A Christmas Carol...

Christmas brings out fully the little child that I really am. I have always loved Santa. In my growing up years I read about the history behind this man called Santa. Santa Claus or rather Saint Nicholas was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra (part of modern-day Turkey). He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out and is known in particular for secretly providing money for the dowry for three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian (he visited their house after they had gone to bed and left three bags of gold coins in three stockings left over the fireplace for drying). Many miracles were attributed to his intercession, and because of that he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker! His feast day is 6 December and it later got tied up with the Christmas traditions.

Christmas season is indeed magical. When my kids hope for Santa to come in his red dress I tell them that Santa always loves to give gifts secretly so he sends his gifts through someone and whenever we get something that we dearly wanted that nobody knew about, then it is Santa’s gift.

All through my childhood  I  believed that Santa  sends me a gift on christmas…and I still believe it! I have often got gifts around Christmas time that nobody knew I wanted, sometimes even I didn't know until it arrived its winding way to me!

My best Christmas memories are of Halwara Punjab where I was part of the carol troop when I was about 11 and 12 years old.  It was fun visiting houses and singing carol songs all through the Christmas season.It was a magical time indeed. I was very proud to be the one holding baby Jesus. There was only one problem.  When we got into the coach after each house visit, the Awesome Santa became just a normal man when someone adjusted his make up for him! That’s really a deflator for a child who wants to believe the Santa is real!

When we moved from there I missed the Christmas fervor in every other place. Missed singing the carols with a proper troupe…

From the year 2007  I had been thinking that it is the new born Jesus who should be getting a gift from me and not vice versa and so I was trying to gift baby Jesus something on Christmas. It was my book. Such a silly childish thought! So nobody but I knew of this Christmas co relation of why I only tried for a publisher once a year and that too as the year was ending. I worked on my manuscript as the Christmas season approached and would try usually for just one publisher and ... fail and work on my manuscript again. It became a cycle and I was thinking Jesus would take my book when he would be fully satisfied with it.  The book would grow as I re read it each year end and edited it adding new insights.

But as six years passed, in my heart maybe I was beginning to suspect that Jesus didn't really appreciate it too much or want  it on His birthday! This September after my book became an e-book, I wasn't even remotely thinking of anything for December but coincidentally my husband gave my book into print in the Christmas Season without being aware in any way of  my little secret! I was surprised and happy for more than one reason when I came to know of it a few days ago. Evidently Baby Jesus did want the book in print on his birthday, but from my Husband's Hands?! Who knows His mind or ways....

When I was tired of trying to gift something to Jesus, I got it as a Christmas gift to me instead! 

SO I have no gift to give this Christmas or do I? A few days before December 1st,  my daughters instrumental music teacher gave me the musical notes of Christmas carol songs! (Maybe he felt I would be interested in them as I had taken from him notes for some church songs a few months earlier.)  It was a surprise, so I felt that playing the carol songs on the synthesizer was what  baby Jesus actually wanted as gift from me.

 As I play a different carol each day of this December I am reminded of the times with the carol troupe. Travelling each day together as troupe to some different locality, different people in different houses. How I loved observing it all.   I remember also that  I  particularly observed the strumming on the Guitars. I remember how I fell in love with instrumental music. Didn't I always want to play the songs on an instrument? As I play them each day of december I am still not sure - it is a gift from me or again a gift to me?!

WISH YOU ALL A MAGICAL CHRISTMAS

...In Love and In War

Santosh Vichivara, the 19 year old who lost his life protesting eve teasing, and other guys like him;  this post is for you. I wish you would learn the art of self preservation while standing up for your causes. The world does not gain anything from losing people like you who can stand up for what is right no matter what the consequences. So you are doing us a favour when you also take care not to lose your life in the process. The young blood takes risks, the mature are cautious. I wish people could be more balanced whatever the age, taking risks indeed ... but with caution!

