I got this poem as a forwarded message and found it to be really touching. Thought of sharing with you all.

1. reproduced below is a poem written by a Fourth
generation, 24 year old
Career Officer in the Indian Armed Forces, spurred by the
report of the 6th
pay commission and a heartless article written by a
"respectable" denizen of
our great country in a national daily on the armed forces
and the 6th pay
commission. Hope you like it as much as i did reading
it....




Why do I still serve you?

How you play with us, did you ever see?
At Seven, I had decided what I wanted to be;
I would serve you to the end,
All these boundaries I would defend.

Now you make me look like a fool,
When at Seventeen and just out of school;
Went to the place where they made "men out of
boys"
Lived a tough life .sacrificed a few joys.

In those days, I would see my 'civilian' friends,
Living a life with the fashion trends;
Enjoying their so called "College Days"
While I sweated and bled in the sun and haze.
But I never thought twice about what where or why
All I knew was when the time came, I'd be ready to do
or die.

At 21 and with my commission in hand,
Under the glory of the parade and the band,
I took the oath to protect you over land, air or sea,
And make the supreme sacrifice when the need came to be.

I stood there with a sense of recognition,
But on that day I never had the premonition,
that when the time came to give me my due,
You'd just say," What is so great that you
do?"

Long back you promised a well to do life;
And when I'm away, take care of my wife.
You came and saw the hardships I live through,
And I saw you make a note or two,
And I hoped you would realise the worth of me;
but now I know you'll never be able to see,
Because you only see the glorified life of mine,
Did you see the place where death looms all the time?
Did you meet the man standing guard in the snow?
The name of his newborn he does not know...
Did you meet the man whose father breathed his last?
While the sailor patrolled our seas so vast?

You still know I'll not be the one to raise my voice
I will stand tall and protect you in Punjab Himachal and
Thois.

But that's just me you have in the sun and rain,
For now at Twenty Four, you make me think again;
About the decision I made, Seven years back;
Should I have chosen another life, some other track?

Will I tell my son to follow my lead?
Will I tell my son, you'll get all that you need?
This is the country you will serve
This country will give you all that you deserve?

I heard you tell the world "India is shining"
I told my men, that's a reason for us to be smiling
This is the India you and I will defend!
But tell me how long will you be able to pretend?
You go on promise all that you may,
But it's the souls of your own men you betray.

Did you read how some of our eminent citizens
Write about me and ridicule my very existence?
I ask you to please come and see what I do,
Come and have a look at what I go through
Live my life just for a day
Maybe you'll have something else to say?

I will still risk my life without a sigh
To keep your flag flying high
but today I ask myself a question or two.
Oh India.. Why do I still serve you?

I was waiting for my train at Mumbai Central Station. I reached there 1 hour before the scheduled departure of my train. I found a vacant seat and perched myself on it. Having nothing to do, I was looking around the hustle and bustle on the platform. Just then a rag picker caught my attention. She was crushing the discarded mineral water and soft drink bottles and collecting them in a sack. She was being helped by a boy of about 7-8 years old. He was probably her son. He was opening the lids of the bottles and handing them over to his mother to crush them. They were doing this job as if it was a ritual.

And suddenly I saw something that disturbed me to no end. I found that the boy was picking up bottles which had a little bit of soft drink left over in them and was drinking it!! The quantity of soft drink left over was obviously insignificant to its original user. But for the little boy it was like a gift. He was happily sipping away the left over soft drink from each such bottle. Some bottles had the quantity which could be called a swig while some others had just a few drops in them. But the quantity did not matter to the little boy. He was happy that he was getting to taste a variety of soft drinks.

I suddenly felt the urge to see the happiness on the boy's face if he gets a whole bottle of sealed soft drink. I looked around and found a few refreshment stalls nearby. I went to one of them and bought a small bottle of Maaza. I went to the boy's mother and gave it to her asking her to give it to her son. I saw the bewildered look on her face and smiled at her. She took the bottle but did not hand it over to the little boy. I wondered what she was waiting for. She then called out some name and another little boy came running to her. He was younger to the other boy, and was aged about 4-5 years. The woman gave the soft drink to her younger son. He grabbed it happily and started drinking the contents. The elder boy was just looking at his brother and said nothing. He neither asked him for the bottle nor made any attempt to grab it from him. I felt sorry that I did not buy a larger bottle. I then convinced myself that they would both share the soft drink. But the younger boy showed no signs of sharing the drink with his brother. Moreover he was tempting his brother with each sip. The bottle was 2/3 empty.

