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Showing posts from March, 2018

On Finding Real Connections

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I’ve been thinking lately about how I like to spend time with people. Sometimes we socialize just for the sake of it. Other times, it is because we truly enjoy the company. I find the former tiring, but the latter deeply fulfilling. There is something special about being with people who make you think, who listen with intent, and who help you see the world a little differently. Whether at work or in personal circles, there is always a balance between what you enjoy and what you feel obligated to do. When you reflect on it long enough, deeper questions begin to surface. Do I socialize to grow my network? What does that even mean? Am I looking for a favor somewhere down the line? Or am I just afraid of missing out if I am not part of the local chatter? These days, most of my new interactions happen through my children. Their friends’ parents are the people I end up spending the most time with. Some of them I genuinely enjoy talking to because we connect on familiar ground. With other...
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The values

I was in high school and my brother was in elementary school when financial turmoil hit our family.  Every family has its ups and downs, and we were in the midst of a downward spiral.  Our father was going through some difficult business moments.  Nowadays, the phrase "living paycheck to paycheck" is used loosely, but those days, we could really see how that affected our lives.  It was a baptism into real world issues and problems.  Our mother made sure that my brother and I understood the value of money.  There was no way we would spend anything more than required.  We wouldn't even ask for something that was out of the norm.  We knew what was within our means and what wasn't. But there was one thing that our parents never compromised.  Education and anything related to education.  Be it for special courses, sending us to tuitions, or buying books.  Our mother was always the go to person if we wanted something, since our father ...
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Whats and Whys

One of the common questions that I face at home now is, Appa, what's that? Akhil is obsessed with everything around him.  If the object of interest has a mechanical or electrical component (which constitutes most of the devices at home), then his interest just magnifies.  He would be running around at home, and all of a sudden, he'd look at me and ask, "Appa, what's that?" Akhil, that's a magnet.  I'd say.  He would then repeat the word so that the word gets registered in his mind.  "MAGNET?" He'd fiddle with the device as well as the word for some time before finding another object that would keep his curiosity levels piqued to the same extent. He has an absolute delight for the dishwasher at home.  After I finish placing all the utensils, he would be waiting eagerly to press the button. "Appa, I want to press the button." "Are you sure?", I would ask to make him feel that he is doing something important. ...
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Life lessons

Whenever there are questions in life, you get the answers from unexpected quarters.  My India trips have always resulted in meaningful interactions with people who I have never interacted with before and I just walk away with important life lessons. I clearly remember my 2013 India trip.  I was questioning everything about life and I remember this stranger in the bus, who looked behind from his seat, addressed me and said, "Brother, believe me, there is God.  Don't trust anybody who says otherwise." It was as though he had a premonition of things to come.  At the end of a rather difficult year, I remember going to my Rudram Guru with the question, "Sir, what's happening? Am I not chanting Rudram the right way?" That was the time I was starting to chant the Rudram and I was a beginner.  He told me, "Praveen, there is no way in the world that things can go wrong when you are chanting Rudram.  Remember, since you are chanting Rudram, you are just cleans...
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