my best buddy. "Come on," she said. "Don't look so disappointed. You'd rather sleep than talk to me?"
"I talk to you everyday, Preeti."
"You also sleep everyday."
"It's not enough."
"So you've had enough of talking to me, eh?"
You can't argue with a statement like that, so I had to give up. I grinned and said, "OK, sweetheart. What's on your mind?"
"I wanted to tell you what happened yesterday. Can you guess?"
"Anurag called you last night."
"How did you know?" She was stunned.
"Oh, he asked me for your number yesterday."
"And you gave it to him?"
"What else could I do? And stop complaining. You've been drooling over him for weeks now. He must have thought he had a chance."
Preeti was the kind of girl who would openly ogle at every other guy she saw. And yet, she would not respond to any advances of a romantic nature.
She'd happily join a group of boys to go to a cricket match, but if asked out to a movie, dinner, or even coffee, she'd never say yes. She defined 'Hard-To-Get' .
"You like putting me in these situations, don't you?" she said.
"No. That's not true. I love putting you in these situations!"
That invited another punch in the arm.
I had known Preeti for a year. We'd tell each other about our joys and our sorrows, our victories and our defeats. I'd tell her about all my crushes and she'd scold me for being silly. She'd drag me to classical music concerts and I'd add them to the list of things she 'owed me' for. And though I never let it show, I must say that she punched pretty hard.
~*~
It was 12:00 am and my phone was ringing. "Hello," I said, as I picked it up.
"Happy Birthday!" It was she.
"You're supposed to throw me a surprise party, sweetheart. Not just call to say Happy Birthday."
"Well then open your door, dumbo!"
So I did and found her, cell-phone in hand, at my doorstep -- with what seemed like half the population of my company. My roommates were supposed to be working late that night. Now I knew why. I blew a lot of candles (seemed like much more than 25), cut my cake, got kicked in the behind, and got painted with the cake's icing. If Preeti had had her way, she'd probably have preferred to use a paintbrush and a can of paint. But I bribed her with a copy of the book "Lord of the Rings".
She'd borrowed it from me three times already. I thought it was about time I gave her a copy for herself.
We chatted for an hour after everyone had gone. "I think it's time I left," she said finally, trying to stifle a yawn. I nodded. I dropped her home in my roommate's car. As she was getting out of the car, I stopped her.
"Hey, Preeti."
"What?"
"Thanks."
"Hey, don't get senti on me now!" she smiled. "Are you trying to worm out of that gift you promised me?"
"You know, it's interesting how I'm getting you a gift on my birthday."
"That's just because you're stupid," she grinned. "And you better get me that book, or I won't return your copy."
"Hey, that copy was a gift to me from my dear friend Preeti Mehra. I can't let you keep that."
She wasn't falling for that. "Your dear friend? And what about me? Am I not dear to you?"
"Very smart. That won't work with me. I'm not one of your Love Crazy suitors. Why do you need the book anyway? You've read it umpteen times already."
"That is besides the point. You are getting me the book. We both know that." She smiled that wide confident smile of hers. "Good night." And she got out of the car.
I sat there for some time, just thinking. Our conversations were always like this - a little joking, a little teasing and a lot of demanding. But somehow, I felt that something had changed since the moment she had turned up at my door that night. I was still in my reverie when a paper ball landed on the windshield. I craned my neck out of the window and looked up. She was standing in her balcony.
"What are you still doing there?" she whispered loudly.
"Waiting for you to start a paper-ball fight," I whispered back.
"We can do that tomorrow. Go home now. It's way past your bedtime!"
"Ok, mommy," I grinned back. "I'm going home now!"
~*~
I'm an extravagant gift-giver, and it is definitely going to be my downfall some day. I made her wait for it, but finally bought her the book. That, and half-a-dozen other omnibus collections of various authors, including a copy each of `The Complete Works of Shakespeare' and `The Complete Short Stories of Charles Dickens'. All I got for it was an "I told you so."
I started spending a lot of time at her place after that. Mostly because I wanted to read all those books, and she wouldn't lend them to me.
"I'm not as stupid as you, ape-man. I'm not falling into the same trap I laid for you. Plus, you dog-ear your books. You're not doing that to these masterpieces. So if you want to read them, you read them here. And if you want to mark your place, use a bookmark."
