Remembering 2024.. Welcoming 2025 !!!

2132nd BLOG POST

It has been almost a week since celebrating the New Year Evening and welcoming 2025 with open arms. How wonderful it is to hope for best every time we change calendars at our home. It has been so many years yet I feel the same enthusiasm whenever I realize that the current year is about to end and the new one is about to start. It always brings with it a positive vibes and belief that everything will get better and beautiful. I have a lot of expectations from 2025. This is the year which can bring a lot many changes in my life from both- personal and career perspective. All the graphs in my life are currently moving upwards and I hope 2025 provides them the zenith they are trying to hit.

 

But before welcoming anything new, we look at the old which was with us and gave its support until the new replaced it. In the same regards, it becomes mandatory to look back at 2024 and revisit the year. 2025 shall be whatever it is because 2024 has been a certain way. Thankfully, 2024 has been a year of transformation for sure. There were few common yearly targets and milestones that happened successfully but along with the regulars, there were some new elements, surprises, shocks and tragedy too. It’s time to get into bullet format to make it easier for all of you to go through them within two to three minutes:

 

👉 Reached the milestone of 2100th Blog Post & 15 years of Blogging. Though I must say that I should have written more than just reviewing books.

 

👉Completed the Reading Challenge of 36 books yet again. (Completed this milestone by giving all my time in last 2.5 months by reading 22 books in just 75 days)

 

👉Won 2nd position in Hackathon competition at my organization. An event where my idea got shortlisted from 200+ ideas to Top 80, then Top 26, Top 14 and finally in Top 2. This is definitely a rare professional achievement which isn’t very easy to get.

 

👉Got a chance to present my project to multiple Reserve Bank of India's officials which boosted my confidence. This is special because these were dignitaries who are at higher designations and presenting to them needs lot of preparation, confidence and team’s belief.

 

👉Gave multiple training sessions in my company which was a distinct experience indeed. This is again special because I always aspired to give training sessions to colleagues of my department and team of freshers.

 

👉Traveled to Goa twice

 

👉Traveled to Pondicherry and Mahabalipuram; my 1st-ever South-Eastern India visit. Did my first ever scuba-diving here.

 

👉Had a long drive in my new Altroz car to Jhansi and once again gave surprise to my dear siblings. Meeting with my sister is always among the most beautiful and joyful moments of my life. The farewell was definitely teary-eyed for all of us. It took hours to get back to normal. 😊

 

👉My chachaji and buaji family visited us which provided the needed refreshment. This was again special as Rakhi was tied to me on the day of Rakshabandhan directly by one of my cousin sisters otherwise have always received Rakhis in envelopes.

 

👉Had a great time at Kaun Banega Crorepati sets and got another chance to interact with my idol, Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. It was just the 4^th episode of this season.

 

👉Experienced the Bollywood divas- Katrina Kaif & Kriti Sanon in an interview live in front of my eyes. They are as tall as Burj Khalifas and as beautiful as a Full Moon and Setting Sun.

 

👉Also experienced watching Kapil Sharma show shooting. Got an opportunity to experience the legendary Rekha ji, Kapil Sharma, Krishna, Sunil Grover, Kiku Sharma, Rajiv Thakur etc. performing live in front of us.

 

👉Enjoyed watching Zakir Khan (3^rd time), Biswa Kalyan Rath and Ravi Verma's standup comedy live.

 

👉Attended Jubin Nautiyal's concert which was a lifetime experience. My best ever concert ever!

 

👉Had a good time with office friends in multiple night-outs.

 

👉I was able to perform Ekadashi fasting for all the 11^th day of moon cycle without missing a single one. Om Namo Bhagvate Vasudevay!

 

👉Experienced many of the above moments with someone whom I met this year and made my life magical. It can be what you are thinking or may be something completely different. Keep guessing! 😉

 

Well, when life gives you these many special moments to remember, it also brings along few difficult ones as well. As a human being having most of things not in our control, it’s our duty to accept our weakness and vulnerability rather than staying with the pain and not leaving it for life.

 

Lost Verma Uncle – the only person whose palm-reading I trusted. He was more like a family member and losing him suddenly made me feel incomplete for a long time. Lost another family member with whom I couldn’t meet and directly being at the funeral was a painful moment for me. I am still not completely out of it but as I said, will accept it shortly. From the professional perspective, I had to bear a very toxic person because of whom I had to suffer for 4 months continuously where each day felt like being jailed and tortured. He ended up spoiling a lot of things for me but thankfully, I regained more than that in the 2^nd half of the year. Being at the right place at the right time between the right people really helps.

