Challenging body limits!!!

After a long time, my fingers are again typing words on my blog and oh boy...I almost forgot when I wrote a proper blog last time. And this is a challenge that I put forward to me to have the blogging hands run continuously...no matter what.

Well, talking of challenges, I now want to share my recent body challenge while my trek to Trikuta mountains which to many of you, yes, will remind about Mata Vaishno Devi. For others who are unaware, this is the hill where resides the mythological figure, goddess Vaishnavi or Vaishno Devi, as called in general. Essentially, the valley of Trikuta Mountain has the auspicious abode to Vaishno Devi Temple and Shrine. While I am not that religious but challenge to climb a hill 1560 meters above sea level was encouraging and challenging simultaneously.
Challenging, because with age I had felt that my health, stamina and will power declining and certainly the trek with 1000 meter plus height above sea level is, in general, a challenging activity especially if it is time-bound.
Encouraging, because with this trek, I was willing to break the buster of being old and convince myself (at-least mentally if not physically) by making myself believe psychologically that I am not done yet, I am still young and restless. :)
And finally, above all let my wife know of my strong will power and strength.

So it begins. We had chosen an awkward time of 1 AM to start our trek and targeted to be back by morning 8 AM. This was an optimistic goal, which practically was quite challenging to achieve. But I had my business call to take the next day and coming back early was important. Also, we chose late night for avoiding the hot temperature of the day. (Though it was not hot as per our standards as it was monsoon but still we have not taken any risk. You never know when the sun can shine just above your head in north). Also, we were expecting less crowd in our way during the late-night journey. As we headed towards the top we found ourselves aloof alone and confused, if we have taken the right path. There was a new path which was recently opened for visitors, which is not used by visitors much as of now and is a little longer. We have taken that route and it was dark, with the only couple of people visible after a km or two. Anyways I was in full 'enthu' showing my strength, running in ahead of my wife for initial half an hour, I guess. Suddenly I started feeling tired, all drenched in sweat and feeling too much heat on my body. After an hour, I felt I can not catch my wife anymore with the steady and smooth trek she was having. Also, I was needing rest after every 20 mins or so...while my wife was all ready for trekking continuously. And here came the eye-opener for me. How much I have wasted my body in these last years. Once I use to run entire mid-size stadium four times without any 'uffs' and 'aahs', and here I am today with needing rest, paining calf and thighs just after a steep walk of almost 1.5 hours. After which I almost left the hope to reach to the top of the valley where the temple was situated. My entire heroism got shattered. And my entire idea of making myself believe good of my youthfulness, gone in the trash too. And after some time my legs started shaking little. I was feeling as wasted, especially in front of my highly active wife who like Johnnie Walker was 'Keep Walking'.
It was all foggy and dark night with the jungle in the surrounding. It was almost when I planned to quit, it started raining. We were inside shade still could feel drizzles touching us. I could feel rejuvenated and more energetic as more drizzles were making my body wet and finally I decided to take a quick shower in rain. And it worked. It almost took away a lot of my exhaustiveness and fatigue. And I felt as if I have gained some energy and started walking again with all energy.

Getting Rejuvenated in Rain

And it must be another 20 mins of walk after that and duuh...I was down again. All my pomp and show of being energetic again was reduced to the size of the atom. Finally, somehow I reached to a central post where we could rest and eat for some time. And that has given me some break which led me to start again. And this time I was adamant of winning over all my tiredness. And I walked continuously for a long time. But again a time and situation came when I started feeling cold and shivering, obviously with exhausted as well. Suddenly I could see the glimpse of the temple, the ultimate trek goal. And it was more serene than I thought of. The image below speaks of itself. That first view gave me another push to reach toward the goal. Thinking of it's just 'little more', I dragged myself along the way. I was way beyond my wife in my stamina and energy but not in determination.

The first glimpse

While I was entirely drenched in sweat, for which my wife was afraid of if I am getting dehydrated, I was getting energized by this view of snow and cloud clad mountains through which artificial lights were making their rooms during dawn. And getting attracted by the same view I further moved and in a while, we could now see the view of the temple which was mesmerizing. Though I was tired obviously, suddenly this picture made me walk for the milestone. And I moved again...