So that's what I did. She'd even make me wash my hands before I touched the books. It was as if they were sacred.
"Need I remind you that it was me that bought you the books in the first place? For my birthday!"
"So? They're mine now."
"Well, then. I've been meaning to ask you this for a long time. Where exactly is my birthday gift?"
"It was in your tummy at one point of time. It's probably been washed into the sea by now."
"Huh?"
"Remember the cake I baked you on your birthday?"
"You what? You can't bake cakes!" That was a mistake. She looked hurt.
"You baked me a cake?" She didn't say a word. She just shrugged.
I was stunned. "But you never told me."
"You didn't ask." That was typical of her.
"It was fantastic! And you wasted most of the icing on me!"
"The cake was for you, dumbo."
"How long did it take you to make the whole thing?" It had been a two-layered vanilla-chocolate cake with three flavors of very creamy icing. She had done all that!
"Well, the chocolate cake took an hour and fifteen minutes, and so did the vanilla. Then cutting them up and putting them together took another 15 minutes. Each flavor of icing took 20 minutes for preparation, and then putting it on the cake took another half hour. Cleaning up the mess took an hour."
She seldom claimed the credit for anything, but once she started bragging, there was no stopping her. However, I wasn't thinking about that right then.
"You spent over five hours on that cake?"
"A little over four hours preparing it, and an hour cleaning up. Yes."
I was speechless. I didn't know how to react. She hated cooking.
"I forgot to mention," she continued, "the hours I spent the week before that, practicing. Even the birds wouldn't touch the first three cakes!"
I couldn't help but ask. "Why?"
"Because the first one got burnt, the second one was only half cooked, and in the third one, I forgot to add sugar."
It was just like her, to try to divert the conversation. "I mean why did you spend so much time on baking me a cake?"
She looked at me like I'd asked her why the sun rises in the east. "For your birthday, stupid. Of course, I also wanted to beat every gift you've ever got me. Try beating this one." She was grinning like she'd won the world championship.
As far as I was concerned, she had. I'd never spent a week making her anything. I'd never even spent an hour making her anything. Getting her a gift normally involved me taking her to the store, letting her choose and use my credit card. Suddenly, I felt cheap. "Thanks," was the only thing I could say. "Thanks a lot."
"Hey. Are you getting senti on me again?"
I was.
~*~
I was still mulling over my feelings for Preeti the next day at work when my boss asked to speak to me.
I went over to his cabin and he started with the usual greetings, asking how work was going and whether I was comfortable. He then told me that the company wanted to send me to New York for a couple of years. Normally, this wouldn't have made much of a difference to me. I could work anywhere and didn't have too much love for visiting places foreign. But right then, the first thought that came to me was that I'd be away from Preeti for two whole years. Twenty-four hours before, I'd have been disappointed to lose her company. But right then, I was devastated. That was when I knew I was in love with her. I'd had crushes before. Lots of them. But this was different.
"Do you have any problem in going?" my boss asked, since I hadn't responded.
"Not really," I replied. What else could I say? That I was in love, and couldn't bear the separation?
"When do I have to leave?"
I had a month.
~*~
"Wow! New York! Great! I've heard it's a fantastic city! Did you know it snows there in winter?" Preeti was obviously very excited about my going.
She didn't seem to share my disappointment on what I now saw as 'separation' .
I had not decided then if I was going to tell her how I felt. We'd known each other for a little over a year, and we were very close, but beyond some mild flirting, the relationship had never got even close to romantic. That was, of course, until I found out she had spent a week baking me a cake. It's funny how small things seem to make such a big difference.
"What happened?" she asked. "You don't seem very happy."
"Oh," I replied, "it's just that it's so sudden, that's all. And you know I was never all that interested in going to America."
"What an idiot. Go see the place. I've heard the women there are amazingly beautiful." She had a sly smile on her face. I wanted to tell her I didn't care if I laid my eyes on another woman again, if she wasn't with me. But I didn't.
I realized that I only had another month with her. She'd rejected every guy who'd asked her out ever since I'd known her. I didn't want the same to happen to me, and I didn't want to make it awkward between us. I didn't want to risk that month. I wanted it to be the best time I had ever spent with her. After I came back from the US, I might not even get to meet her
again. Two years was a long time.
