Mr and Mrs Iyer - love beyond caste and religion

Watched a movie over the weekend that I simply had to talk about. A few years old but probably one of the most beautiful love stories I’ve seen in a long time. The movie – Mr and Mrs Iyer. I would say the movie is simply a must watch, if for nothing else, then just to see Rahul Bose’s character in the movie. If I ever met a guy like that, I’d probably marry him!

On to the movie – its set among communal riots where two strangers meet – an orthodox tamil brahmin woman and a fairly liberal muslim man – and how it changes each of them – more so the woman. How she looks beyond the stereotypes she has grown up with all her life and how she realises that there is more to people than their caste and religion. I think every indian who stands and talks about how a certain caste or religion is better than the other should watch this movie and perhaps their eyes too will be opened at least to some extent.

I find is hard to believe that educated people in today’s world are still so hung up on caste and religion. I’m not quite sure why the caste system was made in the first place, but whatever may have been the reason, I am certain that the reason is obsolete by now. Why then are people still treated a certain way because of the caste they were born into? Aren’t we all human beings? What gives someone a right to claim to be superior just because of the surname that they were given? It has nothing to do with their accomplishments does it? It was just a case of coincidence that God decided to send one to family A and the other to family B. What makes one better than the other then?

Anyway back to the movie – the way the story is told, though slow, is very moving. Watching them develop feelings for each other, you cant help but get tears in your eyes. And the ending – well I wont spoil it for anyone who wants to watch the movie – but though I know that there was no other way they could have ended the movie, a small part of me was praying for something different :)

Tere Bina

Dum dara dum dara mast mast dara
Dum dara dum dara mast mast dara
Dum dara dum dum...o humdum
Bin tere kya jeena

Tere bina beswadi beswadi ratiya..
Oh sajnaa...

My latest addiction among songs...from the genius of Rehman...(from the soundtrack of Guru for those who havent yet heard it)

Just cant stop listening to it…

The beauty of AR Rehman I think is that every time you listen to a song it grows on you more and more…I’m not quite sure how he does it. I mean with every other composer I either like a song or I don’t but with Rehman with every listening the song touches you deeper and deeper…how does he do it? And you never bore of his songs…you may put away an album for an year and when you take it out again you find something new in them. There seem to be so many layers to his songs that you peel away bit by bit.

Its been a long time since there’s been a Rehman album and the wait was worth it…Guru has beautiful songs with the exception of a couple (but I’m sure with a few more repitions of the CD I’ll love them too!). But the one song that really gets to you is Tere Bina…it touches your soul the moment the ‘dum dara dum’ starts and you cant say it’s the lyrics because obviously Dum Dara means nothing! That isn’t to say that the lyrics aren’t good…Gulzar is amazing as always…his words are enough to give you goosebumps by themselves!

As an aside…the last song I was in love with was called Tere Bin (from the album Bas Ek Pal) and this one is called Tere Bina…hmmm…

Waiting for christmas...

Well its the 28th of november and the countdown for the holiday season has begun!

This is just a great time of the year cause everyone is talking about what they'll do and where they'll go.

unfortunately, i have no big plans...no leave :(

BUT..still waiting the arrival of a few special people...and just to see them is going to make my holiday a great one! :)

Drool drool over Hrithik...

Been very lazy for a while and put nothing on here...
but couldnt resist talking about a demi God name hrithik roshan...

watched dhoom2 over the weekend and Oh my God...that guy seems to be about as close to perfection as anyone can get.

Never been much of a Hrithik fan funnily enough...i mean sure he's good looking but neve really got sucked in to the whole mania...but i dare any warm blooded female to go watch that movie and not come out thinking she has knowledge of what heaven looks like...its filled with Hrithiks!

regarding the movie...well its pretty good overall...nothing earth shattering of course but something fun to watch...and heck my full paisa vasool was from Hrithik himself.

As for the guys..go watch it for bipasha...she without a doubt has the hottest body i've seen on any indian chic!

anyway back to the movie...for me the last 15-20 mins kind of ruined it...too much mush...dont want a suave thief to get mushy..!
that was the best part of the first dhoom...the thief never lost his attitude (John! Now there's one more guy i'd like to see replicas of in heaven...but that for another day!...actually no there is one comment i'd like to make...john and bipasha are individually so hot that i wonder what their kids would be like...would they be born sexy?)

