Don't be serious, be sincere

Don't just have career or academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order. There is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.

Life is one of those races in nursery school where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same is with life where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.

One thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. Life is not meant to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up?

It's ok, bunk a few classes, scoring low in couple of papers, goof up a few interviews, take leave from work, Enjoy with your friends, fall in love, little fights with your loved Ones . We are people, not programmed devices.

Don't be serious, be sincere

Those were best days of our lives....

When Gulli-Danda & Kanche (marbles) were more popular than cricket.

When we always had friends to play aais-paais (I Spy), chhepan-chhepai

& pitthoo anytime ...

When we desperately waited for 'Yeh Jo Hai

Jindagi' (Doordarshan serial)

When chitrahaar, vikram-baitaal, 

Dada Daadi Ki Kahaniyaan were so fulfilling.

When there was just one Tv in every five houses and...

When Bisleris were not sold in the trains and we were worrying if papas 

will get back into the train in time or not when they were getting down 

at stations to fill up the water bottle ...

When we were going to bed by 9.00pm sharp except for the 

'Yeh Jo Hai Jindagi' day ..When Holis & Diwalis meant mostly 

hand-made pakwaans and sweets and moms seeking 

our help while preparing them ...When Maths teachers were 

not worried of our Mummies and papas while slapping/beating us ..

When we were exchanging comics and stamps and 

Chacha-Chaudaris & Billus were our heroes ..

When we were in Nanihaals every summer and loved 

flying kites and plucking and 

eating unripe mangoes and leechies ..

When one movie every Sunday evening on television was more 

than asked for and 'ek do teen chaar' and 'Rajani' inspired us ..

When 50 paisa meant at least 10 toffees ...

When left over pages of the last years notebooks were used for rough

 work or even fair work ...When 'Chelpark' and 'Natraaj' were 

encouraged against 'Reynolds & family' ...

When the first rain meant getting drenched and playing in water and 

mud and making 'kaagaj ki kishtis' ... When there were no 

phones to tell friends that we will be at their homes

at six in the evening ..

When our parents always had 15 paise blue colored 'Antardesis' and 

5 paise machli wale stamps at home ...

When we remembered tens of jokes and were not finding 'ice-cream & 

papa' type jokes foolish enough to stop us from laughing ...

When we were not seeing patakhes on Diwalis and gulaals on

Holis as air and noise polluting or allergic agents ...

The list can be endless ...On the serious note I would like 

to summarize with ...

When we were using our hearts more than our brains, 

even for scientifically brainy activities like 'thinking' and 'deciding' ..

When we were crying and laughing more often,

more openly and more sincerely ..

When we were enjoying our present more than worrying about our future ..

When being emotional was not synonymous to being weak ...

When sharing worries and happiness didn't mean getting 

vulnerable to the listener .. When blacks and whites were 

the favorite colors instead of greys ...

When journeys also were important and not just the destinations ...

When life was a passenger's sleeper giving enough time and 

opportunity to enjoy the sceneries

from its open and transparent glass windows instead of some

super fast's second ac with its curtained, closed and dark windows ...

I really miss them(From the bottom of my heart).. don't u?


Also Read : My 1st presentation in IBM

"Journey of  thousand miles starts with a single step"