Lovely Poem by Roosevelt

It is not the critic who counts;
not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,
whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
who strives valiantly;
who errs and comes short again and again;
who knows great enthusiasms,
the great devotions;
who spends himself in a worthy cause;
who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,
and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly
so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.
                                 ---Theodore Roosevelt

Driving and Life - 13 Metaphors

13 parallels between Life and Driving.
We are already familiar with almost every idea that this analogy/metaphor has to offer. But I still like it packed in the cover of a metaphor.

1. Reduce your speed
Is it really nice to be rushing around and clucking (clutching & braking?) like a mad hen all the time? We need to remember to slow down quickly (heh heh) and frequently enough

2. Don't compete or race
This is a guaranteed way to make sure we lose it or feel stupid as we go about life. By all means, let's do it if we don't mind dents in our mental-makeup

3. Don't compare
Looking at other vehicles (hey, look, a Lamborghini) instead of focusing on the road in front of us. Drooling over what others have rather than driving down our own path joyously. We are bound to crash into something and slip into permanent depression

4. Fuel up
If we're not sure about the what, where, when and how of the fuel we need in order to go about our journeys, it's quite likely we may be stranded in the middle of nowhere. Must identify and store some fuel (inspiration) to help us run

5. Focus on the drive rather than the destination
Constantly worrying about where we need to be rather than concentrating on and enjoying the drive is a pity. Can't help it at times though

6. Don't let others tell you how to drive (But allow for companionship/encouragement/warnings/wisdom)
Sheesh. Sigh. No back-seat driving. Let's claim our lives. Shall we?

7. Don't obsess over the scratches and dents
Hard. It happened. It will be there. Maybe we can get it tinkered at an affordable cost. If not, can we just let it be?
Dealing with nasty co-travelers on the road is more difficult than this but perhaps the same philosophy can be applied there as well

8. Switch on the stereo
Tiddly tumty tum and Tra laa la. Got to energize ourselves and listen/dance to some music. Let's not forget the controls if we happen to be listening to music while driving. Shaking a leg, of course, requires us to stop for a while

9. Master your parking skills
At times, we'd have to make do with what we get and fit our lives into available or unusual slots. In other words, be prepared to play with the cards we've been given. Psst, we can either loosen up and go for it or, sometimes, pay for valet parking

10. Drop off your vehicle for service
Before or after some journeys, drop off the vehicle at a service station. The vehicle probably needs a complete wash/new parts/paint. Relax and rejuvenate at intervals

11. Know the important road rules
Especially the ones related to dignity, courtesy and safety. Let's not jeopardize other travelers' lives

12. Get a trainer or a coach
The right ones might instill some confidence and give us the essential practice and tricks necessary for survival and success

13. Keep the emergency support numbers handy
Do we know how to sort things out and resume our journey if and when there is a break-down? If yes, there's a lot to be proud of and happy about. Else, let's keep the emergency numbers accessible at all times

I declare you free. Run now. Call emergency if you must.

Dance of the Birds

Sit in a train to some place far away. Play music on a device of your choice. Melodies; not some fast and insane numbers. Look out of the window. 

Acknowledge the greenery, cows, and other fauna. But focus on the sky. Watch out for birds (alone or in a flock) that are flying, gliding, soaring or zigzagging along. You will notice that their movements more or less coincide with the rhythm of the song or the interludes more often than not. 

The birds, however, are, mysteriously, unaware of their ability to choreograph to songs they have never heard in their lives. If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it fall, did the tree make a sound?

Sharing

To knock someone's door and ask for something is an act of compassion at times.

If you trust yourself, are willing to give and enjoy collective happiness, when someone asks you for something, you might be surprised to discover how much you really have and are able to share....and that spans across many things......affection, knowledge and time.....

Communities. Coaching.

The gap between inspiration and insignificance
The gap between action and thought
The gap between perseverance and pessimism
The gap between understanding and ignorance
The gap between enjoyment and boredom
The gap between I did it and If only I had done it
May quite easily be filled by the combination of......
......a competent coach and a capable and concerned community

Truth

Truth is like a butterfly. Colourful. Fascinating. Fleeting. And there are many fluttering in the garden.