There were 30 to 35 people outside the gate of his housing complex where this incident took place. If  he knew at least 10 of the 35 in the crowd and convinced them to move in, as a faceless crowd against the five erring teenagers, maybe he would have protected the girl and preserved the fine specimen of a man that he was. Stealth, shrewdness, planning and foresight are essential in a war for justice, not just courage.

A friend once told me that in ancient India, an aspiring King was supposed to learn 64 arts; two of which were deceit and theft. I was surprised and so he asked me 'How would a king learn to recognize a thief, a treacherous person etc if he himself does not know the art of stealing, lying and cheating!" That hit home. The Wikipedia is not as colourful in its descriptions of the 64 arts but I would rather go with my personal 'encyclopedia'; that is, my friend's knowledge.. Indeed these are arts, and are important for even the eventual victory of good over evil!

 The ethics of war are different, even the Bible shows that very clearly. I want to take the example of the story of David. Saul was chosen by God  to be the king of Israel to bring peace by ruling justly. This message of God was conveyed to him by Samuel. But later Saul changed and was more and more unwilling to listen to  God's orders (given through Samuel ) and began to do his own wish. So God chose David as the next king. Samuel was again supposed to give this message to Jesse’s son (David) but Samuel expressed to God his fear of being killed by Saul for this act. To this God told him “Don’t worry, Saul doesn't have to know. Give a feast in Bethlehem and invite all Jesse’s family to come” Stealth was employed by Samuel in carrying out what was required; for his 'self preservation'! 

 David murdered Goliath and the whole world applauds that feat. Obviously murder was the right thing here as it was for eventual good. Killing enemies was the right thing to do in a battle (love your enemies?) David made an enemy in King Saul and his life was forever in threat and he had to even live as an outlaw. He had to think where he would be safe. There were occasions when his hiding place was surrounded and he was on the verge of being killed, but he escaped. He lived many weary years of hiding from the king. During this time, he went on raiding expeditions (looting?!)with Philistines (who were enemies of his land Israel, and so he had to ‘pretend” to be an enemy of Israel). If he had not 'cheated' them in this manner he would have lost his life and Israel would have lost its future king.

Those were different times, the era of kings and the rules were different, but  have the rules of war really changed? Indeed they haven't. Even for our individual battles, we often have to employ all our wits and all forms of arts. Dire circumstances almost invariably call for dire measures!

Now I want to move to another aspect of this story. From the time Samuel whispered in David’s ears (at the feast) that he is going to be the king, his life changed, from a carefree live, enjoying all the joys of the natural world as a shepherd, to that of fear for his own life. God had promised David that he would be king, but there were so many tribulations before that really happened! Although he lived a life of fear of being murdered, all this tribulation would have prepared him, strengthened him to be a strong and wise  king.   I was reading a book “Urantia” that had episodes of how Jesus managed the issues in his family, as a kind of father to his brothers. It dealt with many difficult times of  his life before he had to face the ultimate difficulty of 'knowingly and bravely' moving towards his torturous death. Life is not about just the end result. It is the whole journey of strengthening, of slowly and steadily becoming stronger and stronger; enough to handle the responsibilities like of being a king, or of being a sacrificial lamb.  

 It's God's love for us that makes him allow miseries in our life so that we could refine all our skills and also be able to think and take sound decisions. He just doesn't seem to bat an eyelid as we wail our lungs out, because he knows we can survive the misery and grow in strength if we use all our latent capacities. The one who sees every trouble as an opportunity to grow gains from everything and the one who blames and is angry with life loses the opportunity for personal growth and lives in constant misery and anger. Troubles are like falling into deep waters. The one who trusts would 'let go' and so float over the waters, the one who doesn't, and fears or resists the waters, drowns. We can forgive God for allowing misery in our life if we can trust him, if we realize that to God ‘all is fair in His love for us’.