Some random though...

I was feeling a little down the other day and was trying to cheer myself up with my usual philosophy...I always say this to myself and every friend that has ever said they are depressed to me...That in the end everything will always be ok. Because God is watching and he will take care of it.

But I've seen times when it feels like 'what if this happens in the end' - because there really is not guarantee that things will go the way you want them to. So what if everything is not ok in the end?

And then I realised - if everything is not ok, then that isn't the end. And perhaps the problem with a lot of us is that we start to believe that something that happens in the middle of our life is somehow the end of it all. Where we are supposed to be. But what if that is just a stage that have to stop through in your journey through life, while you proceed to a point where everything truly is ok.

I have no idea if i make any sense. I seemed to make perfect sense to myself when I was thinking this...but seems strange typed out...oh well!

Anyway so now i have slightly altered my philosophy in life - 'In the end everything will be ok, and if it isn't then that isn't the end' :)

Love at the Eiffel Tower...oh what a cliche!

How many romantic tales mention the Eiffel Tower? All these proposals and what not. Didnt Tom Cruise supposedly propose to Katie Holmes there? What a facade I thought...I mean, its just a building. How is a building supposed to be romantic? Please! So these were the thoughts I had in my head while I walked towards the Eiffel Tower my first evening in Paris. It was still light outside and a few minutes of walk from the station later the Eiffel Tower came into view...and did it shatter all my misconceptions and cause joy in my heart? Well, no! It was just a structure of dark metal that stood in front of me...Yawn! What a disappointment I thought...even though I didnt have too many expectations from it.

Anyway so we caught a boat from there for a trip around the river Seine. It was a really beautiful hour and a half cruise where I saw some truly remarkable buildings - Notre Dame, The Louvre and many more. Actually even the ordinary apartment buildings around the river looked amazing to me considering I went there from auckland, a city with not too much of a history unfortunately. In fact if there was one thing I had to point out about Paris that I truly was amazed with it has to be the architecture. The buildings are simply gorgeous.

So as the boat turned back and the Eiffel Tower came back into view I turned around to get a photo and froze. What a transformation! It was dark outside and the tower had been lit up and I finally saw why people go to Paris to see the Eiffel Tower. As I was staring at it, lights started twinkling and it was one of the most beautiful things I have seen in my life. For a while I couldnt even get myself to take a photo because I was just too mesmerized. But when I did take a few, I just couldnt capture the essence unfortunately. But the true picture is still imprinted on my mind.

After I got off the boat and stood on the road looking up at the Eiffel Tower all I could think of was I wish I was in the arms of the one I love right now. And there it was! Romance! Just a building...but it made me feel that way...and I cant explain why. So yes...the cliche is true...well I fell for it anyway! It truly is the most romantic building in the world!

Mind the gap

"Mind the gap" - I dont think you can go to London and not be stuck with this phrase in your head. You just hear it all the time while travelling on the tube, unless of course you are the Queen of England or David Beckham (cause apparently they are the only people who own a car there). Coming back to london, its simply impossible to go there and not fall in love with the city. Its just amazing. I cant describe quite why I felt that way but just being out in the city gives you this buzz. I dont blame some people for calling it the greatest city in the world. I'm not saying I would, but it really does give you a great feeling.

What I didnt like about london however is just how impersonal it feels. I know its just because of how big a city it is. I guess the bigger a city gets the less eye contact people make on the road (though I wonder why). Coming from a city like auckland it seems strange because here people smile at you on the road all the time but I never saw that there. The whole impersonal thing hit me the very first day I was there. After getting off the tube I hear an announcement in the station - "There will be delay on the so-and-so line because of a person under the train". Well that's what I thought I heard anyway but dismissed it immediately as a figment of my imagination or put it down to not being able to understand what she said because not a single person so much as flinched. Two minutes later my cousin asked me if I had heard the thing about the person under the train. So I was right! I asked how she could ask about it so casually and I guess spending time in london does that to you. She said it happens quite often (maybe there is a reason for the constant reminder to "Mind the gap" between the train and the platform) and the people are completely immune to it. The only reaction you will ever get is "Oh no I'm going to be late because of this". Still trying to get my head around this one.