First view of temple

Finally, I reached atop, to the temple. Not only I did that, but I also stood their straight for one hour waiting for the turn to enter the temple. Round of temple took another hour. So overall it was an exhaustive trek which challenged my body limits. As I was feeling proud of myself for completing it and boasting in front of my wife, I suddenly started feeling cold and body started shivering. All my prized and possessed moments are taken by something or someone wrong. That's the tragedy of my life which I have now accepted harshly. And so happened here where all my happiness were taken away by the sudden fever that I started feeling in my body. Knowing the fact that I had to go downhill the same distance, my spine got chilled. While all through this, my wife kept making fun of me for I was just somehow able to complete the trek. That's what she thought. And since I was having fever, I could not even say that I am all fine. And with an act of losing my dignity, I asked her if we can go downhill on the horse instead of walking. And she understood what was going inside me. We took the horse ride back. Anyways sharing some images of ours and our moment in Jammu.

Happy together downhill

Together at top

Posing

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My first times - Part I

For each and every thing and experiences in life,  there were always first time in your life and today I am going to share some of mine such experiences. Hope many of you can relate with many of them or at-least can remember yours.
Although little bit, but I can precisely remember when I was kid and was being sent to school for the first time which was close to home and so close that the peon of the school use to come to collect all kids from neighborhood to school. I don't know why but that peon always seems to be a giant devil and as soon as I used to see him coming I always felt that he is going to take me away forever, never to bring back. Amidst the road in front of everybody I use to cry and cry a lot.so much so that my parents use to say 'OK leave the school for the day'. I used to be happy again. This way I had wasted almost first 3 months of my school and finally my dad regularly started taking me to school everyday and I somehow got fit into it.
My first time of public piss in school was another amazing story. Though I was very conscious of these thing but that day somehow I couldn't control myself and pissed in my pants and then lady peon came and hold me in the air and sent directly outside the school premise to a ground where all such cases were made to sit in sunlight so that their clothes get dry and so was I was made to sit like a cock as a punishment of the same. Some even used to say that in that particular position dresses get dried sooner.
Further as I grew and got some senses, we have got some kind of brouhaha about talking to girls meeting to them or infact even looking at them. It was as if they were aliens and in turn they use to do the same with boys. But on one occasion in an event I was chosen to dance with a girl with all those ball dance like steps. They chose me particularly because I was good in studies and probably flexible at that time being good in outdoor games as well. Rehearsals started for the occasion and god knows how nervous I was. My hands and legs were shivering, as the girl came close to me I started perspiring and as soon as we hold each other's hand on teacher's instruction, an electric shock ran across my body and finally she put her hand across my waist I started perspiring which was unstoppable even when it was winter. Worst was when teacher asked me to put my hand around her waist and it was a disaster afterwards. There was a palpitation in my stomach and then in my whole body. I just said sorry and ran away from that place, never ever to dance again in my whole life in any event or function and that's the reason I am still a poor dancer.

And then there were the first times that you never want to remember as they were not because of your innocence but because of your losing innocence and breaking trust of your parents and people who believe in you. I got caught stealing toffees from a shop, got caught of cheating in exams, slapped by teachers and principals. I don't know why I did all that. I always had enough money in my pockets to buy toffees and above all not fond of them even. Was good in studies as well but cheated and let other cheat. I guess that use to give me a thrill of different form, for being the first time I get a new sense of some achievements even after knowing that they were wrong.

In next part I will share some more interesting first timers of mine.

आज मैंने रोटी बनाई

आज मैंने रोटी बनाई,
नरम नरम..
गरम गरम..
गोल गोल..
इजी टू रोल!!

काश मैं तुमको दिखा पाता,
संग तुम्हारे प्यार से खाता..
तुम्हारे फेवरिट सब्जी के साथ,
लिए हाथों में तुम्हारा हाँथ..
यूँ काट जाती सारी रात,
मरी रोटी की करते हुए बात..

तुम्हारी रोटियों से करता मैं कम्पेयर,
यूँ करते एक दूसरे का फीडबैक शेयर..
की कभी तुम चिढ़ती, कभी मैं गुस्साता,
पर अंततः खाना तुम्हारे साथ ही खाता..

