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By RICHARD BACH
Well well..this has been my latest read. It is unbelievable to find a book as thin as this one to make so much sense! It competes with Who moved my cheese(WMMC) in regards with the no. of pages..but is a sure winner...thanx to the innumerable pictures of the beautiful Seagull! Well if u r wondering wats this Seagull thing...then heres the Curtain raiser for U... A seagull is a bird!( Similar to WMMC again..there the main protoganists were mice :P )
So through the tail err tale of a Seagull, Mr. Bach has taught us some worthy lessons... These are
- Questioning
- Being Fearless
- Practicing
- Quest for Freedom
- Self Belief
- Affection/Love
- Forgiveness
The seagull named Johnathan had always been different. His interests lied in Flying while the members of his community were busy in hunting and fighting for the little food available near the shore. He was scolded by his parents for behaving "differently" and pressurised him to choose an apt future for self. John obliged but he knew his heart lied in flying, n practicing the art to know the limits he could reach. He practiced hard, faultered many a times but ultimatlely corrected and polished his skill. But this more than angered his 'Elders' and the folk and they labelled him as an outcast.
Dejected and hurt, he moved away from his pupil and started practicing in the far lands. Days n Years passed and he could now fly at the terminal velocity. He had acquired the skill of a master and was really happy to be doing what he loved most.
He gathered that it was out of boredom that his other folk had such short life spans while he managed to have a healthy,long life span.
Some more years passed until he was escorted by two extremely skillful gulls to a land where he would find more Outcasts like him. On reaching there, he thought he had entered heaven, but it was a new world where the gulls of similar capabilities as him lived. He was glad to be a part of the world where there was so much to learn and explore. He met an elder named chiang, who tought him to fly with infinite speed,to leave behind the bounderies of space and time that had bound him.Now John himself trained the 'freshers' in the new world and helped them with his knowledge.
Even though John was having a beautiful time he wished he could do something for his folk who still live in ignorance.The people who live to eat n not vice versa ;).
So along with with 7 of his students he decides to travel back to his Old world.The Old World people got umbraged to see an OUTCASTS in their land. A rule was passed of Total Ignorance of The outcasts lest face Outcastism themselves.
The Eight Gulls start practicing everyday n display their mersmerizing flying skills to the other folk.The Folk slowly start getting tempted to the art n secretly ask for lessons. This enrages the Elder folk n they attack John.However, John forgives them as he is affectionate towards his pupil. This makes the folk of his old land make the choice of learning the new skill..to chose freedom over tradition and learning over ignorance.Thousands of the common gulls decide to unravel the facets of flying, something they never dared to explore earlier.
Now John has reached a stage where he has learnt all about kindness, love and affection and hence is invited to another new world...where he would have newer things to learn...and yes a step closer to perfection...a step closer to the real Heaven!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Friday, September 5, 2008
The Poor Rich!
This is a short story I read while scanning through my mail...Wud like to share it with you..
One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?""It was great, Dad..." "Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked."Oh yeah," said the son. "So, tell me, what you learned from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end.We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them." The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."
- Sometimes its not about what you make of yourself...its about what u feel for others that teaches you the wisest lessons of life!
Good Day :)
One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?""It was great, Dad..." "Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked."Oh yeah," said the son. "So, tell me, what you learned from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered: "I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end.We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them." The boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are."
- Sometimes its not about what you make of yourself...its about what u feel for others that teaches you the wisest lessons of life!
Good Day :)
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Loads to Do... My Travel Log :)
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Well Well.. I am back to blogging after a good long hiatus of about a month :)
Last month I was wondering wat to do (my previous blog) with all the time I had... U know wat!! I got an excellent solution for the problem... I indulged into the things that I enjoy most...Thats Traveling n Photography...Ya ya..wen u talk of the first the second one becomes quite obvious!
