“Abandon the idea that you will forever be the victim of the things that have happened to you. Choose to be a victor.”
― Seth Adam Smith
I’ll never understand people who’re addicted to playing the victim card. You know, the kind who escape responsibility and throw blame around like confetti? The kind who have the innate ability to screw people over while making themselves look like the victim?
To the so called injured party-
Sorry to burst your bubble darlings, but your self-defeating drama, your whiny mentality and all of your excuses won’t fetch you unquestioning sympathy. So for once, try taking responsibility for your actions. Please? You can’t create your own storms and get mad when it rains. And, umm if you got drama with everyone… have you ever thought maybe it’s you, not them?
But you can, if you truly want, flee this damaging cycle. Do not look for chances to be a victim, especially when you aren’t even under attack. Come out of this imaginary bad world you’ve built around yourself to protect your fragile ego. It’s no good. Break this habit, and watch yourself grow.
THANK YOU
With that said, I’d like to know what are your thoughts on this. Do you think that people who play the victim card are narcissists and excessively critical of everything? Or is it that they’re defenceless children who cannot fend for themselves?
I stole my sister’s lollipop. She doesn’t really read my blog so she won’t ever know that her beloved candy stick disappeared into my stomach. Gotcha, baby. Remember when you broke my sandals? Ha.
…And now, some good news. The sky has cracked open its butt and is spurting water on us. Ew. Anyway, the temperature has nosedived and met officials say it’ll be long before it starts escalating again. Yes, you guessed right. Rain makes this girl happy. Rain makes this girl go gaga.
Rain no come, people go mad. Also, rain come and people go mad. People, please stop complaining about jams and waterlogged roads? Aren’t you used to it yet? Abandon your cars on the road and wetly gallop home. Refuse to crawl back home and take charge of your life. Grrrr!
Oh, and if you can’t do that, then don’t ask for rain. See it’s not the government’s job to build drainage or sew severed roads. The government’s job is to ensure corruption and fabricate scandals. It has also been seen that governments actively engage in fooling naive people, by tricking them into believing phoney-fake-promises.
Now, it seems the current government’s doing a poor job. Err, big dude? You’re losing credibility. I haven’t heard of an outrageous scandal involving a mind boggling sum of money in the last 2 years. After Coalgate and 2G Spectrum scandal, that’s fresh. Also the expressways are being built speedily without a hint of corruption. Hmm.
But to this government’s credit, it’s doing a remarkable job of regulating people’s eating habits. B.. Be.. Bee.. Beef. Hush hush. Apparently, it’s bad to slaughter cows for flesh only if you’re going to eat it. If you export it, it’s okay. I think I read somewhere that India is the largest exporter of beef. Isn’t this hypocrisy funny? Tickles me to death. And how they conceived of ‘Fat Tax’ is beyond me. Talk about ingenuity.
Of course, the netas care about culture and women. They’re also in direct contact with God. So that’s how they know that “boys will be boys” and that “girls belong in the kitchen and must serve their husbands”. Netas also know a lot about family planning and one such knowledgable guy has advised families to have at least 4 boys. Mind you, 4 boys and not 4 children. Come on, people! BREED! Because 1.2 billion humans just aren’t enough.
So you see the government has our best interests at its heart. It’s made up of angels and… what do you call male angels? Gee, I need to work on my vocabulary.
But you see it now, right? The government has a lot on its plate, obviously it can’t make time for drains and roads. Deal with it, people. Embrace the chaos and splash in the rain. And when you’re done, look for the rainbow. There is one, always.
**As you might have guessed already, I’m going nowhere with this post. I just wanted to tell you that I’m still alive. Also, I hope you find sarcasm funny.
I know, I admit it. I’ve been neglecting my blog. I haven’t been reading your lovely posts, haven’t been posting anything. I’m sorry.
I got reasons to explain my absence though. Bear with me, please? I haven’t been in the best of my spirits lately. I haven’t lived up to my best image, I haven’t been the best version of myself. I haven’t been taking care of my health. I haven’t been a good friend, haven’t been a good daughter. Heck, I haven’t been a good person. This last month was wild, and I let myself down. That I failed to embrace positivity is an understatement. I, in fact, have been systematically shedding it from my life.
Err, that’s a lot of have-nots.
My grandfather had two heart attacks inside of 15 days and had to undergo an emergency heart surgery. I was mad because I couldn’t help him. A childhood friend lost her father. I was mad because I couldn’t make her feel better. I neglected my own health because I was too sad to exercise and eat healthy, no kidding. I got accepted into the Harvard Peek Program, but decided not to go for it. Then later I was mad at myself because I let go of such a brilliant opportunity. Ain’t I stupid?
