Tuesday, December 31, 2013

"A Newyear Note" - My 2013 round up

The clock is ticking away. 2012 ."OOPS! I mean, 2013 so far has been a good year". Even before I say this , the year is about to end. I am writing this article before the clock ticks 12midnight on Dec 31st 2013 to prove that I can run a race along with time. Hence this extra effort in writing this blog post before 01-01-2014 even if having a fistful amount of time is getting tough these days. I wrote a post "The Gurgaon Diaries" sometime early this year but it feels like yesterday. The Gurgaon Diaries post summarizes my stay in Delhi in 2012 just after my wedding. Now that 2014 is nearing and my wedding anniversary is just round the corner I thought, why not summarize the year 2013 in a different style :) I never take resolutions on Jan 1st as I love doing random things. I always pray to God for good health and happiness the way it is mentioned on any new year post card on the day 1 of every year :) But 2013 has been a good learning year for me.  The lessons learnt and the realizations I had may turn to resolutions for the coming year. The top ten happenings and few lessons learnt in the year 2013 are like below. If you strike a chord with them I would be glad. This post has both optimistic and pessimistic stuff which happened in 2013 blog-wise and otherwise ;) . If you are a highly optimistic person and can't read a serious note on the eve of new year's day you may skip the post!

The opinions and views expressed in this post are purely mine and most of this post is about me!

1.) We flew to Bangalore with lot of dreams soaring high in the sky and I fell in love with the city, climate and the frequent drizzles till date. After many years I didn't even switch on the fan in the month of the May!
We had a bad owner experience in the first week and didn't like the rent policies, heavy movie fares and regional feelings few have here.

2.)As always my blog was my savior and this year has been special to me as I was added to a group on FB - "Indibloggeshwaris"- women of tough-stance!I realized I can be both sane and insane here and was super glad to see that there are actually many people like me around! I got my daily dose of gyan , fun and sense from this group. There usually are good vibes and warmth with in the group.
I got emotionally attached to one or two bloggers which didn't do much good and I realized I shouldn't draw conclusions quickly(both good and bad) and I shouldn't get carried away and cling to them emotionally!

3.)This year is again special as I won a couple of prizes on Indiblogger and some other blog contests (by Jabong and Purplle.com ) . I was overwhelmed as I left the thought of bagging the prizes. Competitions always keep me going when ever I have writer's block but winning was like icing on cake.
I witnessed too many bloggers blogging about the contests .Many declared that the process of selecting the winning entries is all bogus. I too nod at this as I felt the same at many junctures. A recent winning entry on blogadda.com strengthened the feeling. But few bloggers took an extra mile and passed the commandments and the fundamental rights of blogging that people who blog for contests should quit blogging. That definitely was a bummer and I realized there can be many complications in people who seem sweet and warm outward. Even the congrats conveyed by few was stifling! I personally liked Indiblogger's TEDx Videos (Franklin Templeton) , My Yatra and futuristic shopping contests! I like the contests where I can write and it helps me put a full stop to writer's block most of the times even if few contest topics are lame!
4.) Sadly I didn't do much of reading this year as most of the year went in settling down, trying for a job and freelancing.
Planning a reading schedule this year as I realized I shouldn't link it to all other issues. Planning to be more productive and to make myself more useful in whatever possible way :)

5.) I knew too many bloggers this year. Each came in a unique package with their own baggages. I was loved and liked by few which made me feel good. I loved many of their write ups. I participated in  the April A to Z challenge and was overwhelmed when many showered their praises on me (I never had so many visitors on my blog) .I felt - "May be I really do write good :) :)" . I wrote a total of 164 posts this year (including this) which is double to what I wrote in 2012-  To me it is a Biggg achievement !

Too much of love is always jinxed. It didn't take me much time to realize this. The stark fact which almost gave me a halo around my head is that , "People who appreciate you in a second can also depreciate you in a nano second."


6.) A bitter taste still lingers in my mouth when I remember an interaction I had with a renowned blogger who treated me extra warmly till that date. I also came across few old and few good friends behaving in a formal and a weird fashion all of a sudden. May be all are fighting their own demons or may be the number 13 is not auspicious as per the age old belief 
 Taking things easy became an every day practice to me. I was pleasantly surprised when many new/old bloggers and new/old friends stood for me. I don't want to tag any but my heartfelt thanks to all of them!


7.) We celebrated our first anniversary in 2013 but we didn't travel as much as we did in 2012. This definitely disappointed me.
The visit to Wonder la , Nandi Hills and ShivanaSamudram made me glad. I fell in love with Bangalore yet again.
Beautiful , foggy Nandi Hills

GaganChukki Falls of ShivanaSamudram

8.)I was told , "I write heart felt posts. I have good sense of humor and my randomness is my USP by many "good" bloggers and was encouraged by many to kick start the process of getting my poetry book published."
 I gathered the information for getting my poems published but haven't kick started the process. Hopefully I will budge this year :( !

