Make every moment of your life count.

 
How many times do we presume things?

I do. Many a time.

And I think we're all guilty of the same at some point or the other. We form our perceptions, our world views, based on past experiences. The cat having sat on a hot stove will never again sit on a hot one or a cold one either. I think to a large extent we're all like that cat.

We are prisoners of prejudices, of hatred, of grudges, of unrequited love, of unreciprocated affections, of expectations, of disappointments, of let-downs, of promises unfulfilled, of phone-calls not returned, of rejections, of anger, of jealousy, of pettiness that shouldn't have mattered at all in the first place, but which rankles like chains, imprisoning us in our own thoughts.

How can we break free?

The hard way is to squish the ego. Eat humble pie. Knock down the 'I' into 'i.'

The easy way is to remember that everything is transient.

Death is a great leveller. (Quote from The Secret Wish list)

So let go.
If you love someone , express it. (so what if you get rejected, at least you would have tried).
If you miss someone call them up. NOW (They may not be around tomorrow when you want to talk).
If you feel jealous of someone, work harder at what you are doing.
If you feel someone hasn't reciprocated your calls, your friendship, whatever you offered, say 'so be it'. They have made space for someone better to come into your life.
If you feel you lack the time to do a favour which someone has asked, say no. Don't be afraid of offending the person who asked.  Your time is precious and limited.
If you feel you have been wronged, express it firmly but kindly. Whether or not the other party sees sense, you will respect yourself  to have stood up for what you believe in.

Laugh a lot.

And if you have one friend who cheers you up, who stands by you, who is there for you when everything seems to be going wrong, hold on to them firmly and never let them go. Make every effort to keep that friendship going.

And yes, admire the flowers.
Drink a lot of water.
Exercise.
Click happy pictures. (lots)
Make memories.
Breathe deeply.

LIVE...and make every moment count.

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photo credit: eliot. via photopin cc

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A nice evening and an addiction I can't kick

There was this event at Atta Galata Bangalore, where I was invited by as the chief guest , by Fablery to launch a book of short stories called 'Ten Shades of life'. The book is a compilation of stories by ten different authors. Each month, fablery had hosted a contest for short stories, with a certain theme and the work of one winner  from each month was chosen to be published. Therefore the book is a eclectic collection of varied genres ranging from romance to sci-fiction to horror to action and adventure.

 I wore a saree for the event.
Was amused at the comments I got on FB.

I do love wearing sarees. It's just that sometimes there really is no occasion to wear them. Also wearing a saree in the house, when you have a large extra-active doberman who follows you around like a shadow isn't really the best of ideas for reasons obvious :)

I was amazed that Nitu (who has commented on this blog many times , who adores me and has read all my books! ) turned up at the event just to meet me. She brought along her mother as well. She was visiting Bangalore from Kolkata and she said she wouldn't miss an opportunity to see me.

So sweet of you Nitu!

It was also great to meet Dr.Roshan who was one of the winners.  He had come just for this launch all the way from Palghat, Kerala. He had also come for the launch of my first book, way back in 2008 and he had predicted (rightly) that I would write many more books. Of course, I had no clue then that I would be among one of India's best-selling authors. 

It was indeed a big reminder of a LONG LONG way that I have come. Roshan has blogged about the launch here.
 If you want to see more pictures, click here.

Roshan  and I were talking about how we had both started blogging around the same time--at that time bloggers were considered an aberration--weird people who did some weird stuff like sharing their life's moments online. Blogging had really not caught on back then. But today it is the 'in-thing' and blogging is cool.

How things change!

And yet how some things remain the same.
I started with this blog--and I continue to write here, and connect with all of you, who continue to read what I write.

For me, this is an addiction for life.
Whoever comes into my life, whoever goes, my blog and I, we're in this together--till death do us part :)

And you are welcome to join in and enjoy the ride :)
As always I am grateful for those who read me and doubly for the ones who leave me such lovely comments.

Adios--Till the next post.
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Check out my latest book here where it has been getting some fabulous reviews. You don't need a credit card. You can even pay cash on delivery. It has a whopping discount too :)

And hey--If you like my blog, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them here. :)

Happiness.

Can you tell I am happy?
Can you?
Can you? :)
(yeah, my mom's visiting me :) )

“My mother... she is beautiful, softened at the edges and tempered with a spine of steel. I want to grow old and be like her.”
                                  ―Jodi Picoult.

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Check out my latest book here where it has been getting some fabulous reviews. You don't need a credit card. You can even pay cash on delivery. It has a whopping discount too :)

And hey--If you like my blog, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them here. :)

Never regret

So, there is this new series that I have started on my Facebook page.

For the last few days, I have been posting visuals (that I create myself) with a powerful message, usually linked to my books. (Most of you who have read my books will know that almost all my books contain a message narrated through a racy story, full of twists and turns and love, much like life :) )
These have been so well received that they got more than 10,000 views within hours of posting!

 I realised that some of my blog-readers may not be following my FB page. So thought I would post them here, every now and then. (not all at one go, but one at a time :) )

Here is the first one:

Think about it.
It is true.

From each bitter experience that you have had, you have learnt something. You have changed in some way.
And you wouldn't be where you are today but for your experiences.

They make us grow.

If you want to share anything that helped you grow, made you a better person, feel free to use my comment box.

I leave for Kolkata tomorrow. I will be at Starmark, South city Mall at 6.30 pm.
Till I return,
Much love! :)
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Check out my latest book here where it has been getting some fabulous reviews. You don't need a credit card. You can even pay cash on delivery. It has a whopping discount too :)

And hey--If you like my blog, you might enjoy my books :) Grab them here. :)