पर अब कहाँ तुम आओगी,
मेरी रोटी कैसे खा पाओगी..
और कभी कभार ही सही पर,
मेरी रोटी ना खा पाने पर पछताओगी..

और मैं तुम्हे बताता रहूँगा,
हरदम जताता रहूँगा..
देखो किस सिचुएशन में लाइफ ले आई,
आज मैंने रोटी बनाई !!

Me and My Grandpa!!

It was my summer vacation and I had gone to my Grandpa's Home. (Our paternal home)
It is a big farm house kind of place where we have our own farmland, Mango gardens which use to have its own smell of mango, tamarind plants with lots of tamarind fallen besides each tree, and then there were trees of berries and all. And fields have crops like rice wheat and pulses.It had been a day and suddenly next day early in the morning I saw my grandpa was suggesting each and everyone like me (cousins and other relatives) of what work they have to do. Some have to ranch the cattle and let them graze, some had to clean the front area of farmhouse by removing all small and big stones, then clean it using home made broom.
So the basic agenda of my grandpa used to be that no one should sit at home without any work.It was like one has to work in their own home to earn the bread. I can still remember the pure and fresh air and I was taking the calf with me to graze and it was my first time. I was kinda loving it till the time calf jumped on my feet and injured my feet with its hoof. Blood spurted out from my legs. And i was further free of all work but after getting a scolding that I can't even do a small piece of work. Even after being injured I was kind of happy being relieved of all work. And then suddenly my grandpa saw me sitting idle and he came and started asking me about my studies and how are they going. To his expectation I passed all his small tests that he took in English, Maths and Science. But then came the Sanskrit where he was master and I had learnt little bit whatever I read in school. And then he made me do lot of exercises in Sanskrit without even asking whether it was applicable to my grade of boy or not. He had made me learnt many verses, shlokas and mantras. Soon he had made me learnt lot of grammar just by spotting my mistake. I was unaware of these things as I had never read them in school. But after so many scoldings and beatings he had made me learn the basics and learn it very strongly. Things like Roops and all that I used to mug up , suddenly came to me naturally. I could just say roop of any word merely after knowing its name. Nothing else was required. And when I was back in my school, I saw that I was so strong in Sanskrit that I was able to complete whole book in one go including the grammar one. I can talk to teacher in sanskrit and soon school people started thinking me as a prodigy in Sanskrit which according to my grandpa was too bad. :)
Next I can remember my grandpa taking me to the rice field of ours where the rice was just being sown and field being leveled. It had rained and the water in the field was reaching till my feet. Even then he gave me the seeds and asked to sow them in a straight query, next level them properly. And next he has asked me to plough some land, axe down some logs and what not.
He was renowned for his mastery in all kind of pujas and almanc related predictions in nearby towns and villages. People from distant area used to come to him for seeking his advice on some or the other things.
So there are many memories of mine which were associated with him. And few week back he passed away. I was very lucky enough to meet him just before his demise. He had lost his speaking capability partially and was suffering from dementia. Even then he recognized me and wanted to ask me many things and tell lot of things...
May his soul rest in peace.

Monsoon blues

Those rainy days
To each other we gaze

And that old rusty scooty
Where we used to keep our booty

And those narrow broken roads
Our trips between beach and our abodes

Beautiful moments of worth dollar million
And we swap being rider and a pillion

Sometimes driving fast and sometime so slow
Singing like cuckoo, sometimes shouting like crow

And all the time we had each other's holding
And many a times used to get your scolding

Where else but Goa

Your getting plum and peach
On exploring every new beach

Where are those beautiful days
With time one surely pays

Goan Monsoon

Karwa Chauth Moon

Wiping and Sweeping 
In stranger's home,
Giving fee for children,
Making Roti Chapati,
In someone else's kitchen
To make her own kitchen run
Listening to cheap abuses
Of the alcoholic husband
Assaulted physically
By gambler husband
Got raped each night
Still,
She keeps Karwa Chauth Fast

Wish....
The moon had been women
Then 
In the dark life of theirs
There had been little light