I think I caused a rift between two friends, got yelled at for attempting damage control. So I was mad at myself for trying. I was so angry with myself that I refused to study. 3 weeks and I didn’t touch a book. I was so busy being sad, how could I make time for books?
Yes, I’ve had a mad, rough few days.
But it’s a bad phase, not a bad life.
They say bad times teach resilience. Well, it’s true.
Now I’m no Tibetan Monk. I don’t have sagely mantras to offer to you. But here are some lessons I’ve learnt. It’s something we all know—we just need a reminder from time to time.
Don’t be hard on yourself
Really, it’s no good. Stretching yourself too far will only break your spring. Instead, push yourself slowly. An inch at a time. It’ll take a while, but you’ll reach the terminus without breaking your back. And if not, then remember that you don’t have to excel at everything, okay? Mediocrity is not always bad. Find yourself a different path.
Timing is NOT everything
They teach you that opportunity knocks only once. That’s a big, fat lie (Tell me who’s spreading these lies, she needs a thrashing). If you let an opportunity pass you by, worry not. You have your whole life ahead of you, countless opportunities will knock at your door. You’re competent, you’re strong. You’ll net them. If life gave us only one chance we’d go to our graves as soon as we’re born.
Do NOT hate
Life’s too, too short to hate. Hatred will make your insides hollow, it’ll make you a bitter, jealous human. It’ll do you no good. Learn to love and forgive, learn to let go. You’ll be happier and merrier. Forgiving is not a sign of weakness. It’s a strength you must strive to posses.
There are things you can’t control
I struggle a lot with this one. There’s so much around us over which we have no control. You had plans for shopping but its 45 degrees outside? You’re mad but can you control the sun? No? Then get over it. Go shop another day. You can’t control weather, people, death or traffic. Put on a smile, be brave and let it go.
Grow and evolve
You’ll lose if you don’t evolve. Darwin’s Natural selection, ding ding! Let your heart, mind, soul grow and flourish. It’s hard to get out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself, but it’s worth every effort. A static mind will creep you and eat you alive. So let it blossom, let yourself blossom. Keep making advances, one at a time. Identify areas where you need to make changes and then work systematically to achieve your ideals. Expand your comfort zone.
Stop giving excuses
So you’re dissatisfied with your life? Who’s stopping you from making changes? You want to exercise more? Then exercise more. You want to eat healthy? Then do it. You want to go out more? Then go out more. Take charge now. It’s your life and only you can tract it! Push yourself to the edge and then make a leap. The wind will charge your body.
You’ll find peace
It may sound impossible right now. But if you show enough determination and resilience, you’ll soon clear the mess around you. You’ll disentangle one net at a time and slowly free yourself. It’ll take a week, a month, or a year— but you’ll find peace. Things may not make sense right now, but they’ll all fall into place. Do your part and then let life work its miracles.
Find reasons to be positive
It’s difficult when you’re stuck in a bad phase. But positivity is perhaps the only thing that’ll help you recover and build yourself again. You’re your person, never forget that. Things may be bad right now, but it will get better. It always does. So find that positive ray of light and keep it close to your heart. The dark clouds will make way for sunlight. Exude positivity and watch good things come to you.
Do NOT judge
This is a no-brainer. Everybody—your friends, your foes, your family, people on the streets—is fighting their own battles. You do not know which war they’re waging, what’s causing them to be mad and angry. Be patient, be accepting. They’re your people. Do not judge and make monsters out of people in your head. They’re as confused, sad, mad, angry & puzzled as you are.
Well that’s it for now. But as you might have guessed, this list is by no means exhaustive. Maybe you can add to it? Let’s see if we can make it more comprehensive! As for me, I hope I act over this wisdom and not come across as a hypocrite. Pardon me if I do, I’m only human!
“One reason that cats are happier than people is that they have no newspapers.”
― Gwendolyn Brooks, In the Mecca
So my 14 year old sister asked me to stop reading the morning paper.
“Why?” I was puzzled!
“Because there’s so much hate in the paper. They only talk about murders, robberies, kidnappings. You know, the bad stuff. It’s depressing.”
I stared at the paper I was reading. Yes, there it was, written in bold. “Drunken Teenagers Thrash Cop”
And then I couldn’t stop thinking.
Where did we go wrong?
Are alcohol, guns, governments, corporations and newspapers to be blamed? Or are we, as a people, responsible for birthing the news these papers print every night? Is only the press responsible for bad press?
If there’s no love in the world
Let’s build a new world!
