An Ode to Shubh

For she is an adept
In what she does
So it is with Art too.
Her creation casts a spell
And so does she
God created her
With love, with care
With all his heart
And rested
For he was devoid of strength
His own creation
He feared
For she was near perfect
Propelling him toward the absolute
Inspired he too was
For a moment he felt pain
and bliss at the same time
Pain, because it sapped him out of all energy
Bliss, because she stood there
All smiles...
She was the metaphor
She was the simile
She was the protagonist of his creativity
His crown jewel..

And I dream...

As I lie in the sand
Gazing at the stars
The night charms me
The lure, seductive..

Haunted I am..
Not by the eeriness of the night
But by its heavenly glow
Awestruck I stare..

The moondance I see
In the water..
Classic romance
I witness

A dreamer, never was I
But..
Taunted I feel now,
The teaser, the moonlight

The grass below is chill
the air even more
I am numb..
Numbed by the song of the night


I am in a trance..
Pure magic it is...
The music plays on
The musician, the night..

I lie there..
And I continue to dream...

To The City That Never Sleeps

The Big Apple
The Business Capital of the World
The City That Never Sleeps
Simply put, New York City
Time fears her pace
Lightning is put to shame
Power she exudes
Flamboyant her style
Life she lets you live
Live your own way
No Strings attached
Mean, life here seems
But take a deep breath
And see through her eyes
A vision so beautiful
She shows you
Of your own self
Explore the being that you are
For that is the quest of life
She becomes the beacon
But never the path
Carve it, you must
For it is the toast
The toast you raise
To Her Spirit
That spells "Immortal".

A very simple explanation to the most difficult question ever

Does God exist or not? A subject that so many have debated on. The atheist always claims God's non-existence while the other swears by God's powers. There have been extremely complex explanations from both sides of the court. But I have never come across one that is as simple as the one that I read in Muhammad Ali's memoir, The Soul of a Butterfly. An ardent believer in God and his supreme power, Ali says -

One thing that had always amazed me is how many people question the existence of God. They are always searching for proof.
Would you believe a man who told you about a store that ran efficiently without any manager or salesperson to look after it?
Would you believe that the store was protected from robbers without someone to look after it?

Suppose a man told you he had seen a big factory where everything was running smoothly,without any owner or manager. Suppose he insisted the factory had been built all by itself, that even the machines had just appeared out of thin air and were now running like clockwork, producing wonderful products.

Or would you believe that an electric bulb could generate light by itself? Could even the great philosophers convince you that the fabric from which your clothes are made had not been woven by human hand or by machine,but had woven itself? If we find these examples unbelievable,how could we possibly believe that the universe works so precisely without a creator?

Why does disbelief come so naturally to us, while belief takes such effort? Faith comes naturally to us in many areas of life. For instance, when a person becomes ill and is unable to treat himself, he goes to the doctor. When the doctor explains the cause of his illness and the method of treatment, the patient trusts the doctor and takes his advice. In matters of the law, we do the same, we take the advice of our attorney.

In education, we have faith in our professor's knowledge and field of expertise. We accept him and put our trust in him. We do this because we know he is trained in his profession. Belief comes effortlessly.

When we watch a car driving down the street, we know it is not operating on its own. There is someone behind the wheel steering it in the right direction.

Yet many people still question whether or not there is a greater power behind the creation of all life.

It is true that it is more difficult to believe in things that cannot be seen or touched. But this is the very essence of faith - believing in the things the eyes cannot see. Nothing bad will come out of having faith in God, so why not believe? You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

Doesn't that viewpoint seem reasonable enough?

Colorado - An Affair to Remember!!

Episode 1 - The Place

Now that I am in New York, I have all the more reason to continue chronicling my experiences at Broomfield (The New York diary will have to wait for Colorado chapters to get over).Colorado offered me what Madras( I like it that way!!) did not and the word they use for it is Space. The moment you step out of the confines of your apartment you see the wonders of nature all around you. The snow clad mountains are a sight to behold. Their enormity humbles the onlooker. The blue blue sky could wipe away the blueness from one's mind however depressed it may be.The mile high state has so much to offer.For an adventurer this place is a nothing less than a paradise. Colorado being at the heart of the mid west is generally perceived to be dull. But if I were to express my opinion it is everything but dull. To relish the beauty of Colorado one has to travel through its creeks, its mountains, the Arkansas river and those numerous hiking trails.
Rafting in the Arkansas river through the Royal Gorge is sheer thrill. At the end of a 10 mile journey in the white water you don't feel exhausted but you actually feel rejuvenated. Fighting the rapids gives you an out of the world experience. The most important of all are the Great Rocky Mountains. One could reach the foothills of the famous Rockies in just about 20 minutes drive. Describing the Rockies requires an all new post for such is its beauty. It is not only nature that makes you love the place, it is the people too. The university town of Boulder is one of the very happening places in Colorado. The Peal St in this town is always so full of life and people, but not the type where you feel claustrophobic.
The Great Sand Dunes National Preserve which is at about five hours drive from my home is an amazing sight. Out of nowhere you see a complex sand dune system. Where on earth does one get to see Sand, water and snow all in a single view? The height of the tallest sand dune is close to 750ft. To climb that one needs enormous energy and stamina. I was conked out by the time I reached the summit. The view from that spot is very hard to capture in a photograph. The enormity of the sand dune system overwhelms you. There are so many such hidden visual treasures in the land of the Rockies that remain to be explored.

