Gone with the wind...

Rarely does a movie or a book gets you thinking about life itself. This was one book that had my head spinning and made me scared and insecure about everything. It had so many aspects woven intricately into it that it just amazes me! Makes me wonder what the writer had in her mind, was it actually her aim to incorporate intense aspects into her book, or was it a lucky coincidence that it turned out to be like that. Reading a book always makes me think about the writer, wonder what made them write that, does it reflect any or all parts of their personality and thought. Perception is what makes a book appeal to a certain person, although state of mind also plays an important role. Would someone like something the same if they were not in their paticular position in life, would it be less or more appealing to them if they were in a different or contrasting position in life. Why is this particular book so appealing! It amazes me how a parallel intense story runs through each page and character of the book when the surface is telling a simple love and war story. It is always the women who run life, who run emotions, even though its men who win wars and who rule the world. The two main pillars in the book, the two women, one who is pure compassion and blindly affectionate; and the other with an undying spirit and zest for life, who can support the world on her shoulders, as she cannot live without a life that she imagined, and who will get that life no matter what.

So what runs this world, is it compassion and purity, or is it spirit and a never say die attitude. 'Spirit for life' fights and wins bread and butter, leaving hope for a tomorrow, giving support and a shoulder to lean on for 'compassion and affection'; well then does such an undying spirit is what rules the world!? No... For when compassion dies, there is a death of the soul, the very soul that keeps the world alive. Compassion is what glues humanity together, and by potraying compassion as a weak and fragile character, the book truly reflects the world and humanity, and how there always was and always will be a dearth of completely selfless and compassinate people in the world, who give out total undying affection to everybody, and in the end touch every person's soul they come across, even the ones that never realized they had a soul.
So does this mean I do not comply with the leading character of the book! Well no, because everything in this world is interdependent. What you realize is compassion is a weak person, and the undying spirit of life is what carries it along, giving it a supporting shoulder ( many a times unwillingly), feeding life into it and quite unknowingly fulfilling the purpose of compassion in life. If compassion glues the humanity together, its the spirit of life that keeps the world alive. And if there is one person who can survive even the death of compassion, it is this spirit, and thats what makes the world tick each day, thats what makes the world look forward to another day, thats what tells the world that there is a tomorrow, and tomorrow may be a better day.

Whats with the patriotism!!

So I have never been the patriotic person as such. I mean I didnt jump up to defend India, or say India is the best country in the world; neither did I say whatever the fact is I love my country and all the patriotic banter. I have always maintained India has a million flaws and there have been a zillion times when I said 'why was I born here!'. However, what I have come to realize is patriotism is merely an attachment to the land you were born in and grew up in. Yes, there are not a lot of positive things I can come up with if I have to describe India except probably jumping on the defensive about all the negative things there. However, what is shocking is the recent realization that everytime something negative comes up about India, there is something that triggers this alarm in my mind, all my senses are alert, and if the debate continues and there is some more thrashing, this vein in my forehead will be throbbing, and if the debate heats up and nobody is agreeing with me that not everything in India is neagtive, the vein right about pops, and there is smoke coming out of my ears, and this overwhelming feeling that I want to reach out and punch those people, a good solid hard punch would do! Hehe this is something new! Me jumping and defending my country! Never knew there was this sleeping patriot inside me!



Well, it's not that I am trying to be one of those closed minded people who just say mera bharat mahan for everything. It's probably because I was in India at a very good time; the years I was born and brought up in Bangalore were great times of change and progress, and I got to grow up benefitting from all that. We have a whole generation behind us who have a ton of regrets for being born in India, who left the country due to prevailing unemployment, poverty and every negative thing imaginable. Well it's not that these things have vanished from the country, there is still a great deal of poverty; but there are jobs today! There are opportunities in the country that never existed for our previous generations. Those generations which left the country for greener pastures carried with them a relentless sense of disappoinment and hatred for the corrupt governments and non existing opportunities. However, the India I grew up in was quite different. There was a gradual and progressing change taking over India(atleast urban India) through my school days, and by the time I graduated college, all the gates were wide open, there was a world of opportunities and jobs and progress. There were malls, rising sky lines, world class brands competing against eachother to get a share of the growing and curious Indian market. I graduated college with a job in my hand, went straight from student to a high earning job, and I saw only growth and growth all around me. It overwhelms me when I think about the Bangalore I grew up in my childhood days, and the Bangalore now. Its an unimaginable change, and its a change I enjoyed and I know that today I would love to go back and live my life in Bangalore because of this change and progress. I have lived the change and enjoyed every benefit of this progress and I know despite the many many downsides and negative impacts due to these changes, I am so thankful that I do not regret being born and being identified with India. I see many of our previous generations carrying a load of hatred and regret for the country and actually do not want to be identified with India. I feel very grateful that I do not carry any hatred for my country and it makes me happy that I have an option of going back to India to live my life because I know there is good life there today!