We’ll sprinkle it with kind smiles,
and bestow on each opportunities alike
We’ll make a world so bright
A place where there’s only light
No room for hate and avarice
No apocalyptic weapons in sight
Where making love and not money
Is taught to your child
Where acceptance is truly universal,
Atheists not jeered at, religious don’t fight
A place with water plenty, plenty food & delight
Will it not be nice, to have equal rights?
No hungry kids with spines showing, nor empty bottles in sight
We’ll all take what we need, no loony hoarding, alright?
You’re black, she’s white, he’s red, I’m brown
Here none of us will wear any crown
Bigotry, Racism, Intolerance.. and their likes
Expunged from lexicon to the horror of some, yikes
Murders, kidnappings, wars won’t exist
People will learn to accept, critique, reason, resist
There’ll not be much pollution, no wetlands will disappear
More than money, we’ll learn to appreciate Earth as it appears
We’ll love, we’ll laugh, we’ll play, we’ll fight
But before night falls in our simple world,
We’ll remember to embrace each other, tight
I’m just a 20 something, what do I know about the world, you say?
This is not where I want to live, I’ll say,
This is not where I want to live, I say.
These days, I’m having trouble in connecting with the world. Things are not going my way and I know I need to be patient, but how much time is enough time? I wish the world was simpler, maybe because I cannot get any tougher! 2 A.M. thoughts never fail to surprise, isn’t it? Well, I hope that you’re all having a wonderful time and if you’re not, I pray that it doesn’t get any tougher for you.Sending lots of love your way.
A boy died and found himself in Almighty’s heaven
“Look! Flowers, rainbows, apples & ripe lemons!”
His peepers twinkled with awe and revere
When he saw angels and heathens titter together
The paradise was gleeful and merry
In abundance occurred boy’s favourite, cherry!
With good grace, he sprinted to woods eerie
Sitting on soft mud, stuffed his mouth full of berries
Hands stained purple, he walked on, free of chores
Romped and trogged till he got to the edgy shore
Peeped into sparkly waters, lo and behold!
On Earth,
His sister wept in memory of her brother, eyes sore
His heart ached, his hand couldn’t reach her
Frantically he dived into water, cold as freezer
He didn’t fight death, this time, no!
Paradise’s glory forgotten, he knew he had to go
When he opened his eyes, he was lying in rubble
Trapped in a baby’s body, at his nose formed dusty bubbles
Up in heaven, God sighed.
She picked up her wand—
And crossed some paths that
Wouldn’t have crossed otherwise
And as if by magic, Ruth appeared form behind boulders
The baby yelled as he saw her, raised his aching shoulders
She heard, saw him lying naked by the rocks, appalled
She nursed and played with the baby so golden, so bald
One look at the baby, she knew he’d fill her void
She named him Ron, after her dead big brother so noid
God sighed, again
“There you go, Ruth” she smiled
“Take care of him as he took care of you
You’ll both live for years together
Before I see you again in paradise…”
Because I read a story of a sex worker who was forced into the trade by her younger brother.
I saw this lovely quote in the paper today and thought I’d share it here. The Speaking Tree is trove of wisdom! I admit I don’t always understand the esoteric spiritual facts they try to shed white light on, but plain ones like these always, always get to me. It’s incredible how a simple one liner can so effortlessly give the mind something to ponder over.
I dream of giving birth to a child who will ask, “Mother, what was war?”
~ Eve Merriam
This reminded me of another quote-
I kept asking who did it?
Israel? Palestina?
Russians? Ukraine?
Then my mom answered.
Humans.
Humans killing humans.
~ Unknown
And another one by Niccolò Machiavelli-
Wars begin when you will, but they do not end when you please.
There’s great wisdom in these words, yet wars are ubiquitous. We wage wars to kill, to satisfy avarice. For grabbing land and oilfields. Wars for power and status (that often manifest themselves as wars of religion)… and wars in the name of nationalism. And then, we talk of a mega war to end all wars. But does such an end really exist?
What’s your take on this? Do you think the wisdom offered here is impossible to put into effect? How much more bloodshed before we finally perceive the uselessness and sheer stupidity of war? Will the realisation ever dawn on humans? Or will we keep warring till the end of days? Can a mega war really end all wars and bring peace?
“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”
~Ernest Hemingway
…Or sit down at a keyboard and bleed. When I took to blogging 3 months ago, my fat head was filled with wild skepticism. Who would want to read my rants? Why the heck would somebody sitting halfway across the globe, or somebody I’ve never met, be remotely interested in what I had to say?
Turns out people are as nice as they’re supposed to be, humanity’s oozing out of this giant spherical orb and altruism takes a teensy tickle to come to life. Creating a WP Blog is probably the best thing I’ve done for myself. I’m loving it.
Let’s tickle each other and keep those smiles coming.