 

Overall, 2024 has been an year when beautiful things has happened to me the impact of which shall stay for all my life. Thanking God for listening to my prayers and providing me whatever he feels is best for me.

 

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year 2025. Hope you have your resolutions ready. 😊

 

Thanks!

 

WRITING BUDDHA

Ullu Bhai Ki Jagmagati Barat by Swati Sinha (Book Review: 4.25*/5) !!!

2131st BLOG POST

36^th Book of 2024

Well, and finally I complete my reading target of 36 books by reading almost 22 books in last 2.5 months. After an unbelievable reading marathon, I chose to read Sonalika Publication’s Ullu Bhai Ki Jagmagati Barat which is a short Hindi story book for kids. This year I have read many books from their publications house which are meant for kids and I am jealous of the fact that I didn’t get such story books in my childhood to read.

 

This book is written by Swati Sinha with a great support from the illustrator, Sachi Shukla. Her illustrations and graphics bring life to the story. This book is perfectly designed for kids who have just started reading properly from the year of 5 and above. Swati Sinha’s story is about the King Lion announcing the marriage of an Owl which rejoices everyone. But it comes with a challenge wherein the owl’s marriage shall be performed during night when it becomes difficult to travel. A Small mongoose then comes up with an idea which helps them beat this challenge.

 

Any story meant for kids is incomplete if it doesn’t come up with a moral. Swati takes extreme care about this and involves a lot of lessons in this short story. It teaches about the teamwork as to how everyone can sit together and come to a decision. It also signifies the importance of considering everyone’s intelligence equal and allowing everyone to speak.

 

It reflects upon how even the smallest of insects can also help the whole group of animals in the jungle for which even the King Lion didn’t have any solution. Author emphasizes on friendship and how it helps everyone in the process.

 

The book further ends with few DIY exercises for children which will push their creativity. Overall, this is a good initiative Sonalika CSR group to spread knowledge among young kids and develop them into better and compassionate human beings. I give this book 4.25 stars out of 5.

 PURCHASE THE BOOK HERE

Thanks!

WRITING BUDDHA

The Heart of Understanding by Thich Nhat Hanh (Book Review: 4.5*/5) !!!

2130th BLOG POST

35^th Book of 2024

Well, there’s a tendency I have observed in my reading marathon where I always start and end my year with either spiritual or self-help books. And this is definitely not planned but a pattern that I have observed. After reading Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet, I picked up “The Heart of Understanding” written by Thich Nhat Hanh today and completed it within two hours with slow and mindful reading. This book by Aleph publication also comes up with a tagline that says “Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy and Liberation”.

 

The book starts with a foreword by Shantum Seth who tells how he got intrigued by Buddha’s teachings and went through trainings like Vipassana etc. after which the teachings of Thich started inspiring him. The foreword gives the book a good start as you are first taken into confidence before starting with the real content. Then there’s a second foreword as well written by Peter Levitt. Here he introduces us with Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra which is one of the Buddhist teachings through which you can discover a way for peace to be realized. This Sutra is basically what this book is all about.

 

As I have myself been to Vipassana meditation recourse for 11 days, I was able to relate with the concepts being discussed in the book. The chapter starts with making us understand how all of us are tied together as Interbeing. None of us can survive without each other. Author helps us understand it with a great example of paper as to how a paper can’t exist without wood, cloud, water, sunshine, soil, time, space, the earth, the river, the heat etc. It gives immense clarity behind the logic that we have the whole Universe within us as well as being a part of the whole Universe as well.

 

Further, author explores the concept of emptiness and breaks down the concept of duality for us. It makes us comprehend how every positive thing exist because of non-positive elements and vice-versa. It realizes us of the fact that when we get the food, it is because someone else is not able to. That makes us understand the term called “Inter-are” where all of us are present because of someone’s absence.

 

The concepts are definitely new and gives the Buddhist vibes throughout. It helps us understand the law of nature and appreciate everything- good or bad – because the beauty of life is such. It also explores the fact that just life and death are not our starting and ending point but we continue even before and after that. It helps us understand that just as wave is water and water is wave, similarly we are just a wave which shall keep on occurring and dissolving.

 

Overall, the book is full of spiritual wisdom which is enjoyed by someone like me who has always believed in it. It ends with the topic on meditation and chanting as well. I never read anything by Thich Nhat Hanh before but after this, I am sure I am going to explore more of his writings and learnings. I give this book 4.5 stars out of 5.

Thanks!

 PURCHASE THE BOOK HERE

WRITING BUDDHA