If I could...I Would

If I could, I would hold you in my arms

And never let you go

If I could, I would have your dreams come true

And never let you fall

If I could, I would have you see happiness never seen

And never let you cry

If I could, I would have you live like a queen

And never let you experience discomfort

If I could, I would have you have the best of the best

And never let you worry

If I could, I would be there forever

And never let you be alone

If I could...I would!

Much To Learn About Life

With each passing phase of our life, could be a matter of years or even few days (depending on how quickly we learned & changed) - we begin to see things differently (clearer - I guess), we begin to understand things that we merely knew earlier and we begin to appreciate life more. The point being - at no point in time, do we understand life's why / how / what / when / where... It is one big puzzle and with each passing phase, we merely get to see another puzzle piece - never the whole thing!

Being a big fan of movies based on real life incidents & being a bigger fan of movies based on real life incidents in the field of sports - I recently saw Peaceful Warriors, again, only to understand some of its most important lessons for the first time. I am not going to write about the movie - watch it, if you are keen - it is atypical American true story of a sportsperson's life.

The most important bit of learning for me, from the latest viewing of this movie was to realise how this guys looks at life. He puts it in simple terms:

“Life has three rules: Paradox, Humor, and Change.

- Paradox: Life is a mystery; don't waste your time trying to figure it out.

- Humor: Keep a sense of humor, especially about yourself. It is a strength beyond all measure

- Change: Know that nothing ever stays the same.”

I think I stuck on to this bit, in this viewing because of a phase-change in my life. I have a friend who recently made me realise how most of our 'ideology' from ten years back, seems childish & immature now. Thus - taking life too seriously as it happens, naturally doesn't make sense. I would be laughing off at today's seriousness sometime in near future.

Since we cannot understand life, since things will keep changing - so will we...the only way to carry on and do better is with a light heart, with a bit of humour and a lot of faith.

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

Warm one minute, cold the next

Vulnerable deep down, ruthless in execution

Pretend to be an open book, layered more than an onion

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

Self control has taken something away from you

Life has taught you hard lessons

Being alone is a choice you have made

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

I move, you get claustrophobic

I don't move, you let months pass by

I am, I am not - not sure if it matters

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

Being a friend means I try & understand

If you want, be there for you

If you want, disappear for ever

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

Take a step, believing in someone
Take a plunge, believing in yourself

Life isn't worth living, if not shared

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

I know you only too well, to know this is just a facade

I know you only too well, to know this is just for survival

I know you only too well, to know this is just not the real you

How do you do it? Why do you do it?

College Reunion

The idea of going for reunions doesn't just bring about one set of emotions, there are host of them - before going, while one is there and after. These emotions run high for particularly those who haven't been in touch with most of their batchmates (reasons irrespective) and may also make it that much tougher for them to attend these reunions.

Before one goes for the reunion - there is excitement to meet people - some of whom we haven't met or stayed in touch with since college and some who are still part of our lives. There is some sense of fear, especially if you weren't the popular one back in the day or were the butt of all jokes, fear of bringing back everything that you think you had managed to put to bed since. There is a sense of getting into something you know very little about, obviously people change - and what you remember of them may / may not hold true at all today. 

But alas, realisation dawns - not everything / everyone changes. This happens simply because meeting people from past brings back our past self to over-power the current self. Good friends then, manage quick connections (even if they never met & spoke after college) - at the same time, there are higher chances for us to not like the people we didn't like then. Our past prejudices, experiences and opinions come flashing back. Tricky part is to come face to face with the person you had a crush on...whew! 

There is no set time to come out of the reunion, but the duration lapsed between your entry and exit definitely suggests how it all went for you. For some it would have gone as smoothly as a breeze, for some it would have been tad difficult - just as college used to be.

I cannot say whether one should definitely, always attend reunions - I am not the kinds to be comfortable in big groups (too much fake smiling required). But I still believe, once in a while, meeting people from our past is important - if for no other reason, then for us to get reminded of what & how we used to be. This is important to run a reality check for today - whether we are a better version of our past self or worse!

The Dreaded 'Thin Line'

There is something dreadful about the 'thin line' - dividing the good from the bad, the acceptable from the unacceptable, from the conventional to the unconventional. Not only is this a thin line, but isn't of a constant size - making it further difficult to understand where the one side ends and the other begins!

To top it up, it is generally difficult to know when the line has been crossed, until the line is actually crossed.

The thin line between being just good friends and being in a relationship (I anyway, don't believe a man & a woman can ever be just good friends), the thin line between being considered a terrorist or a revolutionary (Bhagat Singh), the thin line between healthy flirting and sexual harassment, the thin line between ethical and legal, the thin line between good thing to do and right thing to do, the thin line between genius and insane, the thin line between a joke and harsh sarcasm, the thin line between being pushy and being persevering, the thin line between expectations and demands in relationships, the thin line between... 

Ever so often I happen to cross the dreaded thin line and pay for it dearly. But, as the cartoon below shows - sometimes a boundary has to be crossed to know where it really is.