The Cup

The followers were sleepy and tired and asked the master to help them.

The master gave them a cup of coffee and said ‘ this will keep you awake’.

They took the cup of coffee and with great reverence placed it on a pedestal. They sat around it and worshipped it. They bowed in front of it and implored the cup of coffee to keep them awake. After few hours of worshipping, they started falling asleep one by one.

If only they had drank the coffee instead of worshipping the cup, they would have stayed awake!!!!

The deity and devotee….

They brought fresh flowers and blooms to the shrine, a myriad of colors and fragrance. They humbly bowed before their deity and offered their prayers and sought blessings.

The temple had many idols, each a figment of the sculptors imagination.

The first one was white as Lily to symbolise the purity of the divine being, untouched and untainted . When the rays of light hit it, it shone like a thousand suns.

Another one was covered in grandeur with royal robes . A spectrum of colours from fiery reds to majestic purple and bright yellow. The power and glory of an immortal king who preserves and protects his followers exuded from it.

The calm and earthy idol was placed in a corner. Made of mud with a string of leaves around it kept on a wooden pedestal remained the simplest of them all.

Each devotee wanted to protect their idol from the other, and so they built tall partitions between each idol. They developed their own ways of worship and rituals. As time went by, the number of devotees increased and the temple was filled with the fragrance of incense and smoke from the burnt offering.

Soot covered all the idols and now they all look alike………

“Happy father’s day”, papa….

Poles apart like east and west that can never meet but beholds the same sun, dad and me are enveloped by the same love that engulfs us in a beautiful relation like two shores of the same sea.

If there is any immortality that human beings can boast of, it is the memories and love that we leave behind long after we are gone. Dad, we share a lifetime of memories that we both can hold on to even in the darkest and gloomiest of times. Time will pass and we will fade but the love that we share will still linger.

Happy father’s day dad and I am indebted to you for making me what I am with all my flaws, fears, uncertainties and above all for filling me with the courage to face adversities and move on.

To you dad…..

You must have been elated with joy when you heard that I was born. You must have held me close to your heart and caressed my forhead when you first took me in your arms.

You must have felt proud in my achievements and must have silently felt the pain of my failures. You never said much but I know deep inside you felt what I felt.

You were rough on the surface preparing me for life’s challenges. Even during the times when I felt lost , I knew you would find me.

When things fell apart and we drifted in separate directions , I still felt that the currents would wash me to you and I will once again feel the warmth of your chest.

Destiny has its way of working and we are on the opposite shores touched by the same waves. Someday somewhere we will be together and the hurt will no longer have power over the deep love that cocoons us.

Till then, no matter where I am, no matter with whom I am …I still remain a part of you.

Painting one stroke at a time..

Tags

inspiration, life

The world is at a standstill on a path that diverges to multiple roads and so am I. Some untrodden roads while some patchy rough path that few have travelled. The gratitude of having a home and food on my table but the sudden chaos of an unexpected halt of everyday routine feels like a fog. The sadness that lingers on reading about deaths around the world and the small moments of joy of having dear ones around are conflicting. The canvas of life is full of colours that disagree with each other.The disarray of colours spill over the poise of the soul.

As I reach out to tear down the canvas that once I started painting with passion but now I abhor, a new pattern is revealed. It was the space between my canvas and myself that was preventing me from seeing the beauty of what I had painted. I start painting one stroke at a time waiting patiently for the art to reveal itself to me in its pandemoniac beauty.

Featured Image : Image by Marek Studzinski from Pixabay

Where is humanity

THE NUMBER OF MIGRANTS DEATH IN THIS COUNTRY IS ALARMING!!!!
LIFE IS ONE TIME GIFT WE CANT LOOSE IT. THERE IS NOTHING MORE PRECIOUS THAN THIS ON EARTH.
Please safeguard at any cost. Our govt is very poor that can’t afford to support poor.
So let’s pray
Please save the poor
Migrants who are traveling to their home land.
They are walking miles and miles
Carrying their small babies

Very uncertain adventure of Thier life
No food
No money
Babys loose Thier mothers

Families loose their heart

What a tragic event
What a tragic decision
Oh God no words to utter……I am fainting
My heart is mourning
God please save all poor people of this country
Homeless, destitutes,mothers, fathers, children all the sons of the soil.
Our country administration is busy with feeding gluttons

They are selfish parasites
No botheration of future and humanity

They are all busy in charvaka, Lokayata
Flying eagles for innocent bloods
Why we need a useless
Admin for this country?

COVID-19 and Children

Tags

Children, COVID-19

The headlines throw statistics of people dying of the Novel Coronavirus, Television screens display breaking news of people affected by the virus , friends and distant relatives discuss how the situation is worsening . With schools closed and an air of panic around, our children are confused and anxious. Tidbits of information and whispering conversations increase their anxiety.

Our children look up to us for guidance on how to deal with stressful situations such as these. How we handle the present situation will influence how the next generation will handle future stressful events. Providing age appropriate information and concrete instructions will ensure that our children will play an active role in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tips and Guidelines

Remain calm : Our children observe us and learn a great deal by following our reactions. Remain calm and reassure kids that measures to keep them safe and healthy are being done. If your child has concerns, encourage them to talk about it and allay their fears through open communication.