The elder boy then looked at me and smiled coyly. I wondered why he was feeling shy. Was it because he now knew that I realized how poor he was? Probably not, 'coz he must be used to his poverty by now. It must be 'coz he now realized that I saw him drinking the left over soft drink from discarded bottles. When he saw me the second time, I called him and gave him the money he needs to buy another bottle of soft drink. He took the money hesitantly and ran towards the refreshment stalls.

I felt peaceful after that 'coz now he could buy a soft drink for himself. But even after a few minutes I didn't see the boy coming back to his mother with his new soft drink bottle. I looked for him at the refreshment stalls and found that none of the stall owners were ready to even acknowledge his presence at their stall. They probably thought that a rag picker's child cannot buy anything that they have on sale. After struggling for a while and shuttling from one stall to another, the boy finally managed to buy something to eat. He took it and ran away happily along with his younger brother.

The whole episode made me think..

Is India Really Shining??!!!

My life is like a blank canvas....I want you to fill it with brightest of colours.

I find myself groping in the dark...I want you to hold my hand and lead me to my destination.

I'm looking for a meaning to my existence....I want you to show me the meaning.

I wander around without a purpose.. I want you to be the purpose of my life.

I search my soul for an identity... I want you to be my soul-mate so I can see myself in you.

I want to share my deepest thoughts with you.. I want you to hear me out.

I feel incomplete and empty within.. I want you to fill the void in me.

I always talk about me & myself... I want you to be a part of my life so I can talk about US.

I feel that you are somewhere around but unable to see me...I want you to open your eyes and find me waiting for you.

I want those long heart-to-heart talks, that bickering and making up, those cozy moments and those unforgettable sweet memories..All with you.

" See dad, the scenery of green trees moving away is very beautiful"

This behavior from a thirty year old son made the other people feel strange about him. Every one started murmuring something or other about this son.

"This guy seems to be a crack.." newly married Anup whispered to his wife.

Suddenly it started raining... Rain drops fell on the travelers through the opened window. The Thirty year old son, filled with joy " see dad, how beautiful the rain is .."

Anup's wife got irritated with the rain drops spoiling her new suit.

Anup : " cant you see its raining, you old man, if ur son is not feeling well get him soon to a mental asylum..and dont disturb public henceforth"

The old man hesitated first and then in a low tone replied " we are on the way back from hospital, my son got discharged today morning , he was a blind by birth, last week only he got his vision, these rain and nature are new to his eyes.. Please forgive us for the inconvenience caused..."

Posting it as a blog is my homage to this unsung hero.....

A MUST READ.......

Dear Editors of HT, TOI, IndianExpress and TheHindu,NDTV, CNN-IBN, I got the mail below from a friend of mine and following the unwritten code of conduct, I am forwarding it to my friends but all efforts of people who have been forwarding this mail would go waste if this mail doesn't reach YOU......

Something to think about..!!

Shame on Indian Media??? Really what a shame...

By the time u guys read this news, the body of Major Manish Pitambare, who was shot dead at Anantnag, would have been cremated with full military honors.

A few days ago, this news swept across all the news channels 'Sanjay Dutt relieved by court'. 'Sirf Munna not a bhai' '13 saal ka vanvaas khatam' 'although found guilty for possession of armory, Sanjay can breath sigh of relief as all the TADA charges against him are withdrawn' Then many personalities like Salman Khan said 'He is a good person. We knew he will come out clean'. Mr Big B said "Dutt's family and our family have relations for years he's a good kid. He is like elder brother to Abhishek". His sister Priya Dutt said "we can sleep well tonight. It's a great relief"

In other news, Parliament was mad at Indian team for performing bad; Greg Chappell said something; Shah Rukh Khan replaces Amitabh in KBC and other such stuff. But most of the emphasis was given on Sanjay Dutt's "phoenix like" comeback from the ashes of terrorist charges.

Surfing through the channels, one news on BBC startled me. It read "Hisbul Mujahidin's most wanted terrorist 'Sohel Faisal' killed in A nantnag , India . Indian Major leading the operation lost his life in the process. Four others are injured.

It was past midnight , I started visiting the stupid Indian channels, but Sanjay Dutt was still ruling. They were telling how Sanjay pleaded to the court saying 'I'm the sole bread earner for my family', 'I have a daughter who is studying in US' and so on. Then they showed how Sanjay was not wearing his lucky blue shirt while he was hearing the verdict and also how he went to every temple and prayed for the last few months. A suspect in Mumbai bomb blasts, convicted under armory act...was being transformed into a hero.

