That moment when I turned into a messenger!

Each month, I eagerly wait for the next issue of Reader’s digest because that’s the only magazine I have managed to be regular at. That’s also the only magazine I never grow tired of reading. I always end up finding something interesting.

This time, in the February issue (yeah, it comes way too early), I flapped through the pages skimming through my favorite sections first and then coming to the detailed ones later. There is an interesting yet short section called ‘Finish the sentence’. Reader’s digest publishes a prompt to complete a partial sentence each issue after which responses are published in subsequent issues.

In this issue, one response that caught my attention was this, “For one day, I would like to trade places with….. my autistic child, just to see the world through his eyes.” For some reason, I felt that the writer whoever had sent the response must have had her share of pain in life. And simply wanted to see the universe through her autistic child’s eyes to understand his world better.

I found it to be thoughtful, filled with plain love. The next instant, I reached out to the writer on Facebook to let her know that I liked her response. She was surprised that she had been published (she had probably sent the response months ago and forgotten all about it). She sounded excited when she learnt that she was published.

After exchanging our goodbyes, I wondered if I were chosen to be a messenger to her in that particular moment just to give her the news. It made me think that we all are, probably, messengers in some way to each other. It’s just that we don’t really know it all the time.

A dark day – Peshawar School Massacre

There are simply no words to explain what the world has just witnessed. It’s one of the darkest days we will live through and still move on with our lives. What else are common people like us are capable of? With anger and pain in our hearts, we can simply curse the utterly barbaric attack which God or the supreme power mercilessly, has allowed to materialize.

What is unimaginable is the endless, unspeakable pain of the families of the 132 children whose lives were cut short on a casual day to school. Who would have thought that a day to school would result in a mass tragedy for a huge number of families whose dreams must have been tied to their children? Some vicious venom made its way into the lives of these children and snatched away the happiness of these families, resulting in pain that will last till eternity.

Of course, the blame game has begun. But the truth is that, we all are responsible for this, as human beings. It definitely tells us that, we as humans, are far away from being called progressed human beings. It’s not the progress in technology or science or medicine or career that matters to the world. All these fields are just there to facilitate our lives. At the end of the day, what remains in our hearts is what truly matters.

Things are done. Deaths have occurred. For now, I would simply want God to give immeasurable strength for the mothers who have lost the apple of their eyes to a gun shot. This day will be marked forever in their hearts as the killing of dreams.

The ingredients for writing a book

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Have you ever wanted a book that told you everything about writing. well, here it is. I have penned down a book which talks everything about writing. But remember, any book can only show you the way. It cannot make you write but only you can do that. A book can only show you how it's done. There are plenty of books out there which describe about writing. There were some things which I never found in any books. So, I decided to write down one that can probably help someone who wants to know the business of writing.

Writing a book isn't an easy job. It requires a lot of effort from a single person to have a serious thought on a particular subject and put it down into words to produce a book. The labor of writing isn’t limited to writing alone for it involves knowledge in various other areas such as plotting, researching, editing, submitting and marketing. A writer has to possess strong command over language, has to be interested in reading all kinds of books and should have the motivation to keep himself going even when he wants to stop. A writer has to possess certain qualities to grow from being a beginner to being a well-read writer.

The book “The Ingredients for writing a book” throws light for the newbie writers who know that they want to become a writer but have no idea how to do so. A lot of people abandon their dreams when they have nobody to guide them. This book will teach writers on how to start writing a book and stay with it until it’s completed. This book is for people who have difficulty in realizing their true purpose for writing. It is aimed to help writers develop their writing style by learning the art of English grammar and implementing them in the correct technique.

This book will boost writers to generate more writing by having faith that the stories they write will definitely make a difference in the literary world.

Perspective, way of looking at life

Source: Paulo Coelho's blog

The Argentinean golfer Robert de Vincenzo went to the parking lot to get his car after having won an important tournament.
At that moment, a woman approached him. After congratulating him for his victory, she told him her son was at the edge of death and that she had no money to pay the hospital bills.

De Vincenzo immediately gave her part of the money he had won that afternoon.

A week later, at a lunch at the Professional Golf Association, he told this story to a couple of friends. One of them asked him if the woman was blond with a small scar under her left eye.

De Vincenzo agreed. “You were cheated,” his friend said.

“This woman is a swindler and is always telling the same story to all foreign golfers that show up here.”

“So there is no child at the edge of death?”
“No.”
“Well, this was the best news I got this week!” said the golf player.

Most people believe that their life happens to them

Source: Paulo Coelho's blog

“Most people believe that their life happens to them. That everything which occurs happens because of external circumstances that are independent of their will. Some people call this fate, others call it God’s will, and others choose to call it chance. But regardless of what they call it, they are giving away the responsibility for their lives; they relinquish control over their joys and their sorrows. They become an actor in someone else’s play.

“Every single event in your life is determined solely by you, by your unlimited creative capacity. You can manifest beauty and abundance, just as you can manifest cruelty and oppression. You can manifest joy, just as you can manifest suffering. It is up to you, and no one else. You are the director of the play of your life, and you are writing the script with every breath, every thought, every emotion. It is likely, however, that you are not fully aware of the story you are writing. And thus it is easier to believe that external forces come into play.”

“It is only when we become fully aware of the story that we can choose to write a different one.”

Passwords, giving the needed push

I just happened to recently read an article on reader's digest about how passwords can change lives. The topic itself, intriguing, I was drawn towards what the writer had to say on how a password could affect lives. Passwords, now being the most mundane things of our lives, do not appear to be anything different or exciting to our lives. Of course, they hold a secretive part of us, when we hide our lover's names or secured codewords. In the current era, coming up with a password is no easy task when you have to keep replacing one every two or three months with the new password matching a new set of criteria each time.

Memorizing passwords are really hard when you have to store at least ten of them in your head. I counted once and found that I needed to remember at least 15 of them which was impossible. I simply had to write them down in a secretive place. Coming back to the article that I read, the writer showed a way of how passwords, than just being random set of letters and symbols, can actually be made into something that can uplift our minds.

Say you have been having a rough patch with someone, your husband, your friend or your relative. The tiff stays in your head not letting you think of anything else. Next time you change your password, keep it something related to your problem, like forgive@her$$ or forget@fight, anything at all. When you type this password numerous times a day to login, it will start beginning to work inside your brain actually letting you live the password. In no time, you will find yourself forgiving the person or forgetting the argument that had dodged up your head.

Say if you are looking for a new job, a soul mate or you have a dream. Having passwords related to things that hold utmost importance in your life can actually let you achieve things and improve situations.

I am not really sure how far this works but hey, it's worth giving a shot. Try giving it a chance with your next password. I am definitely giving it a try.

Frogs being boiled

Several biological studies have shown that a frog placed in a container along with water from his pond, he will remain alive while you heat the water. The toad does not react to the gradual increase of temperature (change of environment) and only dies when the water boils, swollen and happy.

On the other hand, if a toad is thrown into that same container when the water is already boiling, he will immediately jump out. He will be a little singed, but alive!

Sometimes we can be like the boiled toads. We do not notice changes.
We think everything is good, or that whatever is evil will pass, it’s just a matter of time.

We are about to die, but we are floating, stable and apathetic as the water warms up every minute.
We are dying, fat and happy, without having noticed the changes around us.

There are boiled toads who still believe that the key is obedience, not competence: might is right, and obey whoever is sensible. From all this, where is the real life? It is better to emerge from a situation, maybe a little singed from time to time, but alive and ready to act.