9.) Tooooo many weddings happened this year. The songs which are playing in my mind are - Band Baaja Baaraat, Saajan ji Ghar aaye, Didi Tera Dewar Deewana, Dulhe ka sehra suhaana lagta hai . Gud naal Ishaq mithaa ohooooooo :P and many more:) I am still in celebration mood. I am attending weddings since the month of March. May God bless the new couples( My bro and My husbands' brothers and few friends and cousins got married this year). Heartiest congrats to all who became Mommies and Daddies too!
I hogged and hogged on food which is bad :( ! The time has come for self control and hitting the gym back in a vigorous mode.
Our Flat decorated on my brother's wedding


10.) Last but not the least- Something which was uttered by my Mom after her recent visit to Ongole( the town where I spent my childhood) and after facing few folks with Jalebi feelings in heart - She was saying that some 15 years back, houses were small and hearts were warm and big . Now houses are bigger and hearts have become narrow ! Even if I felt it was cinematic then I later realised it's a harsh fact ! May be it is lack of time or the competition in life or the overpowering jealousy but many peoples' hearts have become narrow! Great expectations from others and least responsiveness from their side. Crying over others victories and never acknowledging them during their happy moments are few other symptoms of HNS- heart narrow syndrome ! There are many other symptoms which I am skipping for now . Final thought is that emotional detachment is needed as and when time demands it or else you will live in the caves of the past and never see the light of the future!

 Yes few hearts are narrow but even in the present time and age few warm and empathetic hearts mesmerize and inspire me!

Finally I want to end this note on a good note. You might have got it by now , what I am trying to convey here. I will just say it anyway. Where ever there is good there is bad in the waiting list and vice-versa. Pros-Cons, Good-Bad, Beautiful-Ugly , Honest-Dishonest(fake), Love-Hate are all intertwined.
It may sound philosophical but yes that's how it is.

Whenever you feel too good about yourself or about something you did, be sure that few will be just lurking behind you to pull you down.
When ever you feel beautiful , be sure that ugly hearts try to spread their disease rapidly.
Whenever  you love some one don't think it will  always get reciprocated.
Where ever there is pros there is cons too. Where ever there is new , there is some thing old too. 

Be thankful for whatever good happened to you in this old year -2013. Do not get worked up about 2014. By the end of next year the problems of the year which passed by will seem trivial , funny and may be not like problems at all! Keep smiling to keep going.



Finally Good bye to the bad parts of the year like  friendships which never lasted, misoverunderstanding (misunderstanding overly- a new word coined by me a couple of days back :D ), virtual realities and the true lies. Remember the good parts of the year like friends who lasted for a reason , season or may be for much longer, people who listened to you even when you were silent, parents and siblings who never left your side and so on so forth. Try to multiply the goodness in the next year!

Welcome to the year of betterment .Ya. I know. We say this every year, but I have a feeling that this year will be and has to be better than the last!
Wish you all a merry Christmas and well a very Happy new year (2014) in advance.

A quote which I used to love but can't stick to it any more.
  • “People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered. Love them anyway." - An excerpt from Mother Teresa's quote. Sorry Mother Teresa. It is very tough to implement this. :)

A quote which I want to tweak -
  • "Justice delayed is justice denied----> " Regret delayed is regret denied."  If you have any regrets let the other person know well in advance. Do not beat behind the bush and suck their blood !
My favorite quotes for this year --
  • "You can't let praise or criticism get to you. It's a weakness to get caught up in either one."--- John Wooden
  • "You got a dream. You gotta protect it. Never let any one tell you you can't do something. Not even me" - From-- Pursuit of Happyness

  • A big Lesson Learnt : Things which come to you easily are most of the times jinxed. The efforts you put to get something will surely give you satisfaction even if it is jinxed.

Along with health and happiness I pray to God that we all find good compatriots , good vibes and possess the positivity to shadow the bad!

Before I make it sound like a project document want to end it here ;)

My song for this year


Wish you all a merry Christmas and well a very Happy new year well in advance.

Love
Afshan

19 comments:

  1. Good one, Thanks for tagging me in !!!

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  2. May 2014 be all that you dream of Afshan. Let bygones be just that. Look forward to a new journey, and an adventurous one at that. Happy New Year.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Blogwati Gee. Your wish means a lot :)
      Happy new year to u too

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  3. Afshan we've all learnt a couple of lessons this year ;) Lets move on and usher in the new year. Wishing you loads and loads of happiness. <3

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  4. Afshan, very well-written post. Just like you I too have had many good and bad experiences in 2013. But I guess that's what makes life worth fighting for. I wish you lots n lots of health, happiness, peace and more power for writing. You're one of the good people I got to know in 2013 and trust me when I say this comes straight from my heart. Keep smiling! :-)

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    Replies
    1. I am also glad that I came to know you :)
      Thanks for ur wishes Rekha..More power for writing and success to u tooo
      Happy newyear

      Delete
  5. Happy New Year to you and your family.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks SG happy new year to u and ur family too

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  6. What a nice way to sum up the year gone by. Happy New Year to you Afshan. May this year be filled with joy. :)

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    1. Thanks Pooja.
      New year wishes to u and ur family as well

      Delete
  7. what an eventful year! well put up. nice Afshan :)

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    1. Thanks Ayesha :) It was not very eventful but was full of lessons for life time

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  8. Loooks like you had a kickass year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Happy New year love!!
    May you have a better 2014!!!

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    1. @Red Handed : Lubbb u 2 <3 !!
      Lookng fwd to read u more in 2014
      good lck and a hpppppy new year to u too

      Delete
  9. Wishing you happiness always !! Hugs :)
    Waiting to meet you soon...

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  10. WIsh you a very, very happy 2014 Afshan... I feel that you have a soft heart and people can hurt you easily...I'm also the same and it hurts me , these days I try to keep it within me but I know it's quite a task dealing with people , bloggers or not...

    Wish all your dreams come true !

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What do you think about this ? I always love to hear back. A comment or a brickbat boosts me to write more but the mud slinging shall be promptly vacuumed.

Thanks for your time :)

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