On Sugar Paper

I have been a part of some really wonderful stories. Yesterday was one such time. My student Ansita has been helping me with Warm Regards since the day it started. When we got our first order and we wanted to recruit women, nobody knew where to start. We called Ansita and her sister Neha and together the two sisters, got us a room full of women, when we really only wanted five. Since then, Ansita has been part of most discussions and has been meeting the women and checking on them. On her own. She has not been instructed or asked to do any of this because of course, we adults think we can manage everything. The other day, one of the women shared with me how Ansita has been going around explaining the work and getting things for her so that she can finish the bedsheet that she has been working on. I was surprised. As a token of my appreciation, I wanted to give Ansita some money. She is responsible enough to use it wisely and also, I know she can save for some future needs. ...

I am a slow child. I am mostly slow, even as an adult. Let's go back a few decades to when I was born. My birth was difficult. I was born premature and a lot of people thought I wouldn't live more than a few days. When I was two, I got chronic bronchitis which continued for 13 years. There were several nights when my mum sat up with me, watching me struggling to breathe and wondered if I was going to see the next morning. I was bad at Math. So bad, that I am sure, my Math teachers didn't even know I existed. I ate slow. There have been countless dinners where my father has yelled at me because I would take hours to finish the food on my plate. Eating with people therefore stresses me out. I am mostly the last one to finish. I found Economics quite tough in college. I never understood what was being taught and came home every single day and sat with my books to read on my own and catch up with the class. Unfit and slow. Those are the two adjectives that could perhaps ...

Nature has several lessons to teach me. Whenever I go to my plants with a question, there is almost always an answer waiting. It's like they read my mind and prepare to make me happy.  The end of December to end of February was a very difficult time for me. I was struggling with some personal issues and nothing seemed too promising on the job front either. There were a lot of things I had invested my time, energy and resources in but nothing really seemed to pick up. ATC had slowed down and no ideas to revive it were convincing enough. Project and job offers came in plenty but none of them really caught my attention. My business was moving so slow that we could think it was almost shutting down even before it had started. There was a lull.  At the same time, I sowed some seeds from my seed box, reluctantly - marigold, calendula, sunflower, carnation, bhindi, tomato, and even a fruit that we had in Sri Lanka- Nelli. I sowed jowar, basil and periwinkle. These were seed...

I know how I want to die. I am very afraid of death and still get a bit superstitious about it (yes, this post has been edited several times!) Just recently RD called me to inform me of her father's death. She told me that her father had been diagnosed with brain cancer and he had chosen to not go through any treatment. In the months that he had he prepared them for his death. This post is not going to be about the physical aspect of my death but the emotional and mental aspect of it. I guess I want to die making everyone feel that I have lived enough. The problem as I see is not of the one who has died- the dead are on an adventure of their own. It's the ones who they leave behind that are filled with regret, sadness and a sense of loss. In order to leave others happier when I die, (maybe not 'happy' but at least not distraught) this is what I will do: 1. Tell people how happy and appreciative I am of my life. I don't want people to think that my life is sad and I...

Why a product review? I have been looking to buy a spot corrector for several months. I am not a fan of chemical products hence I find myself looking for safe alternatives. I have also been experimenting with natural home remedies for dark spot correction and thought I would look out for some chemical based dark spot correctors on the side. After looking for a product I thought I would buy, I checked its review and found it very unconvincing. Every product the reviewer had assessed was being termed 'the best'. That's when I thought that the review was unreliable and saw the need for some well researched and trusted reviews. My love for an environmentally sustainable life has also made me averse to using high priced products that come with several side effects. Organic products are safe and if I have to go by what Bharati Malani of Waterline Cosmetics says, a lot of what we use on the skin gets absorbed into our blood stream. The harmful ingredients in the products ca...

An Easy Guide is something that I have always looked out for. Travelling to a brand new place and sometimes alone can be extremely daunting because of the uncertainties. I have, therefore, at several points in my life reached out to people to share their itineraries with me. A tried and tested recipe is always better than something that has not been tried. These Easy Guides are for people who would like a little bit of certainty in their travel- and personally, I think, thats a good thing! These easy guides cut out the obvious like how to get to a certain place. This Easy Guide to Varanasi is long overdue. I visited Varanasi in August 2014 and had a wonderful trip. I stayed there for three nights and promised myself that I would be back. Varanasi, one of the oldest cities in India, is really that- old. There is garbage, animals, and people dressed in ancient clothes in plenty. It is wonderful. And mind you, the garbage I am talking about is not the plastic wrappers of fast foods-...

1. A new job with the pay I want. I can't believe how little people pay. People studying in premier institutes are getting paid unimaginable salaries for managing a mere ten people and probably some spelling errors in a computer programme. But if you want to change the country's education system by influencing a hundred teachers and therefore a few thousand students- you be happy with a few thousand rupees because you are so noble anyway. Why corrupt yourself with money?  2. Picking up: I have been a bit down the past week. Yes, I have been reading, knitting, cooking and yelling at builders to get the elevator fixed but other things have halted. Today, I promise you, is a new day.  3. What does it take to start an organisation that one wants to stay invested in? Yesterday I tried to list the various factors- telling everyone that you have started something, a long term goal and vision, sustainability. Maybe this is what is required. Of course, passion, interests and ...