The blue sky

Family... What does this word invoke in your mind when you hear this word? Who comes to your mind first? Whom do you see standing there, smiling at you?  For me, it's always my grandparents. They were my caretakers and whatever I am today, is largely due to their Sanskaras and teachings. And then are my parents, who brought me to this world and helped me become a good and responsible person. Next are my neighbours who were like family. As I had no siblings of my own, the neighbours were someone to whom I could always talk to and share things that couldn't be shared with grandparents and parents, mostly due to respect and fear.  Staying far from India, we always miss the fun and company of our parents. T wanted to collect the photos of all his earlier generations as a remembrance and tribute to them. Then it struck me,  to make a family tree with the photos of his great grandparents and grandparents so that they can be with us forever, at least in the photos and our memori...

Usually the months of August and September are devoted to the festivities involving Lord Ganesha in most parts of India. Ganesha, Ganpati, Bappa, Vighnaharta, he has many names. He is the god of beginnings, wisdom and luck and worshipped as the remover of obstacles. Although he has many attributes, he is easily identified by his elephant head and four arms. And there is a lot of symbolism involved. His elephant head denotes wisdom and intellect, his large ears for listening more and small mouth to talk less, his large stomach for peacefully digesting all the good and bad in life, his trunk symbolising high efficiency and adaptability, the mouse is a symbol of desires, if not kept under control can create havoc in life.  He is one of the most revered gods amongst the Hindus and his blessings are always sought for undertaking any new endeavour. Mumbai is considered to be the hub of Ganpati festivities and the celebration go on upto 10 days in a public place and at individual homes fo...

When was the last time someone appreciated you for something you did? And you had not expected it at all? Were you happy, pleasantly surprised or were just awkward and didn't know what to say? How should one react when one gets appreciated from an unknown person and one can't thank him/her for that? 

He walked straight through the front door into our hearts.  His innocent blue eyes and cool demeanour melted our hearts. His silent ways of doing things won us over. And he became a part of our lives and our daily routine. 

For how many weeks will your parents stay with you? 2 weeks? This is the question I often get asked from my German friends or colleagues and it's get hard for me to explain that Indian parents usually stay longer than two weeks. They come from far as they stay away in India and we don't meet them often like the German colleagues whose parents are close-by or in the same country, at least. 

Adhyatmwari group came into existence in March 2023 and has been active since then, offering the spiritual seekers a variety of programs and sessions.  After operating online for two years, we thought of having the first annual get-together of the group in Karlsruhe. The date was fixed to be the 5th of July and the venue was my home. First we had thought of renting out a hall, but then decided against it, thankfully. 

 Patwardhan Kaku messaged me yesterday,  "Annapurna is going to be demolished tomorrow". She is my neighbour from Dombivli and we stayed in the same apartment for many years. She and her daughter are more like a family. Kaku is visiting her daughter, whom I consider my sister. I spoke to my sister in the morning and all the years life spent there flashed before my eyes.

My love for the felines was known to all my school friends and to the neighborhood where we stayed in Dombivli. My school friends came home to play with my cats and to eat the tasty food made by my aaji.  We stayed on the first floor and the flat had two big balconies from where the cats could easily go out, take the stairs and come back home when they wished to.