Croakings of a Clumsy Frog -- 14

 

The first provisional Indian government in exile was formed by Mahendra Pratap Singh in Afghanistan in 1915. He stayed in exile for 35 years, having taken a vow never to step on the British-occupied Indian soil. He returned a happy man post 1947. Surprisingly, he was an educated Jat. Seems there is more to Jats beyond the JAT (just animal type) syndrome!

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Love and loss in misty valleys.

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Anger should mellow down a bit, and melt later to turn sorrow, then change into forgiveness, followed by acceptance. And maybe then dear readers we can afford a gentle smile. And welcome a new day. And remember the past with a painless nostalgia. And move on. That's how we must proceed on our journey.

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Loss, longing and love brewing a mist in the morning forest. I walk on a lone path. Then the sunrays streak in. Everything turns into love. Loss and longing glide away with misty vapours. Love is nothing but all the lesser emotions sublimated fully.

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There might be many sins listed in the dictionary of judgments but being unhappy is one of the few serious ones. Not only we suffocate the bud of life and prevent it from blossoming fully, we hurt others also. Hurting others comes very easy to an unhappy person. Like the broken finger aches wherever you put it, unhappiness gives equal pain to ourselves and others. Let's avoid this sin at least. Let's do something to undo our unhappiness first. The externals are simply the effects.

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Life isn't just sailing in composed waters. Mostly, the waters are stormy. Overall, our character is defined by the manner we captain our little boats to enter peaceful waters for a time. Sailing in calm waters is not the reality. Calm waters are just our expectation. A dream. Continuous cosmic turbulence is the law. The so called peace is simply a flimsy series of brief pauses on the ever-changing and evolving cosmic highway. The storm lurking over the horizon is the reality. It's what makes our life meaningful. How we brace up to meet the lurking storm determines the extent and meaning of life. So keep an eye on it as you are cooling your heels after the last battle. Braving the stormy patch and keeping an eye on the next one is the formula to become a successful captain of your life.

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Money does indeed buy happiness! But only when it lands up in the palm of a really needy person after freeing itself of the predatory clutch of an overstuffed wealthy hand. Guys help money in buying happiness. Buy happiness for the people whose littlest joys are stalled by the tiny sums of money. There is always that much surplus with us which we normally squander away in pizzas, movies, cakes and coke. But there are millions to whom this tiny sum might turn out to be a life saviour. Just like the real adventure of life begins once we move out of our house. Similarly, the real meaning of life begins to unfold once we cross the boundary of the self and look over the fence to spot miseries and pains of others.

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Croakings of a Clumsy Frog -- 13

 

If we believe we have the capacity to do what we are supposed to do, then there is no reason to believe in the higher powers supposedly guiding our way. But the question is, do we really know what we are supposed to do. All choices and decisions stand on the verge of either falling this way or that. Faith, at some point, is bound to have its final say. Faith is pretty free flying. Tether it to reason and logic, it hides immediately behind the dark clouds. It’s not there to be tamed by the chains of reason. It is good to put reason at the forefront of your skills like the steely jaws of a mighty earthmover. That’s a convenience, a skill to lead life on a day-to-day basis. Reason is a very good servant. Faith but is the master that guides the overall operation of life. By faith I don’t just mean faith in the Gods over there in the sky’s vaults. It primarily comprises our faith in ourselves, in our soul’s intimacy with the possibilities of joy, an urge to lead a meaningful life. Extraterrestrial faith is a mere supplement to our inherent faith in ourselves. Isn’t it faith in ourselves that we use all the reasons and logic to not only survive but also strive to be happy and joyful? In fact, we hatch ‘reasons’ to nurture our ‘faith’. Never lose your faith. It’s like losing what and who you are. 

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Rains and more rains. Mold in the pickle jar. White coral mushroom on the rotting plank. Potatoes with spiky sprouts. Baby frogs everywhere. Lots of nests in the trees and plants. The sky laden with flying insects. Well-fed serpents and croaky long-limbed toads. Thickly overgrown trees and promiscuous creepers. The air with a musty smell. The railings more rusty. The sky just a cloudy canvas. Hot teas and spicy pakoras. Smiles. Gossips. Love and loss in the season of moss. Well-bathed caravan looking to sneak in and take a shelter in the autumnal camp. Well, it has been too damp. Welcome now the sunny lamp.

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Many situations in life turn meaningful, and hence bearable, the moment we accept our share, our part in shaping the things as they stand.

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Avoid the things that cost you your smile and laughter. It will never be a loss in the long term, I can assure you. Avoid also the things that fetch you an instant grimace. That's an instant gain. So start now with a smile!

