24th August, 2007

Hiya folks, compadres, asdiqa, friends

Well, Friday is back again, and the manner in which time is flying, we will be back to the fun cooler days of Autumn.
What about winter? Nay, we do not have winter, just a few days when the thermometer reminds us that we have jackets and sweaters to wear. To tell you the truth, it gets quite warm if you have a thick sweater on. So, it is a better idea to have very thin pullovers.
Nevertheless, the Desert gets quite cold in the night. I remember, many eons back, our ‘all guys’ tennis team and friends went for an outing close to Jebel Ali Hotel (which is now so near, you won’t be calling it an outing. Then if you go way back, people used to picnic close to Iranian Hospital, and even the area behind Ramada Hotel in Bur Dubai were all sandy dunes, and when I am speaking of way back, actually it is only early 70’s that we are talking about). Well going back to the outing near Jebel Ali hotel, we stayed near the beach overnight, spread blankets on the sand, barbecued and devoured biryani rice (local version) and that appeared to be a lovely, I think, a starry October night. One of our guys had brought with him a sleeping bag, and he was the pun of many a joke that eveningt. Until wait, a Shamaal hit us (northern cold winds), then he had the last laugh. It was so cold, that a couple of us, found it nice and cozy (bien and calentito) to sleep in my car. I had to be careful, because Sharif was sleeping next to me, but then, he was so tired that he remained quite a gentleman throughout the rest of the night.
That brought back another memory, when this time we went camping on an island off the beach of Khorfakkan. Well, that was certainly something to think about. A friend had a harpoon gun with him, and when we snorkeled in the water around, replete of fish such as Shahri, Hammour and Sultan Ibrahim , he actually asked us to choose fish scampering about, and he would harpoon it for us. I had never thought that fishing at times could be such an easy matter. Later on, one of the guys, everyone would point out it to be Shar, got a little intoxicated, first he burnt down half the tent when he disposed off the end of his Marlboro lights very close to the tarpaulin, and which eventually led to the tent ablaze, and t if that was not the end of his pranks, he began pelted us with chicken eggs, or for some unfortunate guys, I can humbly point out that I was one of them, smashed the eggs open using our temples as the base, and prompting us to go swimming, to clean off the muck and smell, at around 4 in the morning. Well, that was a couple of ‘down memory lane’ episodes for you. Who said the ‘past’ was monotonous and dull?

A guy once asked me to define ‘contentment’. I had to do a lot of thinking on this. So, what is contentment, and what is enough. I have pursued the path of ‘enough’ once before in a previous blog, therefore I will only touch on ‘contentment’ today.

Answers.com describes Contentment as
Contentment refers to the neuro-physiological experience of satisfaction and being at ease in one's situation, body, and/or mind. The freedom from anxiety, want or need. Contentment is the goal behind all goals because once achieved there is nothing to seek until it is lost. A living system cannot maintain contentment for very long as complete balance and harmony of forces means death.

Collins Gem Dictionary:
The act of being mentally and emotionally satisfied and the willingness of accepting things as they are.

Well, in my belief contentment is coming very close to achieving ‘nirvana’ (paradise, or being in a state of emancipation from ignorance and the extinction of all attachment.)
So, what does that actually mean?
In a lay mans words, I guess:
It means that it is when we are at a stage of having achieved also everything in life, that there is no possibility of wishing or wanting more, and striving for more has no meaning at all, and the thought of ‘giving up everything’ is most pleasant and melodious, then only we are in the total state of contentment.

So, then, what is giving away everything:
Sometimes in life, we have to take on decisions that at many other times would seem preposterous. Thus, a state of mind when achieved, where every physical, emotional and spiritual possession can be sacrificed resulting in a hurt deep down in one’s system; a hurt that is sustained in any condition whatsoever, then that would tantamount to ‘giving away everything’.

Okay, no one told you that I am fully sane. No one said that I cannot be boring at times. Actually, believe it or not, we all have some very good genes, and some very defective ones. We are all born like that. It is only the most powerful, famous guys/gals who are able to disguise and mask such defective genes, are people who really shine in the world (until caught out, hee hee) and emerge as leaders and mentors.