You can focus and chase one all the way but still make space for appreciating a few different others on the journey. You can simply watch all of them enchanted by the apparent diversity. You can pick up a magnifying glass to study one and dive deep into it without letting it blind you to everything else......

Share

It ought to be fine to.....

share your contemplations; they preceded the results

share your stumblings; they led you to smartness

share your learnings; they contributed to success

share your darkness; they nudged you to your glow

share your ruminations; they were replaced by your humor

share your doubts; they were pushed away by your dreams

The temporarily lost may - thanks to you - remember how to get over something or how to take the rough with the smooth

“I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.” - Maya Angelou

Gotta go for it

When life gets one brooding a bit.....

One mustn't WAIT for the spark to hit.

One, first of all, ought not to sit......

But go around and check if the area is lit.

Tap into some random source of wit....

And whip up some long-lasting grit.

Hoist oneself atop the pit.....

And gather a good motivation kit.

Because one, ultimately, gotta go for it.

How to make a mess of your life

Three simple and easy steps to make a total mess of all things 

Repeat every day to stay in the cage of misery and clip your wings 

One:

Find two things to complain and rant about

Sometimes you could murmur, sometimes you could shout 

Two:

Find two topics and appropriate people to fight or argue with

Don't pause to think if you are pursuing the truth or chasing a myth

Three:

Find some faults in people or situations around you 

Elaborate and examine till the concerned blokes turn blue 

Tip:

Take as many of these aspects from the past as possible 

As the past guarantees you things that are no longer changeable 

Mother....

A child that has arrived,
Is one that has derived

the beverage of life from its mother's bosom
the warmth of affection from its mother's kisses
the courage of connection from its mother's umbilical cord
the gift of the gab from its mother's murmurings
the luxury of lazing around from its mother's lap

the depth of sensitivity from its mother's gaze 
the courtesy to contribute from its mother's hands
the confidence of doing right from its mother's advice
the bliss of being right from its mother's trust

Mother; the mother of all sources
Mother; the origin of positive forces

Happy Chemicals in KM :-)

How to get a good D.O.S.E of the Happy Chemicals through KM. 

D-O-S-E: Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin and Endorphin. Don't ask. It just occurred to me. (All right, I came across the first three in many articles. Did a little bit of research and discovered the last one) 

Dopamine: When you find the knowledge asset you were looking for in the content sharing platform. Also, when you get a reward for writing the most popular asset in the repository - The reward chemical 

Oxytocin: When you discover, interact and bond with colleagues who have similar/complementary ideas or share your areas of interest via the social networking platforms - The trust chemical 

Serotonin: When you are the most favorite expert or most voted for expert in the expertise locator. When people approach you for help knowing that you have what it takes - The importance chemical 

Endorphin: When pain is replaced with happiness; When you solve a problem with the help of a knowledge asset someone shared, an expert you discovered or colleagues you connected with in the content and people platforms - The pain to pleasure chemical 

But, to start with, you need the action chemical:  

Adrenalin: When you present your thoughts and learnings in a meeting or write a blog to share your knowledge - The action chemical 

Service

I wonder if Life is but a desperate effort on our part to run between success (I define it here as 'pursuing an activity that seems meaningful, ethical and joyous to your mind and spirit - following your bliss - and sharing your gift with the world') at one end and a sense of belonging (feeling the oneness that is so often talked about in spirituality) at the other. 

The distance, methinks, is formidable for many. It is hard to imagine someone obsessed with ideas paying close attention to people and relationships. It is equally hard to imagine a compassionate person pursuing ideas with a zeal that ignores social consequences of any sort. 

There is one powerful exception though; A lot of wise people keep telling us that the best and surest way to find happiness is by serving others (not limited to conventional ideas). H'm. See the point? It reduces the distance between success and sense of belonging to zero. 