                                          

What a person is dealt with is part of life, it could be through  one or another’s hands or maybe through their own mistakes, but what they do to get over problems or rise above the situation is up to them. In this growth process, we are allowed to make mistakes because we learn from them and grow more in wisdom. In fighting the battles in life we may do things we wouldn't in normal situation. David too did not always feel right; he often felt unworthy when God helped him and was kind to him (Interestingly, he never questioned God for the misery that he was put through!) Our body, our life, relationships, and all forms of arts are never mastered without some mistakes during the learning process. We may commit  errors  of judgement, mistakes, or may even take dire measures as we learn the best ways of winning a battle for the  eventual victory of good, for winning a life that promises both worldly joys and heavenly happiness. We can forgive ourselves and so would God, because... all is fair in the 'Just' War. 

Indeed when the purpose is 'ultimate good', all things do seem fair; be it in Love or be it War! Not just 'fair', but perhaps 'imperative'. Only if a good man can protect himself while saving another, would he be able to inspire others to similarly stand up for a good cause.

The Incomparable Factor called FRIENDSHIP

As I entered the college auditorium, there was an extempore going on. The topic that a third year student was presenting was - friendship. Such a simple yet difficult to explain concept that I started wondering what I would have spoken?

       

A friend – brings to mind someone who cares, respects, and understands us, who wants our company and whose company we enjoy as well. Someone on whom we have no rights, who has separate responsibilities, but we come together to share some moments of togetherness.

 It's been years since college. What happens when we meet those friends from those college times?  I feel it like time travel. We travel back to those times, those little moments shared together. The dancing on the hostel bed and getting caught in the act by the warden. The trip to the lake with a friend a day before an exam, the teasing, the laughs, the smiles. We suddenly realize how little moments have in fact not been forgotten but were etched into the memory to be brought out unexpectedly when we connect with the people from those times. Connecting again to the fun, the excitement, the unique joys of college years that we traversed together.

That’s what friends hold. They represent the memories and the experiences, the lessons from the shared time period.  The advantage of friendship is that it is neither a too close relationship nor a too distant one and so the mutual expression and expectations are on a mean, neither too little nor too much. While close relationships of family as well as love relationships have their own value, these may hold a lot of expectations and demands attached, that can, in fact, make for each individual's burden! It is friendships again, that aid in carrying these burdens...of earning, of succeeding, of managing a home perfectly and efficiently, and so on. Such little comforts of sharing are what friendships provide.

Can you share ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING with your family? Since family is so close, they are often affected by what we have to reveal. But there can be friends we can share anything with, without causing them discomfort or arousing any possessiveness or anger.  In fact, a good friend can be a better listener than even a counsellor who hardly knows us.

Also, family may take us for granted. The closer we get, as in a love  relationship, the baggage of old relationship, personal issues, hidden facets; all are more and more expressed, and the result is that often close relations become more a challenge than a joy. Not that close relationships cannot become a joy, but it is only possible when they have the right amount of 'friendship factor' added to it, in other words, enough closeness and enough distance that prevents the disease called “taking for granted”. In other words, it’s important to be a friend first in every relationship, remembering that no matter what the relationship, we can't own anybody; it helps to truly care, no matter what is shared or expressed.

I read recently, that in a study, it was found that it is not success, relationships or even religion that contributes most to the happiness quotient of any individual, rather it is true friendships.  I could really agree to that! Friendship, a relationship with the right amount of closeness and the right amount of distance is an equilibrium relationship, and so, no doubt, is incomparable.

There... I have finally spoken, on what I began considering years ago, listening to an extempore, on the  incomparable relationship - friendship, and I am happy that today, I can finally say, I don't just hope to make friends with people I like, I do take the initiative to hold my hand out to those I appreciate. Not all may take the extended hand, but there are those who do, and never let go. I am blessed to have some such GREAT friends!

Chemtrails- What could they be for?

