Winner of Wilda Morris's July 2020 Poetry Challenge

Happy to share that an acrostic poem that I penned for my mother has been chosen as the winner of Wilda Morris's July 2020 Poetry Challenge.

You can read it here:

http://wildamorris.blogspot.com/2020/07/july-2020-winning-poem.html

Make it work

The cursor blinks at me at a frequency per second. It blinks at me in step with the ticking second hand of the red Titan time piece staring at me from the mantel. The longer I stare at the cursor, the more difficult it is to tame it and get typing. 

Enough is enough. I hunker down and type the first word on screen. 

I guess this is true with any problem that you face, any challenge that you encounter. The longer you stare at the problem, the bigger it looks, the bigger it grows. Instead, gather your wits and plunge headlong into tackling the problem. Sure, strategy and planning are important. But they are important only when and if you have a strategy and plan!

If you don’t have one, it’s time to make use of the best resource you have – YOU and move on without much ado!    

Be Happy

As I leave for work, my toddler son touches my feet. He has acquired this new habit, watching me touch my parents’ feet and seeking their blessings everyday before I leave for work.

Touching elders’ feet to seek their blessings is an integral part of Indian culture, more specifically Coorg culture. When we were children, one of our primary duties when we are introduced to the elders was to touch their feet with both our palms and bring the palms to our heads. And they in turn would bestow their blessings and wish for us all the good things that the smorgasbord of life has on offer.

So, it came as a pleasant surprise when my son who is all of two touched my feet for the first time a few weeks ago. He then proceeded to touch my parents’ feet too. Three times and placed his hand on his head after each iteration. Like a true blue Coorg!

He has kept up with the practice and has not missed even a single day. And today was special – he touched my feet and also offered his blessings! Turning on his most serious version, he smiled and said, ’Be Happy!’ And his words made the rest of my day!  

Hard Work

Hard work. Plain. Simple. Hard. Work. That’s the number one ingredient that takes you to the top. That’s the essence of what differentiates a winner from the ones who make it to a measly almost there. It can move mountains, change hearts and raise life from the dark pits of despair. Hard work can turn around a life like nothing else can.

Of course, grace – some call it luck, matters. But it’s important to remember former President of US, Thomas Jefferson when he said, ’The harder I work, the luckier I get.’

Whenever you stare at a dead end, when you feel hopelessly useless, when you feel the world turn its back against you – hunker down and work hard. It will lift your day and your spirits. Not to mention your game. UP.

Getting things done

That arduous and long pending task stares at you from the corner of your desk, gloating at how you just can’t get around to deal with him. You delay and dither until it is too late and cry over wasted time. You buckle down to do it, anyway and round it off half-heartedly when the hot breath of a deadline breathes down your neck.

You need not always keep things for the last minute. Things can be different. Tackle the gargantuan task at the first opportunity available. 

Break down the task into small bite sized rubber meals that you can chew up. And with every accomplishment, however small it is, reward yourself with a goodie – anything that you love – It could be a session of two minute meditation, reading a short short story, going for a walk or chatting up with a friend. 

And once you are through with your reward, get back to tackling the next small rubber piece that you can chew.

This is one method which I have found effective in tackling many of the demons lurking around in my procrastination closet.     

Self Reliance

“No one can save us. No one may. We ourselves must walk the path.”

The Buddha’s words ring true as I read one of his many nuggets of wisdom. Every being here, has a path cut out for her. She has to walk that path, whether or not she likes it, whether she is attached to the destination or detached from the outcome. She has to face the changing cycles of seasons, brave the storm, clothe herself in layers during the cold and enjoy the sun on her skin during spring. Her sufferings are her own. As are her learnings that are born out of the sufferings.

No individual can share the pain of another. Parents may struggle and bring heaven to earth in their effort to mitigate children’s sufferings. The pain of a surgery, the pain of a heartbreak, the pain of an addiction and so on has to be borne by the child herself. Parents may try to soften the blow, provide a comfortable cushion to rest her tired head on, offer warm words of comfort, but the pain of the action/reaction/event has to be tolerated by the offspring. This is true of every other relationship – romantic, platonic, filial and so on.

In that act of suffering is hidden the fact of transformation, the possibility of metamorphosis. So let us not be afraid or shun the difficult times in life.

Let us not wait for sympathy/empathy/words of kindness from others who we think are our well-wishers. If the ray of hope shines through in their kind, comforting actions, let us be grateful. If not, let us not wait for it. Waiting and not receiving the kindness weakens our emotional fiber and slackens our resolve. Instead, let us be self-reliant and forge ahead with doing what according to us is the right path to emerge strong because of a particular event. Let us build good routines like meditation and yoga and incorporate them into our daily lives so we have some sort of ‘insurance’ cover to fall back on during the not so sunny days.

Strength

What is strength? Strength is the quality to remain true to your promises, to your goal and to your vision even when circumstances are not favourable. It is the ability to plod on and get your thing done even when the going gets inexplicably tough. It is the ability to remain true to yourself and to your values despite harsh criticisms and sharp, painful barbs of innuendos that the world will shoot at you when you set out on your path. Strength is what makes life bearable during the unbearable times and gives you the wherewithal to manifest better days. Strength is what helps you make a difference and leave everything better than what it used to be.