Pay attention to what your kids are watching on television and other audiovisual media: Large amounts of information are being telecasted by the media. While some content is relevant others are misleading. Limit children from viewing too much content on COVID-19 as this may increase anxiety and undue panic.

Avoid prejudiced language and blame : It is easy to fall into the trap of blaming certain people or stereotyping people of specific ethnicity or race at times of global epidemics. Refrain from the blame game and focus on what you can do to break the chain of transmission. Let our children get the message loud and clear that bias and prejudice only breeds hatred and destruction while working on solutions together nourish civilizations.

Provide concrete instructions on how to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 : Teach and practice hand washing with children and make it a fun activity. Remind them to practice coughing and sneezing hygiene. Teach about how COVID-19 spreads.

For complete information on prevention of transmission refer : https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Make the best use of time at home: Stick to routines as far as possible. Think of ways to engage children. Encourage them to take up a hobby or an extracurricular activity.

Today’s children are tomorrow’s citizens. Let this be an opportunity for us to prepare our children for a future that is empowered to fight against such outbreaks.

CPR: Between life and death.

Tags

CPR, healthcare, LIFE SAVING

A 17 year old intermediate student of a college in India collapses in her class and the teachers and college authorities rush her to a nearby hospital. She is pronounced dead on arrival due to sudden cardiac arrest.

Mr. Peter in his 40s was an energetic man and was participating in the ‘tug of war’ as part of Onam celebrations. While he is at the rope pulling and tugging, he collapses. Friends and family rush and take him to the nearest hospital. He is pronounced dead due to sudden cardiac arrest.

In a country where nearly eight lakh people are killed due to sudden cardiac arrest , it comes as no surprise that such incidents go unnoticed and we end up blaming destiny for the untimely demise of our loved ones due to sudden cardiac arrest . The incidents of sudden cardiac arrests are rising in India and the survival rates are dismally low. Nearly 85% of sudden cardiac arrests happen outside hospital and among these ,65 % occur at home. The most disturbing fact is that about 56% of these incidents are witnessed by bystanders and only 1.3% of these people received CPR (Cardio pulmonary Resuscitation). About 98% of our country’s population has not received any kind of training in CPR.

What happens during a cardiac arrest?

During a cardiac arrest , the heart stops pumping blood and hence the blood flow to all vital organs especially , the brain is disrupted. After around 4 minutes of this shutdown , brain starts undergoing irreversible damage. CPR is the first and foremost way to make the heart pump manually so as to ensure that blood flow to the brain is sustained. It is important that CPR has to be done continually till help arrives.

What are the symptoms of cardiac arrest ?

1. loss of consciousness
2. sudden collapse
3. no breathing
4. no pulse

Why learn CPR ?

Cardio pulmonary resuscitation is a lifesaving skill that can save someone in an emergency which includes sudden cardiac arrest, drowning , heart attack or if someone has stopped breathing and heart beat has stopped. Studies show that timely and effective CPR can significantly increase the chance of survival after a sudden cardiac arrest

What is the way forward

1. Managements of schools and colleges must take up the initiative in training their teachers ,staff and students in CPR. Today’s children are the citizens of tomorrow and it is important for them to understand the importance of saving a life.
2. Government officials and key stakeholders of education systems must make it mandatory for secondary schools and colleges to conduct CPR training for their students.
3. Workplaces must train their staff in CPR .
4. NGOs must take up CPR training as a cause and make it accessible to remote locations and rural areas.
5. Healthcare professionals can take up opportunities to train and spread awareness of CPR .

We all have a responsibility to one another. There is nothing greater than saving another life. Let humanity not perish and let us hold onto someone who hangs at the edge of life and death and pull them back to life.

Mother and child

Every morning as I get ready for work, a pair of twinkling eyes look at me ,subtly indicating to stay back.Two arms open wide for a last embrace before I walk out the door. Two little feet run towards me before I shut the door. The cry and the sighs haunt me all through the day. The toothless smile and the gentle kiss cease to fade away.

The clock ticks and as every hour passes by ,the joy of returning home to warm cuddles and soft hugs pulls me through the day.

As I return home, the ecstasy on the face of my kids erase all the wear and tear of the day.The unadulterated joy on their faces makes all ache dissipate.

The metamorphosis of love

It’s beautiful to be in love and to see the metamorphosis of love is even more enthralling.

3 years of dating and 7 years of marriage has revealed myriad ways in which love can manifest itself.

The yearning to meet each other, the long chats that lasted all through the wee hours of the day, the small surprises and the stolen glances. Love was beautiful.

The bond grew stronger but still unsure if it would last forever. The uncertainties of choices made and the burden of decisions taken. Love takes a new form and presents options to choose from. The decision proves to be life changing. Love was painful.

After ten years , No more goodbye kisses ,no more hugs, no more ‘I love yous’,no more surprises,no more hand holding, no more chats through the night, no more unplanned trips and no more stolen glances. Love takes a new form. It no longer requires manifestations.It no longer requires affirmations.It is still there as an unseen bond that holds us through the darkest of nights and the brightest of days.