if today was your last day

if today was your last day - Nickelback

my best friend gave me the best advice
he said each day's a gift & not a given right
leave no stone unturned
leave your fears behind
& try to take the path less travelled by
that first step you take is the longest stride

if today was your last day
& tomorrow was too late
could you say goodbye to yesterday?
would you live each moment like your last?
leave old pictures in the past?
donate every dime you had?
if today was your last day

against the grain should be a way of life
what's worth the price is always worth the fight
every second counts 'cause
there's no second try
so live like you're never livin twice
don't take the free ride in your own life

if today was your last day
& tomorrow was too late
could you say goodbye to yesterday?
would you live each moment like your last?
leave old pictures in the past?
donate every dime you had?
would you call those friends you've never seen?
reminisce old memories?
would you forgive your enemies?
would you find that one your dreaming of?
swear up & down to God above
that you'll finally fall in love?
if today was your last day

if today was your last day
would you make it up by mending a broken heart
you know it's never too late
to shoot for the stars
regardless of who you are
so do whatever it takes
'cause you can't rewind
a moment in this life
let nothing stand in your way
cause the hands of time are never on your side

if today was your last day
& tomorrow was too late
could you say goodbye to yesterday?
would you live each moment like your last?
leave old pictures in the past?
donate every dime you had?
would you call those friends you've never seen?
reminisce old memories?
would you forgive your enemies?
would you find that one your dreaming of?
swear up & down to God above
that you'll finally fall in love?
if today was your last day

Influence and expressions...

It is quite amazing to think about how we think. Depending on the kind of personality we have, and the level of Ego that we possess, we are moulded as how we are. A lot depending on factors such as the environment growing up, family, friends, education, place of education, and people who influence our minds while growing up... Probably since South India (where I was brought up) is a little more conservative in its thought process than most other parts of the world, I was well sheilded from a lot of negative influences that often plague kids growing up elsewhere... While it would not be accurate to describe my experiences and actions as completely perfect, I definitely got more that what I could have hoped for. Loving family, Excellent schooling, Fun loving and bratty friends, and my wannabe-nerdy self... I used to always think that the entire world thought like me, and the entire world acted like how I would act in any situation... But I was just naive and ignorant I guess...

There was a time when I had to lay an exclamation point to an arguement I was having with my brother. I wanted to convey that he was wrong in his ways about some specific thing. When I relayed that information, contrary to my expectation my point went unnoticed and left untaken. An uncle of mine who has been an inspiration to a lot of my family members while growing up, came up to me and said "Its not just what you try to say... Even if you say things for the Good, you need to say it in a Good way for it to actually be taken seriously"... So I thought to myself at that point, if I had expressed my viewpoint in a different way (positively), it would have definitely been taken well and maybe even followed. As for exactly what it was, that I do not remember, but the bigger thing I got out of it was my uncle's way of thinking, and the influence it had on me as a person...

I Have A Dream

What a fantastic day it is today, when Barack Obama has been elected President of the United States...

Key Excerpts from Martin Luther King's 'I Have A Dream' speech:

"In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men - yes, black men as well as white men - would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked 'insufficient funds.'"

"It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual."

"The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people. For many of our white brothers as evidenced by their presence here today have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We can not walk alone."

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'"

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

"I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood."

"This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day."

"Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children."

"Let freedom ring. And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring—when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children—black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics—will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

satyam, gnanam, anantam, brahma...

satyam - the truth...

gnanam - the wisdom...

anantam - the joy...

brahma - the selfless self...

The Ripple Effect...

Ever wondered what would eventually happen if we did something in some particular way, as compared to having done it in a different way, or even compared to not having done that something at all? Knowingly or otherwise every action has not just an immediate reaction in accordance with laws of physics, it also has a ripple effect felt at a different point in time, an after-effect...

What may seem like one small piece of debris on the road, in a country of billions, may mean many billions of such acts in places where control and cleanup of it is more challenging...

What may seem like 5 cents of corruption by one person, may mean thousands of such 5 cents in corruption by millions of people, eventually causing a tsunami of corruption beyond control and cleanup...

Change is needed indeed... Not just in the big picture, but in the details too... Not just in the system, but also in the people that comprise and consume the system... Not just in the rules out there, but also the way we look at them and follow them...

Responsibility is needed indeed... Not just external, but internal too...

Next time you think its no big deal to something, 'Oh - think twice... Its just another day for you and me in paradise...' - Phil Collins

Chaos... And the state of mind...

Was watching a program on the Science HD channel, called 'Human Body - Pushing to the Limits'. The series showcases different scenarios of extreme conditioning of the physical and mental components of the human body, and delves into the details of how adaptive and capable humans are to withstand extreme conditions, both physical and mental.

The past few weeks have been a little stressful for me personally in terms of schedule and project timelines. I must say its been a long yet enduring journey so far... The next couple of months promise only to add to this chaos... Then again, it makes me realize these moments are created so we'll be able to cherish the fruits at a later point in time...

What prepares us for the worst, is not so we go through tough times but for how we are actually moulded to handle anything less than the maximum with the perception of considering it meagre. In other words, it feels like being caught in the eye of a storm right now! And hopefully the blackhole is only the start of a new galaxy!!!

"Hope - is a good thing!" - Shawshank Redemption...

Basic Instincts...

As is the case with most things personal, our Ego is as big as our imagination! Ofcourse 'We' know the answers and 'We' know it all... As humans we have our basic instincts, some automatic and some developed over a period of time... It may be oxymoronic to term Basic Instincts as a 'Developed' trait but a closer look makes the picture clearer...

For someone who was born and brought up in a densely and heavily populated country (India), I used to believe I could handle a Big-City lifestyle... It turns out its only a relative factor as people are only as used-to as they want to be... For instance, back in India there is a unique yet risky way of surviving roads and traffic... There is no value for a Honk, nor is there value for Yielding! At the same time life seems great to locals as they swing and swirl their way through the maze of a traffic every single moment of their lives on the Indian roads... I guess people got 'used' to driving in India... Something that they 'developed' over a period of time with practice over and over again... Basic Instincts take over, and mindless driving becomes impossible...

Think about this: If someone in your next lane cuts ahead of you with no indicator, and then slows down in front of you - how would you react? ...

To Be Continued...