The last month has been exciting! There have been loads of ayes and naes regarding the trip...To go or not to go...there wer issues of all types and kinds..passport issues, days scheduling, office permissions, timing issues n wat not..But finally the moment occured...everything got sorted by itself and finally we were to go to The Trip! We included Ma ,Pa ,Di n Me.... And the trip comprised of 4 places... Chennai, Port Blair, Malaysia n Singapore. This was to be my first jaunt to a foreign land n this made me super excited. With the dates being finalized (Aug 6-Aug 15) the grand excersice of packing began! Countless Lists were made..the Shopping Spree was forever on..Bags were packed,Checked n rechecked...n finally the D Day Arrived :)
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Heres My TRAVEL LOG-
Day 1- Got up early to catch the flight to chennai...reached the airport...forgot to pre confirm the flight timings...n yes AI dint dissapoint ;)...the flight got delayed..reached chennai late at arnd 4 in the evening... Anyways, cheked in the hotel got ready in a haste to head off to Marina beach. A beach with a very wide shore, pretty sight to catch the sunset! Next we headed to the St. Thomas church, an interesting place.
Day 2- Again an early morning flight.This time to port blair. Port Blair is an exotic place to visit. A small scarcely populated city with wonderful weather.Its quite n peaceful there. The beauty is fascinating. Visited the infamous Cellular Jail...KALA PANI...caught up with the sound n light program as well. A must see place for every Indian. Also went to the Ross Island..which was pretty adventurous because of the boat ride! Otherwise beautiful sights to c there.
Day 3- Early morning flight to Chennai again. After landing,took some time off to rest n headed to Mahabalipuram, a place 60 kms from the city, famous for the architechtural beauty of the templed made by the Pallava Dynasty.
Day 4- Had a late night flight to Kaula Lumpur, so missed a night's sleep :(... Anyways u dont expect to get ur full quota of sleep on holiday na! The KL airport was awsm...The city was clean n pretty. We headed to Genting Highlands, a theme park located at a hill. The whether there was outstanding, the chilly wind was refreshing. The people were most helpful and accommodating. The rides were fantabulous and left us on a high! The only rough experience could be the lack of vegetarian food there :(
Day 5- The next day we headed for Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, checked into Hotel Grand Continental. We kept the day for ourselves. Rest and local market tours were on our agenda for the day. Little India was a little walk away, so we went there for local hunting and of course a filling Indian dinner! :)
Day 6- We had the city tour lined up for the day. We moved around the city, full of beautiful buildings. The flora of the place was particularly fascinating. The tour bus took us to the Petronas Twin Towers, The Golden Triangle, The Kings Palace, Museum and the National Monument. In the evening went to the Malls (The Pavilion) and the China Town (similar to our very own Janpath).
Day 7- We had a morning train to Singapore. So the day was consumed in traveling. However our hotel in Singapore was just opposite The Mustafa..A shopping Paradise..so we used the evening to good effect ;)
Day 8- We had a trip to the Santosa Islands in the afternoon.So morning was dedicated to Mustafa and the later part of the day to Santosa, for which we had to take the cable car. It was a good experience. Got a clear view of the Singapore port from the top! Santosa was fantabulous, went to the Dolphin Lagoon show,the 4 D magic show, the aquarium…I gotta touch the star fish thr! And saw the museum..the most interesting one Ive ever scene n then there was the Songs of the seas..which was simply spectacular.
Day 9- The Day was dedicated to the City tour and the Night Safari.
The city tour was informative and gotta visit a number of places like the Merlion, the Port, The Singapore Opera House, a Chinese Temple.
The culture of Singapore is a motley of the Chinese, South Indian, Malay and British. The Laws are extremely strict and the cost of living is high. N u know what...Indians gave singapore its name.. Its called Singhapura by its natives which means a city of Lions in Hindi!!. And Uptil 40 years back Singapore was pretty much the part of Malaysia as its 14th state...but later it separated.
The night Safari was interesting too. Saw wild life really close. there..but no flash was allowed in cameras so cudnt take any pics at night :(
Day 10- The last day of the trip, had to head back to home now! Had a flight to Delhi at 4 so practically left with no time for sightseeing. Packing, Relaxing was on priority that day. Reached the Airport at 1 pm….n finally boarded the flight.
It was a nice, hassle free holiday for the family giving us great joy!
Adieu Singapore….Wish to see u again :)
.
Well Well.. I am back to blogging after a good long hiatus of about a month :)
Last month I was wondering wat to do (my previous blog) with all the time I had... U know wat!! I got an excellent solution for the problem... I indulged into the things that I enjoy most...Thats Traveling n Photography...Ya ya..wen u talk of the first the second one becomes quite obvious!
