TAAD on the eve of Olympics @ Sancta Maria

Return to India – A Welcoming Change

In the infinity of life where I am,

All is perfect, whole and complete.

Change is the natural law of my life, I welcome change.

I am willing to change. I choose to change my thinking.

I choose to change the words I use.

I move from the old to the new with ease and with joy.

It is easier for me to forgive than I thought.

Forgiving makes me feel free and light.

It is with joy that I learn to love myself more and more.

The more resentment I release, the more love I have to express.

Changing my thoughts makes me feel good.

I am learning to choose to make today a pleasure to experience.

All is well in my world.

A few decades back, the typical trend was, masses of bright Indian minds had a one way passage to the United States in search of higher education in famed US Universities. Thereafter secure good employment with a good organization, settle down with family and buy that dream house with a 2 car park garage and maybe have a dog – that was an American Dream.

This was an intentional change in personal &professional life that every aspiring future NRI would dream about. Then was the advent of the IT & Internet revolution. India as a potential business destination by then had started appearing on the radar of many International Organizations. Mega IT firms, and other organizations (Banks, Semi-Conductor, Pharma, Auto etc.) started thinking of investing largely in India. India was perceived as a major offshore destination that had quality knowledge & skills and yet could show good profits for these large institutions that chose to outsource.

With the amount of opportunities that India now started having, showcased to the world that they were on the Industrial map. This was the pivotal point for many of those aspiring minds who had once upon a time left everything and had made a decision to pursue their American Dream. The immediate and an important thought then to some Indian settled in America was –do we now have an option to return back ‘home’ and be professionally challenged??

Some made a conscious decision and took that bold step to return. Alas! India had indeed changed! And it had changed for the better. There were big shopping malls; bigger and better cars were being witnessed on the roads, the free market economy which showcased an influx of freely available branded electronic products like SONYs, SAMSUNGs, LGs etc. Those that chose to return started experiencing an improved lifestyle. Big multi-national offices in India and big malls provided employment for so many, may it be cleaning crews, or cafeteria staff to even the local non-technical and perhaps not so highly educated Indians. We witnessed drivers, maids, and vegetable vendors etc. now carrying cell phones. The milkman, the newspaperman once who once walked or at the most had a bicycle for his morning deliveries, now carried cell phone to do business and rode on motorcycles or scooters. The cleaning crews in malls now wore a proper uniform and had imported floor cleaning machines that they could operate. The mid to upper middle class Indians who once took public transportations or a 2 wheeler to work now drove around in 4wheelers since banks were giving loans at attractive interest rates. Wow! What a change this was compared to the 70’s & 80’s where many were mere factory workers or only employed with typical government jobs (such as Railways, Income-Tax etc.). Many upper class Indians are now able to afford foreign vacations and able to buy better apartments in huge international level housing complexes. There are a lot of private taxi service companies that evolved. In general the country had started seeing a lifestyle at all levels that was not heard of a few decades back. In all this, I feel the biggest revolution that turned the wheel of this change was the Internet! Now business can be done in any & all industries with a click of a mouse.

This indeed was a welcoming change for the better for India as a country. In general Indians now enjoy an uplifted lifestyle as compared to what it was decades ago. We Indians now have access to many opportunities may it be professional career or availability of world-class consumer items.

-

Rakhi

Get to know Feng Shui

Based on the Taoist vision of understanding nature, Feng Shui works on the principle that everything around you is filled with Chi, or energy, as this ancient art and science is called.

Many people confuse it to be a religion when in fact it is more of an exact science for balancing space and energy. Feng Shui can be literally translated to mean "Wind-Water" and its five basic elements are fire, earth, metal, water, and wood.

If you were to determine the right Feng Shui for your home, or any other space, you would use a compass and the Bagua which is an octagonal grid containing the ancient "I Ching" symbols. With these tools you can determine where you would want to place furniture, or other objects, to get the most positive energy out of an area. Other aspects that can also help in positive energy flow are colors, plants, pathways, and other interior decoration details.

This art form has become so popular that many prominent public figures use it today in their home and office. Said to have answers to health problems, financial issues, maintaining harmony in families, and other areas, Feng Shui has become an accepted practice all around the globe.

An Ideal Teacher

I Am Looking For A Teacher,

Who is beautiful inside,

Honest with ME

Giving ME a sense of pride.

I am looking for a teacher,

With a healthy self-esteem,

Who clearly states the rules,

And doesn't have to scream.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who creatively prepares,

But whose first priority,

Is to convey that she cares.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who is interested, not aloof,

Who treats ME with respect,

Even when I goof.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who knows how to laugh and smile,

Who enjoys what she is doing,

And goes the extra mile.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who believes all students can learn,

Who praises their efforts and dreams,

They give their best in return.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who communicates with my parents well,

Gently and carefully selecting words,

When there is a problem to tell.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who will fill ME with desire,

To learn more every day,

With curiosity that won't tire.

I am looking for a teacher,

Who encourages ME to have a dream,

To work at solving problems,

Building MY self-esteem.

There are teachers out there,

The kind we are looking for,

For their student's future success,

They have opened up the door.

-

Asha and Laila

The boy named Zilch

It is the year 2020. A 4-year old boy named Zilch is waiting for his mother, Delta, who generally narrates bed-time stories to him. He is pretty upset about what happened today in the Inventor's Paradise, his school. The incident has made him mad on his parents too.

His mother finishes all her work in the kitchen. She is all tired from the day’s work. As soon as she enters her son’s room and looks at his face, she knew its going to be a long night. She settles down next to her son with all the warmth in her eyes and smile.

She puts her hand around his shoulder and asks him, “What is the matter son? You do not look well.” He does not respond and looks at her angrily. She asks again, “Did something happen at IP?” IP is the short form of his school’s name Inventor’s Paradise. For some strange reason, he finds it cool to say, “I go to IP. Today this happened and that happened at IP!”

He blurts out at her, “Why did you do this to me? Because of you, my peers at IP teased me. This is going to be a part of my life now!!” And he starts crying with big tears rolling down his eyes.

Delta makes him sit on her lap and wipes his tears using a tissue. She gives him a quizzical look and says, “Sweetie! I am so sorry I hurt you in some way. You’d feel better if you tell me what did I do?”

He wipes the remnants of the tears with his little palms and questions her, “Why did you name me Zilch? I hate my name. I cannot live with this name. I want to change my name.” Delta very sympathetically asked him, “So what name do you want for yourself? Choose a name that best describes you.” He kept his little finger on his lips, tilted his head a little and looked at the ceiling. Then he looked at his mother and said, “I don’t know but I kind of liked my name but now with all this teasing and all, I start to dislike it.”

Delta looks into his eyes and asks him, “Let us think of a name later on. Why don’t you tell me what exactly happened and we might come up with a solution?”

Then he said, “Last week our teacher gave each of us names of five of our peers and asked to find the meaning of their names. We all found it a funny exercise. It did turn out to be funny when we all shared our findings today with the rest of the class. When my name’s meaning was told by one of the peers as ‘zero’, the whole class went hysterical. And the whole time, everyone kept teasing me that am a head filled with nothing blah blah blah….”

The sobs start again.

Delta gave a smile and wiped the tears told him, “Do you know why I named you Zilch?” Zilch asks, “Why? ‘Coz I am nothing.” Delta explains to him, “No, because you are the most important part of my life as zero is the most important number in Mathematics and in almost every subject you may say. The study of science would never have reached the stage without the number zero. Zero or zilch has great mathematical and spiritual significance. That is the reason I chose the name for my little baby!”