We ate out almost every night. We visited some of the best restaurants in the city. She also helped me shop for warm clothes, formalwear, shoes, toothpaste and a million things I'd never have thought of on my own.
"You need to buy a nail-cutter. " My roommates and I shared one.
"I've prepared a list of must-have medicines that you should carry."
"Your iron won't work in the US. No point buying one here as you need one that works at a hundred and ten volts and has flat pins. You can buy one at a K-Mart or Wal-Mart as soon as you get there."
"You need at least two pairs of formal shoes and at least ten pairs of dark socks. The East Coast has a formal dress code. And you won't do your laundry more than once a week or two."
"How many ties do you have? And which trousers do your blazers go with?"
"Better get a haircut before you leave from here. Knowing you, you'll postpone the first haircut for too long."
She'd call me up at one in the morning to tell me to add 'one more item' to my list.
And with every passing day, I was falling more deeply in love with her.
The month swept by quickly. The day I was supposed to leave, I asked her to come with me to the airport. "Of course, dumbo. You think I'd let you go just like that, or what?"
After packing my bags for me and checking the lists for the hundredth time, she finally pronounced me "Good to go."
We reached the airport four hours early to beat the rush, because it was an international flight. She got a visitor's pass to sit in the waiting area while I went ahead and checked-in my bags. Preeti had got a spring balance from somewhere and so we knew my bags were well within the weight limit. I finished the formalities and came to sit with her. We had only a few hours before I had to go for my security-check. We decided to get something to eat at the food court. And all the time, the one thing that was going through my head was that, after this, I wouldn't see her for at least another two years.
"Hey, Champ. Why so glum?" She saved 'Champ' for special days. Normally, it was just 'dumbo', 'bozo', 'ape-man', 'matchstick man', 'weirdo', or if she was very irritated with me, 'nutcase'.
"I don't want to go," I said.
"I don't want you to go either."
"No, you don't understand." I couldn't hold it in any longer. "I can't stand the thought of living without you by my side."
She stared at me. There was a strange look in her eyes. I couldn't read it.
"I am madly in love with you, Preeti."
At this, a sound escaped her lips that sounded like a cross between a sob and a laugh. "Well, dumbo, you've picked an absolutely fabulous time to tell me about it!"
A tear escaped her eyes. It was all I could do to stop myself from wiping it off her cheeks.
"How long have you felt this way?" She seemed amused, though she was definitely crying. I didn't know what to make of it.
"From the day I found out you had baked me a cake."
She laughed. "That's all it took? Well, bozo, I guess a way to a man's heart is certainly through his stomach! Hold it. A month? You waited a month? You were the one who kept saying that if you really liked a girl you wouldn't waste a day in telling her!" She was smiling widely now. It looked funny, with her eyes all wet.
"Well, I was confused. How did I know how you'd react? In fact, I still don't understand your reaction. I thought it would change things between us. You've rejected every guy who ever proposed to you!"
"That's because I'm in love with you, you overgrown idiot!"
"What?" Somehow, I'd never expected her to say that. She was in love with me? "How long have you been in love with me?"
"Ever since the day you offered to carry my suitcase for me."
"But that was the first day I met you!"
"I guess I was always a sucker for chivalry."
"All this time you've been in love with me and you never said anything! Then you go and complain that I waited a month!"
"You guys are so bad at reading a girl's mind."
"You women are so good at keeping your thoughts a secret! Even Einstein couldn't figure you out."
"Einstein was a nerd. Casanova, on the other hand, understood us very well."
"I love you."
"I know."
That moment, my dear friends, was magic. I looked into her eyes and took her hands in mine. Physical contact for us had been limited, until then, to a punch in the arm, a slap on the back of the head, or giving each other a 'high five'.
"You realize, don't you," she said, "that this is our first date?" Leave it to her to notice the little things.
"I really don't want to go." I'd always maintained that love is a bucketful of emotions. I wasn't exactly delighted to be proved right.
"Don't worry. I'm coming there in a couple of months."
"How? On a dependent visa?"
She laughed. "For that, I'll have to wait, won't I? I've got a project in New Jersey."
I couldn't believe my ears. "What? When did that happen? You never even told me!"
"Well, I wasn't sure you'd propose before you left. And I couldn't exactly sacrifice you to those New York women, could I? I had to watch out for myself. So I went on a project-hunting spree. There is an opportunity coming up for a project in about two months. Someone is coming back to India, so I'll be taking his place. They want me there for a little less than two years." She was beaming. "I realized I had struck gold!"
