The Letter

Mohan decided to take the first step this time. They had had a fight numerous times before and each time it was Rashmi who would talk her way back to him. She would dis-solve their misunderstandings, each time. This time though she had made no such efforts, yet. Mohan felt responsible for their present dispute and so resolved to make the first move. He decided that a letter would be a powerful and romantic way to go about this. Feeling good about his idea, he plucked out a sheet from his note pad and started writing.

Dear Rashmi,

I am extremely sorry if I hurt you with my words that day. The situation was such, that I totally lost control over what I was saying. But you know I didn't mean any of it. You know I love you with all my love. You know we belong to each other, only. Please come back to me. You are my world.

It might be that you and I sometimes stray and lose sight.
But at the end of day there seems no light, unless you are by my side.
Believe me my dear one, when i say my love for you is Infinite.

Forever your's,
Mohan

The room had become extremely warm. Mohan was drenched in sweat by the time he finished writing the letter. He planned to go over to Rashmi's within the next hour and flip the letter by her door. Just then he heard his doorbell ring. He turned on his table fan, opened the window by his table and went to see who was visiting him.

It was Rashmi. She flung into his arms. Cried her heart out and buried her face in his chest.He cajoled her and kissed her back, he had missed her just as much. And then she vented out her anger.
"Couldn't you for once get back to me Mohan? I think you don't love me enough. I am the one who always comes back to you. Why does it always have to be me??" She posed her question with blazing anger and childish love at the same time.
"Ofcourse not dear" said Mohan, "look, I just wrote you a letter.." and he looked back at his table to point towards the letter. But there seemed to be nothing there now to point at. There was no letter on the table. His beloved piece of proof was missing.

Her ranting continued it's way to his ears while his eyes sweeped the floor and around in the room. He then noticed the open window and beside it, the fan running "high".

Afar

There is nothing here,
No Time. No Tear.
Smiles happen,
By Practice I fear.

Often from home
Stories I hear..
Of festive joys
& deaths O'dear!

I know of two worlds.
A day there, is an endless night here.
I dream in both,
asleep in neither.

Sometimes in thrill,
I measure the distance,
in miles and metres.
Either way,
From Home I stay
Afar.
Away.

The Mortenson Way

Some people are meant to do some amazing things for this world, making it a much better place for us. Greg Mortenson is doing it his way.
"Three Cups Of Tea" which is essentially a biography of this phenomenal personality had given me all the chronological details of his life. But actually listening to his story from the man himself, told me that this guy was for real! I got this opportunity to listen to him at a lecture in the premises of the Colorado State University, Fort Collins. It struck to me that people could actually do such things: they can survive the worst, come out stronger and forge effective changes for the human good.

"Failure", which is also the name of the first chapter in his book, has literally been his stepping stone to success. In 1993, devastated by the death of his sister, he decided to summit the K2 , the world's second highest peak, in her honor. He failed to complete this mission. Barely surviving the ordeal he reached the village of Korphe, in Baltistan. (Baltistan is located in Northern Pakistan in the disputed PoK or Pakistan occupied Kashmir and is situated in the mountainous Karakoram range to the south of K2). He was moved by the hospitality effortlessly endowed on him by these people in spite of their impoverished living conditions. He saw that the children there made a challenging trek each day to their only school. They wanted to learn but didn't have enough resources to be taught well. They desperately needed better infrastructure and means of basic education. He then decided to come back with the necessary resources to build a school.

Many of us think of doing such things, but how many of us really "come back" to do them? This is where Greg's story changes.

He came back, despite the challenges the task proposed. It was one thing to raise the money he needed and another to raise people's trust in him. People who would give him money, people who would build his school and people who would send their children to these schools. He had to gain their trust while he himself was unsure of what would eventually turn out of this. I particularly laud his efforts to build relationships with the people of Pakistan. It must have taken him a while to be led into their community, to be accepted as part of them. And not be looked upon as a foreigner, a spy or a crook. Mortenson details how he learnt of their language, attire and daily customs including performing the roza which could ease his acceptance amongst them. Of course, he also survived a kidnapping bid by the Taliban and peacefully tackled two fatwas issued against him. At the end of each of these trials, he was declared to be a person whose sole purpose of being in Pakistan was to educate children by building schools. He eventually gained immense support from the local people who contributed heartily to his mission.