Back to london. The city has so much culture, so much history that you cant help but be drawn to it. My trip started with a visit to Westminster Abbey and Big Ben. Great architecture, and well everyone has seen pictures of them so need I say more? Buckingham Palace was a bit of a disappointment. I went with a friend and we were looking for it after getting off the tube. When he pointed to a building of which we only had a side view and said "That is probably it", I dismissed him cause well it just didnt look like much. However upon investigation it did turn out to be Buckingham Palace. Its a big building but well nothing that stays with you after you're gone. Interestingly a set of statues that forms the centerpiece of the courtyard had a plaque that said "Gift of New Zealand". So that's what they are using our taxpayer money for!

Next on the agenda was the tower of london which was interesting in the aspect that we were living history. The best part of the tower of london however was the display of the crown jewels. To say I was dazzled and completely dumbfounded would be a huge understatement. The diamonds! Oh the diamonds! I'm not really one of those 'diamonds are a girl's best friend' people and actually turn my nose when someone says that. But you just cant help being drawn to the sheer size of some of those gems. The kohinoor (which the b*stards took from us!) is absolutely beautiful. But it wasnt the star of the show. That crown has to be taken by the Cullinan 1 -"The great star of africa" - a 540 carat diamond (as opposed to the kohinoor which was 104)!! It is placed on top of a sceptre and I just couldn't stop looking at it. Apparently when found as a rough diamond the Cullinan weighed more than 600grams but was then cut into smaller diamonds and polished. 600 grams!! All I can say is WOW!

I was dragged to the Museum of Natural History by a friend. I didnt really have any expectations but boy was I wrong! Its an absolute must see. The place has the most amazing fossils I have ever seen in my life. The stuff you only see on tv and marvel at it. I have had this thing for fossils ever since I was 7 or 8 and learned about them at school. I would spend hours walking around staring at the ground and turning over stones hoping to find even a small one. Yes yes i know its silly!

One reason I would love to go and live in london is the theatre! There is so much going on all the time. I would definitely want to go see every one of those shows. But well I obviously couldn't! I went to see the Phantom of the Opera and now I know why Andrew Lloyd Webber is Andrew Lloyd Webber. The title song had me completely mesmerised and did the whole show. One more big WOWWWW there!

My trip ended with a visit to Windsor Castle but unfortunately I wasnt quite invited to have tea with the queen (mind you, would I want to be!). Was quite interesting to see how royalty lives. What a life, what opulence. But I'm not sure I would want to be there. Any time you pick up a tabloid it is filled with pictures of the royal family. Not really the best thing is it!

What else did I do there? Well shopped of course! It is difficult however when your mind is constantly multiplying all the prices by three...shudder! Not that it stopped me from buying things! One interesting thing that did happen while shopping was spotting a small time hindi movie actress - Hrishita Bhatt - who I think I've only seen in one movie (Asoka) and dont think many people know. I guess it would have been more exciting if I had seen someone more famous but well I tell as I see...

So thats london. Well it probably isnt everything I saw and did but its most of what I remember anyway. There's part one of my mini trip to europe...Coming up...Paris, Rome and Madrid...

Can you really find your soulmate after you're married?

Strange question I know but I just saw a movie (a pretty bad one mind you) that is based on that very question. And though I didnt like the movie it does make you think.

In the movie two couples who have been married a few years start having problems. One couple because the wife is more successful than the husband and is not able to devote any time to him. The second couple I couldnt quite understand. The husband is any girl's dream partner - sweet, funny, romantic, successful and completely in love with her. Yet his wife is not happy because she is looking for something more (what this something is is never explained in the movie..but since I'm not reviewing the movie here I will overlook that). Anyway so the husband from couple 1 and the wife from couple 2 meet a few times coincidentally and become friends in an attempt to help each other salvage their marriages. In the midst of this they discover that they have infact falling in love with each other.

Apparently the premise of the movie is that you shouldnt marry for compromise, and I cant disagree with this opinion. However, is it really possible to meet someone who is your soulmate once you are married. Don't you just stop looking. I know I am being naive and that many people have affairs outside their marriage. But I've never thought of these affairs as true love or finding your soulmate. I just find the idea so hard to grasp. To fall so in love with someone else when you have been in a happy (albeit with a few issues) marriage for so long - the idea doesnt make any sense.

Firstly I have never believed in the concept of soulmates. But to those who do, dont they believe it is in your destiny to meet your soulmate. Why would destiny play such a cruel joke then where other hearts are broken?

