The essence of a being

I live in a time where multiple educational degrees are the norm. People crave more degrees. Because industry demands it. There are several job vacancy classifieds that state under "requirements" a host of degrees. When a prospective interviewer has to compare and choose between a candidate who has these multiple certificates to their credit and one who is hard working, diligent and experienced: it's usually the former that fits the bill.

That's why senior managerial positions are held by young people, who may have the degree to support the designation. That's where it all ends.

In this time where fancy degrees are the aim of the day, who is responsible to teach the younger us about the essence of a being? How often is it that we chance upon rude, ill-mannered people all around?

That's because, in the rush for qualifications, people forget to be human. Being human is about being humane. But the essence has long since been lost in the haze of unrealistic demands and realistic dreams that qualify for being material.

Every time I chance upon a youngster, whether at the workplace or out in the streets of the world : I see young people with too much of everything besides humanitarian essence. Their attitude. Their dress codes. Their life. It all looks so much like a warning sign. An example of who I never want to be.

Yesterday, I had to accompany my superiors for a meeting which was to be held at a premier multinational company that deals with farm equipment. I met with every Department Head there was there. But was impressed by none. The batch of 30-40 year old's spoke with no conviction. Had the gadgets to show off. But the intelligence that was worth enough to hide. And the manners and presentation skills that would soon be forgotten.

Whatever happened to the breed of smart people? The ones who were perfect on the outside and the inside? Were they ever there?

This rare breed hardly comes around anymore. The kind that enthralls with a simple hello and talks about aspects related to life / a profession that can make you want to listen and crave for more.

There is no essence to our beings any more. We are - just beings. And this is where the problem began years ago. This is why relationships fail. Why people fail, themselves. Why in a world of over 7 billion - we still feel alone.

It's time for change. A reality check. And it's time, to go back to the basics. To find the essence of a being.

The bigger, bolder things in life that aren't necessarily better

Although my father is a Mechanical Engineer by profession and has a huge passion for cars (as does my elder brother), the passion never trickled down to me. Don't get me wrong, I like cars. Love having them around. But that's about it. The maximum interest I'd put into a car in terms of it's technicalities and operations is knowing how to change a flat tire and learning the basics about the engine functions.

That brings me to my write for today. While on my way to work I chanced upon an Audi 6. The much admired A6 caught my eye, not because of it's exceptionally sleek design (it's not exceptional)...it just caught my eye because I assumed that there wouldn't be many people where I live who'd spend as much on a car. But obviously, I was wrong. Spending large sums of money on fancy luxury sedans are fine...if you have a passion for cars.

This brought me to me. If I had a lot of money to spend (there is no definition of "a lot" when it comes to money), but anyway, if I could spend as much on a vehicle, would I? Try as I might to put myself in a billionaire's shoes...I still don't think I would spend as much on a car.

For me, a good car that has the basic functions and can get me from place A to place B is fine. Of course, depending on my budget, I would add several other features to the wish list, but would I go all out? Never.

The point is, I am conscious of money. It's not like I face the lack of it. But money is important to me to the extent that I believe in saving for a rainy day and not splurging on myself. I guess I'm not the kind who lives for today. I live for the future. I think about money and I detest the fact that it rules me in some way. I work, to earn, to spend. But is that the way it should be? Sometimes, I like to think that the old days when money didn't exist were far better. But then, there was no order back then, there were thefts, murders and the need to hunt for food which I can now simply buy from the corner store.

The point being, money was supposed to create order...but over the years it didn't do that. It created a sense of disorder in the minds of people. A sense to crave for the bigger, bolder things in life that aren't necessarily better. The only common thing about money across the strata is that people who don't have it, want more of it and people who do have it, want more of it. So then? What real good does it do?

The objective got lost,a long long time ago...

I for one would not like to depend on money so much. For me, having enough to enjoy a good life is just about fine. Why aspire and run behind one thing your whole life, when you can just live it instead...?

So, cheers to all the people out there who own fancy cars, may you always have a good ride.

A day with friends and a movie

They say, when you grow old, if you can count 5 friends who have stuck with you al through your life, then you are really lucky.

All of us have been to college and have attended an endless number of parties. But how many people from the people that we've met have we been able to call friends through the years.

Its normal to have fall outs. To stop talking. To fight and then maybe make up. But no bond can be as strong as that childhood friend that saw you be the young you and then your grown version. And then accepted it.

My husband of almost 2 years called a few of his school friend's over this saturday. We had a pleasant pizza-pasta lunch party. There was nothing fancy and nothing extraordinary about the meeting, but there was so much warmth between the friends that it got me thinking about how genuine people aren't when you make new friends in the world. Socializing is all about how much you have and how much you are willing to give. But old friends are a breed apart.

Even I, who is one known as a loner enjoyed the day. Not because of the jokes or the stories or the random conversation. It was because of the genuine meaning of friendship that came across.

And then on Sunday, I chanced upon a movie on the home network. The Time TRaveller's wife.

