Thoughts

"The cause of your unhappiness is within you. If you try to find it anywhere else, you’re looking in the wrong place."

"Replace each thought:

Ill-will with good will,

Hate with love,

Frown with a smile,

Nagging with praise

Tears with laughter,

Despair with hope,

Silent envy with generous congratulations."

"There is a power within us that can lift us to the heights- if you get rid of the thought of futility and self-pity."

The above lines are extracts from my Mom's diary, written by her in the year she passed away. The year we were all shell-shocked by the sudden turn of events. A day I cannot forget- the day,nee, night at 3 AM, when we reached the ICU and the Doc told me'Your mother is no more'. One of the most gentle people I ever knew, feeling for all, sympathetic towards all, wanting to help all. And,maybe that's why God needed her in Heaven,is what I told myself at that time and still tell myself even today.

Today, the sixth of August, used to be her birthday, a happy day, always! And, I just thought of sharing these thoughts from there. Thoughts that I copied and brought here after my last Baroda trip. For those interested, I'll continue them further in my Inspirations blog, on and off! I always wonder-were these thoughts meant to inspire the rest of us, were they to inspire her, herself?Did she have a premonition of the impending call from God?Sigh!

But, let me say- she would not want me or any of us to be sad or unhappy, thinking of her! So,to move over from my above sentimental thoughts, let me reproduce a joke that made me laugh out loud today, at work...a joke that would have made Mom laugh,too,I am sure!

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You Must Be a Gujju If.........
- You have at least 1 relative in the stock market.
- You're never worried about what happens if you get stranded in Ghatkopar (Mumbai). All you'd have to do, you know, is walk across the road and find a relative. (Still easier, just shout, "Mama! Masi! Faiba! Kaka!" a couple of times. At least one is bound to be around.)

- You don't worry about being stranded in New Jersey. You've been told by everyone that the thing to do at such a time is to open the telephone directory, turn to "Shah" and call any number for help.

- You measure the success of a wedding by how many people praised the food.
- You believe Narendra Modi is the solution to everything. From your hair to the nation's defence .

- You understand that when someone says "Dhirajbhai no babo" or "Maniben ni baby", the "baba" and "baby" in question could be 40 years old.

- You either think the garba is the coolest thing ever, or you wonder why the whole world makes such a big deal out of it.

- No packing for any trip is complete without thepla (Guju paratha).

- Winter = undhiyu.(peas and potatoes)
- Summer = keri no ras.(mango pulp)
- Monsoon = have su karvanoo?! kai na sujhe to bhajiya sutarwana ...

- You assume (in marital situations) that because Mara bhai na vevai ni dikri na sasu gave a recommendation, the person in question is virtue personified.

- You have no problems with love marriages. You just view them as a last resort, that's it.

You may not donate anything to the orphanage down the road, but when there's a calamity in Gujarat, you send truckloads of money, food and amenities.

- You feel a slight sense of pride in Ketan Parekh, no matter how much you hide it.
- You think the G-U-J-J-U sequence in Kal Ho Na Ho was rather cool, actually.

- You're so attuned to smiling and laughing for no reason at any given social occasions, that funerals become odd for you. (Non-Gujju funerals, that is. At Gujju funerals, everyone has the same problem,so they understand.)

- You know what "doodh cold drink" (pronounced doodh coal dreenk) is.
- Sunday mornings = Gathiya and jalebi.
- if you go on a picnic, everyone brings atleast 10 foods each, which
is bound to include dhokla, kachori, chewro, thepla, mathia, fafda and
maybe 3-4 different athanas and fried green chillies...

Take care and see you tomorrow! :)