I had no plans to write about something which might just be a conspiracy ‘theory’.  But I have my reasons now for writing this. Its months since my friend Fher first told me about Chemtrails.  Fher a Filipino is not from the long list of countries which are supposedly getting 'sprayed with toxic chemicals'.  But then recently I got a comment with the greeting 'Aloha' which is Hawaiian greetings; on my post on self sketch. This topic of Chemtrails was again brought to my note by this blogger. Hawaii is a place which is supposedly under chemtrail spray. Now I had to sit up, get out of my skepticism and scan out the news to understand what might be going on. I looked through all the info on this from the net. 

The term Chemtrails specifically refers to aerial trails allegedly caused by the high altitude release (into the stratosphere by planes) of chemical substances not found in ordinary contrails(condensation trails left by planes), resulting in the appearance of characteristic sky tracks. This activity of aerial chemical spraying is suggested to have started in mid 1990 and it intensified by 1999.

Proponents of the chemtrail conspiracy theory say that chemtrails can be distinguished from contrails by many features like their long duration, persisting for as much as a half day (contrails of planes dissipate in less than one minute). They extend from horizon to horizon and the trials then spread out like clouds (unlike contrails). They even form grids whereas commercial aircrafts do not cross each other's flight paths in Xs and grid-patterns at the same altitude.

Normal contrails come from the engines and wingtips of high-flying aircraft. They do not stream from the tails of airplanes equipped with wing-mounted engines. Chemtrails, on the other hand, have been observed through high-power telescopes and binoculars to be streaming from tanker tailbooms pointing downward at a 60-degree angle. (The planes are observed to be painted white without any logos or identifications.) Contrails do not make people sick, whereas hundreds of eye-witnesses have become ill within hours of watching chemtrails woven over their heads. Many have tasted and smelled something metallic or corrosive in the air. Lab analysis of the 'fall' have revealed in some cases biological agents and in other cases high amount of aluminium and barium. 
 
Supporters of this conspiracy theory speculate that the purpose of the chemical release may be for solar radiation management (geo engineering) , population control, weather control, or biological warfare/chemical warfare. According to them these trails are causing respiratory illnesses and other health problems. It is changing the pH of the soils and is also destroying the indigenous plants, rendering them weak.

These chemtrails are  supposed to contain heavy metals like aluminum and barium (or pathogens) which are sprayed into the stratosphere all over many of the NATO countries including most of America, UK, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand , Australia (I am sure all of us have relatives in some or all of these places) to supposedly reverse the effects of Global warming.  

Who could do this? According to the theorists it is the government. Why would any government want to foul its own lungs and land. That’s nothing short of foolishness!

The problems with these chemtrials according to those who have brought forth the issue, is that it is raising the content of many heavy metals that is making the waters and soil toxic. Aluminium is indeed toxic and its ill effects are not a matter of possibility. It is real! Alzhieimers is caused due to accumulation of Al in brain cells. (Alzheimer cases are said to be rising)  Al is also flammable and can cause forest fires.  In affected areas the soil tests are claimed to be high for aluminium and barium, the values being thousands of times higher than safe limits. 

What can we conclude? Assuming that all this is truly happening, the chemtrails could be to block solar radiation and these could be trials of a control measure for global warming. It could also be trials for biological warfare where pathogens are claimed to be used.” But if it is so, the governments are grossly over reacting to the global warming scare. It is like creating a monster to combat a dog. We are creating a worse scenario. According to the precautionary principle which is one of 26 principles for guiding national and international action which was adopted in the 1972, Stockholm conference- "uncertainty (lets say of climate change damages) should not be the reason for inaction". BUT it does not mean taking any action at such a large scale and for such a long duration spanning decades without taking account of the cost benefit. The cost of control should not be worse than the benefit! No citizen of any country should tolerate such irresponsible use of power

Another possibility considered is to make it difficult for any indigenous crops to survive so that people will buy seeds that can grow in high Al soils. This is also absurd as how many people will have such purchasing power? However much the supply of such genetically engineered seeds, it wont be sufficient for the whole earth and for all types of plants and especially at buy-able prices!!