Sure Sanjay Dutt has a daughter; Sure he did not do any terrorist activity. Possessing an AK47 is considered too elementary in terrorist community and also one who possesses an AK47 has a right to possess a pistol so that again is not such a big crime; Sure Sanjay Dutt went to all the temples;
Sure he did a lot of Gandhigiri but then........ ..

Major Manish H Pitambare got the information from his sources about the terrorists' whereabouts. Wasting no time he attacked the camp, killed Hisbul Mujahidin's supremo and in the process lost his life to the bullets fired from an AK47. He is survived by a wife and daughter (just like Sanjay Dutt) who's only 18 months old.

Major Manish never said 'I have a daughter' before he took the decision to attack the terrorists in the darkest of nights. He never thought about having a family and he being the bread earner.
No news channel covered this since they were too busy hyping a former drug addict, a suspect who's linked to bomb blasts which killed hundreds. Their aim was to show how he defied the TADA charges and they were so successful that his conviction in possession of armory had no meaning. They also concluded that his parents in heaven must be happy and proud of him.

Parents of Major Manish are still living and they have to live rest of their lives without their beloved son. His daughter won't ever see her daddy again.

Are you one of those who crib about not being born beautiful or about having an "ugly paunch"? Do you curse your stars 'coz you are going bald and you are not even 30?! Then this blog is especially for you. Read on...

Have you ever thought of small little blessings that have been bestowed on you? We often think about what we do not have and fail to appreciate what we do. Do you realize that being able to walk on your own feet, do your things with your own hands, see the beautiful world around you, express your feelings in words, and hear what others have to say to you or for that matter even being able to breathe normally is a blessing? Most of us are lucky to be born with these abilities but, since they have been there with us since birth, just take them for granted. It is only when one is disabled in one of these aspects does he / she realizes its importance.

I have a friend who met with an accident some 9 years ago. And when it occurred the accident appeared to be minor. She had a ligament tear in her leg and had to be operated twice to be able to walk normally. After struggling for 3 long years she was finally able to walk straight. But unfortunately the accident also damaged her spine and the affects are gradually showing up one after the other. Today she is bed ridden, can't even sit on the bed and takes about an hour to brush her teeth!

It is during my recent short stay at hospital that I realized how foolish we are to be bothering about superficial things and material possessions. I saw an asthma patient struggling to breathe. She was just one among many other patients suffering from a variety of ailments. After seeing all of them, the only thing that is important and invaluable to me today is my health.

So my dear friends, stop worrying about things that you don't have and can do nothing about. Start appreciating life's little blessings.

Wish you all Good Health

I know it's been quite some time since I posted any blog. Actually I was busy fighting a challenge posed by HIM up there. Underwent a little surgery and recuperating. Only He knows what's in store for me in the future, but for now I guess He is proud of me that I faced his challenge and lived up to his expectations:-))

So, will get back to you all after the break! Until then....

Happy blogging.

I asked God for Power

He gave me difficulties

so as to increase my will power.

I asked God for Wisdom

He made my life a puzzle

so I could solve it.

I asked God for Prosperity

He gave me knowledge

so I could work.

I asked God for Love

He showed me people who are in distress

So I could help them.

I asked God for Courage

He gave me worries

so I could overcome them.

I asked God for Boons

He gave me opportunities

so I could grab them

I did not get what I asked for

I got all those that I needed.

If you see the photograph of the idol it is very difficult to make out its uniqueness. I was fortunate and blessed enough to have a closer look at the idol and I was left speechless. The idol was made entirely of old newspaper and rope! Even the decorations around the idol were of paper and card board.

But what astonished me the most is the fact that this idol is the brainchild of a carpenter working in my office! His name is vilas. He is not very well educated. In fact I'm ashamed to say that just last year when he was going through bad phase in his personal life, I wrote him off as a weak minded person who was looking for excuses to avoid his duty. Least did I expect that he would think of this brilliant idea of making an eco-friendly Ganesha and contribute in his own modest way towards environment protection. And he took just 5 days leave to complete this 6 feet idol!

That visit to the pandal made me realise that no matter what the background of a person is, each one has some skill and thinking about global issues like environment protection is not the exclusive privilege of educated lot.