Remembering and smiling for a friend who has gone far away

I met Umesh in year 2000. I was staying with my classmates Sandip and Swapnil as a paying guest during our graduation days. Umesh was a new entrant. He was strongly built, short in stature and looked quite serious and thoughtful in nature.

He was doing job in a computer hardware and networking company. I guess, he had completed diploma in Electronics Engineering and immediately started working to help his mother. I do not remember much about his father. He has a younger brother, an almost replica of Umesh.

We stayed together for 2 years. During this period we had spent wonderful time together. He was a computer techie. We were his first students I guess and learnt the things from how to start windows, shutting down the computer , search the video files and watchJ. We saw countless movies together. I cannot tell the names of movies we watched though ;) . During this time, two other friends joined us. Yogesh and Sachin.

He used to ride to office by his classic Bajaj Super scooter. It used to suit his physique and overall personality. Apart from work he had two hobbies. Eating and sleeping for hours. A bit lazy character but very alert while talking and debating.

After  graduation, I moved to another city for further studies. During this time, we hardly could keep in touch with each other. That is my biggest regret but we used to know about each other through other friends.

I still remember a few things about him. During those days, I had exam phobia and I was unable to sleep during the examination period. Umesh suggested me to do yoga, Pranayama and it worked wonders for me. I still doubt whether Umesh had ever attempted yoga considering his strong physique. His another strange habit was shaking his legs while going to sleep. He used to shake his legs so fast until he went to sleep. Sometimes the bed used to make an irritating sound because of his movements. Another thing, he used to snore so loudly that another guy in his room had to hide his ears under pillow to get some sleep. J

Umesh passed away a couple of months back. Sachin broke this news to us in last week. It was terrible news to hear. He was around 35 and has a 4 years old son behind. Today I tried to search his profile on Facebook and somehow found it. I am desperately trying to get his family contact information to meet them.

He has gone far away from us. No force or miracle is capable enough to bring him back. But we know, he is in a peaceful and safer place and want all of us to be happy. Umesh, we will miss you and will never forget you, buddy. You will always inspire us.

No Arms No Legs No Worries

Out of Comfort Zone

Woke up today at 5:00 AM in morning. Within next half an hour I was on jogging track. I am following this routine since last 3 weeks. Waking up early in the morning is in itself a delightful experience, which I have missed throughout my life.

• By the way, I am preparing for a half marathon, which is scheduled in next month. I have 3 more weeks to prepare for it. Though 6 weeks of practice is a bit less duration for preparation of Half Marathon, I am still optimistic about finishing the race.
  
  Everyday, when I wake up early in the morning, in spite of insufficient sleep, my mood is always positive. I am very eager to reach the jogging track. My wife’s expressions are normally priceless whenever I wake up and get ready for running. While driving towards jogging track, I see the city around in deep sleep; the fresh and clean air makes me even more energetic.
  
  I carry energy drinks, fruits with me while going for run to make sure that I am not drained physically. I wear all the kinds of running accessories, like shoes that supports my feet perfectly, knee/ankle supports, a stop watch to measure my speed, sun screen lotions, anti tanning creams, etc. Sometimes, I wonder why I am doing this. I am out of my bed in spite of lack of sleep, my family members are in deep sleep. But I am always determined to do it. I want to push the boundaries of my physical and mental strength. Important thing is that there is no purpose or goal behind it. I am simply running for the sake of well, running itself. J
  
  The motivation behind running a marathon is to experience that extravaganza. I will be running alongside the best runners in the world. I am not sure whether I will be able to complete the run. My first target is to finish 10 KM. Then I will go for another 5 KM. Once I reach 15 KM milestone, I will go for the kill for sure. The most important motivator for me is to achieve the top 3 priorities in my life. I am stating it in terms of its importance to me.
  
  Ensure perfect health for myself and family (Physical, mental and Spiritual)
  Nurture great relationships in family
  Achieve Professional goals
  
  Many will be surprised with the sequence of the priorities of my life, especially in this fast paced world. For most of them the last one (i.e. Professional goals) would be the top one on their priority list.
  
  I am very much sure that if I can ensure that the first two priorities are met, then the last one will be achieved automatically. Rather, I will definitely get better results than my expectations. Our overall sense of well being (i.e. great health and relationships) will produce the best results and that will be reflected in our professional goals.
  
  The Zone of Comfort can make us stagnant at any stage of our life and that can affect on the top priorities of our lives. I am not saying that to achieve these priorities, we should be restless all the time. But we need to make conscious efforts to come out of comfort zone from time to time.
  
  My personal opinion is that if you want to excel in all walks of your life, then one needs to come out of his/her comfort zone. Start with achieving your physical mastery. By physical mastery, I mean to maintain best possible health. If you can maintain the physical mastery, the mental and spiritual well being comes automatically with it. All this will reflect in our relationships and finally will help us to achieve professional goals beyond our expectations.
  
  The ones, who feel that they are already enjoying these things, then no need to do anything. They are doing great. J

Never Never Never Give up

About Running

I wanted to write something on this topic since quite some time. I am running since last few months and it has brought a kind of metamorphosis in my life.

My romance with running started earlier this year may be around February 2011. Thanks to my annual health report. My Cholesterol and Blood Pressure levels were slightly on upper side. It was a bit surprise for me, because I have a very active life and was particular about my diet.