I suppose I am over analyzing what is of course just a movie, but still, I do wonder if it is possible. And all I can say is I hope and pray that something like that never happens to me because I cant think of a scarier situation. And if what happens in the movie could happen in real life, I do wonder how you know that someone is your soulmate before you marry them. How do u know he is the one? You can never be sure right? What a scary thought

Music...magic!

A few days ago a friend of mine said that every person is affected deeply by some kind of music. But that music may not have the same effect on another person. Though I did agree with her I couldn’t quite figure out what feeling she was talking about, but decided to pay more attention from next time. During the days after, I never heard anything that made me feel that way.

And then yesterday, I heard two completely different songs that made the hair on my arms stand up. I had heard both songs before but I guess I had never thought about how music affects me so hadnt paid attention to how I felt. But did I feel it! When you feel a song that way, you can almost feel something in your heart, dramatic as it may sound.

The first song was from a hindi soundtrack…called Jiya Dhadak Dhadak. What an amaaazing song. I had tears in my eyes and I don’t know why. The words in it are just how I would describe love. Tujhe dekh dekh sona, tujhe dekh kar hai jagna. Mujhko yeh zindagaani sang tere bitani. Tujhme basi hai meri jaan. So simple yet so wonderfully sweet. And the way it was sung…wooow!

The second song was from an album called ‘Vishwa Vinayaka’ and was called Ganeshaya dhimayi. Again…goosebumps! I’ve always loved mantras like that but this song just kind of floated into me and I couldn’t stop listening to it.

Two such different songs, yet the same effect. I cant scientifically explain the effects of music, but I’ve just been proven that there is magic in music. Magic that can lift spirits. When you are feeling low, doesn’t it sometimes feel that the song that came on the radio seemed to know exactly how you felt? But how? And listening to the song does burden the load on your heart. I cant explain it any other way apart from Magic!

Astrology...a sign from God?

Let me start by saying that I have always been a big cynic when it comes to astrology and all those so-called sciences which talk about predicting the future. I do believe in destiny to a certain extent, in the sense that nothing happens without the will of God, but I also believe that God expects us to write our own path in life. While I believe that even things that seem wrong happen due to a purpose, I refuse to believe that I have no say in my life. I may sound contradictory here but well that’s just how it is.

Anyway a few days ago I was out in town with a friend where in a bar they had a lady who was doing tarot card readings. Both of us thought that it would be a cool idea to see what she would have to say about us. However, she had been booked out for the night. But being girls well the idea kind of stuck and we decided we should go find a tarot reader the following day and that’s what we did. We paid for a half hour reading (though I wondered what anyone could possibly talk to me for half an hour about!) and went in feeling sceptical to say the least, but nevertheless curious.

I walked in and the lady asked me what it is I wanted to find out. There was actually something that had been nagging my mind for a long time but since I didn’t believe any of this anyway and was only there for a bit of fun I didn’t say anything. I just told her that this was my first time. She shuffled the cards and asked me to pick out a few. I won’t elaborate on what exactly she told me but the things she knew and the things she said made me nearly fall off my chair. How could she possibly have known all that? Here I was, Miss I-Don’t-Believe-In-Astrology listening to her talking about what exactly I was stressed about. In the end she told me that I shouldn’t think too much about the problem as a solution would come forth in a few months. I was very happy that’s for sure. However, the cynic in me still refuses to die and I wonder if it could have all been a coincidence. I certainly hope not.

There is something that my mum told me when I told her about what happened though. Something that did reaffirm my faith. She linked the tarot reading to something I had always believed in anyway. That God is watching everything and he sometimes does things which we cant explain. She said that perhaps this was God’s way of telling me that things would turn out ok. That I should just let things sort themselves out and in the end I would be happy. And this was just a time when I was so depressed that I had started to wonder if God was thinking about me at all, and if he was, why was I going through this phase.

But I do feel better now. Strangely enough, due to the one thing I never had any belief in. Astrology. So thank you Tarot lady for making me believe. Or rather for reaffirming my faith in God. For making me believe that things will be ok. For giving me this sign from God.

Dejavu??

Sometimes life feels like one constant de ja vu. I’m not quite sure why.

Well I have two explanations for this. One is very simple, that my life has become extremely monotonous where a lot of events repeat themselves.