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For the angels to stay relevant, there have to be demons. Well, that's too big a price for goodness. Let there be no demons, even if that means all angels losing their status and turn ordinary entities. Just a pleasant commonness! Why go for the extraordinary? Especially when the cost is too high, like having to do with demons just to have angels around.

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If you can't avoid pride altogether, have principled pride. It's a bit better than the unreined one. The latter is a sort of unsheathed sword. There is an equal risk of injury to both the beholder and the people around. Principled pride is at least a sheathed sword. It carries lesser risk. And what is this principled pride? It's the pride inside a fencing of certain principles that we won't compromise come what may.

Croakings of a Clumsy Frog -- 12

 

If Taliban is all for the medieval shapes in all forms of life, no problem with that. They aren't comfortable with modernity and Western values. Again no problem with that. It's their choice. But then they have to follow the same principle in fighting also. Why don't they fight with swords and spears, the medieval weapons of war? Why use the latest weapons? These are modern tools and mostly manufactured by the Western countries. I respect your medieval choice. But then you have to fight the enemy with your own weapons. Take up swords and spears guys. We will applaud your endeavours.

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I'm a common man with modest means and common people have to be conscious of their deeds that may justify their philanthropic conscience. They have their limitations and need to look for small avenues to satisfy the good spirit. I am no exception. I collect my tiny grains of good deeds. A potted rose feeling extremely thirsty, its buds and leaves drooping dispiritedly. Pour water with care and consideration. Within fifteen minutes you have the results. The branches straighten, the sullen leaves turn happy and taut, and the buds raise their heads again. They will smile fully tomorrow. Now who says good deeds don't fetch beautiful results?

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Birds sing beautifully most of the time, except when they fight or are scared, which isn't too often. I can't sing. But I can at least say something about their songs. And I can write a few lines about music. Well, that makes me happy.

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The day

holding its last ray,

The dusk

at its mellifluous cusp,

The breeze stops

to welcome dew drops,

To the nest

birds return for rest,

The leech

also has to reach

a place safe,

To crawl

cling and brawl

on a new day.

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A richly yellow, thick, grand old guava leaf lets go of its grip on the branch and tumbles down to create a soft plonking sound on the car roof. The completion of a journey! Well, I believe some stately wise old man also died peacefully in sleep, after completing a joyful, meaningful life, in some corner of the world at exactly the same time.

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My dear human-centrist theorists, please recognize that this earth and the drama of life on it is a bit larger atomic arrangement. There is hardly any qualitative difference between a simple atomic arrangement and the earth as such. They are just numerically different. If you feel too large for your skin, stand on the terrace on a clear dark night and stare into the starry distances. To the cosmic immensity, an ant and an elephant on earth are the same. Well, but the ant and the elephant are entitled to their grandiose plans here on this little mud ball. You, me and all of us are entitled to the same.

Play your drama joyfully. Don’t miss the little things that bring a smile. Appreciate the smile of a flower, applaud the airy dives of a butterfly, hail the rains and go stomping in the monsoonal mud, feel the touch of the gentle kiss of breeze on your skin, salute and acknowledge the ferocity of storms, roll in the green hilly pastures, bathe in mountain streams, enjoy your tea at a roadside tea  stall, bless a child, give a coin to an old helpless beggar, throw grains to the chirpy birds, chase away the bully feral dog and come to the aid of a meeker one, share your food with others at the office canteen, congratulate the office peon for looking smart and energetic, the list is endless my dears.

Little thinks that can give us a smile are countless, so why wait in vain for the bigger reasons which are so few. These little causes of smiles are the sinews that will one day make the nest of your happiness, which in turn gets us joy, appreciation of life and gratitude for being alive. Keep smiling my dears!

Croakings of a Clumsy Frog -- 11

 

Life is like a rubber string. It’s dead and limp without any stretching, taut tension in it. So guys if you feel stretched just enjoy the pleasant pull because that simply proves your lifefully throbbing status. We can enjoy this string-walk as long as there is tensioned tautness under our toe-hold. The pull and tension gone, we just crash-land and turn maggot feed. But tension under our toes is one thing, tension on face is quite another. We just have to be careful during the rope-walk. Later on, we can even learn to smile while walking carefully on the rope.

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If you relegate luxury of life to the paradise after death, believe me you will not be lacking in spirits to turn your as well other's lives into hell here on earth. Joy postponed is embracing pain in the present. If you live just for the outdated principles, customs and dogmas in the hope of hitting the jackpot of joy in paradise later, you are missing the point of life. Make love, compassion, joy, care and happiness the tenets of your living and create your paradise here only. Why wait to die for all this. The only religion of life is to live a meaningful and happy life. The Gods and their paradise are better left alone in peace. The paradise must be crammed to the ceilings because there have been billions who chose to suffer on earth to get a ticket to paradise. Why be in such a hurry to join an overcrowded place. Our little earth still has lots of space left for love and laughter to bloom fully. All we need is just to realign and reshape this life.