In 1996, the Korphe school was completed. So far he has built 78 schools. He co-founded the Central Asia Institute which has grown to be a big organization promoting education in the remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. By providing education, these schools are becoming the messiahs of peace. The children in these disputed lands are now getting an unbiased understanding of their current situation and are able to empower themselves fruitfully. This would eventually propel them towards resisting radical forces and opting a peaceful life. He believes that educating girls would take us a big step ahead in overcoming problems of infant mortality, over population, basic hygiene amongst other issues. He also formulated the 'pennies for peace' ideology which enables children in many schools of the United States to fund the education of their many underprivileged counterparts.

Greg is all about positivity, energy and hope. His ever smiling countenance and humility speak for him. As a true American , he is generous and humane. His global outlook has sent out a very important message to the world : One can bring about peace, by reaching out to the underprivileged. By eradicating ignorance and brightening the darkest parts of this world with the light of education.. His humanitarian work has yet again proven that compassion and love know no borders.

I find it extraordinary that his one unsuccessful journey led him to a series of successful ones. But what on earth made him "come back" to a place he would rather avoid while in the luxury of America? Well, Greg ended his speech with these words: "When the heart speaks, take good notes! "

Learn and do more for Greg's cause. Visit these websites:
http://www.threecupsoftea.com/
https://www.ikat.org/
http://www.penniesforpeace.org/

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This post also appeared as a guest blog at http://thoughtsunparalleled.wordpress.com/2009/09/04/the-mortenson-way/. Check it out to find other interesting articles !

The end of bas yun hi.

I had been looking for another name for my blog for quite some time. I wasn't entirely happy with its old name 'bas yun hi' (just like that). But 2.5 years earlier when I started this blog, it suited perfectly because the blog was started 'just like that' indeed. For that I should thank my friend Surya (who off late has stopped writing). He inspired me into starting a blog.I too wanted to better utilize my free time at work. So there it was, just meant to be a scribble pad for some nurtured thoughts!

Through the years though, I think I have gotten serious about writing. Its rather enjoyable and a wonderful medium to communicate, connect and share. And so as more and more of my posts kept coming and I developed a modest blogging community out here, I felt like this page needs an uplift. A name which offers more meaning as indeed my posts have begun to have more meaning in them.

Recently, I came across this Bengali movie called Anuranan. In Bengali it is pronounced as 'Aunuranan' and means Resonance. It was so much of a 'my type' of movie. It has a talented cast - Rahul Bose, Rituparna Sen Gupta, Rajat Kapoor and Raima Sen (wow! All the names start with an R). Written and directed by Aniruddha Roy Choudhary, this movie revolves around two couples, their inter relationships and intricacies. It showcases the beauty of why and how a relationship can take birth. And how one feels complete and found, when one's thoughts' resonates with another's. We all ultimately yearn for this in a relationship don't we? Whether it is love or friendship, this resonance is the essence of a long lasting relationship.

The flavor of this movie hung on to me for a while. And the name stuck in my mind. It was so perfect and beautiful. I kept repeating this word in my head ( it happens to me sometimes when I find a word that I really like).

Coming back to my blog now. It is indeed a place where the really high pitched thoughts running in my head find a place to reside. This blog definitely resonates my thoughts and if it does with yours.. Bingo! So moving on from the simplistic bas yun hi, I hereby re title my blog, 'Anuranan'.. Resonating thoughts. I finally found the word I was looking for!

For now, want to end this post with an unnecessary but grateful, Bas yun hi.

नवरस का मानस

निशा का संकोच हूँ मैं
और नदी की खिलखिलाहट भी ।
रवि का तेज हूँ मैं
पीपल-छांव की उधारता भी ।
योद्धा का अनुशासन हूँ मैं
और दोराहे का उलझन भी ।
हाँ, भविष्य का भय हूँ मैं ,
वैश्या की अरुचि भी हूँ
और संत का समर्पण भी ।

रूबरू हुए मुझसे तुम हर कही,
पहचाना किन्तु अब तक नहीं ।
विश्वरूप दर्शित हुआ मैं ,
तुझसे इस तरह परिचित हुआ मैं ।
यूँ तो जीवन के हर रूप में हूँ मैं,
पर खुद को पाता तुझमें हूँ मैं ।

तू पूँछ ले , तुझमें हैं एसा क्या गुण ?
नवों रस के समर्थ, हे मानस! तू बना भिन्न !