As I age...

I've been trying to pen this down for quite some time now, thinking I'd put it up the day I turn 20 but sadly I had been a little preoccupied. I wanted to write down some of the life lessons learnt by me so far down the line. Bear with me. And I know that I still have a long way to go, a lot more to experience but maybe we could just pause for a little while and ponder.

So here goes, some of the life lessons learnt in random order.

1) You realize how insignificant you are and how small our problems feel when you surround yourself with the vast expanses of mother nature.
2) Even if it has been only 2 years or say 10 years, you will never stop missing nor crying for the loved ones you lost.
3) To be open to love is to be vulnerable.
4) To be vulnerable is quite the learning experience.
5) A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.
6) We all are condescending at some point or the other.
7) We must accept that some relations cannot go beyond the mere greetings of hi and bye.
8) Never try to impose your ideologies upon someone else.
9) There is no substitute for hard work and perseverance.
10) Even though people ask you for advice, they will always do what is in the deepest of their hearts.
11) Music and books still remain the best company for me.
12) Locking yourself in your room and crying out loud is the second best therapy to deal with gloom, first being sleep.
13) Friendships forged over two years seem to be more valuable than those of six years.
14) As opposed to crying alone, laughing along with your friends is the best way to stay happy. That followed by music,
15) It goes without saying actually, but still, parents will always forgive you and love you unconditionally.
16) You never truly know a person.
17) Now I know that the outside appearance doesn't really matter, but sometimes if you dress well and groom yourself well, you feel confident about yourself and are able to carry yourself with some level of authority.
18) Suddenly everybody becomes religious when exams approach.
19) Being spontaneous has always had its charm.
20) A stranger in the bus can tell you an unforgettable story.
21) Teachers that teach you about life become your second parents.
22) Society is ever changing, so should people's attitudes towards it.
23) Forgive and forget.
24) When you look upon the eyes of your new born sibling, you forget the entire chaos outside. You are mooted there by the innocence they carry in those bright little eyes of theirs.
I wonder how would the parents feel to see their new born baby!
25) Lastly to quote Albus Dumbeldore, happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if only one remembers to turn on the light!

So there it is. A small list of things learnt as I age. Do tell me your favorite ones, the ones you could agree with, also the ones you could disagree with, and do tell me if you feel I have missed out on something.

Now gotta prepare for my month long semester exams...until then, live long and prosper.

Vagabond

I met up with a friend from junior college yesterday. Figured we could just walk on the beach and catch up on life. He urged me to walk bare foot on the sand saying it was better this way. Me being stubborn refused to do so. So we walked and talked for a while till accidentally a huge wave came up to my feet and drenched them. So I said, 'what the hell, lets just soak up!' So there we stood in knee deep waters lapping around us and watching the sun play hide and seek behind the grim monsoon clouds. After a really really long time I felt relaxed. It was the end of my holidays and I should have felt relaxed much earlier, but me being me, getting worked up for every little thing could not do so.

But feeling the moist sand against my feet and having the company of an insightful friend, did its job of calming me down. And after a while it started to pour like crazy and both of us decided to just soak in the damn rains.

So we were sitting right at the water edge, with the end of the waves lightly touching our feet and getting drenched in the downpour. The feel of the cool rain drops on my face calmed me down. I never felt so relaxed. So both of us, like some maniacs just getting soaked in the rains on the beach!
Nothing ever felt so wonderful. I felt free. I felt lighter. I felt like a vagabond.

Then both of us started shivering, so we decided to have a cup of coffee, and that is when my friend urged me to continue writing. And since I was wondering what I could write about, why not this.

 I was scrolling through pinterest, I came across this nice quote which goes as follows.

Blessed are the gypsies.
The makers of music.
The artists. Writers.
Dreamers of dreams.
Wanderers and Vagabonds.
Children and misfits: For
they teach us to see the world through
beautiful eyes.

This got me wondering, aren't we all vagabonds in life?Initially we decide to do a particular task thinking that we would be able to settle with it for the rest of our lives. But then slowly, disappointment and dissatisfaction creeps in and our minds start to wonder the dreaded "what if?"

So what do we do? Give up that particular task and start doing the one that will now bring us the needed satisfaction. Don't we? And then as years pass on, again the same cycle repeats. So in short the human mind does not get satisfaction on the long run. Hence rather than trying to think of this as a problem how about we just get along with it and enjoy while it lasts.

What I mean to say is be a wanderer. Not just going from place to place, but from one passionate task to another. Say you want to learnt the guitar today,you do so. Maybe after a few years you want to start making short films, its not like your guitar playing skills were a waste! Hence go for it. Don't think the what if.Just don't.Knowing and realizing that you are free to do whatever brings you happiness is enlightening. And what is even more beautiful, is the smile that we see across a stranger's face when we are doing something selfless. And hence sometimes going with the flow gives us more happiness than opposing it.

So as I was letting the rain drops wash away the clutter in my mind, I looked up towards the sky and smiled. I said to myself, I will start afresh. I will begin everything anew and let go of all the negative thinking. Learn from the past experiences. Let go of the people who are downright selfish and hold on to those who would bring a smile upon my face. And agree with my much maniac(just kidding) friend, to live each day one at a time.

So here's to new beginnings, new friendships and new efforts.
Cheers...