The next point is, the air any individual or government spoils; is the very air he or they are going to breathe, so why would any government do it unless they knew of some danger to all life that had to prevented at all cost. Here comes the topic of radiation from some brown dwarf that threatens life on earth and to prevent its far worse consequence of annihilation of life, we stop the radiation by barium and bear its side effects . But then what about those who claim of pathogen sprays? Are they just stray cases? Is it mostly barium and aluminium that is being sprayed. Since this spraying started in 1990's, then the brown dwarf radiation threat has been known for 2 decades now. But in the 90s it was very difficult to trace a brown dwarf. It is only more recently that many have been located, so a scare of brown dwarf from as far back as the 90s is not possible.  There are also no signs of drastic changes to the earth system in terms of increased radiation content. Are the governments being fooled then to spray on themselves such chemicals with false stories?

Then comes the topic of mind control! There was a lot of chemistry Jargon in the net  related to how barium and aluminium can be used to "download mindcontrol" onto those under this chemical atmosphere. The purpose of mind control is to make the people a slave to orders! There are also rumours that the Jews; who might be mind controlled, are everywhere in all governments and high positions and multinational companies and news agencies and they are in turn using mindcontrol to rule the world. 

But on the other hand, if those chemicals could really effectively control minds there wouldn't have been such a furore over the spraying. Nobody would have bothered to object to chemical sprays as they would have been ordered not to protest to the spraying!

Since as yet it has not been possible to know what is the truth, whether all such information on web about chemtrials can be dismissed as fabricated. Still going by precautionary principle,  it is only possible to be aware as both individuals and as governments. All governments should be alert to avoid any persuasions to experiment on its people under any pretext. It should be remembered that it is better to give in to the clockwork of the universe that created us and which so has a right to decide our end;  than to destroy our earth by our own hands out of undue paranoia.

 Chemtrail conspiracy theory true or not, we can still keep in mind that- "To avoid an  'open well',  that 'may' be in front lets not run backwards blindly over a precipice!"

.

Vanity is Fair

When Spreads the Magic.....

Concept and Created By - Jovy Thomas- Photographer (multimedia)
Starring- Jerly
Year of creation- 2007

God gives us a mixed bag. He may not give us somethings we ask, but then he may also give us blessing which we never expected either! He gave me a blessing in the form of my sister-in-law who did for me what I don't think I ever seriously dreamed of! From taking professional pictures of me to making a video of me! Well, which sister-in-law does that!

She chose a song for me "soniye"(beautiful)! I was not sure it was a song that should be sung for me and then she allowed me to chose and sit with her as she edited.

Not that this song that I chose for the video (Jab Chaye) is any modest by comparison !! It means that- when my magic spreads, nobody escapes! And then the song goes on to describe a 'mixed bag' of opposite tendencies, like both soft and fiery, wounding and healing, a breeze and a storm etc etc...While I am not always proud of the other end of the spectrum all the time, yet the song is not modest at all by any standards.  But, hey, every girl is allowed some vanity, right? Vanity is fair in a woman,....so here's some awesome lyrics and video for me!!

YAYYYYY.

Who Am I

When at the crossroads where I have to choose;

I ask-who am I?

And  I choose what is true to my being;

And pass the other by...

When I feel I am wrong, and have gone with what I desired,
I don't regret ...

It is still who I am.

All what I could not do without;

It was better , than to die...

I am, when I can be

all that I want to give.

I am the one who lives,

 when my spirit is full fire.

The out held hands come many

But want not all that I am

 I have to pass them by, 

say a hundred times goodbye.

And hold only to a hope..

 that does not choose to die
..for a heart, who knows, and calls,

                                                                          to all of ‘who I am’

Have Thine Own Way!