The one explanation is slightly stranger. I have noticed that quite often when I wake up I remember an event that perhaps happened in my dream but seemed so real and so normal that I cant figure out if it did happen. And many times following that, the even repeats itself and thus the dejavu. And no I am no psychic and I can neither predict earthquakes nor winning lottery numbers. Heck I cant even predict my own future. What I am talking about is ordinary everyday events. Things that I knew would happen.

Say I have a meeting with a certain person the next day which I know about and I guess must have thought about before falling asleep at night. I dream about the meeting and how it will go. What I say. What I expect the other person will reply etc. And then I wake up believing the meeting happened the day before for at least a few minutes in the morning. Then when the meeting does happen, I cant shake off that feeling that I’ve been there before.

It happened so often for a while that I seriously started believing that I was infact living through everything twice. This was because I didn’t remember my dreams but now that I sometimes do, I know why I feel like everything is repeating itself.

I’ll pause here for anyone who is reading this expecting a point…please don’t…cause there is none! Its just regular blah blah with no purpose.

One thing I do feel bad about however is that my dreams are so ordinary. I mean I’ve read books about dream interpretation where they talk about what it means to dream that you are flying or that you have fallen off a cliff. Nothing like that has ever happened to me. I dream about talking to people, about having lunch, about watching a movie. Yawn! How terribly dull!

To live..or not to live

To carry on with the depressing talk, as may be obvious, I did not have a very good day today. It truly was one of those days when you really do question whether life is worth living. I'm sure nearly everyone has had at least one moment in their life where for a fleeting moment they thought it would be better to die than to live. But for most, such moments pass and you always find a solution, or at least you realise that things aren't that bad. Which brings me to something I heard about the other day. Apparently a few weeks ago a 17 year old boy jumped off a 3-storey building not far from where I live. What a scary thought! 17 years old wanting to end his life. Could things really be that bad? I dont know what went on in that boy's life but what makes a person take such a big step. And what makes the rest of us not actually do it during those brief moments we want to.

I know that for me there are four reasons. The first being simply that I dont think I have the courage to do it. Second, a genuine curiosity about how my life will turn out to be, and whether i will finally find out why I am here. Third, my immense faith in God and my belief that He knows what is best for me. It is He who has given me life and only He has the power to take it away. Whatever is happening in my life, good or bad, has a bigger meaning and I am just too small to understand this meaning, thus I choose to blindly trust God and the path that he has chosen for me. But the biggest reason that I would never ever take that step is my parents. How could I possibly put them through that? I believe that a family can get over any type of death with time, but never suicide. Don't people think about this before they decide to end their life. If they have a problem, how is it the fault of their family. Is it really fair to pile so much guilt on to the people who love you the most?

I know I mustn't be judgemental and perhaps people who commit suicide really do have problems. Problems much much bigger than what I can even think about. But can life really be that bad? I dont know. Perhaps it can. All I can say is I hope I never feel that way. Moments are fine, but in the end I do believe that life is worth living. The world is an amazing place...there is good and there is bad...but sometimes we must close our eyes to the negativity and try to feel the beauty that God has created for us. How can we insult Him by shunning what He has made?

Work-Home-Work-Home...is that all there is to life?

Doesn't life sometimes feel like one day dragging after another with no obvious purpose. We walk from one day to the next. Go to work. Come back home. Go to sleep. Get up. Go to work. What could possibly be the purpose of such an existence where we aren't really making any difference at all. No difference to the world. No difference to the person next door. And honestly, no difference to ourselves. Its not to say that life doesn't have its moments. But how was my today any different from yesterday. And will my tomorrow be any different? What a depressing thought. Makes me wonder what the point of living is. Surely God had bigger plans for me. Or did he? Am I really nothing in this world other than a little nobody. A face that is here today, but may not be tomorrow. And yet nobody would know the difference.

My greatest fear

The other day I was reading one of those quick-fire interviews they have with celebrities...you know, 'favourite food', 'what book are you reading at the moment' etc...so just for something different I pretended to be a celebrity and started to think about answers for each of those questions, while fantasising that the world would want to know about my likes too (and trying to come up with witty answers so that my pretend fans can marvel at how clever and funny I am! Yes I know! I need to get a life!)