The last month has been exciting! There have been loads of ayes and naes regarding the trip...To go or not to go...there wer issues of all types and kinds..passport issues, days scheduling, office permissions, timing issues n wat not..But finally the moment occured...everything got sorted by itself and finally we were to go to The Trip! We included Ma ,Pa ,Di n Me.... And the trip comprised of 4 places... Chennai, Port Blair, Malaysia n Singapore. This was to be my first jaunt to a foreign land n this made me super excited. With the dates being finalized (Aug 6-Aug 15) the grand excersice of packing began! Countless Lists were made..the Shopping Spree was forever on..Bags were packed,Checked n rechecked...n finally the D Day Arrived :)
.
Above: My Stint wid the Camera ;)
Heres My TRAVEL LOG-
Day 1- Got up early to catch the flight to chennai...reached the airport...forgot to pre confirm the flight timings...n yes AI dint dissapoint ;)...the flight got delayed..reached chennai late at arnd 4 in the evening... Anyways, cheked in the hotel got ready in a haste to head off to Marina beach. A beach with a very wide shore, pretty sight to catch the sunset! Next we headed to the St. Thomas church, an interesting place.
Day 2- Again an early morning flight.This time to port blair. Port Blair is an exotic place to visit. A small scarcely populated city with wonderful weather.Its quite n peaceful there. The beauty is fascinating. Visited the infamous Cellular Jail...KALA PANI...caught up with the sound n light program as well. A must see place for every Indian. Also went to the Ross Island..which was pretty adventurous because of the boat ride! Otherwise beautiful sights to c there.
Day 3- Early morning flight to Chennai again. After landing,took some time off to rest n headed to Mahabalipuram, a place 60 kms from the city, famous for the architechtural beauty of the templed made by the Pallava Dynasty.
Day 4- Had a late night flight to Kaula Lumpur, so missed a night's sleep :(... Anyways u dont expect to get ur full quota of sleep on holiday na! The KL airport was awsm...The city was clean n pretty. We headed to Genting Highlands, a theme park located at a hill. The whether there was outstanding, the chilly wind was refreshing. The people were most helpful and accommodating. The rides were fantabulous and left us on a high! The only rough experience could be the lack of vegetarian food there :(
Day 5- The next day we headed for Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, checked into Hotel Grand Continental. We kept the day for ourselves. Rest and local market tours were on our agenda for the day. Little India was a little walk away, so we went there for local hunting and of course a filling Indian dinner! :)
Day 6- We had the city tour lined up for the day. We moved around the city, full of beautiful buildings. The flora of the place was particularly fascinating. The tour bus took us to the Petronas Twin Towers, The Golden Triangle, The Kings Palace, Museum and the National Monument. In the evening went to the Malls (The Pavilion) and the China Town (similar to our very own Janpath).
Day 7- We had a morning train to Singapore. So the day was consumed in traveling. However our hotel in Singapore was just opposite The Mustafa..A shopping Paradise..so we used the evening to good effect ;)
Day 8- We had a trip to the Santosa Islands in the afternoon.So morning was dedicated to Mustafa and the later part of the day to Santosa, for which we had to take the cable car. It was a good experience. Got a clear view of the Singapore port from the top! Santosa was fantabulous, went to the Dolphin Lagoon show,the 4 D magic show, the aquarium…I gotta touch the star fish thr! And saw the museum..the most interesting one Ive ever scene n then there was the Songs of the seas..which was simply spectacular.
Day 9- The Day was dedicated to the City tour and the Night Safari.
The city tour was informative and gotta visit a number of places like the Merlion, the Port, The Singapore Opera House, a Chinese Temple.
The culture of Singapore is a motley of the Chinese, South Indian, Malay and British. The Laws are extremely strict and the cost of living is high. N u know what...Indians gave singapore its name.. Its called Singhapura by its natives which means a city of Lions in Hindi!!. And Uptil 40 years back Singapore was pretty much the part of Malaysia as its 14th state...but later it separated.
The night Safari was interesting too. Saw wild life really close. there..but no flash was allowed in cameras so cudnt take any pics at night :(
Day 10- The last day of the trip, had to head back to home now! Had a flight to Delhi at 4 so practically left with no time for sightseeing. Packing, Relaxing was on priority that day. Reached the Airport at 1 pm….n finally boarded the flight.
It was a nice, hassle free holiday for the family giving us great joy!
Adieu Singapore….Wish to see u again :)
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