I was told about the intrigue and beauty of Al Kahf (surah 18, of the Quran) and so had been going through it. I have to say, I simply loved the depth and the meaning of the stories in it. One I want to mention here is of Moses and the Mysterious Man.

Moses wanted to gain more wisdom and so went in search of this Man who was called Khidr, which meant green, for his knowledge was “ever fresh and in contact with the life as it is actually lived”. Moses was to take a fish on this voyage which was supposed to disappear at the spot where he would meet this man. But when the fish does jump off into the sea, neither Moses nor the attendant remember to make note of it. As they pass on, the journey becomes more laborious, the stages become heavier and heavier and fatiguing; until they remember to turn back and look for the man again.

This story signifies that when we exhaust our old knowledge and require new knowledge we have a “feeling of uneasiness, heaviness and difficulty especially if we have passed the new knowledge by, without making it our own” The heaviness and discomfort felt is, in fact, an effort of the soul to search for the new knowledge,  a knowledge we have to acquire, to make our journey of life easier once again, after being armed with the new knowledge.

The readers would be curious as to what was the new knowledge Khidr gave to Moses. Moses was told by Khidr not to question whatever he does but he could not refrain from questioning three times over, as he found Khidr causing a loss, being cruel and returning good for evil; all with no apparent reasons. Finally when Khidr explains, his reasons are found to be surprisingly very sound.

The lessons were-
“Often in life, when directed by higher impulses, a person does things that seem wrong or foolish by worldly standards. Only a similar mind can see why the deed was done, that it was from higher wisdom, in accordance with the universal plan; and so such a person may have to bear the blame and questions of the common crowd.”

“There are paradoxes in life-apparent loss may be real gain; apparent cruelty may be real mercy; returning good for evil may really be justice and not generosity. Gods wisdom transcends all human calculation”
Hence, wisdom is to trust in God's goodness, without questioning

This Sunday’s sermon reminded me of the above story and the lessons from ‘Green’. In the sermon was a mention of the famous writer Eugene who was considered a ‘good for nothing’, but his miseries made him express himself in written word, and eventually his writings brought him fame. I wondered as to how Eugene must have thought. He had indeed lead a miserable life, suffered from depressions; and I felt that “maybe he never wanted fame, all he wanted was a happy life; then why?”

From Khidr's  lessons I feel that sometimes, things have to be as they have to be. Just like Moses, we may not understand why God does some things in our life. For instance, I never understood why God made a 'blindly trusting person' like me, become a religious skeptic; why he led me through treacherous roads, why he closed all options of talking my doubts out with someone of a like mind; so I would be forced to take up the pen, talk to myself and write and clear my doubts.

But this sermon was what I heard, coincidentally, on my birthday, the day when I woke up and opened my mail to see that my book (that dealt with clearing contradictions in various religions) was published in Amazon, a birthday gift from my brother. The sermon about Eugene made me think that maybe somebody would be helped by my book someday and that would make all my slogging and troubles worthwhile. My mind may disagree and say that I had actually wanted a normal doubt free happy life, but my heart says that maybe my soul always preferred something lasting, maybe it always wanted to leave behind something helpful. Our joys and miseries are momentary but what we learn and leave behind, are eternal.

I never wanted this! Why Lord! Can't you hear what I am asking from you? What the hell is this that you give me! These are lines that I, and I am sure all of us often say to God in prayer; and then like this sermon, something may make our minds finally reverberate to the words of this hymn that followed the sermon.....
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way!
Thou art the potter, I am the clay.
Mould me and make me after thy will,
while I am waiting, yielded and still

Should the clay fight with the potter and say “.. Hey not like that!... Lightly not so rough!..”
It is the potter who has the final picture of the pot in mind, not the clay…In other words,
it would make life easier when we yield to the uncalled slaps of life and say…Uh Okay, I can't see the final picture Lord, You can......Have Thine Own Way …!