Belief

Buddha is quoted thus: "Don't believe everything you read". Abraham Lincoln also apparently warned people to not believe everything on the Internet. I don't know; Lincoln was the one quoted in that poster I saw on the Internet. 

Logically speaking, how could we anyway believe everything we read? Just when you had permanently concluded that laughter is good for health, some researchers come out of their isolated offices and tell you that your organs might get ruptured or displaced if you laugh too much. 

Just when you were sure that deep introspection is what might make you a better human being, some psychologists warn you about the side effects of deep thinking. Who wants to be a better human being but, at the same time, slightly insane? (Makes you wonder how they arrived at such a conclusion without thinking too much). 

Not a single so-called Universal truth is left untouched or unchallenged. There are many ways to use rational thoughts to either construct or destroy the same case. People, meanwhile, simply choose what they want to believe and ignore everything else. 

What next? We must simply wait for Mark Twain to tell us (via the Internet, of course) to start believing everything we read. That way, we'll take ourselves less seriously and life will be a lot more fun. 

Social Media

Disclaimer: Please ask your mobile service provider to activate your sense of humor before reading further.

Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, including you, except Yours Truly is merely and purely coincidental.

Selfies, sunsets, babies and cats

Some bouquets and a few brickbats

Like, comment or lazily lurk

Fool around, think a bit or just burp

Boast a bit or somewhat less or a lot

Declare whether life is cool or hot 

Birthdays, weddings, parties and all

Trips to everywhere, now on the wall

What was for lunch and what for dinner

Who is the saint and who the sinner

Sports, movies, politics and religion

What to embrace and what to shun

Obsess about an idea or a cause   

And garner some passing applause

Share nonsensical poetry 

Indulge in honest or random flattery 

Talk about this; talk about that

Go around in circles; say Howzzat 

Wonder what the heck is happening

And quit the whole damn thing 

Is your sense of humor intact? *Peace*

Please continue what you were doing.

The T&C of Life

Going past a huge cemetery is somewhat like a situation wherein you see the Terms & Conditions of an essential service (life, in this case) - but you don't really read everything; you just scroll down the page. 

But when you see a mortuary van on its way inside, you are reminded of the inevitability of the 'I agree' check box, irrespective of whether you really do agree or not. There is no way out.

Extending the metaphor, here's food for thought:

Do we dwell so much upon the T&C that we never reach the check box or realize its existence?

Do we jump, skip and hop across the T&C without a care and land on the check box with a jolly shout?

Do we read a bit of the T&C, get psyched out and surrender at the altar of the check box? 

Songs that Life Sings

Life has it all. Think about it; The most fascinating thing about life is life. 

It might play its million songs in the shuffle mode and give you just about everything - surprises, shocks, sobriety, success, serenity, serendipity or stimulation. 

It might play the same old song again and again in a loop and make you think you'd rather be dead (pessimist) or wonder how to get obsessed (optimist) with that one song. 

It may also, occasionally, play plenty of customized play-lists giving us the illusion of control. 

Interested, Intelligent or Ignorant?

There are things (and times when) we constantly analyze, judge and evaluate; Categorize, take sides, conclude and declare. We are seen as keen participants; interested and perhaps intelligent. The inevitable consequence is to either cheat ourselves into believing that we knew it all or change with the climate a la a chameleon. Nothing really bad I guess - that is life as usual for so many of us because we are under constant pressure and have been conditioned to appear intelligent and interested.

On the other hand, there are times when we are nonchalant and 'matter-of-fact'ish about there being a hundred things we can't really know, a hundred and one things we know we don't know, a hundred and two things we don't know that we don't know. Something unknown sets us free and we decide to suspend judgment (and its sisters and brothers) and just be. Maybe there's a thought or two that makes a strong appeal to be adopted but it is kindly dismissed after an internal struggle. These are the times when we manage to simply observe and trace things with an open, un-argumentative and un-excited mind. It doesn't bother us that we appear not to exist or appear to be ignorant. Such moments are liberating. If we do not let thoughts from outside infiltrate our so-called ignorance.