Anyway, so along came a question which had me stumped for a while. 'What is your greatest fear'. Hmmm...i don’t know. I tried to think of a witty answer - 'being asked this question'..no, quite lame huh? (well it wasn't that bad. I came up with better ones...for 'most embarrasing moment', I told me pretend interviewer, 'I'd have another one if I told you'...dont think that's funny either...well you just don’t have a sense of humour then!). So back to my point (Gosh, I get a bit sidetracked sometimes don’t i? I have such a short attention span...there I go again!)..what was I saying.

Oh yes. My greatest fear. What are people generally afraid of. Heights (perhaps I am a little), Water (not at all...i love the water), the dark (again maybe a little). But my greatest fear? Funnily enough the first thing that popped into my head was 'Sharks'. For some reason when I see movies where people are eaten by sharks or lose a limb, I find it completely unnerving. But then I guess most people would, so sharks lost out in the race to be my greatest fear too.

Ok so now that I've blabbed on so much without stating what my fear is, I better do so now. I am scared of being forgotten after I die. And I know that that is my greatest fear. And no, I am not trying to come up with a clever answer for my 'fans' here.

I know that there have been many a days when I have wondered if anyone will think of me after I am gone. If anyone will care. Well that is probably a bit self-sympathising because I'm sure my family and friends would miss me. But for how long will I be remembered? Have I made enough of a difference in the life of anyone (apart from my parents of course) for me to hold a place in their memory forever?

That horrible number 23!

A few days ago I turned 23 and I’m not quite sure why but suddenly I feel old.
Yes yes I know that it is silly but somehow something kept nagging me at the corner of my mind for a few weeks before my birthday and it was only 2 days before I turned this now dreaded number that I finally knew what it was.

For those wondering why the hell I was analyzing my birthday so much, well that’s just me. A lot of people have told me over the years that I need to get over it, but every year I am completely keyed up as the days of april complete and my birthday draws closer. So what changed this year then? Why did I not look forward to the grand day? Surely I haven’t already reached an age that women start to hide their age! (I mean I seriously can’t be bothered trying to come up with a random number to subtract from my age everytime I am asked how old I am…at least not yet! I was hoping I had another 20 years till I had to start).

So here I was wondering what it was that made 23 a BIG number! I started to count back (as you would) and thought about what each number meant. Till you are 19, you are a teenager. And well, ‘teenager’ is a synonym for ‘do what you want’ isn’t it? Next comes 20, and it seems so close to 19 that you can continue to assume your teenage persona (whether anyone likes it or not)! 21 of course is the grand year of celebration. The welcoming of adulthood. Look at me! I’m an adult now! Yay! Or am I?

Then come 22. Now to be honest I am not sure why this number went to oblivion, because technically I was meant to be an adult. But well, perhaps I thought it was too close to 21, so I could still celebrate ‘coming of age’ (yes I know, I need to get over the whole ‘close’ thing…but perhaps it will help me with my lie-about-how-old-you-are quest in my middle-age…I mean isn’t 49 close to 45…which is close to early 40s!). Anyway so once 22 is done, here is 23 and all of a sudden I’m left wondering where all the years went!

TWENTY THREE! That’s closer to 25 than 20 (there’s that ‘close’ thing again, though working against me this time!)…and 25 means adulthood without any excuses and no looking back! By 25, you should know who you are and know what you want out of life! And there I had it! That’s what was nagging me! I was going to be 23 and still didn’t really know where I was going in my life. Sure I have a couple of degrees and working at a fairly decent job, but that’s not what I want to be all my life. I’m sure there must be a bigger purpose for my existance. Shouldn’t I have a big amazing goal for my future. An impossible dream of sorts! What is a life without an impossible dream?

So here I am. A 23 year old still in search of my impossible dream. If it is so difficult for me to even think of a dream, how would I ever achieve it???

Of religions and conversions

I read an article today that really got to me…quite strange because I am not one to have strong opinions about such things in general and I am not one to talk about religion because I truly believe that all religions are the same…and belief is God is a belief in doing the right thing. It really does not matter what name you give to that God. At the end of the day, God lies in your conscience.

Why is it then that people believe one God to be greater than the rest. I am not saying there are no such people in the religion I follow. There definitely are, and I have met many. I am talking here in general.