Now, I promise to give you all some rest and hope to write my next blog in mid September. As usual, my advice for you would be, whatever you are doing in life, do it good. Remember if you tell the truth, then you do not have to remember anything. And last but not the least, “LIFE is simply what YOU learn to make of it.”

Chao

August 17th, 2007

AUGUST 17TH, 2007
Hiya amigos once again.
It is blog time and nice to be back with you. When someone asks me a question, how's life? My reply is pulling on. Well life is all about going on, and going on it is, until the battery stops. Then you are no longer pulling on.
The older I am getting, the more I look forward to Friday mornings. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with (anyways getting up early notwithstanding) the absolute joy of not having to be at work. Although Thursday night has always been, for many many moons, of classical music, a couple of glasses of red, smoked cheese and a desperate, head throbbing grogginess the following morning. Either way, the first few hours of a Friday morning are most enjoyable.

A few days ago, I was sifting through some old documents, searching for a particular certificate that I was so legally thirsting, and I had a steaming cup of cardamom tea in one hand, I chanced upon an article that had intrigued me a lot when I had first read. I had had every intention of posting it then, but somehow it had seen the better of the bottom of a pile of unworthy paper and all but lost to me.
It was Longevity versus Retirement age, and that went a long way to remind me that my need to retire in the next year or so, was paramount and overriding any monetary temptation that I may receive in my job or outside. I enjoy it when I hear grunts of ' oh, no' and 'no, sir' from my students, but heart to heart, I am sure they are also in some unique way perhaps happy to see the back of me. There is nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your precedences straight. However, I have posted the article in the news section, and the statistics is mind boggling. Give it a go and read it for yourself.
For, this is life. Quoting an excerpt from my book, The Universe is one big Tale, and people are episodes. And life is a huge cycle of existence, and the circle merely goes round and round. You get on in one place and you get off another. Others do the same. They just get on where you left off, and when they get off, others climb in, and their stories find a new beginning. And, this is what life is all about.
I was asked me a question, and that was, what was the difference between a teacher and a coach? Well, I could have answered the question if I wanted to, but decided to take a more professional approach. So, I wandered through web definitions and came up with this:
A teacher tells, a coach asks; a teacher lectures from the front, a coach supports from the back; a teacher gives answers according to a set curriculum, a coach provides guidelines and creates the environment for the learner to arrive at his or her own conclusions; a teacher mostly gives a monologue, a coach is in continuous dialog with the learners. A coach should also be able to adapt the learning experience 'in mid-air' by using his or her own initiative in order to steer the learning experience to where the learners want to create value.
Okay, so it is getting very boring. Well, what did you expect to find on an old, decrepit, wrinkling, shriveling but smart and proficient man's homepage. Hee Hee.
So, let us talk about something serious then. In a discussion with a friend, the topic of white lies, lies and truth surfaced. Is it okay to use white lies, to get out of a difficult and tricky situation? I guess so. My response was, that in our lives, one time or the other, we need to get out of situation where at times straying from the truth, or avoidance of truth is necessary. However, this saying is what I believe in: If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.
So why should we lie in the first place, anyway. I gave it a lot of thought and came up with the following conclusions
1. Some people have this type of attitude. They cannot live to tell the truth. Their life is a lie. They always want to show they are something, when they are not.
2. Some people like to have much more than they have, whether it is material or spiritual
3. Some people are just not good enough
4. Some people are in the wrong place at the wrong time
5. Some time they are forced to lie to protect themselves or to protect others
6. Sometimes, specially between spouses, it is easier to lie to get out of situation
7. Any thing else????
However, my belief and philosophy holds a lot of weight for me, that 'If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.' So, just go ahead and tell the truth. You will find it the most exhilarating and wonderful experience. You will be relaxed both emotionally and spiritually.
Well, I guess, the time has come, and once more I will be saying good bye. And, until next time, whatever you are doing, do it good. Achieve your aspirations in life, for believe it or not, from the time you are born, since then . . . TIME IS RUNNING OUT.

