The bigger picture

Discarding the oft adopted parochial view,
Does frequently lead to happiness new,
Why is our thinking so constrained,
Why is everything a matter of lost or gained?
If we would not, everything, thus scale,
If we could forget the petty detail,
And focus rather on the bigger picture,
Our sorrows would be fewer, our joys richer.

What then?

The other day, I was just thinking of some of my long cherished dreams. Now that I do see the path of fulfilling a few of them (oh ok, just one of them), a few thoughts crept into my mind. These were unlike any others that I'd felt before. I thought of what it would be like if I achieved something that I'd dreamt of for a long time. As with anything momentous, there is always the niggling doubt of "what if this doesn't turn out to be all that I thought this would be?". Also, with achieving dreams, there is also the feeling of "so I've gone and achieved what I always dreamt of...what now?"

The thoughts of mine found absolute resonance amongst the unlikeliest of people: Princess Rapunzel from Tangled. I was watching Tangled just the other day, and there's this scene where Rapunzel 's finally about to see the flying lanterns, and she wonders out aloud to Flynn Rider about what's troubling her. Here is that portion transcribed. Flynn's answer to it is also the answer to my thoughts indeed:

Rapunzel: I've been looking out of a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what I might feel like when those lights rise in the sky. What if it's not everything I dreamed it would be? 

Flynn: It will be.
Rapunzel: And what if it is? What do I do then?
Flynn: Well,that's the good part I guess. You get to go find a new dream.  

Awesome ain't it :)...got me over my pondering and ready to pursue my dream :)...Full steam ahead!! 

How we change

A long while back,
I'd look into the mirror,
And find a familiar face,
Staring back intently.
We'd have our conversations,
This face and me,
We shared dreams and hopes,
We shared smiles and tears.

But as time passed,
As so happens with friends dear,
We fell apart,
And steadily grew the distance between us...

The other day, I was looking at the mirror,
And hark, what do I see,
The face was back,
And was staring at me.

Overjoyed at finding my long lost friend,
I hugged him close,
"Where were you all this while", I asked,
"Why did you disappear in the past?"

A smile fluttered across his lips,
"I was right here", he said,
"Watching over you,
Looking at you change.
It was you who'd lost sight of me,
Yet, now that you need me,
Here I am, right be your side,
I will, forever, with you abide."
 
His biting words stung me,
For they carried with them the bitter truth,
I'd come a long way in the recent past,
But here was I friendship that I sure wanted to last.

Over time, oh, how we change,
But it will serve us all, to not, the real us estrange.

Zindagi Na Mile Doobaara

Just back from watching "Zidagi Na Mile Doobaara" with friends, and these verses by Javed Akhtar are beautifully penned:

Jab jab dard ka baadal chaya,
Jab ghum ka saya lehraya,
Jab aansoo palkon tak aya,
Jab yeh tanha dil ghabraya,
Humne dil ko yeh samjhaya,

...Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai,
Duniya mein yunhi hota hai,

Yeh jo gehre sannate hain,
Waqt ne sabko hi baante hain,
Thoda ghum hai sabka qissa,
Thodi dhoop hai sabka hissa,
Aankh teri bekaar hi nam hai,
Har pal ek naya mausam hai,
Kyun tu aise pal khota hai,
Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai

***

I'll try to do a cheap copy of them to English here:

Whenever clouds of anguish filled the sky,
Whenever bouts of sadness fluttered by,
Whenever tears welled up in my eye,
Whenever did my lonely heart sigh,
I sang to it, this lullaby:

Dear heart, why do you cry?
This is how the world is, aye.

The unbearable silence you feel,
Time, to all, does fairly deal,
Each is, with periods of gloom served,
Each has, portions of sunshine reserved,
So, wipe off the tears, for they are undeserved,
Every moment is a breath of fresh air,
Why then, do you waste time that is rare,
Dear heart, why do you, so badly fare?

Grant me, O Lord

O Lord, grant me,
The will to do what is right,
The wisdom to not, other's slight,
The courage to put my neck on the line,
The conviction to believe it'll all be fine.

Transience

A life so fleeting,
Temporary and brief,
From the cut umbilical,
To embalmed feet.

The sound of silence

The faculties of the mind,

Be too inadequate to comprehend,

Tunes that the heart beats out,

While lips remain silent.