जग मग जग मग रोशनी है चहू ओर
ऐसा लगता है मानो हो गयी है भोर
दिये, रंगोली, ओर खुब मिठाई
और देखो लक्ष्मीजी आपके घर आई.

दीपावली की बहूत बहूत शुभ कामनाएँ!

A Hole In The Wall

I came across this documentary and I am simply amazed by the spirit and admiration these not so lucky youth of India has towards building a future for themselves.

http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/india/

While writing this post, it makes me think, we become so ignorant due to the environment we live in. Our aim is to lead successful careers, and have so called healthy lifestyle of eating high carb foods and then taking diet pills or exercising to our last breath. We are selfish beings, who don't want to come out of the box and see the reality that our fellow country men and women face in this so called global Indian society. It is really sad, humans have the bad habit of knowing and forgetting things that don't affect them directly and are confined to their enclosed doors of home sweet home. I feel frustrated even while writing this post, as I myself want to get out of this trap of sophistication and secured future. I don't want to keep on writing, I want to do something.

After I entered into education field, I heard the struggles that many children face here in US school system. It wasn't overwhelming for me at all as I know worse is happening in India and other developing countries. I have this dream of setting up a school in some remote corner of India where education is an unheard term for many children as well as adults. People will consider me as one more fool who is here to change the country. Yes, I am a fool, but this dream of mine has definitely given me another reason to go back to my roots.

Coming back....

It is definitely a difficult decision to make. People ask, " Is there some problem with you guys for making such a decision? Why is it always such a huge issue? Yes, we are going back to our own country where we spent those precious 23 years of life. They were not that bad. We enjoyed, we received all comforts, and foremost our near and dear ones were always there with us. I agree, life would not be same as it is here in US. But, comfort is not everything that we always deserve in our lives.

We have learnt so much staying here that includes respecting each other's space, becoming courteous, understanding each other's point of view and most importantly treating everyone equal irrespective of their work, class and religion. We are taking so much from here and are thankful to a nation who has made a culture within so many cultures that makes it a land of immigrants. It is not impossible to do the same in our country atleast from our side.

Either you will go through this door

or you will not go through....

The door itself makes no promises.

It is only a door.- Adrienne Rich

The promises are to be made by us as we know the picture may not be rosy when we get there, so finally we have prepared ourselves to come out of the comfort zone.

Singapore: A perfect dream

How would I define Singapore: "An unbelievable destination considered to be one of the safest, most green and cleanest place on the earth". All superlatives that are positive can be associated with this multicultural society. It is a country that has maintained two most important foundations of civilization: Environment and Traditions. People have modern outlook and at the same time know where and when to blend their respective cultures. Their two favorite pass time are shopping and eating. "They earn and they spend", is the quote that fits well with their consumer attitudes. You will see huge sized shopping malls and young & fresh minds shopping.

I always say all you need is a balance and I experienced the same is this city of discipline and fun loving crowd of young citizens. You will find people in the grocery aisle purchasing tomatoes even at 2 am. Fashion and elegance are born in Singapore. People are always dressed up with latest trendy clothes that the shopping extravagenza has to offer. Every tourist is amazed by the variety of products that is available under one roof. In this shopper's paradise, I am sure there is always excess supply to match excess demand.