July 27th, 2007

28TH JULY, 2007
Hiya Folks,
It's me once again. It has been sometime, but I guess old age is now taking deep roots into my system. So what, it is nice to be alive and kicking. And, of course, smiling once in a while.
So what is life. Seriously.
I read an article in Discover magazine. I am not sure I can share the entire article with you'll but I shall give you a jist of it. It was all to do with Positive Attitude. Now, please do not take me wrong, all you religious aficionados out there.
We all agree that it is God's will in whatever we do, and perhaps how we look at things, but that should not stop any of us from trying to do things and try to make it happen. The article talked about Positive Attitude towards everything that occurs in our day-to-day life. If good happens, then we need to understand that somewhere we had a hand in accomplishing it. Also, if bad happens, then it is similar to the above. Whatever we do in life, we are responsible for it. Because responsibility comes with choice, and it is us, and us alone, who make the choice in whatever we do. People influence us, our situation compels us, but we still make the decision ourselves.
So,
LIFE IS JUST MERELY 'WHAT WE MAKE OF IT'.
Reflect all over again.
We make our life. We make the way we live. I am not saying that we should hurt other people in getting the best for ourselves, but not getting the best for ourselves is also hurting the person you owe the most in life. And that is YOU. If you set your values real high, then you will be doing the best for everyone, when you are doing the best for yourself.
I am always arguing that we have come to this life for a purpose, and to achieve this purpose, we have all been bestowed with a talent. An inert talent which we have to search for, and get. It is really a sin, and I mean a real sin if we discover our talent, and just let it go to waste. I have heard people saying, 'but it is not going to get me anywhere'. So, who cares? We need to do it for ourselves, and ourselves only.
Like a funny thing, I have written a couple of books and many short stories and poems, and I have a special audience of One who has read most of my work. Guess who? Yes, the answer is 'Me'.
So, to repeat:
LIFE IS JUST MERELY 'WHAT WE MAKE OF IT'.
Reflect all over again.
Changing the topic, we were all in a classroom, and a very difficult topic emerged. My boss called out and asked the students the definition of INTEGRITY. Although, a word normally used many times in our daily life, what the hell is Integrity? How do you define it?
Answers.com came up with:
In my own words I would say that INTEGRITY is, A very nice balance of self respect and confidence.,,,, Jamison.
A more psychological answer:
Besides being a virtue it is a flowing plant. It grows in the early summer and has pink flowers and a heady aroma. When the flower die they leave seed cases behind that are translucent and the seeds can be seen in the flat shiny silvery pods. These are cut and uses as dried floral decoration.
(A Bit too deep for me, but it does make sense, though)
Collins English Dictionary definition:
"it is adherence to moral principles; honesty."
My boss's definition of Integrity:
"It is what you are doing, when no one is watching."
I just liked it. Made a lot of sense to me. Actually, integrity is the essential purpose of our meaning in daily life, religion, our friendship, our loves and romances; everything that makes sense to us.
Take it for example, honesty is integrity in business. To be an honest business man, the mere thought of cheating or manipulating another fellow person would be akin to having no integrity at all.
In life and love, to have fun and cheat on your spouse just because they will not have any knowledge about it is parallel to have no respect for their feelings.
In religious terms, to hide and do sinful things (if you are a religious person) and that no one is looking is making a mockery of religion.

So, our actions and deeds when we have no one to compel us to do otherwise, and we do it on our own free will it would be the real meaning or the real sense to integrity. Integrity is analogous with what our values and standards are in life. What are the standards we have set for ourselves? Ask yourself this question. You may find the answers change over your life time.
If we are talking about a hot summer day, then Dubai is just the right place to be. Well, hot is just a simple way of explaining a 'sizzling, steaming, flesh burning, head reeking, body perspiring' day. Yes, It is the end of July and August is about to show its mean presence to all us, dubai-ites. Well we have survived nearly half a century or more, a few more years will not hurt us that badly.
This weeks prime sites:
Answers.com
Discover.com
Well, until next time, and if you have any comments please do write to me, and whatever you are doing right now, do it with some purpose in life. That is what will matter most in the end.
Buenos Tardes