How often does one get to work in a place where the drive from home to office is a visual treat? For a person who has spent most of her life is metros this was sheer bliss. Away from the hustle and bustle of city traffic, the maddening crowd and pollution, Broomfield was serenity personified. Working in a vacation spot is sheer pleasure and I embraced it with open arms after seeing the silent liveliness of Colorado.

Colorado, esp. Broomfield shall live in my heart forever...

The next episode features the most important reason for my love for Broomfield, the People.

A Whole New World ---

The silence of the night has always fascinated me. It intrigues me with its mysterious enigma. Most of all, it lets me be at peace with myself. Staying awake into wee hours of the morning is something I love. Colorado's mountains gave me the chance to explore this interest of mine even more. Venturing into the hills late in the night is a breathtaking experience. Words cannot do justice to the sight one gets to see. Only two trips old and I am already addicted.

The first one was a slightly less risky trip.The uphill ride to a panoramic view point at 3 in the morning was lovely. En route my friend and I made a stop over at a random spot. I didn't know that a creek was flowing by until I heard the water move. This is what I love about night, it doesn't want you to see things but wants you to feel them with your ears and your heart. If you do listen to it silently, it tells you a lot. The night with its sheer strength always humbles you telling you that you are just a speck in the vast universe. This drive was a special one, for on one side of the road there was the towering creation of nature, the brown rocks blanketed in green but all blended into one color black at night while on the other side one could see the shimmering lights from the city, a result of man's creative spirit. Mr.Edison thanks to you, I got to witness this sight. The gushing wind, bells jingling somewhere in a distant place, the moonlit mountains, stars adorning the sky, what more could one ask for. I stood there letting the wind brush my skin gently. The natural fragrance of the air was even more enticing. That is when you heart feels like flying into the sky. It yearns to be a part of the beautiful night. As we drove further up the hill, we reached a point where all that we saw was the colour black.With the headlights and even the car speedometer light off we experienced the term "pitch dark". Black is bold and beautiful. And so was the moment.

The second trip was quite an adventure. We started from home at around 11pm at night. By the time we reached the winding roads of the mountains it was midnight. That is when the night is at its best. I am not sure if I can put the feeling into words but let me try. These were the same very roads I had been through during day time. Then they seemed very friendly and open. But tonight they were not the same. The sight was eerie. But it is this eeriness that made it special. This drive was not like the previous one. This time around all that one could see was huge mountains on either side of the road. The fear of a wild animal attack was always there. Making a pit stop was inviting trouble. But then what the heck, it has to be experienced. We stepped out of the car to be numbed by the stillness of time. I have never seen so many stars at the same time ever in my life. I felt like nature was singing these lines from the song "A Whole New World" to me as it unfolded itself.

I can show you the world
Shining, shimmering, splendid
Tell me, princess, now when did
You last let your heart decide?

I can open your eyes
Take you wonder by wonder
Over, sideways and under
On a magic carpet ride

A whole new world
A new fantastic point of view
No one to tell us no
Or where to go
Or say we're only dreaming

A whole new world
A dazzling place I never knew
But when I'm way up here
It's crystal clear
That now I'm in a whole new world with you
Now I'm in a whole new world with you

Unbelievable sights
Indescribable feeling
Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling
Through an endless diamond sky.....

P.S. - To Prasanna(my friend who patiently drove us all the way) - Thank you for taking me through such a memorable journey!!!

Colorado - An Affair to Remember!!

The Precursor

Are you wondering what the title was all about??
That sums up my experience in Colorado in the past 5 months.
It all started like this.....
The first thought that struck me when I was told about my on-site assignment in Broomfield,Colorado..."Where on earth is this place?" The only recollection was two of my classmates from college had lived here.Their verdict on the place "Boring Broomfield". So, I stepped into this place with nothing short of a cold, biased opinion. Like any desi who leaves India I was asked my share of questions by my kith and kin that went like this, "How far is this place from NY?", "Are you gonna be staying someplace close to Chicago?", "Is New Jersey close by?", "Are you sure there are Indian grocery stores where you are gonna be staying?", "Are there enough Indians in that area?" The best comment of all "I heard Madhuri Dixit lives in Denver, You might stumble upon her sometime". My response "My guess is as good as yours". And I packed my bags to explore the "Land of Uncle Sam", to be more specific see what the "Wild Wild West" is all about. Is it all brown, dusty and dull(Scenes from Clint Eastwood flicks flash past?)

Stay tuned for further juice on the affair ;)