Introduction

So I finally created a blog.

Now what? 

Let me think. What is my purpose really?

I need to go back a few decades.

It was summer holidays. I was sixteen and sitting in my garden, dreaming. A short while before, going through a loft in our home, I had come upon a stack of books left behind by my aunt and uncle who had recently emmigrated to England. I had grown up on a diet of Enid Blyton and other children’s fiction including classics. Now I chanced upon a completely new genre of books – non-fiction of the self-help kind. The first title to catch my eye was “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. I was hooked. “How to Live 365 Days a Year” by John A. Schindler was next, followed by “The Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale.

As I sat in my garden, I thought of these authors, the wisdom they had collected and shared and the countless numbers of people they had helped. The fact that I had been profoundly influenced, but that the author didn’t even know I existed fascinated me. These people’s legacy would continue long after they were dead. People would continue to be helped as long as the books were available. I would like to be an author some day, I thought. I loved the idea of some young girl sitting in her garden years later, thinking similar thoughts about me after having read my book!

Sigh. That was many years ago. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.

I still love self-help books. My favorite now is the Bible, which contains all the wisdom one needs to live a successful and fulfilling life while at the same time being a blessing to others.

But coming back to writing…. A lot has changed since then. Computers, laptops and then hand held devices like I-pad and Kindle have changed the way many people read. There are also audio-books, as I recently discovered. Now, with online publishing free and at the click of your mouse or a button on your keypad, almost everyone who can string a few words together is becoming a writer. Times have changed.

Have I missed the boat? Perhaps not. In fact, technology has made so much possible that was impossible before. I no longer have to wait to finish an entire book before I can have it published. I can pen a few thoughts I wish to share and publish them - in a blog.

I love technology. I love what it makes possible. I love the era I’m living in. These are exciting times. So much is changing and so rapidly that it is often difficult to keep up. Children today are handling cell phones and computers sometimes even before they learn to walk. They take instant messaging for granted, everyone is within reach, any kind of entertainment is available at the touch of a button, traveling parents are reachable on the phone, on Skype, or at the least, text messaging.

It was not so with my generation. I grew up without a TV or a telephone. Computers and cell phones were not even heard of. We wrote letters, which took a few days to reach the intended recipient, and then had to wait a few more days to receive a reply. If the letter was going abroad, a reply could take between eight days to a month and by that time the situation may have changed entirely! Even making a phone call to another city or country was so difficult – one had to go to the telephone exchange, book a trunk call and wait for hours for it to go through. And we had to shout to make ourselves heard. I still automatically raise my voice when I’m on the phone, often to the chagrin of my daughter. So we appreciate the positive changes that technology has brought us. It was not so long ago that we lived in a different world!

But I’m digressing again. (If you’re going to be reading my blogs, you’ll have to get used to it.) I love technology, because even without realizing it, I have been writing. Emails, social networking sites, armchair activism and social causes have all solicited and received my attention and participation. So a blog should be somewhat like a natural progression, right?

Anyhow, here it is finally.

What am I going to write about? Hopefully something which will be helpful to someone. Something I learnt through my experience in this journey called life; be it something critical like saving a relationship that is heading for the rocks, or something relatively insignificant like how to make soft and fluffy phulkas. I was talking about this being a new generation, which is living a life very different from what I lived as a child and a young person in many ways. Girls especially now enjoy the same opportunities and advantages as boys. They are educated, join the workforce soon after college and stand on an equal footing. They are accomplished in many areas, be it music, sports, art or some other skill. They are well networked, confident and have good social skills. Then they get married, move into their own homes and....oops. While they have learnt things that make life more interesting and exciting, many of them sadly lack the skills needed for survival. As they go through life doing what comes naturally and what they enjoy or have to do in the way of work, they find themselves coming face to face with neglected areas, things that they need to know, but don't, things that would make life easier and the journey more pleasant. Not everyone needs to learn these lessons in the School of Hard Knocks. Why get your own scars when you can share mine?

As I leaf through the book of my life, as I come across some random experience that causes me to reflect on some such aspect not necessarily in any particular order, I plan to write it down. I invite you to join me in my rambles, to interact, to share your experiences and ideas, to ask questions and help me in compiling this Medley of Miscellaneous Musings.