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A gloomy and grey dawn. All silence except the lonely katydid who still kept its hopes alive for a mate through its unhurried breep breep notes. The sky hung spent. It overexerted itself in breaking September rain record. The earth below soaked full and lay sleepy like an overfed kid. No rockchats for their pre-dawn birdie chatter. Then the faint traces of a new day filtered across the clouds. A handsome oriental magpie robin took over the chorus from the tired katydid and the dandy black and white bird's teasing, naughty chitter and chatter broke the ice. Instantly a couple of peacocks gave gruffy hoots. A crow cawed. A dove sent its docile notes. A white wagtail chipped in. A few sparrows gossiped across the branches. The morning chorus singers increased in number and variety. It's the birds who announce a new day most beautifully. Listen to them. They always seem wishing you the best of a morning.

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I can never recall a more rainy September day as today on the eleventh. Continuous rains since 5 in the morning and still going well into the afternoon. There have been just few pauses in between. Everything is soaked to the hilt. The trees stand with bowed heads. And a butterfly, taking a chance during a few minutes of rain break, flits around. Hail life! Such wispy wings not only survived the watery onslaught, it now comes out to claim its life and living as well, and imagine when it's still drizzling. Now who says there isn't inspiration in life? I find this butterfly full of life and unmindful of the odds against it. Lesson learnt, we can always do better in any situation. It's windy, still drizzling, but the butterfly has to have its long delayed breakfast. So here it goes to take a few hasty sips from the soggy flowers.

Croakings of a Clumsy Frog -- 10

 

By chance or choice, a baby-pink bloom stands out among its spotless white siblings on the hibiscus. It looks dandy with a stardom of its own. Some things and people get an advantage right from the beginning.

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All of us were angrier once. Ageing is a coolant. It's supposed to be so. If we don't, there is risk of getting burnt out. So cool down my greyish middle aged peers!

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What a day carrying such climatic contradictions! Harmonious blend of opposites! The sky laden with the darkest of clouds sailing in an azure blue sky. Darkness and brightness embracing each other to have a feel of the opposite! Sudden drizzles as a dark cloud lingers over, only to be swept past by a naughty gust of wind. Suddenly the just-wet foliage of trees shines under the brightest of sunlight as the September sun peeks curiously and in wonderment how beautiful the just-bathed nature looks like! So this shifting canvas defines this September morning: intermittent interplay of clouded dark and azure blue and the winds carrying clouds in gay abundance. Drizzles and immediate drying act by the sun. Cool opposites!

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There may be plenty of nasty people around. But I'm pleased to tell you that there are far more beautiful people, so many that they will instantly turn the nasty ones into a pathetic minority if all of them are visible at a time. They are the hidden gems. The nasty ones are more visible because it's a kind of shit put at a public square. To make it more pleasant, this society is run by the beautiful people, I mean the people who can feel the beauty of their souls. The nasty ones are mere speed bumps on the road. In fact, they serve a purpose in limiting the speed.

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Today I just got curious to know whether Bond Sahab has undergone Covid vaccination. I think he is the best one to tell about his experience in the easiest spirits, with so much ease, simplicity and beauty that even Corona would lose its spikes and appear a cute tramp.

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I vividly remember a lone pine on a Shivalik hill. It’s wonderful to just think about it. It seems to convey the traces of its whistling silence and serenity even from hundreds of kilometres away.

‘Embraced by the pining silence

and stillness of these mute hours,

my detached self grows more independent,

free and aloof like these misty distances

virginally spread out under the moonlight,

The silvery mists kiss my prickly needles

with love free of pride or prejudice.’

Thus mused the lone pine

and felt absolutely fine!

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You always need new angels in your life, or rather we turn ordinary people into angels to fill the vacuum in our life, to rub off the slate and make it clean of the image of the former angel-turned-dark angel-cum-demon. Our mind is a very suitable instrument to create new realities. We are very innovative with our justification for this dusting, cleaning job. Well, human mind is a wonder indeed. No wonder, we have so many parallel realities, a kind of complex web. Like the spiders weaving web to catch prey. But spiders are better weavers than us because they don't get caught in their own weaving generally, while we get tangled in our own yarn usually. So fellers, keep your karmic web simple. It's difficult to walk out of it.