The article in question that has me agitated talks about how many christian evangelists are targetting students from india who are hindu and trying to convince them to follow christianity. They talk about Jesus being the lord. Don’t get me wrong. I am not here to say that Jesus is not the Lord. But why does he have to be the only person that must be followed. They talk about following Jesus being the only part of salvation. But why? Who has given them the right to say that? People apparently have gone far enough to imply that all other Gods and religions may be the work of Satan.

I couldn’t quite pick up on what the author’s standpoint was, and thus am not critisising him because he was merely talking about what is happening. However, I do have a problem with people trying to convert others into another religion. Why can’t every religion just promote faith in general, rather than faith in their own religion? I have great respect for every religion, be it Hinduism, Christianity, Islam or anything else. I have never believe that my religion is the greatest religion of them all. I really cant understand this standpoint.

Most of all, I wonder about the people who do in fact convert. What must go through their minds? Is it pressure of wanting to be like others around them? Or have they really given up on the religion they grew up with?

I don’t know…I am not trying to make a point here. I think I’m just taking out my frustration after reading the article (link below).
http://www.indolink.com/displayArticleS.php?id=051706093445

Rain, Rain..Go away?

Its raining like crazy and my beloved cloud 9 has disappeared behind its much darker, stronger counterparts...so here I am with moods just as grey as the sky...

Wouldn't it be lovely if it only rained during the nights when we were all tucked safely into bed...

Though rain sometimes can be beautiful...i remember as a child, running and playing in the rain...looking for puddles to sail my paper boats in...gosh what a stereotype! Seen it in a million movies. Almost makes me wonder if it really is a part of my childhood memories or just something I've decided should be, since kids in movies do?! No but seriously, I'm pretty sure I used to really enjoy the rain as a child.

But for some reason, as I've grown up I just don’t enjoy the idea of going out into the rain. Getting even mildly wet is irritating. Is it because as adults we don’t want to enjoy the little things in life?

I do want to go back to the days when I could enjoy the rain though. Cause it really is a part of nature isn't it. And what would we be without water? So why should we always curse the weather when it rains?

Maybe today once again when I step out into the rain, I will try to feel its beauty rather than run to my car to get out of it. Perhaps cloud 9 is right there if I look up and maybe I just can't recognise it anymore?

Time Travel

The other day someone asked me what would be the one crazy invention that i would really love to come true and my instant answer was Teleportation...wouldn't it be lovely to be able to get to places without having to travel...no more terrible flights or buses or anything...absolute bliss...

But now i feel that perhaps time travel would be great...Not just because i want to visit lands of the past (though i would love to live through ancient egypt, and live in the time that jane austen books are set in) or even because i have a great desire to see the world 200 years from now...but more because sometimes life feels like such a drag...

What if you could skip parts of your life and just you know...get it over with...

If time was constant and it is us who pass through it step by step, what if I could skip and hop a bit through the bits I didnt like?

And maybe rewind and relive moments that defined you because though they remain in your memory, you can never really remember how you felt when it happened...

Wouldn't it be lovely?

Another day...another blog...about absolutely nothing..

So here I am once again in my blog...what do I write about though?
What are these blogs meant to be about? The meaning of life? I suppose I could contemplate that...
So here goes nothing...
What are we here for really?
Do each of us have a great purpose to fulfill in this world or are we merely space fillers...
Is life about living for the little things...like the next rainbow you may see...or is it about striving to achieve your big dreams?
So many people I look at are working so hard to get that big dream...and I admire them greatly...but is that what I really want...what if that dream never gets fulfilled and I spend my life trying to jump higher and higher not realising that with every jump I stay up for barely a moment and then I'm back on the ground again...
What if the day I manage to jump high enough to touch the stars (if such a day ever comes) I forget why I wanted to touch the stars anyway...and when I'm back on the ground, what if I forget how to live on the ground?
So then perhaps life is about taking things as they come and being happy...
I really don’t know...
I have my dreams too but wonder if they really are my dreams or just mere wordly ambitions?
Questions too big and I'm too small...so I'll just float around on my cloud and live life as life wants to be lived...sometimes big, sometimes small...

What's with this blogging?

So i was told by a friend about starting a blog of my own...
Hmmm i thought...but why?
Who would want to read about what i have to say...especially when i dont really have anything to say?
I suppose i can read it...so wouldnt that just make it a diary? So its a diary that CAN be seen by anyone but probably won't?
Interesting concept...

So here I am...in the world of the blogs...about 5 years too late...and thats me...travelling along on cloud 9...