" sometimes i wish that i could freeze the picture....and save it from the funny tricks of time...."

the only certainty about life is that it's uncertain. it's fragile and unpredictable. no one knows what tomorrow holds, what the next minute or even the next second holds for that matter. i lost someone today....someone who loved me as a grand dad would love his grand daughter....someone i shared everything i wrote with...someone who wrote himself.....someone who i used to have intellectual conversations with whenever i would go to his city. a couple of days ago, completely out of the blue, i called him to touch base. i have no idea why i suddenly thought of him or why i called. but today, i'm glad i did.

when i lost daadaji a few years ago, all of a sudden, i was too young to realize what i realized today. life is too short to hold grudges. too short to have enemies. too short to fight and send out negative vibes. daadaji and i shared a ritual that i never really enjoyed as a kid. there were a lot of things about him that i didn't imagine i would miss so much, because back then, they seemed stupid and irritating. today, i realize that all the memories i have of him are of those same moments. only now, i  recall them with the love i never felt back then and i realize how stupid i was.

a few lessons that i've learnt....
1. everyone has different ways of showing you how much they love you. sometimes you just don't see the love. the things they do only seem irritating and nagging and stupid. the next time you retaliate to something that irritates you about someone who you know loves you; pause, think if it's their way of showing you how much they love you and then react.
2. never get tired of telling the people who matter to you that they do. in whatever way possible....an sms, a little note, a thirty second phone call, a hug, an email....tell them that they matter.
3. say "i love you" only when you mean it. and when you mean it, say if often....very often. one of the best feelings in the world is to love and be loved. at the end of the day, you shouldn't regret not saying it enough. i regret not telling daadaji that i loved him enough.
4. take it upon yourself to put a smile on someone's face everyday. life will have more meaning.
5. remember birthdays and special occasions. special days in life don't come by very often or very easily. try and make those days that are few and far between extra special for the people you love.
6. be impulsive. when your heart says yes, just do it! don't put off a phone call or a message or a thank you or sorry for later. you'll never get around to doing or saying it and before you know it, it'll be too late.
7. do the things the people you love like doing, even if you don't enjoy it. use it as an excuse to spend time together. bond. share happiness.
8. treasure the little moments of happiness, like i said even in my earlier post. the tricks of time are funny. though freezing moments will always only remain a wish, make sure you try and savour as much as possible so that it lingers for as long as it possibly can.
9. get to know the people you love intimately. they'll feel very special :)
10. don't waste half your life waiting for the "right moment" or planning the "perfect" occasion. just do it. every moment is perfect if you want it to be.

start right now, doing the little things you wish you'd done when the realization of the sparseness of time leaves you feeling empty. you and i cannot possible save the picture from the funny tricks of time but you and i can have a lot more of those pictures, by making each moment special. make sure next time time stands in front of you, mocking, with his sickle; you can look him in the eye and put him to shame because you've made the most of every moment you had.