I don’t get it. I just don’t get it. After a century of colossal tech developments, wild scientific advancements and crazy inventions, humans refuse to recognise and acknowledge how critical this planet’s well-being is to them. They have so much intelligence (haha), yet use so little of it. It’s scary, saddening and maddening to know that the activists amongst us have to wrestle with the governments to save humanity. Are you kidding me?
Delhi’s infamous pollution has cut the life expectancy of its residents by a handsome 6.3 years. We’ve reduced the mighty Yamuna to a trickle, and a joke. Eighteen lovely drains empty untreated sewage into it. In 2012 INR 1,500 crore was pumped into Yamuna to bring it back to life. In 2016, INR 4,500 crore will be spent on reviving the ailing river. No, nothing will be done about the industries that empty hot chemicals into it. We need the industries, stupid girl.
What circus is this, you ask? A severe case of misplaced priorities is what this is.
Because installing pollution control equipment is exorbitantly expensive, they don’t do it. Hey, they really cannot do it. It kills their profits, okay? They say they don’t know much about nuclear waste disposal and what they do know is very costly to implement. So they throw it in the ocean, sometimes bury it underground.
E-waste management isn’t very cost efficient either, so they dump waste in incinerators or landfills where it merrily releases toxics like mercury and lead into water and soil. Recycling is way too costly for manufacturers to undertake, okay?
These arguments are cogent and rational, it’s makes no economic sense to save the environment. My fat head gets it now. Big people, big corporations, big governments want to make big money to help the poor proletariat. Now if the activity of assembling big bucks destroys the very things that money is supposed to buy for people, well! So be it. Who cares? People can drink money when they run out of water.
Why give a crap about environment? Imagine how much happiness money will bring to you! There’s so much you can do with more finances. That fine house you always wanted? It will look marvellous amidst smoggy skies, dead land and rotting water.
What’s more, natural catastrophe will also bring with it economic opportunities. The corporations are looking forward to erecting markets of breathing masks and packeted air. Don’t sigh. These are as plausible as bottled water.
Jokes apart, the entire human race is mindless in a very, very funny way. Ah puny human! You commodify the world, create a few scientific wonders and think you’re the great conquerer? You build cars, planes, ships and think you rule nature. You’ve achieved so much in the last hundred years that you’re now drunk on power. But what is a hundred years?
In geology, it’s probably a dimensionless dot. The Earth has been around for 4.543 billion years. Do you think bad decisions made over a century or two will affect the Earth? Earth has survived everything in its time. From comets and meteors to rising/falling oceans and volcanic eruptions. What makes you think it cannot survive a nuclear apocalypse? Or thinning of ozone layer?
Yes, if all nuclear weapons went off together today, life as we know it will cease to exist. The Earth will become a sizzling ball of fire, some say it’ll experience a nuclear winter. But life, somewhere in some form, will survive. Maybe beneath the arctic ice or inside the oceanic vents, who can tell? And it’ll flourish when the conditions are ripe again. Oh, of course, we won’t be here to see it. We’ll be as gone as the dinosaurs. Grrrrr.
So what if we sooth all water with toxins or leak deadly poison into air? The Earth doesn’t care one bit, it’ll not be rendered useless. There are life forms that abhor oxygen. Heck, oxygen’s lethal for them. They’ll live on and soon rival the present variety and diversity of species. Evolution’s deviously beautiful, isn’t it? If we’re gone tomorrow, the Earth wouldn’t shed one tear for us.
So hello, puny humans. You’re not killing the Earth, it’s so mighty you can’t touch it. All you’re doing is moving towards your own demise at an increasing speed everyday. You’re slowly poisoning yourselves.
Also, I did not cause Delhi’s pollution, give me my 6 years back, okay?
“How in the hell could a man (woman) enjoy being awakened at 6:30 A.M. by an alarm clock, leap out of bed, dress, force-feed, shit, piss, brush teeth and hair, and fight traffic to get to a place where essentially you made lots of money for somebody else and were asked to be grateful for the opportunity to do so?”
~Charles Bukowski
3 months ago, when I wrote When Slaves Promote Slavery, I wasn’t aware of this quote- it is the perfect summary to the 650-word post.
It’s just so scary to think that I’ll be forever stuck doing the same stuff a zillion times over, to think that tomorrow won’t resemble tomorrow anymore.
Yes, I’m aware that almost all bright-eyed, 20 somethings say they’ll build a romantic life and bypass the monotony. That they’ll kill the black and fill their lives with colour. But almost nobody is able to fabricate a permanent colourful web around them. Everybody falls into a regime and the thrill is lost to work forever. Is there a way to escape this?
La vie en rose🌹 