This movie was a great example of bonds, of the real love between a couple and the meaning of life. Life will never last forever. And at the end of it all, knowing that you enjoyed every minute of it is what counts.

The movie (about a time traveller) who kept travelling through time and his wife who said she wouldn't change anything when he told her he is soon to die, touched every nerve in me. How many couples love for love today? How many couples live to die for each other. The great increase in the number of divorces show us that love, is not what is used to be.

And there is no one to blame but us. We changed it all. We started believing in live in relationships. In dating too many people. In being too choosey about partners. We run around in circles, never really getting anywhere, but always trying to find something.

All we need is purity and simplicity. But the racing world we live in will never allow us that unless we make the effort to slow down and take a step back. To walk on the beach with our love instead of rushing through breakfast, to lie on a boat and look up at the sky on a tuesday morning instead of ignoring each other to prepare for that next meeting.

The boss can wait. The money you are running after because you think you need to earn it because it will make your life better, will not stop you from dying one day.

And when you die, noone will remember the meetings you came for. Or the days you reached work on time.Not many people will remember anything at all.

It's those few who will and who'll wish they had more to remember. And its for them that you, me, we need to live and breathe and really make greater bonds for. Life is wasted, the way we live it.

Forget the materialism in the world.

Remember the love and the life in you. Celebrate it. Because there is just one of it.

Create bonds. Be a good friend. Love your partner. So you never feel the need to change anything, at the end of it.

The joy & sheer beauty of books

The modern world has to much to offer. Great laptops, smarter phones, big houses, fancy cars. Connectivity and Technology are the partners that make us as people crave for new things. The world is more material than it is a normal world. And yet, sometimes there are things that seem bigger, greater, wiser than all of it.

Books. The simple world of the written word. There is literally nothing better in the world than cosying up to a book by the fireplace on a cold winter day. A cup of tea to add to it helps.

The other day, I went to a book fair where I saw books and books and books. The entire room was piled high with an unlimited range of books - novels by well known and not so well known authors, cook books, children's books, comic books...so many books. It took me a long time to choose just a couple to buy (although I'd have loved to own the entire lot). I chose 4 and came home with a delighted sense of eagerness, waiting to start my books.

According to me, nothing looks as good against a wall than multiple wooden book shelves, filled with books. No painting, no picture frame, no wall decor will ever look as pretty to me than books against a wall shelf.

If someone paid me, just enough to afford 3 square meals a day and the basics of life, I'd be happy enough to stay home all day and just read. Then just walk in the park. And maybe sit by the sea.

There is so much out there in the world. But nothing can ever, ever give as much joy as the simple things in life.

When you look back at your life, what will you remember?

Will you remember the latest iphone that won't be the latest forever.

Or that one walk in the park where you were one with the morning dew.

Or that one book that touched your heart and changed your life.

Life is good. It can be great.

December is the season to travel. To holiday and to make new rules for a new year. With December turning into January, friends who were away started coming back to crawl back into the routine that's life.

A random "how have you been?" phone call from a friend turned into a meeting when I simply asked my friend to come over in the night for a casual dinner with her hubby and naughty son.

She came, with a salad that looked scrumptious and I on my part made a vegetarian rice mixture with a pulse dish. We talked. Ate. Laughed. Remembered the old and called for the new.

Life can be good. It can even be great. We just need to remember the importance of the little things. And then stick to it.

Her December was a trip to the Southern part of India - a place called Kerala. One that enchants and sweeps you off your feet. The calm of the backwaters and the breeze and the green trees can cast a spell over you that's impossible to break off. She enjoyed, as did her family. She brought me a delightful pair of green wooden bangles which look uber cool on practically anything. I love them. She also gave me a box of exotic spices which add a delicious taste to food. Any food.

Life is good. It can be great. It just needs a little of everything all the time.

The beginning - 1/Jan/2012

Although I am a writer (copywriter) by profession as of today, I feel like I have lost the purpose and the passion to write. Maybe it's normal. Maybe it's just a passing phase. Anyway, as a resolution before '011 ended I promised myself to try and write more in the new '012, to write anything that comes to my mind in the hopes that I bring my passion back.

Anyway, so I started the year the way any normal young girl would. My husband of 1 yr and 11 months and I met up with a fellow couple friend and went to a local club in the city I live in. The unlimited range of food, drinks, dances and laughter was our welcome to the new 2012. After which we went out for some much needed coffee...

All in all although it was a normal New Year's eve party, it was much fun. The essence of enjoying every minute of your life is lost in today's day and age. People crave to be something and someone they are not. And they run towards material wealth and money, forgetting that the simple things in life make it all worthwhile in the end.

That brings me to my other resolution. I want to be simple, to lead a wholesome life. Although I tend to lean towards the material things of the world...I do realize that it won't necessarily bring me the peace and happiness I so desire.

2012 motto = Live. Breathe. Enjoy. Stay simple!

It's a bright Monday morning as I write this (because I write this on the 2nd day of the New Year after all) and I look forward to the new batch of 12 months coming my way.