Although there was nothing to worry about, I took it a bit seriously. I tried to dig into the root cause of the issue. Finally, we agreed upon the root cause: slow metabolism rate of my body.

I thought about two alternatives to get rid of this: Running and weight exercise training. Out of these, I chose running. I am a bit sluggish in doing gym/weight exercises.

As I started running, each and every muscle of my legs rebelled. During the first run, I could hardly run for 100 meters. But I tried to continue and slowly my body (Particularly legs) got used to running. Slowly, I increased my running up to 5 km without any break. On weekends I tried to push more and even touched 10 km at a stretch.

During the same time, I came across a book “Dare To Run” written by Amit seth. In this book, Amit has mentioned about his quest for running and his journey from starting to run for few meters to completing Comrades Marathon, in South Africa. Comrades Marathon is one of the toughest human marathons, which includes around 90 km of running, across hilly regions of South Africa.

This book gave a real boost for me and became a true motivating factor. Though I started running for maintaining my fitness, very soon it became my hobby. And at the moment it’s more than just a hobby.

When I start running, most of the time, my mind is overflowed with thoughts. But after some time, the thought process ceases. Then there comes a point where, my mind is free of any thoughts. I just try concentrate on my breathing. I get detached from the world around. My soul gets connected with god and I feel a kind of relaxation through out my body. Then I talk with my sub conscious and affirm that each step taken is guiding me to move towards my personal mastery. Then running becomes a spiritual way to connect with almighty, it becomes meditation for me. At the end of each run, I feel a sense of calmness and fulfilment. And to be honest, that period is the best one throughout my day.

Lessons Learnt:
Running has also taught me a few lessons.

• First of it is being patient about end results. A few months back, I tried to run in spite of severe pain in my left foot. Finally, it resulted in Ligament fracture and I could not run for next 2 months.



• Second lesson I learnt is to live in present and concentrate only on the task at hand. During the run, I focus all of my attention on the next step.



• Overcoming the mental barrier. The only factor which keeps us away from our personal mastery is our mind, the thought process. The same mind which was creating a mental block for me to run even 100 meters, obeys my determination to run 10 km now.

What next:
Continue running as much as I can and get benefitted from it. I am also eyeing for a Half Marathon on 6th Nov 2011. Right now, I have only 4 weeks of practice left. Though I haven’t tried any distant running since last 6 months, this looks a bit challenging. But I am still hopeful to make it. Currently i am struggling to run for even 2 km at a stretch. But i am determined to run as much as i can. So keeping my Fingers crossed and hoping for the best. !!!!!!!!!!!

Change Yourself First

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The following inscription is attributed to an Anglican Bishop (1100 A.D.)
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"When I was young and free and my imagination had no limits, I dreamed of changing the world. As I grew older and wiser, I discovered the world would not change, so I shortened my sights somewhat and decided to change only my country. But it, too, seemed immovable.

As I grew into my twilight years, in one last desperate attempt, I settled for changing only my family, those closest to me, but alas, they would have none of it.

And now, as I lie on my deathbed, I suddenly realize: If I had only changed myself first, then by example I would have changed my family.

From their inspiration and encouragement, I would then have been able to better my country, and who knows, I may have even changed the world."

Finding Daily Inspiration

It is up to an individual to find the purpose of his/her life. To find that purpose, one needs to look at the spiritual side of life. For that, we need to invest some amount of time from our daily life. It can be anything like indulging in hobbies, spending time with our dear ones, reading, introspection, meditation,etc. And the list can go endless.

For me, Quotes written by great people gives me a lot of inspiration. It gives me strength when the chips are down and things are not going well. On the other hand, it makes me to feel better, when everything is going smooth. I just do not read it but try to remember it and apply it to me to some extent. Following are my 20 favourite quotes. These are collected from numerous web sites, blogs, books and other stuffs.
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“Lord, grant me the strength to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference- Reinhold Niebuhr

“Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” - Martin Luther King, Jr

"And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it." - Paulo Coelho (The Alchemist)

"If you cry because the sun has gone out of your life, your tears will prevent you from seeing the stars." - Rabindranath Tagore

"It is very simple to be happy, but it is very difficult to be simple." - Rabindranath Tagore

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” — Mary Anne Radmacher

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” — Winston Churchill

“Winners compare their achievements with their goals, while losers compare their achievements with those of other people.” — Nido Qubein

“The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” — Mark Twain

"Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.” — African Proverb

“You alone are the judge of your worth and your goal is to discover infinite worth in yourself, no matter what anyone else thinks.” — Deepak Chopra

“Change your thoughts and you change your world.” — Norman Vincent Peale

“The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.” -Helen Keller

"The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.” - Deepak Chopra

"The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times." - Paulo Coelho (The Alchemist)

"The simple things are also the most extraordinary things, and only the wise can see them." — Paulo Coelho (The Alchemist)

"A child can teach an adult three things: to be happy for no reason, to always be busy with something, and to know how to demand with all his might that which he desires." - Paulo Coelho

"Anyone who loves in the expectation of being loved in return is wasting their time." - Paulo Coelho (The Devil and Miss Prym)
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Resources:
Books by Paulo Coelho
News Papers
http://sourcesofinsight.com/
http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/36913.Rabindranath_Tagore