"And if I'd not told you how I felt? When were you planning on telling me about it?"
"Around a month before I reached there. I had to make it look natural. Or you'd think I was desperate."
"Well, you are desperate!" This was incredible. All I'd done in the past month had been to mope around, listen to sad songs and write her letters that I never intended her to read. "You've been scheming all this while! How come you didn't lay a trap for me a year ago?"
"I tried giving you hints, dumbo, but you just wouldn't pay attention!"
She was laughing. "You're the only guy I ever spent any time with. Wasn't that a big enough hint?"
That was true. She would happily join a group of boys to go to a cricket match, but I now realized, only if I was one of them.
"What if I had rejected you?" I was extremely flattered that she'd been crazy about me for a year. My ego was swelling.
"You must be kidding!" she was clearly amused. "I get proposed to every few days. You are the one who's been rejected more times in the last year than I can count on two pairs of hands!"
She really knew how to burst my bubble.
"Hey," she said softly, "don't look so dejected. I said 'Yes', didn't I?"
I grinned. "Yes, you did. And you've made me a very happy man. But you know what would make me even happier?"
"What?"
"If you learn to cook as good as you bake cakes."
So she punched me in the arm again.
hugging my pillow
love
Hugging My Pillow......
I hug my pillow every night
After a long and lonely day.
It seems to comfort me a little
While you're so far away.
Holding my pillow so close to me,
Pretending I'm holding you,
Makes me feel that I am not alone,
That you are with me too.
My pillow gives me security
Like a baby's pacifier.
Makes me feel so much closer
To the one I so admire.
All night long I wonder
How long will I have to pretend?
I want you here beside me,
My love, my life, my friend.
missing you
Hugging My Pillow......
I hug my pillow every night
After a long and lonely day.
It seems to comfort me a little
While you're so far away.
Holding my pillow so close to me,
Pretending I'm holding you,
Makes me feel that I am not alone,
That you are with me too.
My pillow gives me security
Like a baby's pacifier.
Makes me feel so much closer
To the one I so admire.
All night long I wonder
How long will I have to pretend?
I want you here beside me,
My love, my life, my friend.
missing you
with god
With God
God: Hello. Did you call me ?
Me: Called you? No.. Who is this ?
God: This is GOD. I heard your prayers. So I thought I will chat.
Me: I do pray. Just makes me feel good. I am actually busy now. I am
in the midst of something.
God: What are you busy at? Ants are busy too.
Me: Don't know. But I cant find free time. Life has become hectic. It's rush hour all the time.
God: Sure. Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you
results. Activity consumes time. Productivity frees it.
Me: I understand. But I still can't figure out. By the way, I was
not expecting YOU to buzz me on instant messaging chat.
God: Well I wanted to resolve your Fight for time, by giving you
some clarity. In this net era, I wanted to reach you through the
medium you are comfortable with.
Me: Tell me, why has life become complicated now?
God: Stop analyzing life. Just live it. Analysis is what makes it
complicated.
Me: why are we then constantly unhappy?
God: Your today is the tomorrow that you worried about
yesterday.You are worrying because you are analyzing. Worrying has
become your habit. That's why you are not happy.
Me: But how can we not worry when there is so much uncertainty?
God: Uncertainty is inevitable, but worrying is optional.
Me: But then, there is so much pain due to uncertainty. .
God: Pain is inevitable able, but suffering is optional.
Me: If suffering is optional, why do good people always suffer?
God: Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold cannot be
purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don't
suffer. With that experience their life become better not bitter.
Me: You mean to say such experience is useful?
God: Yes. In every terms, Experience is a hard teacher . She gives
the test first and the lessons afterwards.
Me: But still, why should we go through such tests? Why cant we be
free from problems?
God: Problems are Purposeful Roadblocks
Me: Frankly in the midst of so many problems, we don't know where we
are heading..
God: If you look outside you will not know where you are
heading.Look inside. Looking outside, you dream. Looking inside, you
awaken. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides insight.
Me: Sometimes not succeeding fast seems to hurt more than moving in
the right direction. What should I do?
God: Success is a measure as decided by others. Satisfaction is a
measure as decided by you. Knowing the road ahead is more satisfying
than knowing you rode ahead. You work with the compass. Let others
work with the clock.
Me: In tough times, how do you stay motivated?
God: Always look at how far you have come rather than how far you
have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are missing.
Me: What surprises you about people?
God: when they suffer they ask, "why me?" When they prosper, they
never ask "Why me" Everyone wishes to have truth on their side, but
few want to be on the side of the truth.
Me: Sometimes I ask, who am I, why am I here. I cant get the answer.
God: Seek not to find who you are, but to determine who you want to
be. Stop looking for a purpose as to why you are here. Create it.
Life is not a process of discovery but a process of creation.
Me: How can I get the best out of life?
God: Face your past without regret. Handle your present with
confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.
Me: One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not answered.
God: There are no unanswered prayers. At times the answer is NO.
Me: Thank you for this wonderful chat.
God: Well. Keep the faith and drop the fear . Don't believe your
doubts and doubt your beliefs. Life is a mystery to solve not a
problem to resolve. Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to
live.
"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by
the moments that took our breath away'!
''Something that is simple, the mind cannot accept. The ego wants very complicated and difficult things."
God: Hello. Did you call me ?
Me: Called you? No.. Who is this ?
God: This is GOD. I heard your prayers. So I thought I will chat.
Me: I do pray. Just makes me feel good. I am actually busy now. I am
in the midst of something.
God: What are you busy at? Ants are busy too.
Me: Don't know. But I cant find free time. Life has become hectic. It's rush hour all the time.
God: Sure. Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you
results. Activity consumes time. Productivity frees it.
Me: I understand. But I still can't figure out. By the way, I was
not expecting YOU to buzz me on instant messaging chat.
God: Well I wanted to resolve your Fight for time, by giving you
some clarity. In this net era, I wanted to reach you through the
medium you are comfortable with.
Me: Tell me, why has life become complicated now?
God: Stop analyzing life. Just live it. Analysis is what makes it
complicated.
Me: why are we then constantly unhappy?
God: Your today is the tomorrow that you worried about
yesterday.You are worrying because you are analyzing. Worrying has
become your habit. That's why you are not happy.
Me: But how can we not worry when there is so much uncertainty?
God: Uncertainty is inevitable, but worrying is optional.
Me: But then, there is so much pain due to uncertainty. .
God: Pain is inevitable able, but suffering is optional.
Me: If suffering is optional, why do good people always suffer?
God: Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold cannot be
purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don't
suffer. With that experience their life become better not bitter.
Me: You mean to say such experience is useful?
God: Yes. In every terms, Experience is a hard teacher . She gives
the test first and the lessons afterwards.
Me: But still, why should we go through such tests? Why cant we be
free from problems?
God: Problems are Purposeful Roadblocks
Me: Frankly in the midst of so many problems, we don't know where we
are heading..
God: If you look outside you will not know where you are
heading.Look inside. Looking outside, you dream. Looking inside, you
awaken. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides insight.
Me: Sometimes not succeeding fast seems to hurt more than moving in
the right direction. What should I do?
God: Success is a measure as decided by others. Satisfaction is a
measure as decided by you. Knowing the road ahead is more satisfying
than knowing you rode ahead. You work with the compass. Let others
work with the clock.
Me: In tough times, how do you stay motivated?
God: Always look at how far you have come rather than how far you
have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are missing.
Me: What surprises you about people?
God: when they suffer they ask, "why me?" When they prosper, they
never ask "Why me" Everyone wishes to have truth on their side, but
few want to be on the side of the truth.
Me: Sometimes I ask, who am I, why am I here. I cant get the answer.
God: Seek not to find who you are, but to determine who you want to
be. Stop looking for a purpose as to why you are here. Create it.
Life is not a process of discovery but a process of creation.
Me: How can I get the best out of life?
God: Face your past without regret. Handle your present with
confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.
Me: One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not answered.
God: There are no unanswered prayers. At times the answer is NO.
Me: Thank you for this wonderful chat.
God: Well. Keep the faith and drop the fear . Don't believe your
doubts and doubt your beliefs. Life is a mystery to solve not a
problem to resolve. Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to
live.
"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by
the moments that took our breath away'!
''Something that is simple, the mind cannot accept. The ego wants very complicated and difficult things."
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